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AQA AS GOVP1 Question Predictions?

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Cal1999

Hi all,

If the question was why the 2015 General Election turned out the way it did, what would 6 - 8 well established points be?

I would really appreciate the help.

Thank you!

Reply 21

BirdIsWord

Original post by Sademajek

do you happen to have model answers for past paper questions?
if you do that would be very helpful!

Yes but they're handwritten and my writing is SUPER messy especially when rough ://

Reply 22

govtandpolitics

Original post by Sademajek

what is this question trying to say the disadvantages of the ftp system and advantages of proportional system?
The first-past-the-post system used in elections to the Westminster Parliament should be replaced with a more proportional system

I've done this question and you just have to write about:
1) Negatives of FPTP
2) Benefits of a more PR system
3) Reasons why FPTP should not be replaced - so benefits of FPTP - you could also write about how PR systems also have flaws so it might be better to keep FPTP

Hope that helps!

Reply 23

govtandpolitics

Original post by Cal1999

Hi all,

If the question was why the 2015 General Election turned out the way it did, what would 6 - 8 well established points be?

I would really appreciate the help.

Thank you!

I've just got these from the Ipsos MORI website:

The Conservative share holds up well across most groups, Labour only had a clear lead over the Conservatives among 18-34s, voters in social class DE, among private and social renters, and BME voters.

Even worse for Labour, their vote share actually fell among those aged 65+, the highest turnout group, to just one in four.

While the vote share of the two main parties is broadly stable, the pattern of voting for other parties has completely changed.

As we have seen in recent elections, the Conservative-Labour swing among the men and women vote overall was very similar.

Both Conservatives and Labour increased their vote share among BME voters, but remained unchanged among white voters.

Patterns of turnout remain relatively unchanged, with concerning implications for the future of democratic engagement.

https://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/3575/How-Britain-voted-in-2015.aspx?view=wide

You could expand and explain those points and bring in your own knowledge.
Hope that helped in any way! :smile:

Reply 24

rebirth61213

Original post by Cal1999

Hi all,If the question was why the 2015 General Election turned out the way it did, what would 6 - 8 well established points be?I would really appreciate the help.Thank you!

I've got a few:

1.) Opinion polls. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-35347948As you may have picked up from the election, what the opinion polls were saying were vastly different to what actually happened in the end. The opinion polls were influential as they stated that Lab and Con were neck and neck, prompting a lot of speculation and debate about which parties would be included in a possible coalition government. Link this to...

2.) ...The Beckett Report http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-35313090 There is a whole trove of points here about why Lab lost the election that you can use; to link with the opinion polls point, state how the polls predicted a hung parliament, which allowed the Conservatives to attack Labour by showing how weak/incompetent Milliband is and how he will make endless concessions to the SNP (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qg7lQHCJl0) (fear of a SNP/Lab coalition + Milliband's perceived incompetence were two reasons for Lab's defeat outlined by Beckett in the report). Discuss the rise in the importance of a party leader's personality/competence in recent years due to the sustained increase in dealignment over the years (the argument is that personality acts as a shortcut to evaluating how effective someone will be in office as a high proportion of the electorate will lack the knowledge/interest to evaluate the proposed policies from each party, especially when considering the ideological convergence between the two main parties in recent years as this makes it hard to distinguigh any differences between the two main parties).

(will add to this later when I get back home)

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 25

TSRdebater1453

I have answered the question 'Evaluate the main factors that determined the outcome of the May 2015 General Election.'
This came up in 2011 January paper but it was obviously asking it on the 2010 election so it is very likely that it will come up.
See attachment. I have got it marked by my teacher too.

GOVP1 Topic 1 25 marker Prediction.docx26.1KB

Reply 26

yellowgiraffe28

Original post by Sademajek

Yeah you should talk about the problems with FPTP (disproportionate, favours Labour, disadvantages small parties with evenly spread support etc) and also the advantages (depending on whether you are for or against FPTP) then the advantages of a more proportional system (fairer, more proportionate, less wasted votes etc) and some disadvantgaes too (hard to understand, weak MP-constituency link, AV referendum 2011- public turned down electoral reform etc). Then conclude and say whether you agree that FPTP should be replaced or not.

Reply 27

Sademajek

Original post by govtandpolitics

Thanks, i ended up doing it like that

Reply 28

LIONoJ

Hi all,
I would really appreciate help with the general structure of a 10 and 25mark question.
thanks in advance!

Reply 29

Sademajek

explain the term by election using the extract?
I've written by elections occur following the vacancy of a parliamentary seat in the house of common often due to the result of the resignation or death of an Mp, by- elections often show the public a]opinion and also the popularity of the government, the extract above also suggests this, for example the march 2011 Barnsley central by-election had a 13.3% swing from LibDems to labour even though labour failed to win the 2010 general election, perhaps showing the dislike o the LibDems due to the failed promise of tuition fees.

would this be 5 marks? the mark scheme is so vague could someone give me a model answer for both?

consider why by elections are unpredictable ?

i don't know how to really structure this, or how i should begin. If anyone could help me i would be very grateful.

Reply 30

Sademajek

Sorry im sending so many things but i also wanted to ask what mar you would give this.
is the a participation crisis?
participation crisis is when there is a problem with the amount of the public actively taking part in politics. It is debatable as to whether the really is a participation crisis as many argue that there has been an increase in non-conventional participation like joining pressure groups to engaging in the community and charity work. However others argue that theres in fact a participation crisis as since 1979 there has been an electoral decline as turnout has decreased and party membership has gone down. People feel apathetic towards the government which begins to question the legitimacy. Nonetheless there has been a gradual increase in voting turnout from 2010 to the very recent 2015 general elections.

one reason against the motion, is due to the large increase of direct participation, such as pressure groups and e-petions, which have become very popular recently. For example RSPB who have over 1.2 million members, the number of all three main parties put together , this suggests that theres no complete participation crisis as more people due to the rise of the rational choice theory want to directly handle issues that they feel strongly about rather that joining parties and voting for Mps that may make decisions they require. However there has been low turnout outs compared to the 1970s where turn out was at 70%, where as in the 2015 general election the turn out was only 66.1%and turnout on average at local elections at 31.1 %, these turnouts undermine the strength of the government and questions its legitimacy as the figures show that there is not a fair view of the electorates wishes, making it less democratic, this being hugely highlighted by the 2005 labour election where labour was able to gain a majority with only 34% of the electorate vote, suggesting that there is a participation crisis.

in contrast, it is too simplistic to talk a bout general participation crisis for example in the 2010 election only 44& of those aged 18-24 voted and 55% of those aged 25-30. However 73% of those aged 55-64voted and 76% of 65 year olds and above voted, which is above average . This demonstrates that it is not accurate to say that there is a complete participation crisis . However although the votes from the elderly were high , the votes for the youth were very low, this could be because theres a greater sense of partisan alignment amongst the elderly and an increase in the rational choice theory amongst the youths they may fell like the issues are not being addressed therefore not voting and more inclined to join pressure groups or protests. This low turnout from youths an also question the illegibility of the government proving also that perhaps there is an participation crisis.

Finally, it can be argued that there is a no participation crisis due to the fact the main political parties are moving towards the something so it is inevitable that people turn to pressure groups as an alternative, which can be argued to enhance democracy. However in contrast,arguably the reason for this is due to the political apathy towards government as many believe politicians a re the same and also feel distrust towards them for example it cn be said there is greatnpolitical apathy among the youths as parties such as the Libdems have failed tracery out their promise of tuition fees and the conservative government have cut maintenance grants and bursaries.

in conclusions there are many debates surrounding the motion at hand . However it can not be argued that there has been no change and infant from 2001 there as been a gradual increase in voter turnout and there has been a great rise of non-covential participation, highlighting that if there was a participation crisis, it has come to an end.

Reply 31

govtandpolitics

Original post by Sademajek

Sorry im sending so many things but i also wanted to ask what mar you would give this.
is the a participation crisis?

I would probably give it a 20/25, its good :smile:

Reply 32

govtandpolitics

Original post by LIONoJ

Hi all,
I would really appreciate help with the general structure of a 10 and 25mark question.
thanks in advance!

Hey,

With the 10m:
Knowledge and understanding takes up 7 marks.
Evaluation of points - 3 marks.

With a 10m you should include 3 points with development and you could structure it the following way.
3 paragraphs and for each paragraph;
Your point
Explanation (devolopment of point)
Example and short evaluation of point

You could include a short introduction to help develop your knowledge and understanding but its not crucial.

With the 25m:
These questions are usually phrased, "to what extent" or "assess the advantages of".
You need to include an Intro, 4/6 points and then your conclusion.

You need to give a balanced answer but come to a judgement.
You would usually make 2/3 points on either side of the argument.
PEEL is a good method to use for 25 mark questions.
PEEL = POINT, EXPLAIN, EVIDENCE,LINK.

So for each paragraph you could do:
Make your point
Explain your point
Give an example for your point
Link your point to the question

Make sure in the conclusion you answer the question, and come to a decision, taking both sides in to account.

Hope this helped, even if it was only a bit! Good luck :smile:

Reply 33

Sademajek

Original post by govtandpolitics

I would probably give it a 20/25, its good :smile:

Thanks a bunch, what do you think i can do to get the remaining 5 marks?

Reply 34

Sademajek

could some one give me an introduction for this question,

Stability, rather than volatility, now characterises voting behaviour at UK general elections.

Reply 35

eliset

Original post by kokoro_

I almost know for certain there'll be a question on the EU but I don't know what unit it'll be in... It could apply to all

Doubt there would be a question on the EU as exam papers were written way before DC announced the referendum on 20th Feb (i think that was when he announced it), just throwing it out there, could be completely wrong haha!

Reply 36

Sademajek

does anyone have a model answer for this?
Using your own knowledge as well as the extract, consider the part played by the massmedia at UK general elections

Reply 37

Sademajek

how likely do you think a media question would come up as a 25 or 10 marker?

Reply 38

CallumEllison97

Original post by Sademajek

Thanks so much, its hard for me to get the right examples and structure, because my textbook for unit 1 hugely goes into the common things like referendums,democracy and the usual.