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EnglandHistoryQuick questions
Source and Interpretation Skills
Quick questions on Evaluating primary sources for the enquiry - OCR A-Level History skills
4short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is content?Show answer
Start with the content: what does the source actually say or show that bears on the enquiry? Read it closely and relate it directly to the question, rather than describing it in general. Content alone, however, is not evaluation: a top-band answer uses content as the starting point for judging value.
What is context?Show answer
Finally, set the source against your contextual knowledge. Context lets you test the source (does it fit what you know?), explain its purpose, and judge how far it can be trusted for the enquiry. Without context, evaluation collapses into assertion; with it, you can judge value precisely and reach a substantiated conclusion.
What is q1?Show answer
Why might a hostile newspaper editorial be valuable evidence in an enquiry, despite its bias? [10 marks, AO2 style]
What is q2?Show answer
What three things do you use to judge a source's value for an enquiry? [2 marks]
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