Skills tested in Paper 2

• interpretation of sources

• making inferences about e.g. purpose, audience, author, reactions

• using contextual knowledge with the sources

• cross-referencing sources

Skills tested in Paper 2

• evaluating sources

• using sources to reach, support, and argue, a conclusion

• NB - the levels in the mark scheme reflect student responses. They are not levels to be learned by students

Types of questions: interpreting sources

• e.g. what impression? what is the message?; do these sources agree?

• interpret sources in context• look for the big/overall

meaning/message - go beyond e.g. differences of detail

• explain the interpretation with support

Types of questions: making inferences from sources

• e.g. why was this source published then? how would X react to this source?, who was this source aimed at?

• purpose - need to look for intended outcome/impact - must go beyond message; explanation required

• use content of source, provenance, and contextual knowledge to explain and support the answer

Types of questions: cross-reference

• e.g. how far do these sources agree?• go beyond details - look for a point of view• there are often agreements and

disagreements• these need to be supported/explained - not

just asserted

Types of questions: evaluation for usefulness

• e.g. how useful is this source as evidence?• sometimes purpose is given• explain limitations of the source as well as

ways in which it is useful• when purpose is not given - ask useful for

what?; look for unwitting testimony e.g about the author. NB biased sources can be useful

Types of questions: evaluation for reliability

• e.g. does this source prove…?; how reliable is this source as evidence of…?

• check the claims made in the source against own knowledge

• use the language/tone of the source• make an informed use of the provenance e.g by

considering purpose• cross reference to other sources on the paper

Types of questions: are you surprised questions

• e.g. are you surprised by this source?• knowledge and understanding of the context is key• also consider the author/artist, e.g. are you surprised

they would say that then?• there might be reasons for being surprised and not

surprised

Types of questions: Question 6

• there will always be some sources on either side• some sources might be used for both sides• there might be the odd source that is not really relevant - leave it

out• the key is the quality of the explanation of how a source e.g.

supports the statement - no assertions or descriptions• explain sources individually, do not make general assertions

about groups of sources• not all the sources have to be used - but more marks within a

level for more sources being used• there are marks for evaluating the sources

Role of knowledge in Paper 2

• knowledge should never be included in an answer for its own sake - no marks are awarded for this

• it should only be used if it leads to a better answer about the sources

• every questions is a question about the sources - appropriate use of knowledge will lead to sources being interpreted/ evaluated/used better

Evaluating sources

• using knowledge to check claims being made

• cross-referencing to other sources• making an informed use of the

provenance of the source e.g. asking about purpose

• considering tone/language

Useful questions

• ask ‘useful for what?’

• be aware that ‘biased’ sources can be useful

• look for unwitting testimony

Some hints for Paper 2

• do not teach the skills in a mechanistic way• they should emerge naturally from teaching

and learning• develop flexible thinking• encourage students to take risks with their

ideas as long as they can justify them• a lot of marks can be picked up for Q6 if

students know exactly what to do

Common weaknesses

• candidates do not answer questions directly, they waste time describing sources, writing about the context and not the sources, telling the examiner everything they know. Just answer the question!

• answer the question in the first line - then support the answer

Common weaknesses

• biased sources are not useless

• simplistic evaluation e.g. eye-witness statements are not always accurate

• comparisons of sources often never provide a direct comparison - each source is summarised separately, followed by an assertion

• sources are sometimes ignored in answers to Q6