Cynthia

Now that I'm done with my History finals (which I've been panicking so much about for the last few months) I'm going to procrastinate by writing some tips on how to do well in IB History while trying not to repeat things that have been said in previous posts on the forum too much. The historical investigation I wrote my historical investigation on Ancient Rome and regret it somewhat, although I did find it interesting. Unless you are very much into history as a subject (and even then), doing your HI on a topic that somewhat interests you and is likely to be of some use in your exams is, I think, the best option. This is simply because having spent so much time on your HI, you can probably spend a lot less time in general on revision of that topic, cutting your study time by a lot during what will probably be the busiest time in your IB years, the month or two leading up to the final exams. Don't spend too much time on the HI and also don't get stuck in refining small details - same advice goes for all IB assignments. Don't underestimate its importance, either - it is worth 20% (or 25%) and could potentially save your grade in case the finals do not go according to plan. Make use of the resources in this forum, including examples. Also, keep a very close eye on the marking criteria when finishing work; you should aim to achieve the highest one in every aspect. The same advice goes for your EE if you choose to write it in History; although in this case, choosing something you're passionate about and actually want to research is much more important than for the IA which is comparatively simpler and shorter. The essays There's a number of important points concerning essays. There's plenty of good resources for actual essay writing both online and in here, so I won't go into that. Some history specific tips follow... The subject reports for history seem to indicate that a thematic approach is preferable to a chronological one. This means that, for example, if you're writing an essay on Hitler's successes and failures, you could have body paragraphs for political, social, cultural, economic, and foreign policy, rather than going through everything he did from 1933 to 1945. Be as analytic as you can make doing so very explicit in your essays for the benefit of the examiner. Some ideas to show analytical skills: Refer back to the question at the end of every paragraph you write. The last few sentences should sum up why, how, and to what extent the things you introduced are significant to the question. Use connectors of addition and contrast such as "however", "on the other hand", "in addition" to make it very clear that you're analysing. Examine causes and effects for different groups of people. For example, in a Hitler's successes essay, you could discuss the point of view of supporters of liberal democracy, the population, the state, and Hitler himself, and make it clear that this wasn't necessarily the same thing. Define the terms used in the question in your introduction (eg ideology) as well as the scope if you're responding to a more open-ended question. Challenge the assumptions in the question if there are any. For example, if you need to discuss the conditions in the rise to power of two leaders, you can briefly say that the methods were perhaps even more important in their rise to power. This should not, however, be a major point in your essay! If you can use actual figures or specific primary sources in your essay, that's great. Memorising them in large quantities and for everything, however, is probably not worth the time. Dates are not very important; it is important to know the broad chronology of events, but not the exact dates! So you should learn years for most things, and months for some more short-term issues (eg. collapse of the Provisional Government in 1917 or the 1945 Cold War conferences). You can place events in context by, for example, discussing the events in the long-term (for example, when discussing the Russian revolution, you can say that WWI was particularly problematic for tsarism since the Romanov dynasty had linked itself greatly to military success) or discussing events in other places at the same time (once again, when discussing the Russian revolution you can say that it may not be surprising that the tsar was overthrown as WWI tended to illegitimise rulers all over Europe and even regimes where the social situation was much more stable pre-1914 collapsed as a result of the war). Also see the section below for historiography! Effectively using historiography When making notes, include a couple of historians for every subtopic, especially those which are more likely to come up in exams (for example, for the Russian option, Alexander II and the revolutions). Make little lists such as: It's pretty easy to find summaries of historians' views on the internet or on this forum, so use them to your advantage. Saying that, there's no substitute for actually reading proper history books at least for the topics you are focusing on. It helps you gain an understanding of the nuances of the events in question and also a deeper grasp of historiography which should show in your essays. This is especially true if you're aiming for the higher mark bands (although it is perfectly possible to get a 7 without wider reading). Shorter works eg. Pipes' Three Whys of the Russian Revolution give you a lot of benefit for a small investment in time. This also helps you see the kind of style you should aim for in essays. Although style isn't something you should be particularly concerned about, assessment in history will always be in some ways subjective; it might help you score a few extra points! Integrate the historians well in your essays and critically examine their views. Try to refute them if you can using facts. For example, for the above Soviet view, you could refer to the results of the Constituent Assembly elections following their coup, where the Social Revolutionary party won twice as many seats. Historiography should complement your facts, but it's in no way a replacement for them. In any given paragraph, roughly 50% should be facts, 30% your own analysis, and less than 20% should be historiography. Also show an awareness of the factors that affect history writing. So for example when discussing a Soviet view you could refer to state pressure and political ideology; when discussing the view that Hitler was the "Master of the Third Reich" (Bullock) you could refer to the experiences of the victims of the Third Reich and perhaps the fact that emotional and historical distance hadn't had the time to develop. Revising for the final exam and the exam itself HL History is probably one of the most time-consuming subjects to revise for since you need to have a good grasp of a large quantity of events and also a fairly good depth of information. You should not study everything you've gone through in class. The smart thing to do is to use a combination of past papers and the syllabus to determine what you should study. If your teacher has planned the course well (and even if he/she hasn't), there should be a considerable amount of overlap; for example, the paper 1 topic Peacemaking, Peacekeeping, overlaps to some extent with the Causes, practices, and effects of war in paper 2, and the interwar years topic in paper 3. Naturally, you should choose the topics with the most overlap to minimise work and maximise grades. Focus on the questions that come up a lot (such as Alexander II, origins of WWI and Cold War, and the Russian revolutions), but also ensure that whatever the combination of questions, you can answer at least the minimum required amount – you might get very unlucky. When considering what you should revise, it might be helpful to keep your own interests and strengths in mind. I am, for example, terrible at memorising practices of war since I have no interest whatsoever in military strategy or weapons... So I decided to skip that entirely for my final exams. I've mentioned notes (see this topic by Julie especially!) a couple of times above. You should have your class notes, but actually rewriting (and expanding) them while keeping the points above in mind is a good way to revise. Markschemes for past papers show the kind of things you should have knowledge on for every topic. As for all subjects, make yourself a schedule to make it easier to keep up with revision. At the point where you have a good grasp of the facts – which should ideally be no less than a week before your history exams start – the thing to do is to start going through past papers and writing as many essays and essay outlines as you can. This should be done using the actual timing, so about 45 minutes per essay. Aim to do at least one essay on every topic that is likely to come up. If your teacher is nice, he/she’ll give you comments on essays even during the study break. During the exam… Try to relax and breathe. Have a sip of water Use the reading time to your advantage. Read through all questions (and the sources in paper 1). Decide which ones you’ll write essays on. Start mentally planning the first one if you have any time left over. Writing essays against the time limit while revising also lets you know the way you work the best. If you need to plan, do so, as it is 5 minutes well spent. Keep up with the time limit and keep an eye on the time. Having three essays worth 15 points is better than having two essays worth 20 points and one introduction. If you get lucky and get a question that you find easy, I’d say it’s better to leave it last. This is for two reasons: first, you’ll be tired at that point, and writing on an easy topic will be easier for you; second, if you find that you have more time left than the 45 minutes you’ve planned for, you can use it to your advantage more efficiently by using more of your knowledge (rather than starting with that and finding yourself in the scenario above)