How do you answer a question that asks whether a view is exaggerated or selective in its use of facts?
Detecting exaggeration and selectivity: judging whether a stated view is fully, partly or not supported by the sources, using evidence that backs the view and evidence that goes against it.
How to answer the selectivity question in SQA National 5 Modern Studies: deciding whether a given view is exaggerated by finding evidence from the sources that supports it and evidence that opposes it, then judging how far the view can be backed, with worked examples.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
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What this dot point is asking
This dot point covers a key source-handling skill in the SQA National 5 Modern Studies question paper: detecting exaggeration and selectivity in the use of facts. These questions give you a stated view (often a quotation from a named person) and two or three sources, and ask you to show the view is exaggerated, or to judge to what extent it is accurate. They are worth 8 marks.
The skill is to weigh evidence that supports the view against evidence that contradicts it. A view is "exaggerated" or "selective" when it picks only the facts that suit it and ignores facts that go against it. Your job is to use the sources to show both sides.
The answer
A view is selective or exaggerated when it relies only on the evidence that supports it and leaves out evidence that weakens it. To answer, find both kinds of evidence.
Break the view into parts
A stated view often makes more than one claim, for example "the scheme is a complete success and has cut costs". Deal with each part, because a view can be partly true and partly exaggerated.
Find supporting evidence
For each part, quote or paraphrase evidence from the sources that backs it up. This shows the view is not completely false, it has some basis.
Find contradicting evidence
Then quote evidence that goes against the view. This is the heart of the answer: the contradicting evidence shows the view is selective, ignoring facts that would weaken it, which is why it is exaggerated.
Judge how far the view holds
End with a judgement: the view is exaggerated, or only partly accurate, because while some evidence supports it, other evidence contradicts it.
Why this technique works
This question tests whether you can spot bias through selection: a view that is true as far as it goes but ignores inconvenient facts. By presenting the supporting evidence and then the contradicting evidence from the sources, you demonstrate exactly that the view is one-sided. The judgement ties it together. Simply agreeing or disagreeing without source evidence, or giving only one side, misses the skill being tested.
Examples in context
Suppose the view is "The new policy has been a total success". Source A supports it: satisfaction rose to 70%. But Source B contradicts it: costs doubled and complaints increased. So you write: "The view is exaggerated. It is partly supported by Source A, which shows satisfaction rose to 70%. However, Source B contradicts it, showing costs doubled and complaints rose, so by calling the policy a total success the view ignores the negative evidence and is therefore exaggerated." That is the full skill.
Try this
Q1. What does it mean to say a view is selective in its use of facts? [2 marks]
- What the marker wants. It presents only the evidence that supports the view and ignores evidence that goes against it, giving a one-sided picture.
Q2. To show a view is exaggerated, what two kinds of evidence must your answer contain? [2 marks]
- What the marker wants. Evidence from the sources that supports the view, and evidence that contradicts it.
Q3. Why is giving your own opinion, with no source evidence, a weak answer to a selectivity question? [1 mark]
- What the marker wants. The marks are for evidence from the sources; an unsupported opinion shows no use of the sources, so it earns nothing.
A note on sources
This guide is AI-written and not individually human-reviewed. The selectivity technique and source rules follow the published SQA National 5 Modern Studies course specification and marking instructions; verify current details against the specification at sqa.org.uk.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of SQA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
SQA N5 style8 marksUsing Sources A and B, explain why the view of [a named person] is exaggerated. (8 marks)Show worked answer →
A skills (selectivity) question worth 8 marks. You are given a view in quotation marks and asked to show it is exaggerated. The marker awards marks for evidence that supports the view and, crucially, evidence that contradicts it, showing the view only tells part of the story.
Break the view into parts. For each part, quote evidence from the sources that backs it (so it is partly true), then quote evidence that goes against it (so it is exaggerated). For example: "The view says the scheme is a total success. Source A supports this, showing satisfaction rose. However, Source B contradicts it, showing costs doubled and complaints rose, so the view is exaggerated."
For full marks use evidence both for and against from all the sources, and explain why the contradicting evidence makes the view exaggerated. Evidence only on one side caps the mark.
SQA N5 style8 marksUsing Sources A, B and C, to what extent is it accurate to state that [a given view]? (8 marks)Show worked answer →
An 8-mark selectivity question phrased as "to what extent is it accurate". The skill is the same: weigh evidence for and against the view to judge how far it is supported.
For each part of the view, give supporting evidence (where the sources agree with it) and contradicting evidence (where they do not), then judge: fully accurate, partly accurate or not accurate. Use all the sources, since the mark is capped if you use too few.
A strong answer reaches a clear judgement, for example "the view is only partly accurate, because while X is supported, Y is contradicted by the evidence".
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