Examiner’s General Advice on Unit 2

In this AS Unit students are expected to demonstrate the following skills:

the ability to recall, select and use appropriate historical knowledge and to communicate it effectively (AO1a)
historical understanding involving explanation, analysis and judgement, and key concepts such as causation, consequence, change and continuity; and an understanding of the relationships between key features of the period studied (AO1b)
the ability to analyse and evaluate a range of source material (AO2a)
the ability to analyse and evaluate how the past has been interpreted and represented in different ways (AO2b).

These skills are also assessment objectives (AOs). All questions will aim to test more than one of these objectives, and in an examination answer will be marked accordingly. On any given examination paper, there will be a planned balance of the various skills across the questions to ensure that all are covered. However, individual questions or part questions will focus on certain skills, not necessarily all of them at once. One of the ways of writing an effective answer is therefore to learn to recognise the particular skill that is the focal point of a particular question. However, it is also important to remember that accurate knowledge and understanding are key elements in any AS answer. In a source-based question, generalised statements showing, for example, a student’s awareness that one piece of evidence is less objective and more biased than another will not earn much credit. There must also be a clear indication of some background knowledge and understanding of the topic in addition to the ability to make comparisons and contrasts between sources.

In Unit 2 you must answer one compulsory two-part source-based question plus one of two two-part questions, not source-based, on the chosen option from European, World or British history.

It is important to divide your time well. The first part of each question carries 12 marks; the second part carries 24 marks. You should therefore aim to spend less time on the part (a) questions, or you will risk running out of time on the second and longer part (b) questions.

While Question 1 requires a precise focus on sources and your own knowledge, Questions 2 and 3 do not involve sources. Questions 2 and 3 require demonstration of your own knowledge. There are several skills implicit in this. One element is simple recall. You will need to explain, for example by giving the reasons for a particular event. This requires more than simply listing a series of reasons from memory – a high-level answer will require you to put these reasons in context and relate them to each other. The 24-mark question will require you to examine a particular historical issue, often dressed in the form of a quotation. You must not only call up your knowledge of the topic but also use that knowledge in such a way that you are able to analyse the issues and produce a reasoned argument using the knowledge you have.