THIRD YEAR

FIRST WORLD WAR.

NB Looking for other exam practice? Check out the 'How useful question' on the tank HERE

Sample 8 mark question.


Source A.

At the hour of the assault on the principal front of the attack, a large number of our magnificent tanks moved forward in advance of the infantry and broke through the successive belts of German wire despite the fact that they were of great depth and strength.
This wonder weapon has enabled attacks to be carried out without previous artillery preparation and in each case the enemy was completely surprised and overwhelmed.
Extract from an article produced in the Daily Mirror in September 1918
.

Does Source A give an accurate interpretation of the significance of the tank in the First World War?
Use Source A and your own knowledge to answer the question. (8 marks)

'How accurate' shouldn't be difficult as a question type.
Just think - if someone says "How accurate is your watch?' what do you do?.

Start off:
Source D suggests............. and note briefly the key points of what it actually says.
Do NOT just write out the source word for word!!!
THEN CONSIDER....
Is this information accurate i.e. does it match WHAT YOU KNOW?
Comment on this.

Then consider whether the Ws affect the accuracy of the source (the emphasis it places on one factor as opposed to others)? Make a one sentence comment on this.

e.g. It is a newspaper article so is a form of propaganda - its purpose would have been to glorify the role of the British military in the defeat of Germany. It is written in 1918 so would tend to emphasize the effectiveness of the tank which had been used to good effect at Cambrai in 1917 and Amiens in 1918.

The chances are that it will be a valid viewpoint but that it only tells part of the story.

So then - to give a BALANCED ANSWER - you can go on to discuss....
Was the tank always that effective?

REMEMBER: THERE ARE ONLY 8 MARKS AVAILABLE, SO DON'T WRITE A PhD THESIS.