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Perceptions of Places

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Perceptions of Places

A place can be experienced and understood differently by different people. Read the profiles and evidence below, then investigate how experiences, needs and information shape perceptions. Use evidence in your explanations; more than one viewpoint can be reasonable.

A coastal town through different eyes

Saltwater Bay is a fictional Australian coastal town. It has a popular beach, a fishing harbour, a small shopping street and a wetland reserve. On summer weekends, visitors arrive by car. Residents use the harbour for work and the beach for swimming, walking and community events. Three people describe Saltwater Bay: Oliver, who lives in the town: “I like being able to walk to the beach after school. In summer, the traffic near the shops can make it hard to cross the road.” Arun, a fisher who works at the harbour: “The harbour is where my family earns a living. I worry when rubbish washes in, but the working boats give the waterfront character.” Zoe, visiting for the first time: “The beach looks beautiful in the photos I saw online. I didn’t expect the town to be so busy on Saturday.”

Evidence from a town survey

The town council asked 100 people what they most wanted improved. The responses are summarised below. People could choose one main priority.

Group

Most selected priority

Local residents (60 people)

Safer road crossings (30 people)

Visitors (40 people)

More public toilets (24 people)

1.In this investigation, what does “perception of a place” mean? Choose the best answer.

The way a person experiences, understands and feels about a place
The exact position of a place on a map
A list of buildings in a place

2.Match each person to the strongest influence on their perception described in the passage.

Oliver
Arun
Zoe

Online photos and a first visit
Living in the town and using its beach and roads
Work and family livelihood at the harbour

3.Which statement is supported by both the profiles and the survey?

Everyone experiences the town in exactly the same way
People’s roles and experiences can affect what they notice or want improved
Visitors are always more concerned about safety than residents

4.How many residents chose safer road crossings as their main priority? What fraction of the surveyed residents is this?

5.Compare Oliver’s and Zoe’s views. Give one difference and explain a likely reason for it using evidence from the passage.

6.True or false: A person’s perception of a place is always an objective and complete account of everything about it.

TrueFalse

7.Complete the sentence: Arun’s work at the harbour shapes his view of it because it is a place of .

8.Complete the sentence: Arun’s concern about rubbish shows that people can value a place and still want it to .

9.Why might the council avoid using only the visitors’ survey responses when planning improvements for Saltwater Bay?

10.Imagine a news post shows only crowded summer traffic in Saltwater Bay. How could this shape someone’s perception, and what important information might it leave out?

11.Choose one improvement that could help more than one group in Saltwater Bay. Explain which groups could benefit and why.