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Edexcel Government & Politics - Unit 1 06/06/16

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Original post by AllanSmith22
How long do you take to write and how big are your 5 markers ? Some people in my class who write quickly do about half a page which i think is way too much


5 minutes or less, if you spend over that youre screwed on the other questions it is a mark a minute theres no spare time on this. an thats too much it should be about 1/3 of a page. the 10 marker is more like half a page or 3/4 of a page. theres no point wasting time on the smaller questions otherwise it will mess up time on the longer answered questions
Original post by namjoonu
help me out kids!!

To what extent has the Conservative Party abandoned Thatcherism?
i feel like im losing my marbles lmao


Have abandoned Thatcherism:
> Increased funding for the NHS (Thatcher sought for an increasingly independent NHS)
> Less Thatcher-esque approach to social issues (e.g. gay marriage; rehabilitation instead of punishment in prisons).

Have not abandoned Thatcherism:
> Increased privatisation (in areas of the NHS and certain sectors e.g. Royal Mail)
> Spending cuts instead of tax rises (Thatcher believed tax increases harmed hard-working individuals).
> Reduction in the welfare state (Thatcher believed it created a nation of dependence; limited individualism)
> More authoritarian approach to terrorism (Snoopers Charter)
Original post by AllanSmith22
How long do you take to write and how big are your 5 markers ? Some people in my class who write quickly do about half a page which i think is way too much


I write about half a page for 5 markers, page for 10 and 2 pages for 25
Original post by AllanSmith22
Our whole class are useless at unit 1 except constitutiton. We havent been taught it properly and hardly ever done 40 markers. really hoping its codified advanatges etc for 40 marker. it should be as its come up in section A 3 years in a row


If you know stuff about the constitution then you'll be fairly okay with parliament as they interlink a lot of the time with stuff like sovereignty


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I hope erosion of parliament comes up if i do that topic
Original post by AllanSmith22
I hope erosion of parliament comes up if i do that topic


Yeah I agree erosion of sovereignty would be a nice one too


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Original post by AllanSmith22
I hope erosion of parliament comes up if i do that topic


what would you write

i hate parliament so much tbh
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Original post by mollyadtr
Yeah I agree erosion of sovereignty would be a nice one too


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what would you write for that
Original post by xxvine
what would you write for that


Probably like how parliament has distributed its sovereignty
Mention political, legal and popular sovereignty, and then the eu and how we've lost a little bit of sovereignty as well as pooled sovereignty and then about devolution
But the conclusion will always be sovereignty hasn't gone anywhere cause at the end of the day parliament can retract everything back as it's the sovereign institution and holds all the power


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Original post by IRoranth
I don't think they will, since most of the coalition questions were in 2011/2012, and after that they haven't really focused on it. What could they possibly ask us about coalitions in the parties question, though? D:


That's true, I'm not sure, maybe related to consensus or adversary politics? Hopefully nothing on Liberalism or the Liberal Democrats either :frown:
Original post by mollyadtr
If you know stuff about the constitution then you'll be fairly okay with parliament as they interlink a lot of the time with stuff like sovereignty


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Don't you mean unit 2? Constitution is unit 2.
Original post by xxvine
what would you write for that

About devolution, EU, referendums but parliament is still actually sovereign
Original post by Louise12307
Don't you mean unit 2? Constitution is unit 2.


yeah i know i just meant that parliament and the constitution interlink a lot particularly with the types of sovereignty and where sovereignty has gone, ya get me?
i think this is helpful for our revision purposes... enjoy :biggrin: even if youve seen it...enjoy it again :biggrin:
https://www.facebook.com/skynews/videos/1362672097080717/
Original post by Sylavela
Is anyone else making notes from the politics review magazines? They're on topical stuff like electoral reform and pressure group success and an evaluation of UK representative democracy so I think they might be really helpful?


Politics review was out from like the start of year 12/ Sep 2015 so my teacher gave them out as they were released. Yeah some of those stuff are helpful and they are all up to date. To be honest you aren't majorly disadvantaged if you don't have them though, since it's kinda like a regurgitation of class notes.

Original post by namjoonu
help me out kids!!

To what extent has the Conservative Party abandoned Thatcherism?
i feel like im losing my marbles lmao


Do you still need assistance with this? Kinda easy. Is it a 25 marker? Think about what is "Thatcherism"- what did Thatcher do/ want to do. She introduced the "right to buy", deregulation of industry, killed the trade unions, lowered tax rates and introduced privatisation over "sunset industries" opening them up to international competition-> Basicly neo-liberal ideas.
The current Conservative party is led by Cameron- part of the modernisers/cameronians with his friends like George Osborne who believe in "big society", "one nation toryism" and reforming welfare. They are also "tough on crime" albeit less so than Thatcher. I would think the whole point is modern conservatives are supposedly "kinder" with welfare than Thatcher. Probably more too...

Original post by AllanSmith22
Our whole class are useless at unit 1 except constitutiton. We havent been taught it properly and hardly ever done 40 markers. really hoping its codified advanatges etc for 40 marker. it should be as its come up in section A 3 years in a row

Unit 2 politics is actually pretty easy. I mean constitution, parliament, judiciary and the other one whatever that is lol. Just learn the examples (there are a lot) and remember PEEL, and remember to put in key words (love doing that for Prime Minister questions) i.e. elastic theory, spatial theory or politics, spads, wonks etc...

Original post by AllanSmith22
How long do you take to write and how big are your 5 markers ? Some people in my class who write quickly do about half a page which I think is way too much


I usually aim to write 2/3 paragraphs with PEE for a 5 marker. I write fast and it usually ends up taking slightly longer than 5 minutes but it usually guarantees me 5/5 on the question. Assuming you might get 2/2/1. Otherwise 2 very well developed points to aim for 3/2
Original post by pereira325
I usually aim to write 2/3 paragraphs with PEE for a 5 marker. I write fast and it usually ends up taking slightly longer than 5 minutes but it usually guarantees me 5/5 on the question. Assuming you might get 2/2/1. Otherwise 2 very well developed points to aim for 3/2


2/3 PEE paragraphs is a complete waste of time and energy. One paragraph with the relevant explanation and example will get you 5/5 easily. If you need 2 paragraphs to make a point, your writing is not precise nor succinct enough.

1 paragraph, perhaps 2 if absolutely necessary, for a 5 marker.
3 for a 10 marker.
4-6 for a 25 marker.
Is the general method. Don't waste time/energy on low mark questions.
(edited 7 years ago)
Does anyone have good examples of pressure groups with various outcomes? I can't think of any that were small but successful :/
Good luck everyone!!
People, I am in a crisis at the moment...

Unit 1
Topic 1 - Democracy and political participation
Topic 2 - Party policies and ideas
Topic 3 - Elections
Topic 4 - Pressure groups

Is it okay for me to revise 2 of these topics, my preferred ones are Topic 1 and Topic 4, as there is so much to talk about, and the information for each sinks in quickly. Am I revising incorrectly? Like should I be revising all 4 (I briefly know the other two but not in detail). So choosing to revise Democracy and political participation and Pressure groups... alright or nah?

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond to this post!
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Original post by nuradean
People, I am in a crisis at the moment...

Unit 1
Topic 1 - Democracy and political participation
Topic 2 - Party policies and ideas
Topic 3 - Elections
Topic 4 - Pressure groups

Is it okay for me to revise 2 of these topics, my preferred ones are Topic 1 and Topic 4, as there is so much to talk about, and the information for each sinks in quickly. Am I revising incorrectly? Like should I be revising all 4 (I briefly know the other two but not in detail). So choosing to revise Democracy and political participation and Pressure groups... alright or nah?

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond to this post!


Yes make sure you learn 2 well
I think elections and democracy are the easiest personally
Original post by nuradean
People, I am in a crisis at the moment...

Unit 1
Topic 1 - Democracy and political participation
Topic 2 - Party policies and ideas
Topic 3 - Elections
Topic 4 - Pressure groups

Is it okay for me to revise 2 of these topics, my preferred ones are Topic 1 and Topic 4, as there is so much to talk about, and the information for each sinks in quickly. Am I revising incorrectly? Like should I be revising all 4 (I briefly know the other two but not in detail). So choosing to revise Democracy and political participation and Pressure groups... alright or nah?

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond to this post!


For unit 1 you only really need to know two topics, but it can be good to know three or four in case the question is horrendous. My school only teaches three of the topics, so maybe stick with the ones you know well and flick through a third one just in case?

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