For H2 History (9174), students are expected to sit for two papers:

• Paper 1: The Changing International Order (1945–2000)

• Paper 2: Developments in Southeast Asia (Independence–2000)

For each 3-hour paper, students are required to complete one source-based case study and two essay questions. In total, there are six themes to study before students are ready to sit for the GCE ‘A’ Level History examination. Given the rigorous demands of the examination, it is imperative to formulate a structured and productive study plan. In this article, we will explore three useful ways to revise for A Level History. 

Tip #1: Familiarise yourself with the case study answering skills.

First, you should ensure that you are certain of the writing format to use for both parts (a) and (b) based on the Source Based Case Study section. For instance, the part (a) writing structure consists of (i) Similarity (ii) Why similar (iii) Difference (iv) Why different. 

Next, attempt practice questions to assess if you are able to apply the selected format based on the historical context of the unseen sources. While the writing format is identical (applies to both Paper 1 and Paper 2), the featured topic will differ. 

Tip #2: Consolidate the thematic content for essay and case study.

If you still face difficulty in elaborating your points for essay and source-based case study due to inadequate content reference, set aside time to organise your content for each topic. The recommended approach to arrange your study content for essay and case study is different.

For the case study section, make sure that your content summary includes:

• Synopsis (to summarise the main idea of each case study topic)

• Timeline (key dates to highlight certain incidents/actions undertaken by relevant actors)

• Causes and/or Consequences (main ideas required to make sense of the historical developments)

For example, in the Paper 1 Theme I, the ‘Cuban Missile Crisis’ is one of the three case studies under ‘Manifestations of the Global Cold War’. It is important that you grasp the significance of this Crisis as well as the relevant actors (e.g. United States, the Soviet Union, Cuba) that shaped the developments of said event. In particular, your revision material should cover the various contributing factors that brought about the Cuban Missile Crisis, such as the strategic motivations of the superpowers. 

Tip #3: Organise your main arguments for essay writing.

For the essay writing section, a sound study plan features the organisation of key arguments to be used for each essay writing topic. While it may seem feasible to approach the subject by thinking of possible points on the go during the test/examination, the extent of variation and depth of content tested will expose your ‘blindspots’, thus hampering efforts to craft an analytical essay within the given timeframe.

As such, it is crucial that you allocate adequate time for each essay writing topic to form the main arguments. Each argument should include: (i) topic sentence (ii) evidence 

Our objective is to narrow down the enormity of the task to internalise the relevant historical evidence to apply to the essay writing questions. For instance, in Paper 1 Theme III, under ‘Conflict and Cooperation (1945-2000)’, the ‘Congo Crisis (1960-1965)’ essay writing topic features: (i) Causes of the Crisis (ii) Consequences of the Crisis.

An ideal study approach is to narrow down the ‘Causes’ to at least three main arguments, such as economic and political factors, to rationalise how this conflict broke out. For each factor, a topic sentence and set of examples should be prepared in advance.