Comprehension and inference from a source

   

How to do this question:

This question asks you to extract information from a source, but it is not just simple extraction as on paper one - you will notice that this question has FIVE (not 3) marks allocated to it.

  

That is because the examiners want you to demonstrate that you can make inferences and/or deductions from a source, not simply take facts out of it.

 

Inferences

Being able to find an inference will get you to Level 2 in the markscheme.

 

An inference is something which is not directly stated in the source/ obvious at face value, but which you can work out by ‘reading between the lines’.

 

e.g. it means working out:

∙    that the writer or cartoonist was angry, or being sarcastic or just being serious.  

∙   what the writer was trying to achieve, ‘get across’

∙   what was happening ‘behind the scenes’ to create the situation shown in the source

 

You can sometimes get a mark for inference if you just paraphrase what the source seems to be saying in your own words.

 

‘Complex inference’ is where you take two facts or ideas from the source and ‘put them together’ to suggest an inference.

 

Always try to explain WHY the information supports the inference you are making.

 

  

MARKSCHEME: How marks are allocated for this question

Target: Comprehension and inference from a source (AO 6.2)

 

 

Level 1: Simple extraction of information from the source

e.g. able to understand and recount information from the source

 

1-2

Level 2: Basic understanding, with simple inferences

e.g. able to understand and recount information from the source and to draw meaningful conclusions/inferences from that.

 

3-4

Level 3: Complex understanding and deduction/interpretation

i.e. an answer which links ideas and facts from the source and comes to a deduced conclusion which is not evident in the source.

 

Pupils get no credit for using their own knowledge to answer this question, or for evaluating the reliability or usefulness of the source.

5

 

So, for this question, you MUST demonstrate that you can:
1.   Extract information from a source (you still need to show that you can do this!)

2.   Show that you can take the 'surface' information and draw inferences/ make deductions from it.

  

 

  

Cool Sentence Starters:

 

1.       From Source A, I can see that…

            Start by stating two or three facts from the source.

            Try to draw general principles rather than simply copy facts.

 

2.       From this, I can infer that…

            Try to get two simple inferences.

Weaker students could just paraphrase the source in their own words: ‘What it seems to be suggesting is that…’

 

And for able pupils:

 

3.       When I put together … with … I can deduce that …

            Do this to try to get a complex inference.

  

  

Examples

(in the following examples, you can see the points which were ticked ü by the examiner, and - if you mouseover the maroon 'Mark ' at the end of each example - you can see what level and mark the answer got and why)

  

Task

All the following answers are actual answers by pupils in the 2005 examination.

  1. For each, study them with a friend and - using the markscheme - work out what mark you would have given the answer and why.   Then mouseover the maroon 'Mark ' at the end of the question and see what it actually got and why.

  2. When you think you have got the measure of 'what makes a good answer', try one of the two 'exam practice' questions at the end for yourself.   Show it to your teacher (or your friend) and discuss what level and mark your attempt would have got.

    The KEY question is: 'Is this in inference?', isn't it!

 

 

FIRST EXAMPLE QUESTION

   

Source E    How people voted in national elections in the small north German town of Northeim

  

Election

Votes for the Communist Party

Votes for the

Nazi Party

Votes for

all other parties

1928

28

123

3974

1930

115

1742

3625

July 1932

285

4195

1961

November 1932

338

3928

2115

March 1933

328

4268

1939

    

    

Explain what you can learn from Source A about how the people of Northeim voted in the national elections, 1928-1933                                                                                                (5 marks)

   

a.   Source E shows us that the votes for the Nazi party were larger, The vote for communism was a small amount, votes seemed to rise each month and year.   I think in explanation to this is that as Hitler established his role as dictator, people felt threatened and therefore voted for the Nazi party.

   Mark

   

b.   Source E shows us that Northeim votes every two years apart from 1933 when Hitler became Chancellor and order an immediate election.   It also shows us that Northeim voted more for the Nazi part and the other parties, however by July 1932 they primarily voted for the Nazi.ü 1   I think because after this time the Nazi’s were starting to take hold and people were believing what the Nazis were saying.

   Mark

   

c.   It can be seen from the source that increasing numbers of people voted for the Nazis (overall) as time progressed in Northeim.ü 1   It can also be seen that there was a slight ‘dip’ in the votes between July and November of 1932.ü 2   It can be infered from the source that the German Town reflected the General view of the whole of Germany, with a slight dip in support occurring around the time of November 1932.ü 3   It can also be seen that the Communis party never seemed to develop its votes greatly in this northern German town.

   Mark

   

d.   From Source E, I can learn that the votes for the Nazi party increased over time,ü 1 also that the Nazi party by March 1933 had the most votesü 2 and that the other parties votes decreased dramatically as the Nazi’s increasedü 3.

From this it infers to me that the people of Northeim voted for the Nazis because they were builled or scared into voting for them.

   Mark

   

e.   From Source E you can see several things about how the people of Northeim voted:

Votes for Communism increased over the 5 yearsü 1

Votes for Nazi parties significantly increasedü 2

We can also see that more people voted in March 1933 than in 1928 and that these votes were for more extreme parties such as Nazi or Communistü 3.   From this we can infer that people in Germany were unhappy and sought radical government changes.

   Mark

      

f.   Source E shows how from 1928 people in Northeim votes for Nazis increased over the period of 1930 and 1932ü 1.  And by March 1933 it had rose a significant amount from

1928ü 2.   This was the opposite for the votes for other parties as the people of Northeim votes for other parties decreasedü 3.

So that meant that the popularity of the Nazi’s had grown and they were now more popular.   

It also meant that the communist party and other parties droppedü 4 votes because of the popularity of the Nazis.

   Mark

       

     

     

SECOND EXAMPLE QUESTION

    

Source A         Industrial production 1913-32

   

 

1913 (actual)

1928 (actual)

1932 (planned)

1932 (actual)

Coal (million tons)

29.0

35.4

75.0

64.3

Electricity (in kilowatts)

1.9

5.1

22.0

13.4

Steel (million tons)

4.3

4.0

10.4

5.9

   

  

(a)   Explain what you can learn from Source A about the first Five Year Plan, 1928-1932   (5 marks)

   

g.   Source A gives details on the production during the first 5-year plan.   I can learn that three areas the plan looked at included coal, electricity and steelü 1.   I can also see from the data that from 1913-1928, everything increased apart from steelü 2.   However, I can infer from the planned figures of 1932 that the plan did not work as it was meant to, as production levels dropped.   Despite this, looking at the difference between 1928 and 1932, I can see that figures did rise and can therefore infer that the plan did have an effect.

   Mark

   

h.   From Source A I can see that the actual figures for the first five year plan were less than what they had plannedü 1.   I can also see that coal was the most common fuel and they weren’t getting the amount that they wanted overallü 2.   I think that the first 5 year plan was a failure and the Russians weren’t very happy with it.

   Mark

      

j.   Source A shows figures of actual amounts and planned amounts of industrial materials from the table I can learn that there was adequate increase in industrial productionsü 1, meaning that harsh demands were met by the people, the five year plan looks from the table to have been a successü 2.   From noticing the planned figures for 1932 and the actual figures I realise goals of the five year plans were set very high, which indicates how extreme Russia would change their industry with intense cooperation of their peopleü 3.

Overall the table proves that the five year plan improved Russia’s industrial production greatly.

   Mark

  

  

  

  

   

EXAMPLE QUESTIONS TO TRY

    

2004

Source A         Stalin's fears

                     From Russia and the USSR by J FOXON, 1997

From the time he came to power, Stalin never really felt secure.   Perhaps it was because his own rise to power had been underhand, or perhaps he feared the greater intelligence of those he had outwitted.   Whatever the reason, it was in his interest to remove all opposition.

  

(a)     Explain what you can learn from Source A about the reasons for the purges starting in the USSR in the 1930s.          (5 marks)  

  

  

Source E         Education under the Nazis

                     From Germany 1918-45 by G LACEY and K SHEPHARD, 1997

The Nazis used their control over teachers to influence what children learned at school.   Many teachers were already very nationalistic and accepted that they should teach Nazi ideas.   Those who did not were usually sacked.   Many teachers attended teachers' camps which concentrated on indoctrination and physical training.   Ninety-seven per cent of teachers joined the Nazi Teachers' Association.

  

(a)     Explain what you can learn from Source E about how the Nazis controlled education.          (5 marks)  

  

  

2003

Source A         The effects of World War One on Russia

                     From Lenin by DAVID SHUB, 1948

Every day of fighting in 1915 required an expenditure of 25.7 million roubles.   In 1916 this sum had jumped to 41.7 million roubles.   Agriculture and industry were badly hit by conscription.   Eighteen million men, nearly half of the adult working population, were called up.

  

(a)     Explain what you can learn from Source A about the effects of World War One on Russian agriculture and industry.          (5 marks)  

  

  

Source A         The Strength of the Nazi Party in the early 1920s

                     From an American official report on political activities in Germany, 1922

The National Socialist (Nazi) Party has recently gained a huge political influence in spite of its actual size.   Adolf Hitler has been the dominating force in the movement, and his personality has been one of the most important factors contributing to its success.   His ability to influence a popular assembly is uncanny.

  

(a)     Explain what you can learn from Source A about the importance of Hitler and the Nazi Party in 1922.          (5 marks)  

  

  

    


Answer a          Level: No level awarded          Mark: 0
•   This may seem harsh, but if you look at the answer, the candidate does not extract any meaningful information from the source, and he explains why people voted Nazi rather than infers something from the source.

•   This is a Grade u answer.  

Answer b          Level: 1          Mark: 1
•   ü 1 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   The last sentence is an ATTEMPT at an inference, but the candidate makes a statement rather than infers something from the source.

•   This is a Grade G answer.  

Answer c          Level: 1          Mark: 2

•   ü 1 is awarded for a (weak) fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 3 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source - although the candidate started the sentence by saying: 'It can be inferred from the source', what he said was, in fact, an (incorrect) fact not an inference.

•   This is a Grade D answer.  

Answer d          Level: 2          Mark: 3

•   ü 1 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 3 is awarded for a complex extracted fact - it involves putting together the information from two columns.   However, it does NOT get the answer to L2 - it is still just a fact!

•   The last sentence makes the inference which takes the answer to L2.  

•   It is worth noting just how basic an inference can be yet gain, nevertheless, L2.

•   This is a Grade B answer.  

Answer e          Level: 2          Mark: 3

•   ü 1 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 3 is awarded for a complex extracted fact - it involves putting together the information from two places on the table.   However, it does NOT get the answer to L2 - it is still just a fact!

•   The last sentence makes the inference which takes the answer to L2.  

•   Notice that although this inference is much better than the inference in Answer d., as only one inference, it still gets only 3 marks.

•   This is a Grade B answer.  

Answer f          Level: 2          Mark: 4

•   ü 1 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 3 is awarded for a complex extracted fact - it involves putting together the information from two places on the table.   However, it does NOT get the answer to L2 - it is still just a fact!

•   The last paragraph makes two inferences which take the answer to L2.   Although neither inference is particularly insightful, having two inferences gains him the 4 marks.  

•   This candidate was lucky that the examiner (very generously) took 'so this meant...' as 'I can infer...'

•   This is a Grade A answer.  

Answer g          Level: 1          Mark: 2
•   ü 1 is awarded for a (weak) fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   Notice that, although the candidate stated in both the last two sentences that she can 'infer' from the source, what she said were, in fact, two more facts and not inferences.  Saying whether something was  a success or a failure is NOT an inference.

•   This is a Grade D answer.  

Answer h          Level: 1          Mark: 2

•   ü 1 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   The last sentence - saying that the plan was a failure - is not an inference - it is an (incorrect) fact.

•   This is a Grade D answer.  

Answer j          Level: 2          Mark: 3

•   ü 1 is awarded for a (weak) fact extracted from the source.

•   ü 2 is awarded for a fact extracted from the source.

•   Notice how here, the examiner has taken the phrase 'which indicates how...' as an inference, even though it is fairly much nonsense!  

•   Compare how this very weak inference (that the Russian people had to try hard) gets level two, whereas the two statements in Answer g. (that the plans 'had an effect') did not.

•   This is a Grade B answer.