Year 8 Science · Unit 4 · Lesson 14

Data Sources and the Digital Footprint

Foundation Worksheet

Name

Date

Class

Learning Goals

Define data source, primary source, secondary source and digital footprint.
Classify everyday examples as primary or secondary sources of data.
Recognise the kinds of data that make up a person's digital footprint.

Warm Up

Primary or secondary?

For each example, tick the correct column to show whether it is a primary source (data you collect yourself) or a secondary source (data others collected).

Example	Primary	Secondary
You measure the temperature in the schoolyard with a thermometer.
You download a rainfall record from the Bureau of Meteorology.
Your class runs a survey of how students travel to school.
You copy a population figure from an ABS census table.
A sensor you set up records the soil moisture every hour.
You read earthquake data published by Geoscience Australia.

Your Turn

Sort it!

Each item below is part of a digital footprint or an open-data source. Write each statement letter into the correct box. Each box should receive at least one statement.

A. The search words you type into a browser B. A climate dataset from the Bureau of Meteorology C. The location history saved by a phone app D. Census results published by the ABS E. The videos you watch and how long you watch them F. Thousands of government datasets on data.gov.au G. The items you buy in an online shop H. Ocean temperature readings from a CSIRO buoy

Part of a digital footprint

An open-data source (secondary)

Show What You Know

1. In one sentence, explain the difference between a primary source and a secondary source.

Recall 2 marks

2. Name two things, other than posts you choose to share, that form part of your digital footprint.

Recall 2 marks

Wrap Up

In one sentence, why should you check who collected a set of data before you trust it?