In this exam question I would suggest that it is split into two parts; to what extend did African American lies improve and how far was it due to government legislation. This would be a round the clock essay, choose 4-5 factors that helped African American lives improve e.g. governemnt legistlation, the New Deal, World War Two, civil rights movements and culture. Then examine two examples for each factor, for example under culture you could use the emergence of jazz and the Harlem Renaissance. Describe their impact on African Americans- did they encourage a wider acceptance of black culture, allow African Americans more freedom and opportunity to express their indentity? But then also consider the limitations- it did not advance their political or social rights especially in the south as the Harlem Renaissance had most impact in Harlem, and jazz was condemmed by groups such as the Ku Klux Klan as devil music. Do this with each category to form a considered paragraph about their impact on African Americans. Its important to make sure that your first and last sentence in each paragraph links to the question clearly and answers it to show a clear line of argument. The conclusion and imtroduction need to summarise the arguments in the main paragraphs, give a line of argument- how far was any change down to government legistation- and give some context for example, what was the status of African Americans in 1919 and what was their status in 1945. Therefore you can illustrate how far there was a change and how far each factor impacted this change.