Learner Guide - gp
Learner Guide - gp
Cambridge IGCSE™
Global Perspectives 0457
Cambridge O Level
Global Perspectives 2069
For examination from 2025
© Cambridge University Press & Assessment 2024 v1
Cambridge Assessment International Education is part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Cambridge
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Contents
9 research effectively.
9 analyse and evaluate global issues and their causes, consequences and suggest possible courses of action
9 research and reflect on issues from different perspectives, independently and with others
9 work independently as well as part of a team, taking responsibility for your own learning
9 consider important issues from different perspectives and reflect on the links between these
9 assess information available to you and support your judgements with evidence and reasoning
Cambridge IGCSE / O Level Global Perspectives gives you opportunities to find out about, and reflect on, key global
issues from different perspectives: personal, local / national and global.
It offers you opportunities to explore global issues you are interested in; to work independently and to research on
your own. It also gives you the chance to build your team-working skills, collaboration and co-operation as you work
with others to explore solutions to local issues.
The course is not about getting everybody to think identically; it is about finding out what others think and feel about
the global issues of today, reflecting on different perspectives and taking others’ ideas into consideration.
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Component 1
Written Exam
This is a formal examination. You will have 1 hour 25 minutes to complete the whole examination and will be given
source material to read. Read the booklet carefully and you must answer all four questions.
The source material will include claims, arguments and evidence from different perspectives on a global issue from
the topic list.
Component 2
Individual Report
This component is coursework. Choose a topic from the list. When you have chosen your topic, do some general
research to identify any issues related to the topic. For the Individual Report an issue means a problem or a cause
of disagreement. Choose only one issue to concentrate on and to research in depth. Your issue should be of
global importance and your question should be about the issue. The easiest questions to ask and answer (and to
research) are questions which can be answered yes or no.
Decide on a research question and research different perspectives on this issue and then present your findings in
the form of an essay (1500–2000 words).
Component 3
Team Project
This component is coursework. Work with a team of other learners to decide on a relevant local issue that you
would like to address. All learners should research the issue in advance and collaborate and co-operate to decide
on a suitable project. Work together to plan and carry out the project to achieve the agreed aim.
The Team Project has two elements:
• Team Element
• Personal Element
Team Element
The team collaborates to produce one Explanation of Research and Planning and one Evidence of Action.
The Explanation of Research and Planning: 10 marks
This is a piece of writing produced by your whole team. It should include:
• the topic your team has chosen
• a local issue your team wants to address
• what each team member will research
• An outline of the action your team will take
• the plan of action
• the roles and responsibilities of team members
• how your team will evidence your action
• how your team will measure the success of your action.
The Explanation of Research and Planning should be between 300 and 400 words. Any writing after the first 400
words will not be read or credited.
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Personal Element
Reflective Paper: 45 marks
Each member of the team will write and submit a separate Reflective Paper. The Reflective Paper can be up to
1000 words. Any writing after the first 1000 words will not be read or credited. You will be assessed on your skills in
research, analysis and evaluation, reflection and communication.
You will receive your own mark for your Reflective Paper, as you will complete this on your own.
Topic list
This topic list is for all three components.
Always check the syllabus for the year you are taking the examination which is available at
www.cambridgeinternational.org
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Component 1 1 hour 25 This is a formal examination. You will sit the exam under 35%
minutes examination conditions.
Written Exam
70 marks Answer all four questions based on a range of sources.
Sources will present a global issue from a range of
perspectives, personal, local and/or national, global.
(See list of topics.)
Question 1 (18 Marks) has three or four parts. You should
read the sources and analyse information, arguments and
perspectives about the issue.
Question 2 (16 marks) has two parts. You should evaluate
research in one of the sources and suggest ways to research
or test a claim.
Question 3 (16 marks) is based on a source that presents
different arguments about the issue. You should analyse
and evaluate the different arguments and make a judgement
about their quality.
Question 4 (20 marks) is based on all the sources in
the Insert. You should assess actions and explain your
judgements with reasons and advice.
Component 2 60 marks Research one global issue on a topic from the list provided. 30%
Individual (your teacher Research different perspectives – local and / or national, and
Report will give you the global on your chosen issue.
deadline date)
(Coursework) Reflect on your own personal perspective.
Submit a report on your research. You choose your own title.
The report is written in essay-style and must be between
1500–2000 words.
Component 3 Team Element Work in a team to choose a topic and identify a local issue. 35%
45 marks Work together to develop a project that will help on the local
Team Project
issue.
Personal
(Coursework)
Element 45 Team Element: As a team you produce one Explanation
marks of Research and Planning (of 300–400 words) and one
Evidence of Action. Your teacher will also observe you
Total 70 marks
collaborating in your team.
(your teacher
Personal Element: Write a Reflective Paper on your own
will give you the
research for the project, your learning from the project, your
deadline date)
own contribution and the experience of working with others.
(750–1000 words)
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All information and advice in this section is specific to the example question and
response being demonstrated. It should give you an idea of how your responses might
be viewed by an examiner but it is not a list of what to do in all questions. In your own
exam, you will need to pay careful attention to what each question is asking you to do.
Which one of these actions would you recommend to the government, and why?
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Insert 2
Source 1
The United Nations has a sustainable development goal to end hunger and poor nutrition. There has
been progress towards this goal globally.
However, over 2 billion people suffer from food insecurity. This means they cannot get enough food on
some days of the year. In 2021 the United Nations estimated that 800 million people regularly suffered
from hunger and poor nutrition.
Source 2
Pandemics and rising food prices mean that food shortages are affecting more people. Worldwide,
about 25 per cent of children do not get the food they need to grow and thrive – to become healthy
adults and fulfil their dreams. Hunger always destroys health, education and employment.
We must have compassion and care for everyone. We must not ignore their struggle to survive. Join us
and bring hope to the hungry. Support our food programmes and help millions every year.
Protest about hunger. Donate to the United Nations World Food Programme. When people come
together and demand change, extraordinary things happen. Together, we can build a better world
where everyone has a right to food.
I wanted to learn about action to end world hunger. To get some ideas, I decided to talk to the manager
of a local food project in my city. Mrs Blum was enthusiastic about the success of her work and gave
me permission to do the case study.
The interview took place in her city farm – a large garden of an old house. There were gardeners from
the project working near to where the interview took place. Sometimes this made it difficult to hear
what we were saying. At other times the gardeners could also hear our conversation. I wrote some
notes to help me remember what she said.
Mrs Blum said: ‘We do not want to give away free food and make people dependent. Let’s help them
to solve problems for themselves and give them dignity. We teach people how to grow and sell healthy
food in the market to earn money. Most people enjoy growing their own food.’
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Grace
There is a revolution in food production. My father is a farmer and he says that more food can be
produced so that everyone can eat. New technologies can solve food shortages and hunger across the
world.
Self-driving tractors linked to satellites can work all day and night to produce more food. Computers
can gather data about the weather and soil conditions. This helps farmers know the best time to plant
seeds and use fertiliser. Seeds can be genetically modified to grow in poor soil and resist pests and
diseases.
I think that people are hungry because trade is unfair. Big food companies process food to make
huge profits. They sell the food to wealthy people in rich countries. Food should be a human right for
everyone.
Seth
Industrial farming is not the solution to hunger. It destroys habitats and the environment. Rain forests in
South America are being cut down to grow grass for cattle. We lose many plants and animal species,
and the soil is harmed. This causes climate change, making food production more difficult.
We need a cleaner, greener approach. Farming should be given back to local people who grow
native food crops that reflect their cultures. In the magazine New Internationalist, case studies from
Mexico and Tanzania show that communities can take control of their own food. Traditional crops and
composting can improve the soil. The United Nations World Food Programme supports this approach.
Everyone can help by eating ethically – eat enough, not too much! Choose organic food without
chemicals. Eat less meat because plants need less energy to grow. We must eat sustainably.
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Learner Guide
Clearly write down your recommendation. The Explain why you have chosen this action. You must
examiner needs to be sure which you have give more than one reason for choosing the action
chosen from the three actions. you have chosen. You must support your points with
information and examples from the sources.
Your answer must clearly mention the sources You must discuss at least one of the other options,
you have read so that what you write is clearly explaining why one or more of them might be chosen
linked to the source material. Your ideas must be or considered the best by someone else, to show
connected to the topic and the question you are that you have thought about and understood different
answering. views on the issue.
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Examiner comment
The candidate clearly stated at the beginning which action they have chosen.
The candidate used evidence and reasons well to support the recommendation they made.
A wide range of evidence and reasons were given. For example, the candidate mentioned the food charity in Source
2, Seth in Source 4 and referred to the United Nations in the conclusion. The candidate provided reasons including
how much impact this action would have, how successful the actions might be, sustainability, local action, economic
reasons and how it was relevant to the local culture.
Most of the reasons and evidence were relevant to the question about how the government could reduce hunger
caused by poverty and to the recommendation: training people to grow and sell food locally. However, there was some
material that was not so relevant to this question, such as water shortages in deserts. The alternative actions were not
explored in much detail.
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The argument was clear, and well-structured in paragraphs. Each paragraph looked at a different aspect, making it
easy to follow the argument. The recommendation was supported well with evidence, explanations and examples, this
made it convincing and meant that the final judgement was supported.
The argument referred to the issue often, so in general, the reasoning was clear.
The candidate explored different perspectives and discussed all three actions, although they did not provide much
detail about the actions they rejected. They could have given more consideration of the other possible actions, with
more details about their impacts, and their strengths as well as their weaknesses as a government solution.
The candidate could have taken more care with the material used so that it is clear how all of it relates to the question,
the issue and the action. This can be done by explaining the relationship between any examples provided and the
question being answered. (for example, the comment about water shortages in deserts may have been relevant, but
its relevance was not explained or made clear)
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Marks awarded
Table A Analyses a global issue: Establishes the global nature of the issue and Mark awarded = 5 out of 5
supports with explanation.
Table B Analyses causes and consequences of a global issue: Analyses, explains Mark awarded = 5 out of 5
causes and consequences of corporal punishment in depth.
Table C Analyses different perspectives on a global issue: (BOD) Mainly own Mark awarded = 5 out of 10
perspective supported. Others are implied, section labelled ‘Global Perspective’ is
not focussed on corporal punishment of children.
Table D Analyses and evaluates possible courses of action: Well developed courses Mark awarded = 10 out of 10
of action, selects one and justifies (in conclusion).
Table E Evaluation of evidence and sources: One point is developed, the others are Mark awarded = 5 out of 10
basic
Table F Reflection: Answers the question, reflects on change of perspective – but Mark awarded = 4 out of 5
not on others’ perspectives – the anecdote about the friend pre-dates the research
so counts as what the candidate already thought and why.
Table G Structure and clarity: Generally easy to follow; the structure is a bit Mark awarded = 6 out of 10
confused at first.
Table H References: Some missing citations, occasional variation in method. No Mark awarded = 3 out of 5
access dates at all.
Total mark awarded = 43 out of 60
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Examiner comment
The candidate shows good evidence of research on a global issue. The global nature of the issue was clearly
explained at the beginning and developed. Causes and consequences of the issue were explained – in this case the
reasons that parents use corporal punishment and the effects of corporal punishment on children.
There was clear evidence to show that corporal punishment is a global issue but there was no clear global or national
perspective. Perspectives did not seem to have been researched. Only the writer’s own perspective was presented
and explained.
Courses of action were well developed and detailed and the preferred course of action was selected, and their choice
was justified in the conclusion.
Evaluation was limited, most of the points made were either descriptive or of limited detail.
The response answered the question in some detail, reflecting on their own change of perspective, but without
reflecting on others’ perspectives.
More than one method of citation/referencing was used, though the citation seemed complete. Some citations were
in the form of web addresses and others were numbered with the numbers linking to the reference list. No dates of
access were provided.
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Marks awarded
Table A Team Element – Explanation of Research and Planning
Examiner comment
• The team has chosen a local issue to address in their action and their action is relevant to that.
• The word limit is important, and candidates should remain close to 400 words. Because this is over 400 words,
the last paragraph has not been read and will not get any marks.
• The team did not research enough before they started about what materials were available to help with their
masks.
• The Explanation says what each team member will research and mentions some actions each will take. A more
detailed explanation of the roles and responsibilities of each team member would be helpful.
• The team decided on two actions. This is not helpful. It gives too much work and means it is difficult to reflect
clearly afterwards.
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Marks awarded
Table B Team Element – Evidence of Action
Planting trees by businesses and making masks. Two actions made this complicated
and neither is done very well.
Level 2 2 marks
The team have undertaken an action that is not likely to make a positive difference to
the issue and the action was not carried out well.
Total mark awarded for Table B = 2 out of 5
Our aim was to help solve the issue of poor air quality in Lahore. I am pleased that
we did different things because they contributed in different ways to our aim. We
will not know how many trees are planted as a result of our initiative, or be able to
calculate the pollution they remove from the atmosphere. We do know that 3000
trees, if they all survive, in Lahore, can only help to relieve the pollution levels.
Making the masks and templates was good fun, and we learned some science. We
taught our parents how to make them. They used their masks and reported that
within a short time the outside of the filter was dirty, showing that it had done
its job in stopping pollution getting through. They said they would pass on to their
friends how far wearing a mask with a carbon filter was helpful in making breathing
safer. This was only a small number, but it showed our ideas worked. However, it
will not be our masks that they use. The problem arose when we found that the
general public is unable to buy the activated charcoal we have in school. Instead, they
will have to buy filters commercially. The result was that they said that masks were
not too expensive and the filters they could buy would make them safer, so they
preferred to buy them. This was clearly disappointing, making the brochure pointless.
But at least we had promoted wearing masks with filters to improve health.
I took on the tree planting part of the project. I worked with the team while I was
doing so, but I took control. I worked out with the team how I should approach
businesses and local radio in order to show business’ involvement and to give
recognition to businesses. On April 7th representatives of all 30 businesses were
hosted by school for a launch day. It felt like we had done a good job when one of
the representatives spoke to our Headteacher about how business-like the letter was
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that I had sent to them, and how well I had organised the tree labels and the launch
event. All of them had planted their 10 trees and could tell us where they were and
how they had labelled them, showing the school name and logo and the business
name. They all promised on local radio that they would repeat this for 10 years, and
were pleased to be recognised on the school website, as Candidate 4 organised.
While this was lovely, and showed that I was good at completing part of a team
project myself, it did make me realise that I had not involved my team in as much
of this work as I could have done. I was willing to be guided by teammates, but I
was not good at thinking about roles other team members could take to use their
skills. Candidate 4 herself approached the Headteacher to get the website set up. I
should have thought of that and asked her to. It is her strength and I just do not
think of others when I get involved in something. With someone less thoughtful than
Candidate 4 in the team, this could have been disastrous.
Alongside this, I supported the masks project and worked hard researching on the
internet to identify how we could rescue the project once we knew that parents
cannot buy the activated carbon we use in school. This was not easy as I tried to find
alternative chemicals that we could use that were commercially available, but, in the
end, I had to admit defeat. I do not like giving up, and this felt like failure. I found
that only ready-made filters were an option. I learned to use a template to make
masks, and taught my parents how to use it. My parents learned about the value of
wearing marks when in the city, and now regularly wear them, encouraging their
friends to do the same. Having only four sets of parents involved did not seem very
adventurous or far-reaching, but I had to agree with Candidate 2 that the likelihood
of school having to close again made it safer this way, meaning that we could have
some impact.
My research was into how trees impact pollution. Globally, trees reduce pollutants in
the air, up to a figure of one third of fossil fuel emissions. In doing so, they remove
irritants and help people to be healthier. It has even been found that trees near to
houses reduce pollution inside those houses.1 At first, I thought the trees should be
planted in our school grounds. This research led me to decide that businesses could
plant their trees wherever they wanted to. It just does not matter - they do good
everywhere. There is concern about how many countries are cutting down trees,
meaning that there are fewer to take pollutants out of the air by filtering the air
through their pores. They can remove ammonia, nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide.
Ecosia reports that 7 million people annually die from the sort of air pollution that
trees could prevent.2 I was not aware of how individually our health is affected by
trees, or how wide-ranging the effects of having leaves close to houses can be. Ecosia
is a website that I will promote to show my school, local families and my parents
how much there is to gain from tree planting.
Our team benefited from having members with different skills. We could trust each
other to get on with work, report back to the team when we met and ask each
other to help when we came to problems, such as sourcing activated carbon, as
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detailed above. But our team’s main weakness was having a member who wanted
to do something alone. I would have done the trees project myself and it would
have been less effective had our team not been in regular contact with each other
and insisted that we all fed back progress and discussed the next steps. The other
weakness was that we were all really keen to start the activity. None of us took the
lead and asked the questions that would have made us see that our masks plan could
not work.
I have learned a lot about working in a team that I need to remember for the future.
All teamwork requires you to take your mind off your own part in a team effort,
and really listen to what others say in meetings and engage with it. For a team to
work well, it has to have a plan that everyone sticks to, a leader who keeps a whole
picture as an overview, and everyone has to have trust in each other, but be strong
enough to ask questions and be brave enough to offer suggestions. Being passive is not
an option.
1 www.arborday.org/trees/treefacts accessed 29/02/2021
2 https://blog.ecosia.org.how-trees-reduce-air-pollution accessed 29/02/2021
Marks awarded
Table E Personal Element – Evaluation of the action and teamwork in the Reflective Paper
Two developed points evaluating the masks part of the project. Level 4 4 marks
Detailed and explicit reflection on what they have learnt about their own skills through
Level 5 5 marks
participating in the team project.
Explicit and relevant suggestions for how they could have improved their performance
Level 3 3 marks
as a team member.
Total mark awarded for Table F = 11 out of 15
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A clear summary of their own research findings and how this influenced the project,
Level 5 5 marks
with citations.
Total mark awarded for Table H = 9 out of 10
Total mark awarded to Candidate 3 for Personal Element (Tables E–H) = 34 out of 45
Examiner comment
• The Reflective Paper is 1149 words and is too long. Candidates must remain close to the maximum of 1000
words. Anything over the word limit will not be marked.
• The initial research is important and should be done carefully. This team did not find out early on that the
chemicals they needed are not available commercially. This had a negative effect on their project. They should
have checked first that they could do what they were planning.
• The candidate presents their research findings about the impact of trees on the environment clearly. They
reflect clearly on what they have learnt from their research.
• The reflection could have been improved with more explanations and more real examples of what happened
during the project. The section about teamwork is very general. Some examples of who did what and what went
well would help. For example, we are not sure why the candidate says, ‘Being passive is not an option’ Does
this mean that someone was passive? If so what happened and why was this a problem?
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Component 1
• Read the instructions carefully and answer the right number of questions from the correct sections of the exam
paper.
• Do not answer more questions than are needed. This will not gain you more marks.
• Plan your time according to the marks for each question. For example, a question worth 3 marks requires less
time and a shorter answer, than a question worth 10 marks.
• Do not leave out questions or parts of questions. No answer means no mark.
• Read each question very carefully.
• Identify the command words in the question – underline or highlight them.
• Identify and underline the other key words in the question.
• Read all parts of a question before starting your answer. Think carefully about what is needed for each part. You
will not need to repeat information.
• Look very carefully at the resource material / insert / diagrams, you are given.
• Answer the question. This is very important!
• Use your knowledge and understanding.
• Do not just write all you know, only write what is needed to answer the question.
• Make sure your writing is clear and easy to read. It is no good writing a brilliant answer if the examiner cannot
read it.
Component 2
To achieve maximum possible marks on the IR you must include all of the following:
• A question to research and answer. The question should be about one issue.
• You should plan your essay, so that it is easy to follow and clearly presents all the criteria that are necessary.
• Include an explanation of why your chosen issue is a global issue. Include some information, examples. (Is it a
world problem does it affect everyone the same, or different regions of the world? Do people disagree about the
issue?)
• Different perspectives, including a global perspective and a national (or local) perspective (with explanation,
discussion, examples, information).
• Causes of the issue – Why does this happen? Why is the situation as it is? Provide examples and information,
explain.
• Consequences of the issue – What are the results of the issue? What happens because of it? Provide
examples and information, explain.
• Possible course of action. Research ways that this issue has been solved, or solutions that have been tried in
different places. When you have found 2 solutions, write details of both. How could this be done? Who could do
it? How could it be paid for?
Provide full details and explanations of both courses of action, then clearly state which you think is better and
explain why. If you have decided that a solution used in another country could be also used in your country,
explain how. What changes would have to be made to the course of action so that it would work in your
country?
• Evaluation: you should evaluate some of your sources. This means you say why they were useful to you and
if they can be trusted. Are they reliable? Explain why? Why are they useful? If you feel they may be biased,
explain why you think this. If you feel they provide plenty of supporting evidence and are backed by other
sources, you should explain this.
You can also say what effect these sources had on your thinking. Did you change your mind because you found
good sources supporting a different view? Or did unreliable sources affect you differently.
You can either evaluate your sources where you mention them, after you have quoted them, or you can write a
separate paragraph near the end to evaluate different sources all together.
• References: you must show clearly where you have found information and where you read the opinions you
quote. You can use any clear system of references – but make sure you use only one system and that your in-
text system links with your reference list.
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• You can use footnotes. If you give web addresses, they should show the document name and you should
include the date you accessed the website. (date of access)
Research
You should have had some practice in searching for information online and/or in the library before you start work on
your Individual Report.
Preparatory research
Choose one or two of the topics you are interested in from the correct list of eight.
Go online to find out what people think about this / these topic(s).
What are the global issues? What are the disagreements?
The reason for doing this is so that you discover which issues you can find plenty of information and opinions about.
You will need to:
• identify a central issue and to be able to explain the issue and present different perspectives about it.
• find some quotes from people or organisations with opinions about your issue and you need opinions about the
whole world as well as about at least one country.
While you are doing this, note down what you think about it. What is your opinion? Why?
You need to do this because in your essay you will have to say how your ideas have developed or changed while you
found out more about the issue.
Focused research
When you have decided on an issue and a question, you should find material that provides information about the
issue on a global scale and about at least one country.
You should find out about your sources and the people or organisations whose opinions you are going to write about.
(You need to evaluate them – you will say whether your sources are reliable or not and how this affects your thinking.)
If they have just stated their opinion without supporting it, you will need to find facts and figures or examples that show
why they think what they do. (You need to provide full supported perspectives to get full marks.)
Where to find perspectives
It is usually quite easy to find information, facts and figures about topics for Global Perspectives. Books, publications,
and websites are full of information.
However, it is not always easy to find perspectives (or viewpoints). A good place to start is in newspaper opinion
pages. These can be in local or national newspapers or some of the larger news websites. You will find that a range of
people write opinion columns and many of them are experts, or politicians, or people with information to provide, and
strong opinions of their own.
To find global perspectives, it will depend on what your topic is about. Usually, searching in a good Search Engine
(ask your teacher what is available) will bring up opinions on a range of topics and may take you to websites that are
just concerned with one topic or issue. Try the different United Nations sites, environmental groups such as WWF and
Greenpeace, and others.
Practice finding out information from local sources and on the internet before you start researching for your
coursework.
Managing source material
Right from the beginning, you should make a note of:
• useful websites
• interesting information or opinions
• the date you find them.
You can do this by copying web addresses and parts of documents into a file so that you do not lose them. It is
important that you can show your sources and access dates in your IR.
Once you have decided on your issue and which perspectives you are going to present, you can arrange your source
notes and references under headings so that you can find them when you come to write your essay.
Plan your essay and when you have decided exactly what your question will be, you can write a draft essay to see if
you have enough material or if you need to find more about one perspective or another, or one of the other criteria for
the IR.
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Component 3
Working with others
Your Team Project is a chance to work with others. You need to share your ideas and listen to others, and you will
have to co-operate to get things done. Working with others means you will all have to be clear about what you are
doing and when you will complete your part of the work. You must agree on ways to keep in touch so that everyone
knows what is happening.
At the end of your project, you are expected to reflect on the benefits and problems of working in a team. You are also
expected to reflect on your own skills in teamwork, your strengths and weaknesses.
Everyone will get the same marks for the Team Element, so you must make sure that you are all collaborating and
communicating well.
Do the following to work together:
• meet regularly
• set targets and deadlines
• divide and share work
• give help and support to each other to do the tasks.
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4. Study skills
Being organised
Being organised has many benefits – circle the statements which are important for you:
SE improves T reduces ST
IO RITI IME MANA
GEMENT RESS
u to PR helps you to
s yo FOCUS
help gives a
ODUCT IVITY b
betwee etter BALANC
ENC
E inc reases PR n work E
FID and pla
CON increases E y
ases FFICIENCY
incre
B
I get overwhelmed by how
much work I have and I
avoid starting large tasks. A
I get my homework
A
B done on time.
I always know where everything
I need is, such as my notes, I leave homework to the
books, pens, highlighter pens, last minute.
paper and a ruler. B
A I often forget what
homework I have.
A I do my homework
the day I get it.
I write down homework
and the deadlines in one
place, such as a planner. B
A
I never know where everything
I need is, such as my notes, I always rush
B my work.
books, pens, highlighter pens,
I hand in my paper and a ruler.
homework late.
B
A I break down large tasks into
I never need to smaller tasks and tick these off
rush my work. when I complete them.
Count the number of A statements you ticked and the number of B statements you ticked. Read the appropriate advice
below. If you ticked an equal number of each, read both sets of advice.
Mostly A: You are a well-organised person who has developed strategies that work for you.
Be careful if you agreed with ‘I do my homework the day I get it’ as this might not be the most efficient strategy; you
need to prioritise homework according to deadline and how long it will take, and also make sure you allow time for fun
and relaxation. See the table on the next page for more ideas of how to be organised.
Mostly B: You could use some support in being more organised in order to make life easier for yourself. Try some of
the suggested methods for being organised in the table on the next page, then return to the activity above at a later
date to see if you score differently.
If you do some work each day, rather than leaving it all to the last minute, you will feel more in control.
34
Learner Guide
How to be organised
Tick the boxes in the table below to reflect on how you work and what you will try in order to improve.
Aim to try at least some of these methods.
Include all activities in my planner so that I know what time I have available to work
Estimate how long a given task will take me, then work backwards from the deadline and
include some extra time to give me the date that I should start the work
Have a set time each day or week for completing homework or study so that it becomes
part of my routine
Prioritise homework or study according to which needs to be done first and not just which I
like doing best
Rank my homework as 1 (do it now), 2 (do it tomorrow), 3 (do it later in the week) and
update the rank each day
Break down any large assignments into smaller, more manageable tasks; each task will
have its own deadline
35
Learner Guide
Outline method
Use bullet points. This method is helpful
if you already know the
• Top level bullets are the key issues in the lesson.
structure of the lesson
• Sub-level bullets are details about the top-level points. and the structure of the
• Sub-sub level bullets provide more separation if needed. learning point.
36
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