What does an A* interpretations A Level History essay look like?

[@savvyshopper1286]

Thank you so much. I am a parent and really appreciate your hard work and appreciate it that you care how the A level pupils do. Best wishes.

[@mrgunnhistory]

Thanks, that’s great to hear!

[@hh-bb2zw]

hi Mr Gunn, would it be possible to do a video talking through analysing the extracts because I often have trouble with what to pick out for my answer- thanks for this video as well, it's exactly what I needed!

[@mrgunnhistory]

No worries! Is this what you are looking for; History A Level Past Paper walk through - Edexcel Britain 1625-1701 (3/3) kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3atpHh-bNSbmac I hope that helps!

[@hh-bb2zw]

@@mrgunnhistory Yes! I just did my first paper and wanted to thank you sir, couldn't have done it without your videos! I just had two questions: if the question gives a time range of 1917-45, what percentage do you need to cover. I went up to 1932 and I feel like that's not enough. And also, for the interpretation question, I followed your given structure, of examining the extracts differently. Would examiners still consider giving it top band marks in terms of comparison or is an integrated approach preferred? I feel like the only comparison I did was in the topic sentences and conclusion

[@mrgunnhistory]

@@hh-bb2zw I'm pleased the resources have been helpful! In terms of the interpretations question structure, my approach has tended to work really well for my students (they usually scored highest on this section of any section in the exams!), so I'm pretty confident it's a good approach. As for the range of evidence, the general approach is to try and cover 75% although this is only explicitly discussed for Paper 3 breadth questions. I would say that you may not his L5 for evidence, but you could still score L5 overall if your analysis/criteria/structure is good. I hope that helps.

[@hh-bb2zw]

@@mrgunnhistory yes, thats very reassuring- thanks!

[@karam6728]

Hi Mr Gunn, my teacher insists that we mention all four factors which contributed to the fall of the USSR (economic, political, nationalism, Yeltsin) and he also suggests that we decide on our own opinions as to what caused the fall of the USSR prior to going into the exam, and then orient our answer on our preconceived opinions. What are your thoughts on this, thank you very much.

[@mrgunnhistory]

Hi, thanks for the comment. Have a look at the examiners reports for option 1E and look at the guidance and discussion of stronger answers. Here is an example from 2022 (qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/A-Level/History/2015/Exam-materials/9hi0-1e-pef-20220818.pdf); Page 4 of the document suggests weaker answers; 'drift away from the specific demands of the question to the wider-taught topic.' Page 31 (further discussing weaker answers) says; 'Some candidates described and commented on both extracts with some discrimination but then suggested a completely different reason for the collapse of the USSR from their own knowledge in two or three lines at the end of the answer leading to a conclusion based on this evidence only.' Finally, p.38 says praises 'Candidates paying close attention to the precise demands of the question.' Ultimately do what you feel most confident/comfortable doing but I think it's pretty clear that the point of Section C interpretations answers is to focus on the specific question and use own knowledge to weigh up the arguments of the two extracts. This is usually the section of the exams my students do best on, so I feel reasonably confident in my approach! However, please do what you feel is most logical for you. Have a read through the examiners reports and see what you think. Good luck with it all.

[@karam6728]

Thank you for the help, thoroughly appreciate it 👍

[@islatookey1803]

Thank you so much for your videos. The essay technique stuff is so helpful. What would you recommend the best ways to revise are? Im starting to make quizlet notes so i can look at them everywhere and summarising key topics with help of the hodder revision guides - like turning 3 pages of a textbook into one side of paper so its easy to go over. Will this work?

[@mrgunnhistory]

I'm pleased the videos are helpful. In terms of revision, your plan sounds good. I would say timelines, revision notes and flashcards are the best way to remember content. Once you've done that, make essay plans for all past questions. I did a video giving some of these tips here, which may be useful; kzbin.info/www/bejne/omOypZtqjKuXnck Best of luck with it all!

[@hawker4014]

helped 👍

[@junaidmasood1]

Hi, my teacher recommended an approach which takes P1 as discussing the factor in the question using both sources (e.g. role of Gorbachevs reforms in the fall of the ussr) and then P2 on just the other factors using both extracts. I find this more confusing, does it have any merits over just separating the extracts like you did? Thanks

[@mrgunnhistory]

Thanks for the comment. I’ve heard of this approach and while I think it may work for some questions I can’t see the value of the second paragraph focusing on other factors, that aren’t the focus of the question. Especially as some extracts don’t focus on more than one factor. Ultimately, go for the approach you feel most confident with. The approach I suggest has always worked well for my students but there definitely isn’t just one way of doing it! Best of luck with it all.

[@mariamyusuf5171]

Do you have any pdfs with top level interpretation responses? Or any websites to find exemplars (specifically for Germany)

[@mrgunnhistory]

The best place for you to look is the Edexcel past papers site - search for ‘exam materials’ and then filter to ‘examiners reports’. Your paper is 1G, so there should be a report with exemplars for each year - here is the one for 2017; qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/A-Level/History/2015/Exam-materials/9HI0_1G_pef_20170816.pdf - I hope that helps!