Examiner’s Specific Advice

This question is testing several skills and also your knowledge of the topic. It is not a source-based question. Because the question is on a fundamental topic, you are expected to know the main details of the theme, in this case the escalation of the US war effort in Vietnam between the death of President Kennedy and the end of 1965. You are also being required to provide an historical explanation and make a balanced assessment of Johnson’s actions. 

As always with an essay-type question, relevance is the key – your answer should be as concise as possible and should directly address the precise question. The key thing is not to narrate and describe, but set out a coherent, argued answer to the question. It is important to make a judgement and to back it up with selective evidence. This judgement can either feature in a summative conclusion or in a running commentary throughout the essay.

Exemplar Question

2 (04) ‘The decision by President Johnson to escalate the US military support for South Vietnam in 1964 and 1965 was justified in the situation he faced at the time’.

Explain why you agree or disagree with this view.  [24 marks]

Plan

• Introduction: the situation by 1964–65
• Kennedy’s motives, successes and failures to 1963
• Johnson’s motives, successes and failures to 1965
• Conclusion: judgements on the extent to which Johnson’s decisions were ‘justified’ or represented avoidable errors

View Exemplar Answer 1

View Exemplar Answer 2