1. WORKING WITH SOURCES What is a Source? A source is a piece of evidence that historians use to find out about the past. There are many different types of sources that can be used, such as; letters, diaries, texts from books, pictures, cartoons etc.

2. SOME GENERAL HINTS TO HELP YOU WHEN WORKING WITH SOURCES. Always read the sources and the questions carefully. Make sure you relate your answer to the question, don't get bogged down writing everything you can think of. Read and use the captions underneath pictures and cartoons they can be hugely helpful. Think carefully about timing yourself. Look at how many marks the question is worth and then work out how much time you should spend on it. REMEMBER. An 8 mark question does not require you to make 8 points, it is the level of analysis in your answer that gets you marks.

3. FIVE KINDS OF SOURCE EVALUATION QUESTIONS: Comprehension. Comprehension in context. Usefulness of sources. Source comparison. Interpretation.

4. COMPREHENSION These are usually the early questions. They are meant to be easy. They carry the lowest marks. You have to answer what the source shows about a situation. The source could be of any number of types. Write down everything you can find. Keep your mind on the question. Look beyond the obvious to what you can infer from the source.

5. COMPREHENSION INFER = TO WORK SOMETHING OUT FROM WHAT YOU HAVE READ OR SEEN. SQUEEZE THE EVIDENCE FOR MEANING. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A COMPLETELY BIASED OR USELESS SOURCE. YOU CAN FIND OUT A LOT OF INTERESTING THINGS FROM A BIASED SOURCE.

6. Extraction (ie what can we GET OUT of this source?) eg `What can we learn from Source(s) A (B,C etc.)... about _______ ?' REMEMBER- The examiners will usually ask this about a specific issue addressed by the source, so IGNORE anything in the source which does not deal with what they are asking about. REMEMBER - This is usually a smaller/easier question, so look at how many marks are up for grabs and don't spend too long on it.

7. Extraction Describe what the surface information says - if the question is worth 3 marks, simply list three relevant facts the source tells you. If the question is worth 5 marks, see what the source infers - is there a message ‘between the lines'/ is it trying to create ‘an impression'/ is there an underlying message / does it tell you further things about the author / the times / the situation? Include at least two inferences. Can you 'put two things from the source together' to deduce something further?

8. Differences eg `Why is source A's interpretation different to Source B's?' If you have been asked simply HOW the content differs, look first for OBVIOUS surface differences of fact, but then study the words/ details to deduce differences in approach, emphasis or tone. If you have been asked WHY the sources are different, you will need to compare who wrote them, in what situation, and the motives / intentions / purpose of the author - depends on the sources and the wording of the question. This is a question when it is usually vital to use your own knowledge Make sure you come to a CONCLUSION based on facts/inferences/interpretations in the sources.

9. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. This means understanding what a source tells us about a topic and linking it with knowledge you already have which is also relevant to the question. Use this source and your own knowledge to explain KEEP THE QUESTION IN MIND WHEN YOU ARE EVALUATINGTHE SOURCE AND ANSWERING THE QUESTION.

10. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. Use Source A and Source B and your own knowledge to explain ….. How does Source A help you to understand…? Use the source and your own knowledge to explain… Firstly study the source or sources - what does it tell you? Go through the same process as you would for a straight forward comprehension question, looking for inferences as well as the obvious.

11. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. Then think about what else you know about the particular issue. If it is relevant and it would help you to understand the source better include it in your answer.

12. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. SOURCE A: Part of a letter from a Mr Perkins to the government's Board of Health in 1848. `....my impression is that [the gases] chemically infect exposed water; and the poorer classes using such water are consequently the greatest sufferers.'

13. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. QUESTION Use the source and your knowledge to explain what Source A tells you about people's understanding of the causes of disease in the early nineteenth century.(8) HINTS FOR YOUR ANSWER Firstly read the caption and the source carefully and ask yourself what the source tells you about people's understanding of the causes disease.

14. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. For example the source tells you that some people believed that disease was caused by the drinking of water which was infected by gases. This will only gain you a couple of marks because you have not used your own knowledge at all in the answer. Now think about what you know. What do you know about people's understanding of the causes of disease in the early nineteenth century?

15. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. You should now be aware of what the source is telling you and what your background knowledge is. However it is not enough to just write down this is what the source tells me …..and this is what I know... To gain maximum marks you need to link your knowledge with the information in the source.

16. SOURCE COMPREHENSION IN CONTEXT. PROPAGANDA - INFORMATION WHICH GIVES A ONE VIEW OF EVENTS EITHER BY CAREFUL SELECTION, EXAGGERATION OR DELIBERATE UNTRUTHS WHICH IS DESIGNED TO GENERATE SUPPORT FOR ONE SIDE IN A CONFLICT, OR QUARREL OR COMPETITION. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A COMPLETELY RELIABLE SOURCE.

17. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. SOME SOURCES MIGHT BE MORE USEFUL THAN OTHERS, BUT SOURCES ARE NOT SIMPLY USEFUL OR NOT USEFUL IN THEIR OWN RIGHT, THEY ARE USEFUL OR NOT USEFUL DEPENDING ON WHAT YOU WISH TO FIND OUT FROM THEM, THAT IS DEPENDING ON THE QUESTION BEING ASKED OF THEM.

18. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. eg `How useful is Source A to...?' REMEMBER - nothing is ever useless; even the most biased source reveals what that author thought. Talk most about the ways in which the source is useful. REMEMBER - this is a question about Quantity and Quality - how much information is it telling you, and how reliable is the information it is telling you? A USEFUL source is a source that TELLS YOU A LOT and WHICH YOU CAN TRUST.

19. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. REMEMBER - sometimes the question may ask you about the 'validity' of the source - usefulness Look at what the source is telling you and compare it to what you need / would like to know - remember both surface and inferred information. Measure the sufficiency of the source - how much info/ are there gaps?

20. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. Useful for what? Can you trust the author's statements? Look at accuracy, context, origin and purpose: a source which is inaccurate may be useful for revealing the author's opinions and prejudices, but it is not useful for telling us the facts. Is the author's view objective / typical? Compare the source's STRENGTHS against its LIMITATIONS and come to a CONCLUSION.

21. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. When judging the usefulness of a source ask questions like: where does the source come from? who created it? why was it created? is it reliable in what it says about even if it is biased what does it still reveal that is relevant to the question?

22. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. RELIABLE - CAN BE TRUSTED OR MADE USE OF AT FACE VALUE. REMEMBER - JUST BECAUSE A SOURCE IS UNRELIABLE, THIS DOES NOT MAKE IT TOTALLY USELESS.

23. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. If you want to discuss the bias of a source then what reveals its bias?  its content?  its attribution? (provenance)  your knowledge of the period? ATTRIBUTION / PROVENANCE - THE CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH A SOURCE WAS PRODUCED

24. USEFULNESS OF SOURCES. REMEMBER - INACCURATE OR UNRELIABLE SOURCES DO NOT MEAN USELESS SOURCES REMEMBER - USEFULNESS CAN ONLY BE JUDGED WITH REFERENCE TO THE QUESTION BEING ASKED.

25. SOURCE COMPARISON. This kind of question requires all the same skills, comprehension, inference, reliability, usefulness, limits to usefulness, but comparing one source with others. Your answer must be a comparison. COMPARE - LOOK FOR SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES IN WHAT DIFFERENT SOURCES OFFER TO ANSWER A QUESTION. MAKE SURE YOU ARE ANSWERING THE QUESTION - MAKE SURE YOU ACHIEVE A PROPERLY BALANCED ANSWER.

26. INTERPRETATION. This requires you to assess how valid judgements about the past are. INTERPRETATION - AN ATTEMPT TO DESCRIBE / EXPLAIN / MAKE A JUDGEMENT ABOUT THE PAST.

27. INTERPRETATION. These are the higher mark questions - You must use both the sources and your knowledge to answer the question. Try to fix in your mind the judgement or interpretation that you are assessing the validity or truthfulness of by: Reading the sources carefully Reading the question carefully Making your answer well structured with an  opening paragraph  supporting the judgement or evaluation  arguing against the judgement  making your conclusion well balanced about how valid the judgement in the question is Make your first and last lines focus firmly on the question.

28. Reliability eg `How accurate is Source A as a source of information...?' REMEMBER - primary sources (from the time) are immediate and even eyewitness, but they may lack perspective/ objectivity/ may be biased. Secondary sources (written afterwards - eg textbooks) can be dispassionate and use a number of primary sources, but they may be guilty of misinterpreting facts (until the 1960s, history books were often written to carry a message - eg Marxist, Nazi)

29. Reliability REMEMBER - sometimes the question may ask you about the 'accuracy' of the source - reliability! Test the information / claims of the source against other sources and your own knowledge. Does it give the true facts and feelings from the time - use your own knowledge.

30. Reliability VITAL: Look at the provenance to establish context, origin and purpose - the situation in which it was written, who wrote it, and whether it is one-sided / propaganda etc. Look at sufficiency - does it give the whole story - what has it missed? Relate what you are saying to the specific context of the source - try to talk not only about generalities such as 'it may be biased', but about the specific situation (e.g. Source A would be biased because...') Make sure you come to a CONCLUSION based on facts.

31. Reaching Conclusions eg `Use all the Sources to debate....' Recount relevant surface / inferred information from the Sources. Realise that the sources support both sides of the argument., and that you can use the sources and your own knowledge to argue both for and against the proposition.

32. WRITING FRAMES RELIABILITY Source A is reliable because it shows (tells) me ……………………. I know this to be reliable because from my own knowledge........................................................ I can trust the person who produced the source because.......................................................... FOR the balanced answer: Source … is not reliable because it is one sided. It only gives me the............................. view of the event/person which is..........................

33. WRITING FRAMES I can not trust the person who produced the source because................................... Checking out reliability - Questions to consider when looking at reliability: Has the source been written or drawn by someone you can trust? Was it written down years later when events might have been forgotten?

34. Checking out reliability - Questions to consider when looking at reliability: Is the source biased and only telling you one side of the story? What is it not telling you? Has it missed out important events or views? What are they? Was it written by someone who did not witness the event and might not know what happened?

35. WRITING FRAMES USEFULNESS Source is useful because it tells/shows me that… It is also useful because it was produced by … It is worth knowing their view because …. NOT USEFUL Source … is not useful because it gives me a one sided view which is … It does not tell me.... I can not trust the person who produced the Source because ….

36. Reach ing Conclusions Weigh the evidence to come down one way or the other, OR state case and prove it, discounting contrary evidence VITAL: Refer to the content and utility (sufficiency/ accuracy and reliability) of the sources in debate.

37. KEY WORDS Reliable - can be trusted or made use of at face value. Biased - gives a one-sided point of view. Useful - can be used by an historian to answer a given question. Valuable - can be used by an historian to answer a given question.

38. Key words in source-based examination questions To what extent... ? This means you should include words like 'a lot', 'not much', 'most people' etc in your answer. Using the sources and your own knowledge... Remember that if you only use the sources or you only use your own knowledge to answer the question, then it is unlikely that you will get more than half the marks available.A Describe... This means that you should write what you see or read. You should not explain or give reasons for what you have seen or read. In what ways... ? This means you should give examples.

39. Key words in source-based examination questions Explain why... ? This means you must give reasons for why something has happened. In your own words... This means you should interpret and not copy from the source. Compare... This means you should look at two or more points, often sources, and say what the similarities and differences are.... reliable... ? You must think about whether you can trust the text. Could it be biased?

40. Key words in source-based examination questions... sufficient information... ? You must think about whether a source provides enough information about a topic. Has it included everything or is something missing? … relevance … ? You must decide how useful the source is when studying the topic....fact...? You must decide whether something is a fact or whether it is someone's opinion. If it is an opinion, that view will be different depending on the person.

41. Key words in source-based examination questions … change…? With a question like 'How did the lives of people change under Nazi rule?' you must compare things so that you can see if there has been a change (or how much something has changed).... from 1954-1965... ? You should discuss only the events in these years.... the role of... ? You must think carefully about what someone or something did and what influence it had on other things.