Volume 17, Number 4, April 2015
Exam focus
OCR: Nazi Germany
Sarah Ward
This issue of MODERN HISTORY REVIEW included an article on resistance in Nazi Germany (pp. 2–
5). Here Sarah Ward looks at a sample exam question on the topic of Nazi Germany, supplying
a sample candidate answer with examiner commentary and assessment.
Introduction
Candidates for AS history study a period of either British or European and world history. Each study
topic contains six key issues. Questions are set on three of the key issues, and some questions may
draw on material from more than one key issue. Candidates are expected to demonstrate a good
depth of factual knowledge which should be used to support an argument and make a balanced
judgement about the issue in the question.
Candidates are expected to adopt an analytical approach to their responses. It is advised that you use
your opening paragraph to set out your view. You should follow this through and develop your
argument throughout the rest of the essay. You must make sure that your conclusion agrees with your
introduction. Strong answers will reinforce the line of argument suggested in the first paragraph.
Candidates should also be aware that marks for AO1a are for the use of knowledge and not simply its
deployment. This means knowledge is rewarded most highly when it is used to drive the argument
forward. Simple description will not be awarded high marks. Higher-level answers will make
judgements about the issues under discussion, with the strongest answers making interim judgements
at the end of each paragraph, before reaching an overall conclusion.
As outlined in this issue of MODERN HISTORY REVIEW, Nazi Germany is the focus of two AS modules in
OCR’s specification. These are module F962, study topic 8: Democracy and dictatorship in Germany,
1919–63, and module F964, study topic 4: Dictatorship and democracy in Germany, 1933–63.
Here we will consider unit F962, Democracy and dictatorship in Germany, 1919–63. In the exam you
must answer two out of three questions. Each is worth 50 marks. There are 100 marks available in this
examination. The exam is 1 hour 30 minutes long and you are advised to spend 45 minutes on each
question — this includes time for planning.
We will look a sample question in the style of OCR F962 European and world history period studies.
There is a sample candidate answer with examiner commentary in red, followed by an assessment.
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Sample question and answer
Question
‘The use of propaganda was the main reason for the lack of opposition in Nazi Germany.’ How far do
you agree?
Answer with commentary
There are lots of reasons why there was not much opposition in Nazi Germany. The Nazis took power
in 1933 and were opposed to anyone who disagreed with them. They put laws in place and put people
in prison if they were not Nazis, and some groups of people like Communists were really hated by
them. It is true that there was lots of propaganda, and people were often persuaded by it because it
was aimed at all different people not just Nazis.
This introduction is fairly weak. The candidate does provide some reasons for the lack of opposition in
Nazi Germany, and does include propaganda. On the other hand, there is also some very general and
vague material that does little to introduce the argument of the candidate or give any context. A good
answer might include a direct answer to the question, concerning the importance of propaganda to the
lack of opposition. It may well give some context in relation to the question but it should be specific
rather than very general.
In Nazi Germany there was a lot of use of terror. There were the Gestapo who would spy on people
and imprison them. There were also the SA and the SS. These were units of Nazis who were set up
early in the Nazi movement to attack people opposing the Nazis and threatening its leaders. When the
Nazis came to power they attacked anyone that were seen as opponents, and were allowed to do so
by the Nazi party. People who believed in the ideas of the Nazis would spy on their neighbours and
would inform on people and sometimes even attack them themselves if they thought that they were
enemies of the Nazi people and the Nazi regime. The SS was led by Heinrich Himmler and he
controlled the SS and also the Gestapo. He commanded these groups to arrest people who were
political opponents like Socialists as well as those who for other reasons were not acceptable to the
Nazis, like Jews and gypsies and gay people. Many people were executed and this meant that people
were scared to oppose the Nazi party and the Nazi regime so it looked like there was no opposition to
it.
Here the candidate has picked one theme to begin with, although they give no rationale for doing so
— they do not say how important they believe this factor to be. It is frequently better to start with the
factor named in the question (in this case propaganda) and to explain its importance, before moving
on to the other factors in order of importance. In terms of what the candidate does write, it is rather
garbled and descriptive. Although there is some slightly more detailed material in this paragraph (e.g.
it names some opposition groups and some groups persecuted by the regime), it is mostly very
general. Instead of focusing on explaining and analysing the reasons why terror suppressed
opposition in Nazi Germany, it describes what the terror was.
Propaganda is obviously important to why there was no opposition because it fooled people into
thinking that the Nazi policies were right and that everything would be better if the Nazis were allowed
to carry out their policies. This also carried on in the war too as the government tried to make
everyone think that they were winning and that they were fighting for the right reasons. Dr Joseph
Goebbels was the man in charge of this policy and he made sure that there was much propaganda
sent out to the citizens of Germany to persuade them. The propaganda included films and radio
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programmes as well as posters and newspapers that people could read. They also tried to persuade
the audience that the racial stereotypes were right and that it was right to persecute the Jews, for
example in the film The Eternal Jew. It made Hitler into a God figure too in films like Triumph of the
Will which was made by the film-maker Leni Riefenstahl. There was propaganda aimed at mothers to
persuade them to stay at home and have children, and also propaganda for young people like at the
Nazi Youth. It was very important and I certainly think that it was one reason for the lack of opposition.
It was very important.
The candidate clearly knows more about propaganda material than the other factor so far. They give
some specific examples of propaganda films and do provide some explanation of the possible
purposes of propaganda. It is still fairly descriptive, however, as it is once again not focused on why
propaganda was so important to the lack of opposition. The candidate asserts that it was ‘very
important’ but does not explain why. It seems in the first sentence as though the candidate will go on
to explain and analyse the factor but this is not carried through. There is some slightly incorrect use of
terminology — ‘Nazi Youth’ instead of ‘Hitler Youth’ — and, as in the rest of the answer, there are no
specific dates or incidents referred to, so there is little sense of chronology here.
Some people were Nazis from the start and they did not oppose the Nazis because they were Nazis
and they wanted the Nazis to stay in power and achieve their aims. These people were involved in the
persecution. They thought that Germany needed to be put first and that the Versailles agreement was
wrong because it was unfair. They thought that the Jews and other people were to blame for the
agreement and for the economic problems that had happened afterwards. Because the war was
successful at first this meant that they thought Hitler was right. They did not see that the Nazis were
wrong and that they would fail, because they wanted them to be right. People like businessmen
supported Hitler because they thought he would bring back prosperity and because they thought that
Communism would win otherwise and take their businesses away from them. Military support was
also important because many thought Hitler would make Germany’s army great again.
This is an important factor, and it is good that the candidate has considered this alongside the more
obvious factors of propaganda and terror. That said, the material in this paragraph suffers from similar
problems to that in others — vagueness, descriptive passages, lack of specific information and
analysis. There is again no indication of the importance of this factor and the candidate does not really
attempt to address this issue. The reference to ‘the Versailles agreement’ provides some indication of
the level of historical knowledge of this candidate.
In conclusion I agree that the propaganda was the most important factor in the lack of opposition but
the others were also important.
This conclusion is inadequate — it asserts that propaganda was the most important factor but does
not explain why. It does not ascribe any particular level of importance to the other factors. It also does
not really match the introduction, although this may have been due to the candidate running out of
time. A good conclusion should be able to draw together the argument, restating and explaining the
reasons why each factor was important, as well as the level of importance that each factor had.
Assessment
This is a poor answer. It has no overall argument, provides little explanation of the importance of each
factor, and gives little specific or detailed evidence. Historical information is provided as description
rather than in support of explanation, argument or analysis. The factors are not linked, although this
would only have been possible had the candidate provided an argument concerning their relative
importance.
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This answer would achieve a level IV overall. For AO1a (knowledge, recall, selection and use of
evidence) it achieves level IV, 12. There is relevant knowledge deployed but it is extremely variable in
level of detail. It is not inaccurate or irrelevant, however, despite being frequently generalised. For
AO1b (analysis and judgement) it would achieve level IV, 13. It is largely descriptive and the limited
points that are made about importance are little more than assertions. Understanding is patchy and
limited.
AO1a: level IV, 12
AO1b: level IV, 13
Total marks: 25/50
This resource is part of MODERN HISTORY REVIEW , a magazine written for A-level students by
subject experts. To subscribe to the full magazine go to: http://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/historyreview
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