A2 Edexcel Unit 3 A World Divided: Superpower Relations 1944-90 discussion thread

I sat the paper last year and I'm sitting it again this year (retake). You really need to practise exam technique.. Section A will require you to analyse a historical problem and come to a reasonable judgement; so you should really practise putting ideas and events into arguments that will help you answer the question.
Section B will give you 2/3 sources and you will be asked to give a judgement on the interpretation given. Again, practise your source use and go over how you can manipulate it into an answer.
I love history and the cold war in particular but I find this paper so hard. I think (please don't trust me too much on this one as it was a year a go) that Sino soviet relations and the thaw came up last year... but again it was a long time a go and I don't even remember what topic I answered.
I used that tatic last year and I was okay.. but a girl in the exam room ran out crying as soon we were allowed to look at our papers

My tactic is to revise one controversy thoroughly (Origin for me) and two topics really well (Detente and Thaw) and one topic casually (Arms Race)

Isn't this a bit risky, because there are four section B topics (unit 2,3,8,9). Its quite nice in a way that these controversy topics are places equally are either ends of the whole time period.

Personally, I'm focus on one of the ends of the time period (probably the end, so unit 8 and 9) for the next few days until the exam - still risky. But I want a second opinion on this, how sure are you that they won't have both question choices at one end of the time period?

The two Units combine to make Origins and End of the Cold War.

So you're revising 2 and 3?

Yep and three other units. What about yourself?

For section B, I'm focusing on the end of the cold war, so units 8 and 9. I am slightly worried though, because there could be a question on issues in units 8 and 9 that may require knowledge and perhaps even explicit mentions of events or factors in units 2 and 3 (the beginning or the cold war). For example, there could be a question along the lines of this: How far do you agree that it was economic problems for the Soviet union which ended the cold war?

I'm worried that for a question like that, there could be things I need to mention from units 2 and 3, perhaps about the very nature of the cold war at the beginning and how this has had a long term effect which contributed to the end of the cold war itself

Whats your view on this, if they ask a question about the ending of the cold war, do you think it could be necessary to mention something in the beginning? (units 2 and 3)

I guess the advantage of doing units 2 and 3, is that your gaureeteed in your question that you won't have to mention anything in the alternative units (8 and 9), because it'll be irrelevant to mention anything thats happened after the timeframe of units 2 and 3, because obviously they could not have had any effect on the issue in the question.

Oh yeah, for section A I'm doing units 5, 6, 7. So effectively I'm focusing on the second half of the textbook. It should be certain that I'll get at least one question choice on my three units - theres only one other section A unit.

BTw, which units do you think are particularly hard or easy? and is this the reason for your chosen units to focus on, or are you simply just more interested in them than the other units?

In ever yquestion I've come acroos there have been time periods. I'm not mentioning pre-1945 conflict at all or anything after 1953. I've seen one question only looking for analysis of the years 1945-1946! Very narrow indeed.

I tend to remember the earlier period better which is strange. My best is the Thaw and Detente is okay, so is the Sino-Soviet Split. I really hate nuclear weapons because it seems like a spread-out and substanceless topic; far too general for my liking. I'm just gonna do units 2-7 revision-wise.

Well if they give you time periods then it shouldn't be an issue. But there was one question from last years paper (in section B) which didn't require you to keep within a time period:

How far do you agree with the view that the Cold War came to an end because of mounting economic pressure on the Soviet Union during the 1980s?Explain your answer, using Sources 10, 11 and 12 and your own knowledge of the issues related to this controversy.


In that question, you don't necessarily have to keep to factors or events in the 1980s. It probably expects you to mention things way before 1980 to provide context etc. This worries me in particular because I'm focusing on the end of the cold war rather than the beginning, so I would've been forced to do that question.

Apart from that question, all the others had specific timeframe which you had to stick to.

To me that seems like an ambiguous question. I tcould perhaps either mean:

The factor is the economic pressure on the Soviet Union during the 1980s and there is no time scale.

Or, the factor is Soviet economic pressure and the years are 1980-1989?

Understand what I'm saying?

I love History but I hate the way it is graded. I never know what I need to do to get an A. I can't help but think it's good grammar and vocabulary to bluff the examiner. I always come out the exam not knowing how well I've done at all.