External Assessment
Paper 1
Structure
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1 Hour
HL 20%
SL 30%
Answer 4 questions on 1 of 3 Prescribed
Topics
 Mark out of 25
Structure
Question 1
 Explain importance (SL) and understanding (SL)
Question 2
 Compare and contrast 2 source SL
Question 3
 2 sources OPVL
Question 4
 Evaluate sources and Contextual Knowledge
Question 1
 Generally the worst done of the questions
 Careless points dropped
 If it is worth 3 points - write 3 points
 There will be more background info given
for the visual/cartoon sources
Question 2
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Statistically the best done
Integrated approach is the best
Discourage bullet points
Compare and contrast with good linkage
Question 3
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Don’t link the two sources
OPVL point-form is OK
Don’t note that it being a translation is a limitation
Don’t note that it being an excerpt is a limitation
Stay away from “primary” & “secondary”
“Secondary source” is often noted as a limitation false
 Think in terms of “What can the source tell me
and what can’t the source tell me?” for strengths
and limitations
 Note when relevant background of writer
Question 4
 BOTH knowledge & sources must be used
 Don’t waste time writing an introduction
and conclusion - thesis is good
 Relate everything back to the question
 Determine your point of view (thesis) and
stick to it
General Strategies
 Don’t quote at length, but reference the
docs
 Note how origin impacts truthfulness
 Stay away from mere paraphrasing
repetition or summary of docs . . .
 Focus on interpretation & analysis
 Allot time roughly based on point value
Skills
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Understand historical sources
Explain the importance of historical sources
Evaluate historical sources as evidence
Demonstrate an understanding of historical
context
 Evaluate and synthesize sources from both
historical sources and and background
knowledge
Route 2 Prescribed Subjects
 Peacemaking and peacekeeping international relations, 1918-1936
 The Arab Israeli conflict, 1945-1979
 Communism in Crisis, 1976-89
Prescribed Subject 1
 Aims of the participants and peacemakers:
Wilson and the Fourteen Points
 Terms of the treaties
 Impact of the treaties in Europe
 Enforcement, US isolationism, conferences
 League of Nations
 Ruhr Crisis
 Depression a & threats to Peace - Manchuria
& Abyssinia
Prescribed Subject 2
 Last years of British mandate, UNSCOP, partition,
civil war
 British withdrawal, establishment of Israel, ‘48’49 war
 Demographic shifts, economic development
 Suez crisis
 Arabism & Zionism, emergence of PLO
 6 Day War and October 1973 War
 Role of USA, USSR, UN
 Camp David & Egyptian Israeli Agreement
Prescribed Subject 3
 Post Mao struggle for power
 China under Deng Xiaoping - economic policies, 4
modernizations
 China under Deng Xiaoping - political changes up
to Tiananmen Square
 Domestic and Foreign problems in the Brezhnev
era
 Gorbachev aims/policies
 Consequences of Gorbachev in eastern Europe
Analyzing Documents
 Who created the document?
 When and where was the document created?
How would this effect the analysis?
 Why was the created (Purpose)?
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To persuade?
To record?
Private communication?
Public comment?
To inform?
Analyzing a Document
 What does the document say?
 To what extent can the document be
trusted?
 What does the document tell a historian?
 What other information would be helpful
for the historian?
 How does the document fit with other
sources on the same topic?
Analyzing a Political Cartoon
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When and where was the cartoon produced?
To what event is the cartoon referring?
What individuals or groups are portrayed?
What symbolism is being used?
Are any of the characters being portrayed
positively or negatively – who is the
cartoonist poking fun at?
 What is the overall opinion of the
cartoonist?