My essays are full of relevant historical content but I'm still getting low marks, why might this be?

There is a temptation in writing History essays to want to show off as much knowledge as possible. Slotting in a particularly juicy piece of information at the right time will indeed be hugely useful. However, facts are not given their due weight if they are left unaided by any analysis. True, a large part of history consists in remembering a sufficiently large selection of facts which tell the story of a point in time. But these facts must also be bolstered by an argument which makes clear why precisely those facts are significant, what we should learn from them. In writing a History essay it's better to see yourself as someone who is taking an unfamiliar reader through historical territory they have not encountered before, describing but also explaining what happened. As many, if not more, marks are given for analysis than they are for factual content. Therefore, making sure your essay states a position at the beginning and supports that position with the aid of all those historical facts you know will raise your marks massively.

JT
Answered by Joseph T. History tutor

2380 Views

See similar History A Level tutors

Related History A Level answers

All answers ▸

The decent into war in 1914 had very little to do with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.


'From 1894 to 1914 the authority of the Tsardom remained essentially unchanged.'


How do I answer a source analysis question? An explanation of what makes a good answer with an example on the Early Cold War.


How much did Mary I's marriage to Prince Philip of Spain influence Britain's foreign policy?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences