Interpretations and significance, Year 10: interpretations and how useful a source is

4

HintThe same as the question that follows it, on why they differ.

The whyThe first three questions of the period study are all about the same pair of short written interpretations: how they differ (4 marks), why they differ (4 marks) and how convincing one of them is (8 marks).

What they say: their content

HintSave the authors for the next question.

The whyFind the point on which the two accounts disagree and put it in a sentence: 'A says… whereas B says…'. Back each half with a short quotation or detail from the extract.

In the provenance: who wrote each account, when, and for what purpose

HintThe small print that comes with every extract.

The whyAQA prints a line with each interpretation saying where it comes from. Two people can see the same events differently because of their position at the time, their beliefs, their audience, or what they could know when they wrote.

Provenance

HintFrom a French word for where something comes from.

The whyFor a source from the time it helps you judge usefulness. For a later interpretation it helps you explain why the author sees events as they do.

Their opposing political loyalties

HintThink about which side each was on.

The whyA strong answer names the feature of each author that matters and explains how it shapes the account: one is praising a movement he belongs to; the other is explaining a defeat his own side suffered.

8

HintTwice the marks of each of the two questions before it.

The whyA similar eight-mark question opens the British depth study in Paper 2, where a single interpretation is given and you are asked how far you agree with it or how convincing it is.

Your own knowledge of the period

HintThis time, not who wrote it.

The whyTake the main claims the interpretation makes and ask of each: do the facts I know support this? Use precise knowledge, such as dates, figures, names and events, as the evidence for your verdict.

Partly convincing

HintOne of your facts fits the claim; the other complicates it.

The whyThe best answers do both things: they show what in the interpretation is supported by the facts, and what it leaves out or overstates, before reaching a judgement on the whole.

It is backed by specific evidence

HintA verdict with nothing behind it is only an opinion.

The whyThe assessment objective for interpretations asks for 'substantiated judgements'. In practice that means: say how convincing, then prove it with what you know.

It can be accurate in some claims while leaving out or overstating others

HintNo short extract can cover everything.

The whyAn extract of fifty to a hundred words has to simplify. Check each of its claims separately; do not accept or reject the whole in one go.

12; 8

HintThe paper with more sources carries more marks.

The whyIn Paper 1 it is the second question of the wider world depth study. In Paper 2 it is the first question of the thematic study. Both test the assessment objective about sources from the time.

Your own contextual knowledge

HintThe one thing that is not printed on the exam paper.

The whyUse what you know to test the source: does it match what was happening at the time? Does it leave out something important? Knowledge is what turns comments about a source into an evaluation of it.

It is useful evidence of what the Nazis wanted people to believe

HintAsk which things the poster reveals about its makers.

The whyA one-sided source is still evidence: of the message, of the methods, and of what its makers thought would persuade. Its limits tell you what it cannot show, such as what workers themselves felt.

The enquiry it names: what the historian is said to be studying

HintRead to the very end of the question.

The whyThe same diary might be very useful for studying one person's fears and of little use for studying how many people died. Tie every point you make back to the enquiry in the question.

Purpose

HintAsk what its maker wanted to achieve.

The whyIt is one part of provenance, along with author, date and audience. Knowing why a source was made helps you judge what it can and cannot be trusted to show.