IGCSE HISTORY HINTS ON HOW TO TACKLE PAPER 2
- Paper 2 is essentially designed to test the candidate’s ability to interpret, extrapolate from, evaluate and use historical sources.
- This is an intense paper and each question in the Question Paper targets at least one of the skills mentioned. Individual questions will focus on particular sources, but candidates are encouraged to use any of the sources if it can be used to answer the question.
- This paper is essentially designed to test source skills, contextual knowledge is also required. Contextual knowledge must be used only to comment on the sources under question.
Interpreting sources
Students must analyze the given sources carefully and work out what each source says – this would require one to go further than understanding just the surface meaning of the source.
- The message of each source must be worked out.
- Students must use the details in the source and their contextual knowledge to work out valid interpretations of the source.
- When the interpretation is written they must explain how they have reached it by directly referring to details in the source and to contextual knowledge.
- The examiner needs to know what led the student to that interpretation.
- Interpretations that are informed and supported by contextual knowledge will always be better rewarded.
Extrapolating from the sources
Students must use the sources to reach a conclusion that goes beyond what the sources actually tell you.Students must work out: the purpose, the author, the audience or the impact of the sources.
Contextual knowledge must be used in their response to support the answer.
Evaluating sources
Students could be asked to evaluate sources for (i) usefulness (ii) reliability.For (i) USEFULNESS:
It is important that students do not dismiss as useless, sources that are biased.
Historical sources are biased one way or the other but they still can be useful as they provide evidence of the attitudes of the person or group that produced that source.
For (ii) RELIABILITY:
It is important that students interpret the source and consider who has produced the source and the purpose of that source.
They should then either check the claims made in the source against their knowledge, and /or use their knowledge to consider the possible purpose of the source and how far this makes the reliability of the source questionable.
A third way of evaluating sources consists of comparing what the sources say to what other sources in the paper say. Do they support or disagree with the sources under question? This approach usually gains fewer marks than the first two strategies.
General advice here would be
- give your interpretation of the source,
- explain what you know about the person who produced the source,
- explain why you think they might have a particular purpose in producing the source,
- explain why this makes the source questionable.
Using sources
Very important points on how to tackle the last question:- The final question on the question paper always asks the student to consider how far the sources support a statement about the events.
- Students should first check back through the sources and make a rough list of the ones that support the statement and the ones which do not support/disagree.
- Most of the sources will fall in the category of agree/disagree.
- Only a couple will not fall in this category and should be put under the column neutral.
- Most of the sources, but it is not absolutely necessary that all sources must be used.
- Students should then take the first list and then clearly explain how each source in that group supports the statement. They must make clear which source they are writing about at any particular time (by referring to the source letter).
- They should then do the same with the second group of sources.
- Earlier in the paper they would have already have made judgments about the reliability of the sources. These can be used again here as extra marks are given for any evaluation of the sources.
- Students must not refer back to the earlier answers; they must do the evaluation all over again.
- They must decide, for example, that a source cannot be used to support the statement, because it is not reliable.
Hope the points will help you to tackle Paper 2. Keep a cool head and meet the challenge head on!
MORE VALUABLE TIPS ON 'HOW TO TACKLE PAPER 2'
What time limit strategies would you recommend? Also, other than knowing the topic that will come out in your exam, how does one garner more contextual knowledge effectively?
ReplyDeletePaper 1: 120 minutes to answer 3 questions consisting of 5, 7 and 8 marks respectively, i.e. 40 minutes per question or 2 minutes per mark. for the (a)-part, supply facts in a straight forward manner. For the (b)-part give one or more reasons and pay considerable attention to the (c)-part as discussed.
ReplyDeleteFor Paper 2: use 20 minutes to read through and study the sources. Then you still have about 15 minutes for each of the six questions. BUT rather spend 20 minutes or more on the last question; therefore, about 10-12 minutes per question, plus time to plan your answer for the last question.
Paper 4: 60 minutes to answer questions for 40 marks. Look at the mark allocation at each question and then spend one to one and a half minute per mark.
Contextual knowledge is used effectively to demonstrate that you are totally familiar with the subject matter. Do not be vague, e.g. "some people", "they", "the others". Explain who or what you are talking about by being specific, to the point and clear. Supply all the information relevant to the specific question, according to the prescribed approach and the assessment objectives as explained in the syllabus.
Good luck with the exams!
Which topic will come for paper 2 in examinations of May/June 2014 and how should I go preparing about it?
ReplyDeleteFor the May/June 2014 examination the selected topic for Paper 2 is Topic 5: How effectively did the USA contain the spread of Communism?
DeleteRemember, this is the source-based paper. It is, therefore, vitally important to study a variety of sources on this topic (and the specific events) from text books, as well as the internet.
Also study the hints on how to answer Paper 2 questions. The specific skill being tested here is source evaluation, not your ability to answer the questions from background knowledge only.
Focus Points
5.1. This Key Question will be explored through case studies of the following:
The Korean War, 1950 – 53
America and events in Cuba, 1959 – 62;
American involvement in Vietnam.
Specified Content
Events of the Cold War:
case studies of American reactions to the Cuban revolution,
including the missile crisis and its aftermath, and
American involvement in the Vietnam War.
Please study that part of the work in GREAT detail, as the source based paper is a tricky one. Use alternative sources to find speeches, cartoons, statistics, tactics, attitudes and events from that time. Fortunately there are many available, e.g. google “IGCSE History” + “USA +containment+ Communism”? or use a combination of key words, e.g. “Containment of Communism”+ “USA”. http://www.activehistory.co.uk/ l SchoolHistory | Spartacus | JohnDClare | SchoolsHistory | BBC History | History Channel UK www.learn.co.uk , www.bbc.co.uk and www.thehistorychannel.co.uk
• Study the different methods used by the USA to try to contain the spread of Communism.
• Determine how effective/successful these methods were during the Korean War, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War. Make up your own mind and be prepared to prove you point of view.
• Look at the years 1950-75 and answer the central question:
How effectively did the USA contain the spread of Communism?
The following information is provided by the text book:
DeleteWalsh, Ben. 2013. Modern World History, Option B: 20th century, p. 174
Paper 2 is essentially a source-based investigation into one historical question drawn from the 20th century core content questions 1 to 7. Paper 2, however, is source-based – it is testing your ability to use your knowledge and skill to interrogate and compare a range of sources.
Structure
• There is no choice of questions – you have to answer them all. The questions will be designed to test how well you can use historical sources but you will also need to use your historical knowledge as well.
• There are no trick sources designed to catch you out, but there will usually be sources which agree with each other and some which disagree, and some who do a bit of both!
• The questions take you step-by-step through the sources and are carefully designed to allow you to show that you can think like a historian. This means doing more than extracting basic information from a source. It means looking at sources to see what they reveal about:
o Why the source was produced
o The audience for the source and the methods used in the source to convince its audience
o What it reveals about the people who produced it, e.g. attitudes, values, concerns, anger (sources will often involve a person or organisation who is denying; criticising; mocking; praising; accusing; threatening; warning; afraid; unhappy; campaigning; outraged … and much more!)
• It can be useful to use your contextual knowledge, comment on the tone of the source, and point out its purpose … but only if these things are supporting your answer to the question being asked. So if the question gives you a source in which a politician claims a particular policy was successful and asks whether a source can be trusted, there is no need to use your knowledge to give more detail about the policy or the politician unless that knowledge supports what you are saying about what the source can or cannot be trusted.
Question types
The exam could include any type of question about any type of source so what you are about to read is not foolproof! It is also important to remember that answers to the different types of questions should vary depending on the actual source – there is ‘one size fits all’ formula. However, it is still worth thinking about question types and how you might answer them.
The following are examples of the types of questions that might be included in the exams:
1. Analysing the message of a source
This type of question uses a source where the artist is trying to make a particular point. The source could be part of a speech, or a cartoon, or possibly a poster. With a cartoon, you might be asked: ‘What is the message of the cartoonist?’. With a question like this, remember these key points:
• For? or Against? What is the cartoonist for or against? Cartoonists do not draw cartoons simply to tell the public something is happening. Usually cartoons criticise or disapprove of something or maybe mock.
• How do you know? What details in the cartoon tell you what the cartoonist’s view is?
• Why now? Why is the cartoon being drawn at this point in time?
• For message questions, you do not need to consider reliability.
2. Similarity/difference
These questions are designed to get you to think on two levels:
• Similarities and/or differences in the contents of the sources.
• Similarities and/or differences at a more subtle level, e.g. the attitude shown in each source, or the purpose of each source. For example, you might face two text sources where the two sources agree about events or details (e.g. that the USSR did place missiles in Cuba) but differ in purpose or attitudes (e.g. one might be critical of the USSR whereas the other is supportive).
If you do spot the higher level points, don’t forget to state clearly whether the two sources are similar or different – this is an easy mistake to make when you’re thinking hard!
3. How useful?
Delete• How useful is this source to the historian studying …?
• What can the historian learn from this source?
A good way to think of these sources is not ‘How useful is this source …?’ but ‘How is this source useful …?’ Even a biased source is useful. The really important thing to think about is ‘useful for what?’
All sources are useful in telling you something about the attitudes or concerns of the person or organisation who created them. An American poster accusing Communists of crimes is not reliable about Communists but it is useful in showing that Americans were worried about Communism.
4. Purpose
• Why was this source published at this time?
To tackle this type of question you need to work out the message of the source and then think about what the author of the source would want to achieve by getting that message across. Usually this would involve:
• Changing people’s attitudes (e.g. voting for a particular party)
• Changing people’s behaviour (e.g. getting them to join a movement or contribute funs to a particular cause).
5. Surprise
• Are you surprised by Source A?
• How far are you surprised by Source A?
The aim of these questions is for you to show you understand the period being studied and how historians use sources. So for example:
• Whether or not the vents described in the source are surprising in the context of the time (e.g. a speech by US President Richard Nixon attempting to build friendly relations with Communist China in the 1970s when the USA was traditionally very anti-Communist)
• Whether or not it is surprising that the creator of the source was saying what they were saying in this place at this time (e.g. Nixon’s speech is less surprising when we know that he was trying to get US troops out of the war in Vietnam and part of his plan involved better relations with China).
6. Reliability
• Is person X lying in Source A?
• Does Source A prove Source B is wrong?
It’s a good idea to explain in what way you think the sources are reliable or unreliable about particular people, issues or events. In other words, if you say the source is reliable or unreliable, make sure you explain what it is reliable or unreliable about. For example:
• If you know or can work out something about the author, explain why you think he/she is reliable or unreliable about particular people, issues or events.
• If there is any emotive language or a biased tone, explain why you think this shows the author has a particular point of view or purpose which makes the source reliable or unreliable about particular people, issues or events.
• If you think the source is reliable or unreliable because the content of the source fits with or contradicts your own knowledge about particular people, issues or events.
• Whether any other sources in the paper support or contradict the source – just because you are comparing two does not mean you can’t use the other sources to help you evaluate those two.
You might conclude sources are equally trustworthy or untrustworthy.
7. Conclusion
This usually starts with a statement and then asks you to explain whether you think the sources show that the statement is true or not (or to what extent or how far the sources agree on this statement).
• Address both sides of the statement – yes/no or agree/disagree sides.
• You can approach this in two ways:
o Either use two paragraphs, one for each side of the argument. Start each paragraph clearly.
Group the yes/agree sources together and explain how they support the statement.
Then group the no/disagree sources together and explain how they oppose the statement.
Some sources will neither agree, nor disagree fully with the statement. These sources ‘sit on the fence’ and should be acknowledged as such.
o The second method is to work through source by source to indicate its position regarding the statement. The first method is, however, preferred by most.
• Show awareness that some sources might be more reliable than others.
TOP TIPS FOR PAPER 2
DeleteThe following information was taken from:
Walsh, Ben. 2013. Modern World History, Option B: 20th century. Hodder, p. 184
1. Read through all the sources before you start writing anything.
2. Always refer to the stated source when you answer a question.
3. Always support your answers from the source. For written sources use actual words or phrases from the source to support your answer. For visual sources describe the relevant features from the source.
4. Use your background knowledge whenever it’s helpful, particularly to:
• work out if a source is reliable (does it fit what you know about events of the time)
• explain the purpose of the source (you may know the author or the organisation it comes from)
1. However, don’t include background knowledge just for its own sake if it’s got nothing to do with the source or the question.
2. When you use your own knowledge avoid say ‘my knowledge tells me …’. Just state what you know.
3. Avoid speculation – so avoid using words like ‘might’ and ‘could’ (such as ‘The author might be a supporter so he could be biased …’)
4. Avoid phrases such as ‘we don’t know what else …’ or ‘she could have forgotten …’. Examiners call this ‘stock evaluation’ because it could be applies to any source. You will not get any credit for this type of answer.
5. Cross-referencing is essential but it is not easy to do this well. When you cross-reference you should argue that Source X is strong or weak evidence because it is supported by what is said in Source Y – and then quote from or summarise what it said in Source Y – and then quote from or summarise what it said in Source Y which proves your point.
6. Don’t include your own personal views which are not historical (such as, ‘I think it was awful the way the USA used chemical weapons in Vietnam …’).
Thank You maa'm.Thank you so much :)
ReplyDeleteMa'am please can you give me some tips as to how to get an A* in IGCSE history?
ReplyDeleteMa'am please can you also give me some tips as to how to prepare for paper 4 in IGCSE history?
ReplyDeletePaper 4 is always on your chosen Depth Study, counts for 40 marks, 27% of your final mark. It consists of questions that look the same as those from Paper 1, as well as those from Paper 2, with a few marks going towards straight forward (factual) questions. You are given two sources with one specific question on each and a third question in which you have to comment on/compare/assess both sources (usually for 6, 7, and 7 marks respectively). Then follow a short factual question (2 marks), a 'describe' for 4 marks and a 'why' for 6 marks. The last question is of the same nature as the (c)-part of a Paper 1, e.g. a statement is given and you are asked "How far do you agree with this statement?".
DeleteTo ensure a good mark in all papers, it goes without saying that you need to know ALL your prescribed work VERY well! Studying the work superficially and hoping for the best, is a sure way to disappointment. On top of that you need to have mastered all the skills required for Paper 1 and 2, and you also need to use the time allocated to each paper sensibly.
Good luck (but don't rely on it too much!)
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