When you sit the History Scholarship paper you should
STAY CALM ,
read the questions carefully and
THINK before you write.
We want to find out whether you are a good thinker because the best historians can think for themselves. We are not interested in you churning out a long list of facts. We are interested in the judgements you make - your OPINION. History is not about 'right' and 'wrong' answers!!!
The first section of the scholarship paper will be based on
a topic that you have not studied in class.
It may be something you have heard about, but the topic is chosen so that no one can be taught the answer in a way that might give them an unfair advantage.
The aim of the questions is to find out about your reading and comprehension skills and how well your brain works. It shows us your REASONING ABILITY (your ability to THINK and use your common sense - YOUR BRAINPOWER!)
The second part of the paper is a list of ESSAY QUESTIONS on all sorts of different topics. Some of the questions will be about things in the Middle Ages (you will have studied some of them in the First Year) and some will be about the Early Modern period (you have been studying that this year).
The most important thing in this section is TO ANSWER THE EXACT QUESTION ASKED - SO THINK CAREFULLY ABOUT YOUR ANSWER.
You must give a clear OPINION or JUDGEMENT in your introduction.
You must divide your answer into PARAGRAPHS and make sure you DEVELOP your ideas properly - make sure that the paragraphs are chunky and detailed not just one or two sentences (EXPLAIN yourself carefully).
Make sure you show the examiner that you know some FACTS about the topic. Use the facts to back up or support your argument.
A useful
HINT
is to begin each paragraph with a clear sentence that links directly to the question.
In your preparation I suggest you choose
TWO TOPICS
to revise thoroughly so that you have a choice of questions in the exam.
Remember: you must make sure you write in clear
DEVELOPED PARAGRAPHS
that
FOCUS
effectively on the precise question set.
HINT:
try and give a balanced answer (consider both sides of an argument if the question asks whether you agree with an interpretation, and consider
A RANGE OF FACTORS (4 or 5 is good)
if you are asked why something happened).
In your introduction set out which FACTORS or THEMES you are going to consider in your essay.
REMEMBER
that you will get extra marks if you
PRIORITISE
(i.e. if you say which factor (or theme) you think is the most important).
NEVER
just write the story of some one's reign.
ALWAYS
think analytically and write in themes rather than writing chronologically.
____________________
Here are some examples of themes / topics.
A GENERAL THEME:
Choose a personality from history who you think achieved something really significant that makes them 'great' in some way (e.g. they achieve something that would not have been achieved without them).
OTHER THEMES:
William I (William the Conqueror) - how did he control his kingdom, what was he like as a king - good or bad? How much did England change after he became king?
Henry II and Becket (why did they disagree, why did Becket end up being murdered, what was Henry like as a king - good or bad?).
King John and the Magna Carta (why did John end up signing the Magna Carta, what was so important about it? What was John like as a king - good or bad?)
The Black Death - what impact did it have on England? What was it like to live in England in the 14th century? How bad was it?
Henry VIII (can you remember of all the different reasons why he broke with Rome? Can you write developed paragraphs on each? Which do you think was the most important reason?)
Civil War (what were the different causes of it? Can you write developed paragraphs on each? Which cause do you think was the most important?)
Cromwell - he has a mixed reputation - what do you think of him as a ruler? Consider his reign from a number of different angles so that you can write paragraphs on a number of different themes.
ABOVE ALL - DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT!!! NO SLEEPLESS NIGHTS ALLOWED!!!
GOOD LUCK
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