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Standard GradeModern Studies

Enquiry SkillsInvestigating methods

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Writing letters – advantages

Writing a letter allows you to address it specifically to one person who you know can help you.It is a more personal way to communicate and you are more likely to get answers to your questions.

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Writing letters – advantages

If you structure a letter properly with a clear explanation of what you want, you are more likely to get a reply.

I am interested in finding out information about the following:

1………………………………………………….

2…………………………………………………

3…………………………………………………

4…………………………………………………

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter….

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Writing letters – disadvantages

A badly written letter may not get a reply.

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Writing letters – disadvantagesYou may not get a reply because people:

are too busy forget can’t be bothered can’t afford to send

lots of replies to pupils

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Writing letters – disadvantages

Letters can take time to get to their destination.Letters can get lost in the post.

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Writing letters – disadvantages

You may just get a standard letter in reply, which is of no use to you.You may receive a pile of publicity material that does not answer your questions.

Thank you for your interest in our organisation. We enclose some leaflets which may be of use to you. We wish you well in your investigation……..

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The Internet – advantages

The internet gives quick access to a vast amount of information from every corner of the world.

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The Internet – advantagesThe internet is easy, quick to access and inexpensive.It is more up-to-date than many other sources of information.

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The Internet – advantages

The internet contains information in a variety of forms – text, graphics, photo images, sound and video.

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The Internet – advantages

Internet web pages provide fast links to other pages.

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The Internet – advantages

There are a large number of search engines available to help you find information.

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The Internet – advantages

You can save or print the material you find.

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The Internet – disadvantages

Sometimes it can be difficult to find out what you are looking for because there is too much information.

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The Internet – disadvantages

Not everyone has access to a computer to use the internet.Many internet websites are biased, so you must be careful when using their information.

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The Internet – disadvantages

You might download a virus by accident, which could damage your computer files or cause the computer to crash.

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E-mail – advantages

Using e-mail allows you to communicate with people around the world.

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E-mail – advantages

You can send and receive documents or photographs as attachments.

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E-mail – advantages

E-mail is a cheap and fast way of finding out information from people or organisations.It takes away the hassle of using envelopes, stamps and post boxes.

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E-mail – disadvantagesNot everyone has access to a computer and the internet.You have to know the e-mail address of the person or organisation you are contacting.

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E-mail – disadvantagesYour computer could be affected by a virus by opening up a bogus e-mail, or by opening up an attachment.This could result in damage to your computer, or the virus being sent to all your e-mail addresses.

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Newspapers – advantages

Newspapers report up-to-date news from Scotland, the UK and the rest of the world.Newspapers are cheap and most are available daily.

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Newspapers – advantagesIt is easy to find relevant articles.Most newspapers will examine an issue in detail.Newspapers can be kept and re-read later.

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Newspapers – disadvantages

Newspapers can be biased, so they must be read with care.Many support or oppose political parties, e.g. Labour, Conservative, SNP.

Cartoons © Guardian Ltd

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Television – advantages

News and current affairs programmes will cover up-to-date issues.

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Television – advantages

TV programmes can be recorded on a video, a DVD, or a PVR hard disk, and watched later.Many can also be viewed on the internet.

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Television – advantagesTV news programmes usually have political balance – they present different points of view or arguments, and show both sides of a story.

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Television – disadvantages

TV news items can be quite short – a series of sound bites.There is often not enough time for detailed analysis.

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Television – disadvantages

Some investigative TV programmes can be biased, especially if they are focusing on a particular issue they feel strongly about.

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Books – advantagesMany books specialise in Modern Studies issues.They are easy to access and can be bought in many shops or at discounted prices online.

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Books – advantagesBooks can be found in local libraries for free.Libraries have a wide variety of current affairs books, including encyclopaedias.

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Books – disadvantages

Books about Modern Studies issues can become out-of-date very quickly.Books can be expensive to buy.

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CD-Roms and DVDs – advantages

They are easy to access and contain large amounts of informationThis can be in the form of text, graphs, photographs, video and sound clips

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CD-Roms and DVDs – disadvantages

They can become outdated very quickly.They can get damaged easily.They might not work on older computers.

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Conducting an interview – advantages

It allows you to talk to a person one-to-one, who may have information to help you.It lets you have ‘in-depth’ questioning and lets you follow up answers there and then.

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Conducting an interview – advantages

You can extend or cut short the interview depending on progress.It gives you the chance to explore the interviewee’s opinions.

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Conducting an interview – advantages

You can record the interview on tape or video and examine and analyse it at a later date.

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Conducting an interview – disadvantages

It may be difficult to arrange a suitable time.You may not have a long enough time to ask your questions.

I am sorry that I cannot manage to spare you time for an interview this week because of my busy schedule. I could arrange to be available for fifteen minutes on the following Wednesday afternoon.

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Conducting an interview – disadvantages

The interviewee may not respond well to your questions.You may misinterpret or misunderstand what was said.

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Conducting an interview – disadvantages

If you only have pen and paper, you may not have time to write down everything, or you may miss out vital information.

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Using a Questionnaire

A questionnaire is a list of questions that a number of people are asked so that information can be collected about something.

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Using a Survey

A survey is an examination of opinions, behaviour, etc., made by asking questions to a large number of people.

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Questionnaire – advantages

You can ask direct questions, and people are likely to answer them.You can fit the questions to your own needs.

You can easily pull together the answers you get.You can take your time to analyse the results.

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Questionnaire – disadvantages

Questions must be made up carefully, or they could be confusing or misleading.You don’t really know if the respondent is telling the truth or not.

You may not get the questionnaires returned.

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Surveys – advantagesSurveys gives people the chance to express their opinions, especially about important issues.They are easy to use and can get quick results.

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Surveys – disadvantages

Questions must be worded carefully.If you don’t ask the right questions, you can get misleading information.You need to choose the sample carefully.

You rely on people telling the truth.

You may not get all your surveys returned.