The June examination will be upon us in no time. What follows is a breakdown of the new exam format, how it will be assessed, and some general advice offered by Edexcel (the examining body).Unit 1 assesses skills of source evaluation in context through Assessment Objective 2 (A02), and the recall, selection and deployment of knowledge, together with an understanding of appropriate concepts and the ability to make substantiated judgements through Assessment Objective 1 (A01). A02 carries 45 of the 60 available marks. The basis of Unit 1 questions will be four to six pieces of source material. The source material will be predominantly written, but non-written sources may also be used. At least three pieces of source material will be contemporary to the period being studied and there will always be one secondary source. The secondary source will form the focus of the final question.
The paper will consist of one source-based question, comprising two sub-questions.
The first sub-question will test candidates' ability to reach a judgment by the analysis, cross-referencing and evaluation of source material. It targets A02 only. `Cross-referencing' is taken to mean the process of comparing two or more sources and reaching a conclusion based on the comparison. Here, cross-referencing will encompass more than a comparison of source content: questions will require candidates, where appropriate, to consider factors such as provenance as well as content in order to assess, for example, the degree to which a statement in one source is challenged by the evidence of another. Typically, candidates will be asked to analyse the ways in which the set of sources can be said to support a statement. They may also be asked to consider whether one or more contemporary sources offers support for, or challenges, ideas or claims made in another source and to offer a judgement based on their analysis.
Question stems for the cross-referencing question include:
• How far do these sources support the view that...?
• How far do these sources suggest that...?
• How far do sources 2 and 3 challenge the portrayal of source 1 of...?
• How far do sources 1 and 2 support the arguments of the author of source 3...?
• How far do sources 1 and 3 challenge the conclusions of source 2 about...?
• Does a study of... offer support for the view that...?
The cross-referencing question will be worth a maximum of 20 marks out of 60. No additional recalled knowledge is required in this question. It is not expected that candidates will have prior knowledge of all the individuals or events to which the source material relates.
The second sub-question will require candidates to use two or three pieces of source material and their own knowledge to construct an historical explanation. A piece of secondary source material will always be included among those which candidates will be expected to make use of in their answer. Questions will be set that require candidates to test a hypothesis or challenge a particular view. A typical question stem is `Do you agree with the view that...?' Sometimes, the view will relate directly to what is said in the secondary source, in which case a likely question stem is `Do you agree with the view expressed in source 5 (tines 32-33) that...?' When the question might otherwise logically, if unhelpfully, be answered either `yes' or `no' the question will end with the injunction `Explain your answer.' This second sub-question, worth a maximum of 40 of the 60 marks available, targets both A01 and A02. 15 marks are allocated to A01 and 25 to A02. It follows that candidates who make no use of the sources, or candidates who use the sources alone, will be penalising themselves severely.
The first sub-question will test candidates' ability to reach a judgment by the analysis, cross-referencing and evaluation of source material. It targets A02 only. `Cross-referencing' is taken to mean the process of comparing two or more sources and reaching a conclusion based on the comparison. Here, cross-referencing will encompass more than a comparison of source content: questions will require candidates, where appropriate, to consider factors such as provenance as well as content in order to assess, for example, the degree to which a statement in one source is challenged by the evidence of another. Typically, candidates will be asked to analyse the ways in which the set of sources can be said to support a statement. They may also be asked to consider whether one or more contemporary sources offers support for, or challenges, ideas or claims made in another source and to offer a judgement based on their analysis.
Question stems for the cross-referencing question include:
• How far do these sources support the view that...?
• How far do these sources suggest that...?
• How far do sources 2 and 3 challenge the portrayal of source 1 of...?
• How far do sources 1 and 2 support the arguments of the author of source 3...?
• How far do sources 1 and 3 challenge the conclusions of source 2 about...?
• Does a study of... offer support for the view that...?
The cross-referencing question will be worth a maximum of 20 marks out of 60. No additional recalled knowledge is required in this question. It is not expected that candidates will have prior knowledge of all the individuals or events to which the source material relates.
The second sub-question will require candidates to use two or three pieces of source material and their own knowledge to construct an historical explanation. A piece of secondary source material will always be included among those which candidates will be expected to make use of in their answer. Questions will be set that require candidates to test a hypothesis or challenge a particular view. A typical question stem is `Do you agree with the view that...?' Sometimes, the view will relate directly to what is said in the secondary source, in which case a likely question stem is `Do you agree with the view expressed in source 5 (tines 32-33) that...?' When the question might otherwise logically, if unhelpfully, be answered either `yes' or `no' the question will end with the injunction `Explain your answer.' This second sub-question, worth a maximum of 40 of the 60 marks available, targets both A01 and A02. 15 marks are allocated to A01 and 25 to A02. It follows that candidates who make no use of the sources, or candidates who use the sources alone, will be penalising themselves severely.
Specific advice
(a) When cross-referencing to agree with or challenge a view or attitude, or to explain a change, or to assess how far a claim is valid:
• accurate comprehension and analysis of the sources is needed
• responses should go beyond simple matching of surface features; they should consider, as appropriate, inferences that can be made from the sources when comparisons are made
• comparisons should be supported by reference to brief, specific phrases, words or ideas in a source; excessive quotation from sources is not encouraged
never be tempted to write about the focus of the question from knowledge that comes from beyond the source; the stem of the question will always focus on what can be claimed on the basis of the provided material, not what the candidate knows about that specific issue
• responses should go beyond the content of the sources to consider, from the information given in the captions, the nature of the sources, their origins and likely purpose
• the task involves giving weight to evidence by taking into account the implications of the nature and purpose of a source in order to consider how much support it can provide for a given statement
• attention should be paid explicitly to `how far' there is support or challenge.
(b) Use of two or three sources and own knowledge to agree or disagree with a presented view or interpretation. Candidates should:
• focus on the question
• note the relationship between the sources and the statement in the question
• use own knowledge to add depth and range to the points which can be drawn from the provided sources
• present an argument
• use the required sources and own knowledge to support the argument
• reach a reasoned, supported and balanced judgement; this judgment should be based on both precise knowledge and appropriately selected evidence from the sources.
(a) When cross-referencing to agree with or challenge a view or attitude, or to explain a change, or to assess how far a claim is valid:
• accurate comprehension and analysis of the sources is needed
• responses should go beyond simple matching of surface features; they should consider, as appropriate, inferences that can be made from the sources when comparisons are made
• comparisons should be supported by reference to brief, specific phrases, words or ideas in a source; excessive quotation from sources is not encouraged
never be tempted to write about the focus of the question from knowledge that comes from beyond the source; the stem of the question will always focus on what can be claimed on the basis of the provided material, not what the candidate knows about that specific issue
• responses should go beyond the content of the sources to consider, from the information given in the captions, the nature of the sources, their origins and likely purpose
• the task involves giving weight to evidence by taking into account the implications of the nature and purpose of a source in order to consider how much support it can provide for a given statement
• attention should be paid explicitly to `how far' there is support or challenge.
(b) Use of two or three sources and own knowledge to agree or disagree with a presented view or interpretation. Candidates should:
• focus on the question
• note the relationship between the sources and the statement in the question
• use own knowledge to add depth and range to the points which can be drawn from the provided sources
• present an argument
• use the required sources and own knowledge to support the argument
• reach a reasoned, supported and balanced judgement; this judgment should be based on both precise knowledge and appropriately selected evidence from the sources.
