How Do You Evaluate Sources In Aqa History? What Makes A Source Useful?

In AQA GCSE history a question that can cause confusion amongst students is about the usefulness of sources. This can be for a variety of reasons - at my school we study Health and the People and the vast amount of content means that sources can be selected to reflect one of many time periods. The challenges here are not just knowledge, but a deep understanding of some challenging key terms, a nuanced understanding of attitudes within each period and a confidence in evaluating a variety of sources.

The question stem will always be "How useful is Source A to a historian studying x?' so there are a variety of ways and methods to ensure confidence in tackling whatever the exam board throws at you.

The first is understanding what makes a source `useful`. I define this simply to my students a source is useful if it helps us to understand a topic/period or if it confirms what we already know. In other words - if the source contains anything that you have studied or that you have knowledge of - it is useful to us. A confidence in the content is vital, and with tutoring this can be developed beyond what is covered in the classroom to achieve a complex understanding.

The second step is to understand how to write your answer. I always teach students to write one paragraph on the content of the source (what you see) and one paragraph on the provenance. The exam only allows ten minutes for your written response, so it is vital that this can be planned effectively to tackle all necessary components of the mark scheme.

The third step is to attempt a variety of answers and to practice utilising these steps. Once students feel confident in understanding the methodology of the question, they can then elaborate on their responses and curate arguments that are complex and unique. This will ensure that they `wow` the examiner and can achieve the highest marks available.