Volume 17, Number 2, November 2014
Exam focus
OCR: Nazism and the Holocaust
Sarah Ward
Sarah Ward looks at a sample question related to this topic, focusing on the skill of
explanation
Mark Levene’s article ‘The Kamenets-Podolsk Massacre, 1941: Was Europe too slow to offer refuge
to the Jews?’ (pp. 2–6 of this issue of MODERN HISTORY REVIEW) touches on several issues that are
relevant to OCR’s AS Unit F962/B study topic 8: Democracy and dictatorship in Germany 1919–63.
While you are unlikely to be faced with a question that focuses solely on the Holocaust or the
treatment of the Jews, these are clearly extremely important topics. You can refer to them when
answering many different questions in this module as part of your answer.
Unit F962 is a period studies unit. It requires you to use knowledge and understanding effectively to
support argument, analysis and evaluation. In the exam you must complete two out of a possible three
questions on a topic you have studied.
Here we will look at the skill of explanation. While it may seem very obvious how to explain something,
it is a skill that a lot of people get wrong.
Sample question
Here is an exam question in the style of OCR:
Assess the reasons why the Nazis did not face significant opposition in Germany.
This question asks you to identify and weigh up different reasons why the Nazis did not face
significant opposition within Germany. There are many different reasons that you could choose, for
example fear, propaganda, Nazi promises and Nazi policies. When looking at the Holocaust you could
talk about either fear (people conforming because they were afraid that they would be treated badly
too) or support for the Nazis (the idea that a significant proportion of people blamed the Jews for
Germany’s problems and supported Nazi policies).
Dictionary definitions of ‘explanation’ tend to centre around the ideas of making something clear or
justifying something. These two types of explanation are both useful in this exam. You need to explain
and justify why the factors you have chosen are important to the issue in the question.
Activity 1
Below is an example paragraph that attempts to answer the question above. Read the paragraph
carefully. Highlight the following:

the factor being discussed

the explanation of how it relates to the question
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
the explanation of what makes this factor important to the issue in the question

relevant evidence
Sample answer paragraph 1
Some people did not oppose the Nazis because they agreed with their policies, for example the
policies relating to the Jews. The Jews were attacked in Kristallnacht and many discriminatory
policies were put into place that identified Jews and meant that they could not get jobs or live in
certain areas. They were harassed and arrested and eventually they were sent to labour camps or
concentration camps as part of ‘The Final Solution’. People had blamed the Jews for the economic
problems of Germany. This was not fair but people wanted to find someone to blame. The Nazis
introduced propaganda that it was the Jews’ fault so people believed it.
Discussion
Hopefully you have highlighted little relevant evidence and no real explanation of what makes this
factor important. The candidate’s paragraph has started well, by outlining the factor to be discussed
and how it relates to the question. The candidate then goes on to give some rather general evidence
about the treatment of the Jews, however, rather than explaining what makes this factor important to
the question of the lack of opposition in Germany.
Activity 2
Now read the second answer paragraph below and see if you can identify where it provides
explanation.
Sample answer paragraph 2
There was a significant group of people who did not oppose the Nazis because they agreed with Nazi
policies, for example those policies relating to the Jews. This is crucial in any assessment of the lack
of opposition because we cannot assume that fear was the only reason that the German population
did not oppose the Nazis. Otherwise it is hard to explain the size of party membership, the popularity
of Nazi youth movements, and the involvement of ordinary Germans in Nazi organisations and
government. One reason why the Nazis did not face significant opposition to their racial policies, for
example, was that there was a high level of anti-Semitism among the ordinary population. There was
long-running Christian hostility to the Jews across Europe, and it had become worse in Germany
following its defeat in World War One. Some extremist groups blamed the Jews for this and for the
economic problems following the war. Because they saw the group being victimised as an old enemy
they were more able to scapegoat them. They may have believed that the Nazi policies would make
their country stronger and restore it to its pre-1918 glory, through ridding it of groups that were
weakening it, like the Jews. This is an extremely important factor because support for key Nazi
policies meant that it was harder for any opposition groups that existed to grow, and it was more
likely that anyone with opposition views would be informed on. Obviously not everyone supported the
Nazis’ policies but, with so many people who did, it was more likely that the remainder would be
suppressed through fear, terror and coercion.
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Discussion
This paragraph contains much more explanation. Look at the highlighted sections below. In these
sections the candidate explains what makes support for Nazi policies important as a factor in the lack
of opposition. They can then use this paragraph as a basis to evaluate the factor in comparison to the
others they are discussing. They could add more specific evidence of incidences where there was
support for the Nazi racial policies.
There was a significant group of people who did not oppose the Nazis because they agreed with Nazi
policies, for example those policies relating to the Jews. This is crucial in any assessment of the lack
of opposition because we cannot assume that fear was the only reason that the German population
did not oppose the Nazis. Otherwise it is hard to explain the size of party membership, the popularity
of Nazi youth movements, and the involvement of ordinary Germans in Nazi organisations and
government. One reason why the Nazis did not face significant opposition to their racial policies, for
example, was that there was a high level of anti-Semitism among the ordinary population. There was
long-running Christian hostility to the Jews across Europe, and it had become worse in Germany
following its defeat in World War One. Some extremist groups blamed the Jews for this and for the
economic problems following the war. Because they saw the group being victimised as an old enemy
they were more able to scapegoat them. They may have believed that the Nazi policies would make
their country stronger and restore it to its pre-1918 glory, through ridding it of groups that were
weakening it, like the Jews. This is an extremely important factor because support for key Nazi
policies meant that it was harder for any opposition groups that existed to grow, and it was more
likely that anyone with opposition views would be informed on. Obviously not everyone supported the
Nazis’ policies but, with so many people who did, it was more likely that the remainder would be
suppressed through fear, terror and coercion.
Tips for successful explanation

To make it clear that you are explaining something, use the linking word ‘because’, e.g. ‘This
factor was extremely important because...’. It flags up to the examiner that you are about to
explain something.

After the ‘because’ make sure you do go on to provide a reason why that factor was important,
matching the first half of the sentence to the second.

Focus — keep the question in sight so that you can keep checking that your explanations are
relevant to the question. Candidate 1 strayed from the focus of opposition because they
wanted to show their knowledge of Nazi persecution, but in doing so their answer was
weakened.

Whereas description tells the story of a period, person, movement or action, explanation gives
a reason for it. Be aware of this and, if you believe you are explaining, test this by thinking of
the word ‘because’. If you were to insert this into your sentence, would it make sense? Are
you definitely explaining?
Activity 3
Look again at the sample exam question. Choose another factor that would help answer this question
and write your own paragraph. Remember to include the following:
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
a first line that identifies the factor, its relevance to the question and possibly its importance

an explanation of what makes this factor important to the issue of the question

specific detailed evidence in support

a concluding sentence that attempts to analyse the importance of this factor as compared to,
for example, the factor above — Is it more or less important? Crucially, why?
This resource is part of MODERN HISTORY REVIEW , a magazine written for A-level students by
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