LEAVING CERT. HISTORY REVISION GUIDE
Higher Level:
Seán Delap teaches history in Coláiste Iosagáin, Stillorgan and at the Institute of
Education. He is the author of Leaving Cert. history textbooks: Nation States and
International Tensions 1871-1920, Dictatorship and Democracy 1920-1945, Division and
Realignment in Europe, 1945-1992 and European Retreat from Empire, 1945-1990. He is
also the co-author of Junior Cert Textbook; Uncovering History. (All books are published
by Folens)
Higher level exam:
The written paper is worth 400 out of the 500 marks. The remaining 100 marks will be
awarded for a Research Study which must be submitted to the school authorities by the
end of April. There are three sections in the written paper:
Section I Documents-based question: One hundred marks are set aside for this question.
There is no element of choice in section I.
Section 2: Ireland: Here you have to answer one essay-type question on your chosen
topic from Irish history. There will be four questions listed of which you must answer
one. This question is worth a hundred marks.
Section 3 Europe and the Wider World: In this section you will have to answer one
question from each of your chosen 2 topics from Europe and the Wider World. You will
have the same element of choice in this section as you have in section 2. Each question is
worth a hundred marks.
Timing: The exam will last for two hours and 50 minutes. You should spent no more
than 45 minutes on the document question and about 35 minutes on each of your three
essay-type answers.
Preparing for the Exam:
There are three different core areas to cover for the leaving cert. history higher level
course - the document study, essay type questions and the research study. Each section
requires a particular approach.
I The Document Study:
20% of the marks for the Leaving Cert honours paper are allotted to a document based
study. You must study the 3 nominated case studies from Topic 5 of Irish History in
order to prepare properly for this question. The 3 case studies are:
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The Sunningdale Agreement and the power-sharing executive, 1973-1974.
The Coleraine University controversy.
The Apprentice Boys of Derry.
What you need to know:
Case Study I:
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You must focus on the events that led to the introduction of direct rule in 1972 and
the attempts to establish a power-sharing executive.
You should be familiar with the reason for the collapse of the power-sharing
executive.
Study the role of the Council of Ireland as a major cause for the collapse of the
agreement.
Look at the immediate and long-term consequences resulting from the collapse of the
Sunningdale Agreement.
Case Study II:
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Why was there a need for a second university in Northern Ireland?
Why did the Lockwood Committee choose Coleraine as a suitable site for a second
university in Northern Ireland?
Make sure that you can explain why the citizens of Derry were outraged at the
decision not to open the second university in Derry. You need to look at the question
of discrimination against the nationalist community in Derry and the East/West divide
in Northern Ireland to fully understand the reasons behind the controversy.
What was impact of the Coleraine University controversy?
Case Study III:
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Learn some background information on the Apprentice Boys – when were they
established?/ what events do they celebrate?
You must be able to explain why the Apprentice Boys marches caused political
tensions in Northern Ireland.
Look particularly at the period 1968/69 and explain the role of the marches in the
outbreak of the troubles and the deployment of British soldiers on the streets of
Northern Ireland.
Analysing historical documents:
You can not rely on facts alone to get you through this section of the exam paper. You
must develop some of the skills of the historian and demonstrate your ability to examine,
explain and interpret historical documents.
All sources of historical evidence must be analysed to determine their reliability. It is
important therefore to check sources for, bias, propaganda selectivity, balance and
objectivity.
Bias: Giving preference to a particular viewpoint.
Propaganda: Organised spreading of information which may or may not be true.
Selectivity: Telling only part of the story.
Balance: Giving equal information on the various interpretations of a person’s actions or
of an event.
Objectivity: Presenting the information in a way, which does not give favour to one side
or the other.
Subjective: this is when the author gives his/her own point of view.
Written Sources:
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Identify the source writer and when it was written.
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Ask yourself why the author wrote the document, book etc? Did the author have a
special interest in the subject in the written source? Is the author a member of a
political party, cultural movement, army etc?
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Find out the origins of the document: book, official records, private records,
newspaper accounts, transcripts from interviews etc. In the case of a newspaper
source, ask yourself if that particular newspaper is supportive of a particular political
party or cause.
Check the date of the document. This will allow you to place it in its proper historical
context.
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Once you have identified the author and the date you must now study the content of
the written source. Ask yourself is the content factual or opinionated? Does the
source give a straightforward account of what happened or is it based on the opinion
of the author? Written sources will usually contain a mixture of opinion and fact.
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Ask yourself if the source has been written for a particular readership? For instance a
public speech may be written to arouse a particular response from the audience. It
may not contain the true views of its author, and may therefore be unreliable.
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Ask yourself if the language in the document is measured or if it is emotive and
designed to evoke a particular response.
Cartoons:
Political cartoons are a common and popular source of historical evidence. Analysing
cartoons can be quite a difficult task, as cartoons are not usually concerned with
presenting a balanced view.
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You must at first place the cartoon in its historical context i.e. from which period does
it belong to? Most cartoons will include the date of publication. Think back and try
to recall what was happening at this particular time.
It’s important to determine where the cartoon comes from. Find out which
publication it came from. Try to discover if the newspaper or magazine from which
the cartoon came is controlled or influenced by a particular political party or
organisation.
Study the characters in the cartoon. Are they presented in a realistic manner or are
their features exaggerated? Does the cartoonist attempt to show its subjects in a
good, bad or humorous way? Do you consider the cartoon to be biased in any way?
Study the background in the cartoon. Are there any symbols or signs that might give
you more information on the purpose of the cartoon?
Most cartoons will include a caption. Read the caption. Ask yourself if you consider
the caption to be a fair description of the political situation at that time?
II. Essay type questions:
60% of the marks in the leaving cert history exam are awarded for answering essay-type
questions from your chosen 3 topics.
A few tips on essay writing:
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Stay within the dates outlined in the question. Take note of the dates included in the
question title and try to remain within the time period that is specified. Only a small
amount of marks will be awarded for information outside of the relevant dates.
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Count the parts of the question. If there is more than one part to the question, make
sure that you don’t ignore a section. If you ignore a singly part of the question
completely you will lose a substantial amount of marks.
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Each essay should contain a minimum of 5 developed points. Marks will be awarded
on a scale of 0-12 for every relevant point. Although five perfect points would get
you full marks, it is advisable to write more than the minimum amount of paragraphs.
It would be unusual to see a question scoring maximum marks on every paragraph.
The great thing about the marking scheme in this exam is that the examiner may add
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the marks from every paragraph together up to a maximum of 60 marks. Therefore
you are more likely to receive a high mark by writing a few extra paragraphs of
relevance.
40% of the marks for each essay are awarded for an overall evaluation of the essay.
Marks will be lost here if you:
 Fail to stick to the question.
 Fail to identify the correct perspective of the question i.e. Politics and
Administration, Society and Economy or Cultural, Religion and Science.
 Fail to refer and explain any key concept relating to the question.
III The research Study:
What you need to do:
Title:
Your research study must have a clear title and should include the relevant dates.
Outline Plan (15 marks):
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First you must justify your choice of topic. This means that you must explain why
you consider the person, event etc that you have chosen merits a special study. One or
two sentences will do.
Next, you must state your aims e.g. what do you hope to learn from this study. Again
one or two sentences will do.
You must give a brief outline of your intended approach – what areas do you intend
to focus on? Are there any questions you want answered?
Lastly you must list your sources. Higher level students must list at least 3 sources.
You must include the name of the book, author, publisher and date of publication.
Internet sources must include a full web address. You should also write down the
date on which the information was downloaded from the web.
Evaluation of Sources (25 marks)
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Outline the usefulness of each source. Refer to their strengths and weaknesses.
State whether the source is an example of a primary or secondary source.
Refer to examples of bias, objectivity, selectivity etc.
Extended Essay:
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The word count for the higher level extended essays should be between 1200 and
1500 words.
Start the essay with a short introduction to the topic. Keep background information to
a minimum.
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Develop the subject by writing about six to eight good solid paragraphs relating
directly to the topic.
Make a few short references to your sources. You may do this by supporting a point,
which you have made with a direct quote from the author of one or more of your
sources. Alternatively you may refer to the views of the author/historian in your own
words. Two of three such references would be sufficient.
You must also include a short review of the research process in the extended essay. It’s
probably best to write the review as a separate account at the end of the extended essay.
A maximum of ten marks out of the 60 marks will be awarded for this review. The
review should be about 250 words.
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Start the review by explaining how and why you chose the subject on which your
extended essay is based.
Mention how you got your sources – library, Internet, bookshop, interview etc.
Refer to any difficulties you encountered and skills you acquired while completing
your essay.
You also must state whether or not you managed to fulfil the aims set out in your
outline plan.