H Gill

Source Based Made Simple

H Gill

SIMPLE INFERENCE SIMPLE INFERENCE-5MKS For the WHAT QUESTION & WHY QUESTION TO PREVENT GOING OUT OF POINT ALWAYS

REPEAT THE KEY WORDS OF THE QUESTION IN YOUR OPENING LINE.

Make 3 inferences from the supporting evidence Make sure you follow the Infer-Support pattern Make sure your Inferences do not describe the picture/

cartoon / text An Inference must be in your own words It is a conclusion that you draw based on the evidence

that you see or read It cannot be seen or read in the source directly- it is

implied

H Gill

SIMPLE INFERENCE For the WHY QUESTION/ WHAT IS THE

MESSAGE ? You also need to include the PURPOSE

together with 2 INFERENCES Make sure your supporting evidence is

correctly chosen and supports your Inference

Do not spend more than 7 mins on this question

H Gill

COMPARE & CONTRAST-7mks How different is Source A from Source B…. Levels of Comparison The higher the level the more complex your thinking and

higher the marks awarded! Nevertheless, include all levels in your answer. This is

because, in case you do not manage to hit the highest level, you will fall into the next best level.

L1 Comparison of Provenance L2 Comparison of Content L3 Comparison of Tone L4 Comparison of Purpose

H Gill

COMPARE & CONTRAST TIP Remember to answer the question first! EG The 2 sources are quite different/ Not so different Remember to follow the comparison patterns TIP-Did you establish a Common Factor before

comparing? USE the overlying IssueIssue to help you this will help you to

MATCH If you are highlighting a difference- They must be exact

opposites For eg if one source is FOR something/some body then the other source must be AGAINST some thing /or someone-

H Gill

Comparison Patterns SIMILARITY- BOTH Sources-Infer

Support-Source A

Support-Source B

DIFFERENCE- Infer-Support Source A

BUT Infer-Support Source B

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Comparison PatternsComparison Patterns For EG-Similarity BOTH I-Source A & B are about the state of IRA’s efforts to

bring peace to N Ireland S- Source A- headlines “ peace deal falters” S- Source B- “ ensure that weapons remain silent”

H Gill

COMPARE & CONTRAST 1 Similarity & 1 Diff already earns you 5

mks Go on quickly to compare Tone & Purpose

if there is any. Refer to the later slides on Tone &Purpose If there is no Tone do not try and create

one! Move on to Purpose.

H Gill

COMPARE & CONTRAST LIST OF POSSIBLE WORDS FOR

COMPARISON OF TONE For Differences a) Remember when you compare tone you need

to MATCH the tone words when identifying differences.

b) Infer & Support-You also need to support by quoting “relevant phrases” from the passage that show the tone you have identified . You need to give an example of the author’s choice of words.

c) When comparing if you only identify the tone of one source and forget to identify the tone of the other source you will not get any marks!

H Gill

Matching Tone1) Negative tone VS Positive tone

2) Critical Tone VS Tone of Admiration

3) Critical Tone VS Defensive tone

4) Supportive Tone/ Praising VS Disapproving/ Condemning Tone

5) Sympathetic Tone VS Condemning Tone

6) Optimistic Tone VS Pessimistic Tone

Follow the above list

H Gill

COMPARE & CONTRAST If you are able try and reach the highest level-

explicit comparison of sources E.g-The two sources differ greatly as they

represent 2 very different viewpoints on the Irish conflict- as one blames the Protestants but the other blames the Catholics

however-they are similar in their purpose to influence readers in trying to gain support for their own cause and…

H Gill

Reliability How much can we believe or trust the

source about an issue How accurate or dependable/believable is

the source about some issue This skill involves investigating whether a

given source is trustworthy Here it is also important to think about the

motive or purpose of the source as this directly affects the reliability of the source

H Gill

Reliability Types of Reliability Question Does Source A prove that …. Can you believe what Source A says about…. Can you trust Source A’s explanation of…. How reliable is Source A about …. How acceptable is Source A when it says… How accurate is the source…..

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Answer the question first Remember to repeat the key words…. You have to show BOTH sides the parts

that are reliable and the parts that are not. So a good answer is –The source is

reliable in some ways OR It is reliable in many ways

H Gill

RELIABILITY Levels of Response (PCTPC) The higher the level the more complex your

thinking and higher the marks awarded! Nevertheless, include all levels in your answer.

This is because, in case you do not manage to hit the highest level, you will fall into the next best level.

L1 Answers based on TYPICALITY L2 Answers based on PROVENANCE L3 Answers based on CONTENT of source L4 Answers CROSS-REFER to background

knowledge or other sources

H Gill

RELIABILITY Some times Provenance helps greatly to show

the reliability of the source so do not ignore it totally when it comes to reliability.

The nationality and race of the writer can help you to detect bias.

Especially note that a source is highly reliable if the writer who is supposed to support his own side DOES NOT do so.

E.g- In one year, a source was given to show an Irish Catholic- criticising the IRA-

This made the source highly reliable as it is not usual for a Catholic to criticise his own people- it is likely he is trying to tell the truth to stop the violence (Refer 2002 ‘O’ level exam paper Q1b)

H Gill

Reliability Here are some more questions you can ask

yourself to check for reliability:CONTENT Is the source presenting a fact or an opinion?

Are there words like ‘obviously’, ‘terribly’ which reflect opinions.

Is the content presented one-sided/balanced? Is there anything that is exaggerated? Are there any sweeping statement or

generalizations? All these will make the source less reliable OR

more reliable

H Gill

What is TONETONE ?

the general atmosphere of a situation, & the effect that it has on people; the way of wording/expressing things that shows a certain ATTITUDE / FEELING; ATTITUDE / FEELING; not directly stated by the author.

Why is it important to note the TONETONE of a source?

The tone of the writing can help determine:

- an author's viewpoint & intentions

- the reasons for certain interpretations as opposed to others thus affecting relaibility

http://www.learn.co.uk/default.asp?WCI=Unit&WCU=1772

http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/article.php?story=20040217080823237

H Gill

What words can one use to describe the TONETONE of a source?

DESCRIPTIVE PHRASES (ADJECTIVES) e.g.DESCRIPTIVE PHRASES (ADJECTIVES) e.g.

- positive, encouraging, supportive, approving, optimistic defensive etc.

- negative, discouraging, disapproving, pessimistic, hostile, ironic, critical, authoritative, arrogant,, etc.

How does one detect the TONETONE of a source?

The author uses

- word choice e.g. use of emotive / ‘loaded’ words

- sentence patterns & length e.g. stressing on certain words, etc.

H Gill

RELIABILITY A source that has a very strong TONE can

be linked to PURPOSE as it suggests that the writer may have a motive

A strongly emotional source may become less reliable if there is a hidden motive

But if there is no link to be made- then do not mention TONE

H Gill

RELIABILITY For E.g b) The purpose of a source that is very critical

in tone could be to convince the reader that a policy is bad/ not good and to get people to go against it/ not support it or to push that it should be done away with or stopped. For eg the streaming policy.

c) On the other hand, the purpose of a source that is very defensive in tone may be trying to justify to the reader why a policy is good and to get people to support it/ so that it can be continued. Same example the streaming policy.

H Gill

RELIABILITY SO What is PURPOSE ?PURPOSE ? It refers to what one plans to get or do;

the reason for writing the source- MOTIVE

Always look at the “Issue” before you decide on PURPOSE. It will help you.

Provenance, Tone and Purpose are closely connected . You can do it one after the other

H Gill

RELIABILITY

Remember! Closely related to purpose is the idea of Audience. This is an analysis of how the reliability of a source might be affected by the audience at which it is directed.

H Gill

RELIABILITY Purpose IS the end result that the author

wishes to achieve through the message – it is the impact the MESSAGE will have on someone else

In Other words what ACTION does the writer want the reader to take after reading the source

You must include the Message, Audience & Action in purpose

If there is a strong purpose it makes the source less reliable

H Gill

RELIABILITY ) Remember PURPOSE must include the Action that

the writer wants the reader to take.Some good words to remember for PURPOSE are:

Justify Gain support/ Prove Condemn Influence To go against To blame To change To stir up opposition against..

H Gill

EG5: Source B is not reliable because the people who drew it were trying to persuade Catholics to hate the British and go against them…..

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ReliabilityCROSS- REF Is there a contradiction in what the

source says and what you know from either your background knowledge or other sources given (Cross-Referencing)?

This will make the source less reliable OR are there other sources supporting

the original source and saying the same thing

This will make the source more reliable

H Gill

Reliability CROSS- REF Do not forget to make 2 Cross – Refs as this is one of

the BEST ways to prove reliability Make your Cross Ref BY 1st Identifying exactly which part of the original source

you want to prove is correct OR NOT correct Pick a specific part of the original Source ( EG Source

A )you want to show reliability of. Then select another suitable source (EG Source B) you want to cross ref to MATCH the part of Source B you want to use to show

reliability of Source A- the original source.

H Gill

Source A is true because Source B supports it.

Source A is true because Source B says the same.

Source A is reliable because it agrees with my own knowledge.

I can believe Source A because this is the kind of thing that was going on then.

NoneNone of these generalisations would be allowed as a cross-reference!

H Gill

How Useful? The How Useful ? skill usually asks a specific question e.g How useful is source D to help you understand the

reasons for Spore’s slow population growth?

STEP 1 The key words are very important so you need to take note of

the key words and repeat them in your answer. The basic pattern is Infer – Support STEP 2 No source is completely Useful OR Useless. No source can give you all the reasons for Singapore’s slow

population growth. There will definitely be some info left out. So you need to look for aspects of the source that are USEFUL

to help you understand the reasons AND aspects of the source that are NOT USEFUL and have MISSING INFORMATION

H Gill

How Useful?

STEP 3 Infer at least 2 to 3 useful points from

the source with supporting evidence PATTERN- It is Useful because it tells me the

reasons for slow popn growth were: I------------ S I-------------S

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How Useful? STEP 4 To highlight the NOT USEFUL aspects

of the source you will need to CROSS- REF to either your background knowledge OR the other sources.

Make at least 2 CROSS REFs

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How Useful? STEP 5 EG- It is , however, NOT completely USEFUL because

several reasons are missing from the source When I cross ref to source C it implies that people

do not have children also because of……….. I The evidence is “………….” S This reason is NOT MENTIONED in Source C making

it less useful. Also when I cross ref to my background knowledge,

I learnt that the slow popn growth is also caused by…………..

Remember to give specific and detailed info when CROSS REF to your background.

H Gill

How Useful? STEP 6 To reach the highest level you need to consider the

extent of the usefulness . Is it more useful than NOT USEFUL ??? Mention aspects such as the source only mentions

Economic reasons and NOT the Political and Social reasons for Spore’s slow popn growth and it has not highlighted some of the key reasons… as it only seems to focus on a personal point of view…. Etc

Do not mix this skill up with reliability THEY ARE NOT THE SAME.

A less reliable source that is very negative or prejudiced does become less useful to help us understand something BUT it can still help us understand issues around the key words.

H Gill