How do you answer the Western Front source enquiry questions?
The nature of the historic environment source enquiry, the role of different sources and how to find evidence about the Western Front, and how to answer the 'How useful are Sources A and B' (8 marks) and 'How could you follow up Source A' (4 marks) questions.
A focused answer to the Edexcel Paper 1 historic environment source enquiry, explaining the role of sources for studying the Western Front, and the exact method for the 'How useful are Sources A and B' (8 marks) and the distinctive 'How could you follow up Source A' (4 marks) questions.
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What this dot point is asking
The historic environment is examined by two source questions unique to Edexcel Paper 1: an 8-mark How useful are Sources A and B question and a 4-mark How could you follow up Source A question. You need to know the types of source historians use for the Western Front and the exact method for each question. The follow-up question in particular has a fixed four-part structure that you must learn.
The sources historians use
The 8-mark "How useful are Sources A and B" question
The 4-mark "How could you follow up Source A" question
Putting it together
The two questions reward the same underlying skill (using sources critically) but in different ways. Usefulness is about judging what you are given; the follow-up is about planning where to look next. For both, your contextual knowledge of the trenches, wounds, the RAMC and the chain of evacuation is what raises an answer from vague to precise.
Try this
Q1. What are the four parts of the "How could you follow up Source A" question? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. The detail you would follow up, the question you would ask, a source you could use, and how that source might help answer your question.
Q2. Explain why a censored war photograph can still be useful for an enquiry. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Even if it does not show the full reality, it is useful for revealing what the army chose to present, so usefulness depends on the enquiry rather than on reliability alone.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of Pearson Edexcel exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Edexcel 20198 marksHow useful are Sources A and B for an enquiry into the treatment of wounded soldiers on the Western Front? Explain your answer, using Sources A and B and your knowledge of the historical context.Show worked answer →
The Paper 1 historic environment source utility question (8 marks). Markers reward both sources judged for usefulness using content, provenance (nature, origin, purpose) and contextual knowledge, for the stated enquiry.
For each source. State what its content reveals about the enquiry, then use its provenance (a war photograph, a surgeon's diary, an RAMC report) to judge how far that can be trusted and what it is useful for, testing it against your own knowledge of the chain of evacuation and treatments.
Judgement. Say what each source is useful for, not just whether it is reliable, and note its limits (for example a photograph may be staged or censored). Do not reject a source merely for being one-sided. Top band judges both sources for the named enquiry.
Edexcel 20214 marksHow could you follow up Source A to find out more about the treatment of wounds on the Western Front? In your answer, you must give the detail in Source A that you would follow up, the question you would ask, a source you could use and how this might help answer your question.Show worked answer →
The Paper 1 "How could you follow up" question (4 marks), unique to Edexcel. It has four set parts, each worth one mark, and you must answer all four in the table or sentences provided.
Detail to follow up. Pick a specific detail quoted from Source A (for example a mention of a casualty clearing station).
Question I would ask. Turn it into a precise question (for example, how common was surgery at casualty clearing stations?).
Source I could use. Name a sensible type of source (for example RAMC unit war diaries or hospital admission records).
How this might help. Explain how that source would answer your question (it would record the operations carried out, showing how common surgery was). Keep each part short and matched.
Related dot points
- The nature of the wounds suffered on the Western Front (shrapnel, gas and head wounds), the work of the RAMC and FANY, and the chain of evacuation from the front line to the base hospital.
A focused answer to the wounds and the RAMC on Edexcel's Western Front historic environment study, covering shrapnel, gas and head wounds, the work of the RAMC and FANY, and the chain of evacuation through the RAP, dressing station, casualty clearing station and base hospital.
- The new techniques and developments on the Western Front: the Thomas splint, the use of mobile x-rays, blood transfusions and the blood bank, brain and plastic surgery, and the treatment of wound infection by the Carrel-Dakin method.
A focused answer to the medical breakthroughs on Edexcel's Western Front historic environment study, covering the Thomas splint, mobile x-rays, blood transfusions and the blood bank, brain surgery, plastic surgery, and the treatment of infected wounds by the Carrel-Dakin method.
- The context of the British sector of the Western Front (the trench system, key battles such as the Somme and Cambrai, and the terrain), the everyday conditions, and the illnesses caused by trench life.
A focused answer to the context and conditions of Edexcel's British sector of the Western Front historic environment study, covering the trench system, key battles (Ypres, the Somme, Arras and Cambrai), the terrain, and the illnesses of trench life such as trench foot, trench fever and shell shock.
- Analysing sources in Edexcel GCSE History: making inferences from a source, judging the usefulness of one or more sources for a stated enquiry using content and provenance (nature, origin and purpose), and applying contextual knowledge.
A focused answer to the Edexcel GCSE History source questions, covering how to make inferences from a source, and how to weigh content against provenance (nature, origin and purpose) and use contextual knowledge to judge the usefulness of sources for a stated enquiry.
- The structure of the three Edexcel GCSE History papers, the fixed question stems on each paper (Describe two features, Explain why, the 16-mark essays, the source and interpretation questions), and how to manage timing and marks.
A focused answer to the structure of the three Edexcel GCSE History papers, explaining the fixed question stems on each paper (Describe two features, Explain why, the 16-mark essays, and the source and interpretation questions), their mark tariffs, and how to manage timing.
Sources & how we know this
- Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) History (1HI0) specification — Pearson Edexcel (2016)