Student Guide to the GP Exam
Question 1a:
This question will ask you to find some information in the first source in the source booklet. Just state the
information clearly.
 The answer correctly identifies the information required by the question either in the same
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words as the source or as a paraphrase.
Question 1b
This question will ask you to find two pieces of information from the sources in the source booklet. Just
state the information clearly.
 The answer correctly identifies one piece of information from the source either in the same
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words as the source or as a paraphrase.
 The answer correctly identifies two pieces of information from the source either in the same
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words as the source or as a paraphrase.
Question 1c
This question will ask you to choose the reason or effect in the source that you think is the most significant
and give reasons for your choice. To get full marks, you can either briefly state three reasons or give one or
two well-explained reasons.
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) but does not
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give any reasons for his/her choice.
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) and states a
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valid, but undeveloped reason for his/her choice.
Either
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) and explains a
valid reason for his/her choice. The answer includes some explanation The link between the
explanation and the cause/effect may be implicit or unclear at times.
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OR
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) and states two
valid, but undeveloped reasons for his/her choice.
Either
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) and gives a
clear, thorough, valid explanation for his/her choice. The link between the explanation and the
cause/effect is clear, and the response shows an excellent understanding of the topic.
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OR
 The answer identifies a cause/effect (according to the demands of the question) and states three
valid, but undeveloped reasons for his/her choice.
Question 1d
This question tests whether you can differentiate between local, national and global perspectives. It is
usually divided into two parts, worth three marks each. You will be asked to identify a
local/national/global consequence from the sources and to explain how your chosen consequence impacts
the local/national/global community. You can use all the sources to help you.
 An appropriate consequence for the first category (local/national/global) is identified.
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 There is some explanation of the consequence for the first category, linking it to the designated
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perspective (local/national/global).
 There is a full and clear explanation of the consequence for the first category, linking it to the
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designated perspective (local/national/global).
 An appropriate consequence for the second category (local/national/global) is identified.
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 There is some explanation of the consequence for the first category, linking it to the designated
perspective (local/national/global).
 There is a full and clear explanation of the consequence for the first category, linking it to the
designated perspective (local/national/global).
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3
Sometimes question 1d just asks you to explain how an issue links to a local/national or global perspective. In this
case, try to give two well explained reasons and clearly link to the perspective the question is asking about.
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Either
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No rewardable material
Limited reasoning and explanation.
The response is likely to contain only simple, undeveloped points.
Arguments are partial, generalized or lack clarity.
The national dimension is not apparent.
There is a reasoned explanation of the importance of the issue.
There may be some lack of clarity.
The answer may be difficult to follow at times.
The link to the local/national/global perspective may be implicit at times.
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3-4
One or more developed arguments with some link to the issue, which may be implicit at
times.
Or
 Two or more undeveloped reasons.
 There is a clearly reasoned, credible and structured explanation of the importance of the
issue to the nation.
 The link to the local/national/global perspective is explicit.
Either:
 Two or more developed arguments are present.
Or
 Three or more undeveloped arguments are present.
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Question 2a
This question will ask you to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of an argument, giving clear reasons
for your judgment. You should consider some or all of the following:
 The provenance of the source (where it comes from)
 Whether or not it is clear who the author is
 The language and tone
 The clarity of the argument
 The amount of evidence supporting the argument
 Whether or not the sources of evidence are made clear
 The type of evidence supporting the argument
 Counter-evidence not addressed by the author.
 The answer includes one undeveloped point about a strength OR weakness of the argument.
 The response is incomplete and generalized.
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 The answer may repeat the source material with little understanding.
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 The answer may simply describe the student’s personal opinion on the issue.
Either
 The answer lists either two valid strengths or weaknesses of the argument with little
development, (or unclear explanations)
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OR
 The answer lists one valid strength and one valid weakness of the argument with little
development (or unclear explanations).
OR
 The answer contains one well-explained strength OR weakness of the argument.
Either
 The answer clearly explains two or more strengths of the argument BUT does not address the
weaknesses at all.
OR:
 The answer clearly explains two or more weaknesses of the argument BUT does not address the
strengths at all.
OR
 The answer lists three valid points, including at least one strength and at least one weakness, but
with little development or unclear explanations.
OR
 The answer contains one well explained strength or weakness of the argument and lists one or
two valid strengths or weaknesses that are undeveloped or not clearly explained.
Either
 The answer clearly explains one strength and one weakness of the argument, as well as listing
some other valid strengths and weaknesses that are undeveloped.
OR
 The answer lists four or more valid points, including both strengths and weaknesses, but with
little development.
 Valid points might include:
 The provenance of the source
 Whether or not it is clear who the author is
 The language and tone
 The clarity of the argument
 The amount of evidence supporting the argument
 Whether or not the sources of evidence are made clear
 The type of evidence supporting the argument
 Counter-evidence not addressed by the author.
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Question 2b
This question will give you a knowledge claim and ask how you could test to determine whether or not it is
correct. You should explain:
 What kinds of information you need to find, and what the pros and cons of these kinds of
information are.
 What sources might have the necessary information, and how reliable these sources are.
 How you could go about gathering it, and how reliable the proposed methods are.
Possible types of information:
Possible Methods:
 Statistics
 Review of secondary sources
 Research reports
 Statistical analysis
 Expert testimony
 Review of research reports
 Individual testimony or personal experience
 Internet search
 Questionnaires/Surveys
Possible Sources of Information
 Experiments
 National/Local government(s)
- Create a graph
 NGOs like the UN
- Get the mean
 Experts
- Etc.
 Research reports
- Compile the info and compare
 Pressure groups
- Interviews
 Media and the internet
State point use/effect and evaluate
 Concerned individuals
Sample framework:
In order to test the claim “______________” I would need to find out ___________________. This
information would give me a fairly reliable indication of whether or not the claim is true, but I should bear
in mind some limitations of this type of information such as ___________.
Sources where I might find the necessary information include _________________________. These sources
can be expected to provide reliable data because (Reasons why they would have access to the necessary
information) I would, however, have to consider potential problems with these sources such as
_____________________.
I could access secondary sources of information by methods like _________________. I would have to
correct for potential problems with these methods like ______________. Theoretically, I could also conduct
primary research by _________________. I would need to be careful to avoid potential mistakes with these
methods such as ______________.
Pros and cons of different types of information:
 Statistics
These can be very effective for assessing claims involving quantity. For instance, most countries
conduct a census every ten years. A national census provides good data on things like the age of
the population, the family structure of the population, the geographical distribution of the
population and usually the ethnic composition of the population. Most governments also track
births and deaths, which give an indication of the overall health of a country and its fertility rate,
age structure and family size. A few potential problems with this kind of data are 1) It is almost
impossible to reach everybody in a national census count. Homeless people are often missed.
Migrants living in a country or an area of a country illegally are often unwilling to give information
to the census. Countries experiencing civil war or other conflicts will find it impossible to conduct
accurate censuses. This means often a society’s most vulnerable people go uncounted. 2) The
census is good for measuring quantities, but it doesn’t tell us what those people think.
Whereas a census attempts to count everyone, other statistics are gathered by taking a sample
of the population and then generalizing from that sample. Since it would be impossible to ask every
single person in the world every question we might have, this is an important short cut. It also
makes it possible to gather data on what people think about issues if one asks the right questions.
However, it raises some problems. The first question we need to ask about these sorts of statistics
is “How large was the sample size?” If only a few people were consulted, the statistics may not be
reliable. Another question we should ask is “How typical was the sample?” If the statistician only
talked to young people, or old people, or rich people, the statistics may not really represent the
whole society. We also need to consider the “standard deviation”, which measures how large a
range was found in the sample. For instance, if one had a sample of two, of which one was Bill
Gates’ income of $330,000,000 per month and one was the income of $1,256 per month earned by
someone in a minimum wage job in the USA, we might conclude that a normal American income
was $165,000,628 per month. Of course this is nonsense, partly because the sample size is too
small and partly because the gaps between the two figures in the sample and $165,000,628 are
enormous, meaning this statistic has a high standard deviation. Statistics with a low standard
deviation are more reliable. Unfortunately, news reports often just report the raw numbers,
without information about the standard deviation.
 Research reports
Reports and articles by people who have studied the issue or related issues are very useful. The
authors will have collected and organized data from a variety of sources. However, you need to
read these critically in order to ensure that the author of a report has consulted sufficient sources
and used appropriate methodology.
 Expert testimony
Testimony by an expert in a field is generally very reliable as the expert should be well-informed
about the issue. However, you should think critically about what qualifies a person to be an
“expert”. What experience and education do they have? There are some self-proclaimed “experts”
out there .
 Individual testimony or personal experience
Interviewing individuals affected by an issue can be very revealing about the impact of that issue
and what people think about it. The problem is, just because an individual is affected by a problem
doesn’t mean they understand the “big picture.” Also, if you only interview a few people, their
experience may not be typical of most people’s experience. Therefore you would need to interview
a lot of people and also balance the information from interviews with other types of information.
Pros and Cons of Different Sources of Information
 National/Local government(s)
These are usually good sources of information because the government is in a good position to find
out what is happening. Also most governments make the information they collect available to
everyone. Some governments restrict access to information that might make the ruling party look
bad, however.
 NGOs like the UN
NGOs are dedicated to solving particular problems, so they generally have excellent information
and make it available to everyone. Of course, their focus is on making things better for a particular
group or promoting solutions to issues, so their data might be a bit one-sided.
 Experts
See “Expert testimony” above.
 Research reports
It is important to consider the source of the research report. Reports by scholars published in
academic journals are generally reliable because these journals are read by other experts in the
field, who evaluate the quality of the research before publishing it. This process is called “peer
review.” Research by university students or high school students is less reliable. You also have to
watch out for research that is paid for by people with a vested interest. For instance, tobacco
companies spent years paying for research that pretended there was no link between cigarettes
and cancer. Oil and gas companies have been accused of paying for research casting doubt on the
link between human activity and climate change.
 Pressure groups
Pressure groups can be excellent sources of information, but you have to consider the motives of
the pressure group. Some pressure groups are trying to make money for their clients and are not
genuinely interested in solving problems. There are a lot of fake pressure groups out there, thanks
to a lobbying technique called astroturfing. Even pressure groups that are genuinely trying to help
people tend to have very one-sided data, since they are focused on persuading people to agree
with them. Some pressure groups are sincere but misguided and are deceived by junk science, like
the anti-vaccination movement.
 Media
The goal of news media is to inform the public, so media outlets often have good, easily accessible
information. It is important to be aware of potential bias since some media outlets are left-leaning
and others are right-leaning. Some media outlets are controlled by particular governments and
never publish anything critical of that government. We must also be alert to the prevalence of
native advertising, paid-for “news” stories, and the tendency of media outlets trying to be neutral
to set up a false equivalency between a minority opinion and a majority opinion.
 The Internet
The internet is a good way to access web sites of national and local governments, NGOs, news
media, pressure groups, and academic journals. The big problem with the internet is that there is
no control over who can publish information. This means it is incumbent on the searcher to
evaluate web-based sources carefully.
 Concerned individuals
See “Individual testimony or personal experience” above.
Pros and Cons of Possible Methods:
 Review of secondary sources
See the “Pros and cons of different sources of information” above.
 Statistical analysis
See “statistics” above.
 Review of research reports
See “Research Reports” above.
 Internet search
See “Internet” above
 Questionnaires/Surveys
One way to find out people’s opinions on a topic is to ask them directly.
Wording of Surveys
When designing a questionnaire or a survey, the questions must be chosen very carefully. To get
good data, your questions must be phrased in such a way as to generate answers that are clear and
not ambiguous. For multiple choice questions, you need to try to cover all the possible opinions
people might have. You need to phrase the questions in a neutral way. The order of questions can
also skew the responses you receive. Here is more information on the wording of surveys.
Sampling
Another huge issue with surveys is selecting an appropriate sample of people to ask. If you only ask
a few people, the opinions you learn about may not be typical. If you only ask rich people, or young
people, or English-speaking people, or people of a particular ethnicity, you won’t get a
comprehensive picture of opinions. It can be difficult to get a representative sample, because some
people will be more willing to answer your questions than others. Professional pollsters use census
data to find out the age/gender/ethnic structure of the population and try to sample individuals in
the same proportion of age/gender/ethnicity as the population.
 Experiments
Another method of direct research is experiments. Like questionnaires, it is important that the
experiment include a representative cross-section of society. Experiments must also be carefully
designed to make sure that the results are not affected by the participants’ awareness that they are
being experimented on. For instance, experiments testing the efficacy of medicines and vaccines
have to include a control group so that none of the participants knows if he or she has taken the
real medicine. Most importantly, experiments must be designed to ensure that no harm comes to
the participants.
 There is a limited explanation of ways to test the claim.
 The response contains one or two simple, undeveloped and asserted points.
 There is little relevance in the response to testing the claim or the methods, sources and types of
information are generally not appropriate for the claim being tested.
 The answer is only implicitly related to methods of testing the claim in the question.
 The answer lacks clarity, is not well-structured OR some of the ways chosen to test the claim may not
be credible. These could include appropriate types of information, sources of information and
methods of investigation.
 The response contains only one developed point and may contain some undeveloped points.
 The answer is mostly focused on methods of testing the claim in the question.
 The answer may lack structure, clear explanation in places or some of the ways chosen to test the
claim may not be credible. These could include appropriate types of information, sources of
information and methods of investigation.
 The response contains two developed points and may contain some undeveloped points.
 The answer is mostly focused on methods of testing the claim in the question.
 The answer is a clearly reasoned, credible and well-structured explanation of a range of ways to test
the claim. These could include appropriate types of information, sources of information and
methods of investigation.
 The response contains three developed points and may contain some undeveloped points.
 The answer is clearly focused on methods of testing the claim in the question.
 The answer is a clearly reasoned, credible and well-structured explanation of a range of ways to test
the claim. These could include appropriate types of information, sources of information and
methods of investigation.
 The response contains three or more developed points and may contain some undeveloped points.
Question 3
Key Vocabulary:
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Fact: something that is known to have happened or to exist, especially something for which proof exists, or
about which there is information.
Opinion: a thought or belief about something or someone, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.
Prediction: a statement about what someone thinks will happen in the future.
Value judgment: a statement of how good or bad you think an idea or action is
Vested Interest: a strong personal interest in something because you could get an advantage from it:
Bias: the action of supporting or opposing a particular person or thing in an unfair way, because of allowing
personal opinions to influence one’s judgment.
Question 3a
This just asks you to identify a fact, opinion, prediction or bias in a source.
 The answer correctly identifies a fact/opinion/prediction/bias in the same words as the source
or as a paraphrase.
Question 3b
This just asks you to identify a fact, opinion, prediction or bias in a source.
 The answer correctly identifies a fact/opinion/bias/prediction in the same words as the source
or as a paraphrase.
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Question 3c
This question will ask you to identify a bias, value judgment or vested interest in a source and shows that
you know what a bias, value judgment or vested interest is
Sample frameworks:
_____________ is an example of a vested interest, because the author gets ___________ advantage if
his/her opinion is accepted.
____________ is an example of a value judgment, because the author is commenting on the morality of a
course of action.
____________ is an example of a bias because the author is letting his or her personal opinion that
________, influence his or her judgment.
 The answer states that the source material may be biased or identifies a value judgement/vested
interest without an explanation of how the student has determined this.
 The answer explains why the source material may be biased or identifies a value
judgement/vested interest.
 The answer includes some explanation of how the student has determined this.
 The answer explains why the source material may be biased or identifies a value
judgement/vested interest.
 The answer includes a full and clear explanation of how the student has determined this.
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Question 3d
This question will ask you to evaluate two arguments and explain which is most convincing. Here are some
factors to consider:
Strength of reasoning
 Logic
 Structure
 Balance
 Claims
Reliability of author
 Is he or she well informed?
 Is there any reason to suspect bias?
 Is this author’s view likely to be shared by
others?
Likely consequences of the key ideas presented
Strength of evidence
 Range and depth of information
 Relevance
 Sufficiency
 Sources
 Date (ie how recent is it?)
 Types of evidence
 Reliability of the sources of evidence
Use of language
 Is the language clear?
 Is the tone emotive? Exaggerated?
Precise? Measured?
Reasoning
reliability
evidence
language
Sample Framework
A’s argument is more convincing, because its reasoning is stronger, the author is more reliable, the
evidence is stronger, the language is more measured and the likely consequences of his/her ideas seem
positive.
The superior reasoning of A’s argument can be seen in the way it is structured, for example
_________. Conversely, B’s argument has a weaker structure, for example __________.
A is
also more balanced, covering __________ and ___________, while
B only covers _________.
A
also seems better informed than
B
. For instance ,
A’s argument contains
evidence like __________ and ____________ while
B
only mentions ___________. The sources
of
B’s evidence seem to be out of date, for instance __________ or unreliable, for instance
________.
A
also seems more reliable than
B
.
B
seems to be biased when he/she says
______ . It looks as though his/her personal opinions are affecting his/her judgment.
The language of
A is also less emotive than
______ and _______.
B
Finally, it seems that the course of action proposed by
A’s
plan will lead to ___________, whereas B’s
problems like __________ .
Therefore, A’s
argument is superior to
B’s
.
B
used exaggerated words like
A
is more sensible than
B
.
doesn’t solve the problem or would create new
.
 Limited and unsupported points about which argument is more convincing.
 The response contains no developed evaluative points.
 The answer may just repeat source material with little understanding.
 The answer may simply agree/disagree with the arguments presented.
 The response lacks coherence and clarity.
 The response contains basic points about which argument is more convincing.
 There is little or no attempt at comparison.
 Material from the statements is mostly used implicitly rather than being explicitly referred to.
 There may be little or no discussion of one of the statements.
 The answer contains two (or more) undeveloped evaluative points
 There may be an attempt to reach a simple judgement but this is insufficiently supported.
EITHER
 The response meets the criteria for the higher markbands except that it only discusses one of
the statements.
OR
 There is some evaluation.
 There is an attempt at comparison.
 There is occasional reference to the sources.
 An attempt is made to give an overall judgment, but this is insufficiently supported.
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 The response contains one (or more) developed evaluative points, possibly with some
undeveloped points.
 Alternatively, the response may contain three or more undeveloped points and no developed
points (for 7marks)
 A judgment is reached.
 The judgment may not be well justified.
 The response is well structured.
 There may be a lack of clarity in places.
 The sources are compared.
 The judgment is supported with reference to the sources.
 The response contains two (or more) developed evaluative points, and may include some
undeveloped points.
 Alternatively, the response may contain four or more undeveloped points and no developed
points (for 10 marks)
 The response makes a clear comparison between the sources.
 The response is well structured.
 The judgment is supported with frequent reference to the sources.
 The response contains three (or more) developed evaluative points, and may include some
undeveloped points.
 A clear judgement is reached and is justified.
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Question 4
This question will usually ask you your opinion on the best way to solve a world issue. You will be given two
or three ideas for a solution and be asked to say which is the best and give reasons. In your answer, you
should explain why you didn’t choose the option(s) you didn’t choose as well as why you chose the option
you did. You should support your answer using as many of the sources as possible. You may also include
additional information from your general knowledge, but this is not required.
Sample Framework
I recommend (best option).
There is some merit to (other option). (Explain the good points about the other option.) This is supported by
__________ sources. (Give examples from the sources). However, this option doesn’t really solve the
problem. (Explain the problems with the other option, referring to the sources if appropriate.)
If there are two alternate options:
There is some merit to (third option). (Explain the good points about the third option.) This is supported by
__________ sources. (Give examples from the sources). However, this option doesn’t really solve the
problem. (Explain the problems with the third option, referring to the sources if appropriate.)
(Best option) is not perfect. There are some potential problems. (Explain potential problems with the best
option, referring to the sources if appropriate.) But these can be overcome by _____________.
(Best option) is the best option because ____________________. This is supported by __________ sources.
(Give examples from the sources).
In conclusion, although there is some merit to (other option) and (third option), (best option) is the best
course of action.
Alternatively, this question may just ask your opinion on an issue. In this case, you need to evaluate the
evidence on both sides and explain your opinion clearly. You should support your answer using as many of
the sources as possible. You may also include additional information from your general knowledge, but this
is not required.
Sample framework:
I think (state your overall opinion on the issue).
There is some merit to (the side you disagree with). (Explain the good points about the other viewpoint.)
This is supported by __________ sources. (Give examples from the sources). However, this option doesn’t
really solve the problem. (Explain the problems with the other option, referring to the sources if
appropriate.)
(Your overall opinion on the issue) is not a perfect solution. There are some potential problems. (Explain
potential problems with the side you have chosen, referring to the sources if appropriate.) But these can be
overcome by _____________.
(Your overall opinion on the issue) is the best option because ____________________. This is supported by
__________ sources. (Give examples from the sources).
In conclusion, although there is some merit to (other side), (your opinion) is the best course of action.
 The response consists of a few unsupported points about the topic in general.
 Different arguments may be mentioned.
 There is no evidence to support a judgment.
 The response lacks structure and is difficult to follow.
 Different arguments are included.
 There may not be different perspectives, or these might be unclear.
 There is little evidence.
 The response contains one (or more) developed point and some undeveloped points.
 An overall judgment may be attempted, but it is unclear.
 Alternatively, there is no overall judgment.
 The response is structured, but may be difficult to follow in places.
 One or two different arguments and perspectives are included, but may not be considered.
 Some evidence from the sources is used to support the views expressed.
 The response contains two (or more) developed points and some undeveloped points.
 There is an attempt at a judgement, but this is not well justified.
 The response is mostly well-structured
 Different arguments and perspectives are considered.
 The response contains a range of clearly-reasoned points and/or evidence to support the views
expressed.
 The response makes reference to the sources and includes evidence from some of the sources to
support the argument.
 The response contains three (or more) developed points and some undeveloped points.
 A clear judgement is reached.
 The response is very well structured.
 Different arguments and perspectives are clearly considered.
 The response contains a wide range of clearly-reasoned points and/or evidence to support the
views expressed.
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 The response makes clear reference to the sources and includes evidence from all, or almost all
of the sources to support the argument.
 The response may make reference to evidence not included in the examination paper.
 The response contains four or more developed points and some undeveloped points.
 A clear judgement is reached.
 The judgment is well justified.
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