10 Mark Questions

There are two types of 10 mark question that you will be asked in your exam.

The first is appears on all three papers and asks you to outline and explain two reasons / causes / impacts relating to theory and methods, the family and beliefs in society.

This means that there are a 3 of things that you must do in order to reach the top band marks:

  • Identify the reason / cause / ways / roles / effects.
  • Explain what this means in the context of the question.
  • Where necessary explain the impact of this reason / cause / ways / roles / effects.

The second also appears in all three papers but this will focus on Education, Crime, Family and Beliefs. This question asks you to apply material from the item to analyses two reasons / causes / impacts. The difference with this question is that you must explicitly use the item in each paragraph.

You do not need to do any evaluation on either of these questions. You must provide 2 points however if you give more then 2 they examiner will mark the best two responses.

WITHOUT ITEM

Outline and explain TWO

In the 10 markers without an item questions, you are required to write TWO clear paragraphs which answer the question. Remember, however, that this question is not marked as 5 + 5 but in bands. This means that you can achieve up to 7 marks for an excellent single paragraph.

This question requires TWO clear paragraphs, which answer the question directly and follows this format:

  • ANSWER – Answer the question directly using terms from the question.
  • EXPLAIN – How does this answer the question, use your sociological knowledge. 
  • APPLY – Use examples, Sociologists and studies to illustrate your point or explanation, where appropriate

Planning

WITH ITEM

Applying material from the item, analyse two

In the 10 markers with item questions, you must relate each of your points to an element from the item. Without this link, you are unlikely to receive marks as the question is explicit in saying you must “Apply material from the item”. 

Planning

When planning for this question, you need to remember that the item is not there to give you the answers, this is not a comprehension question. It is there to provide evidence and support to your answer. Therefore the planning process for this style question is as follows:

  • Deconstruct the Question – So that you know what it is you are being asked to do.
  • Identify possible answers – Just like you would with a 10 marker without item.
  • Look for the hooks in the Item – There is no point in looking for the hooks before you know what to look for.

Structure

The structure of this question is not dissimilar to that of the 10 marker without item.

This question requires TWO clear paragraphs, which answer the question directly and follows this format:

  • ANSWER– Answer the question directly using terms from the question.
  • EXPLAIN – How does this answer the question.
  • APPLY – You must link both paragraphs to elements in the item. This must be explicit and clear that you are taking information from the item, by using the term “the item”, you do not have to quote, you can paraphrase but it must be explicit and must flow with the rest of your paragraph. This should sit in your paragraph where it best fits. You can also use examples, Sociologists and studies to illustrate your point or explanation, where appropriate.