1. Pre-public exam revision
Religious Studies
Pre-public exam revision

2. Exam structure 4 topics: 4 question styles: Believing in God
Matters of Life and Death
Marriage and the Family
Community Cohesion
4 question styles:
Part A – definitions (2 marks)
Part B – opinions (4 marks)
Part C – knowledge & understanding (8 marks)
Part D – analysis (3 + 3 marks)

3. Part A – definitions (2 marks)
EQ: “What is abortion?” (2 marks)
A: The removal of a foetus from the womb before it can survive
Accurate
Concise
Do not use the same words again e.g. human rights are not the rights of humans!
Show your understanding by using a different word e.g. entitlements and freedoms that are applicable to all people

4. Part B – Opinions (4 marks)
EQ: “Do you think life after death is impossible?”
A: I agree that life after death is impossible because there is no scientific evidence and all facts should be able to be proven.
On the other hand there are people who claim that they remember past lives as they have been reincarnated. Though not scientific evidence, their true memories could be a different form of evidence of life after death.
Two reasoned opinions i.e. point & explanation/example. Could be:
Agree + agree
Disagree + disagree
Agree + disagree

5. Part C – Knowledge and understanding (8)
EQ: Explain why some Christians accept abortion (8)
A: Some Christians accept abortion because Jesus taught that they should love their neighbour. Abortion may be the most loving thing to do if having an unwanted baby could lead to unhappiness for the rest of the family e.g. if the mother had been raped.
Abortion may be allowed if the baby would be seriously disabled. This is because Jesus was loving and compassionate and God is omnibenevolent so would not want a baby to suffer or be in pain.
Christians also accept abortion if the baby is going to be seriously disabled. Christians also allow abortion if the existing family is at risk e.g. the mother’s life is in danger. Abortion is the lesser of two evils, meaning that though neither decision is good, ending the life of the foetus to save the mother could be the lesser of the two bad options.
Three well developed reasons (P.E.E.L) – ensuring quality of written communication is excellent i.e. clear, concise paragraphs with key terms and key teachings throughout

6. Part D – Analysis (3 + 3 marks)
EQ: “Religious people can achieve community cohesion.” Do you agree?
i) I do not agree that religious people can achieve community cohesion because different religions have different beliefs, which could cause arguments e.g. regarding homosexuality, which means that people will not live peacefully.
Prejudice and discrimination will always exist. Therefore, some people will think they and their religion are superior to others because of their faith and beliefs.
ii) On the other hand, some religions agree on certain beliefs, for example Christians and Muslims agree that God created the world. Therefore, they may find some common ground, which could lead to community cohesion.
Another reason is that people have free will, meaning that is acceptable that different people have different beliefs, as long as people are respectful and tolerant of each other's differences.
Two developed reasons on each side, at least one of which is Christian/Muslim.