General tips for students
1. Most long questions in Section B have three or four separate parts. You may be able to answer two parts very well and the rest of the question you may know very little about. Therefore, make sure to read all parts of the question before attempting to answer it.
2. Time is of the essence! As part of your revision, practise answering questions within the time allowed (see the Paper Structure section on facing page to remind yourself of time allowed for questions). Do not exceed this time limit. One of the main reasons students often fall down in the exam is due to bad time management. Make sure to match time spent on a question with the marks available for it.
3. Make sure that the detail of your answers is appropriate to the available marks. The general rule is that if there are 20 marks available, give four points at 5 marks each (2 marks to state and 3 marks to explain for each point). This is usually true for 90% of the paper. However, there can always be exceptions, so always try to give an extra point for good luck, where possible.
4. Students should answer Section A first, as this section will briefly span over many topics, giving you the chance to get ideas moving in your mind for Section B. Remember, questions 6-9 in this section carry 17 marks each and questions 1-5 carry 16 marks each. Therefore, to score the maximum of 100 marks you should answer all questions 6-9 at 17 marks and two more at 16 marks. Ensure to practise and revise the previous 10-12 years’ exam papers, as examiners sometimes repeat the same types of questions. Always fill the spaces provided for short questions on the exam paper.
5. The ‘state and explain’ method: you must develop answers with detailed, relevant points, ensuring to state each point and then explain it in two or three well developed sentences. This is necessary for both long and short questions. Example: Q. Outline one function of the European Central Bank (ECB). A. Maintain price stability within the eurozone. (Correct, but this answer will not even get you half marks, as you have stated the point, but not explained it).
B. Maintain price stability within the eurozone: This is the key aim of the ECB. This is done by closely monitoring inflation (keeping it below 2%) in member countries and adjusting the base ECB interest rate (currently at 0%) to influence consumer spending and investment. (This answer will get you full marks, as you have stated the reason and fully explained the answer).
6. Use bullet point answers: Don’t write essay-style answers in Section B. Bullet point answers should be used, and you should make sure to begin each point with a new paragraph. This allows your explanation to be focused on one idea only and prevents you from duplicating points. Start your Section B with the question you feel most comfortable with and this will give you a boost for the remaining questions. Each point should be written using the state and explain method above.
7. Do not take shortcuts when you are in the process of revision. A lot of students tend to omit the section on the History of Economic Thought. This strategy is not advisable, as this area is often asked as a small part of a 75-mark question in Section B. In questions on National Income, Keynes is often included. In questions on Competition, Adam Smith is sometimes included. Friedman may appear in Inflation or Banking questions. In Population questions, Malthus can appear, and so on.
8. Diagrams should be clear and large. Ensure diagrams are titled and each axis, each curve and each point are labelled correctly. Double check this in your exam. Also, practise
explanations of the diagrams drawn: every diagram you draw, you must be able to explain correctly. Allow yourself plenty of room when drawing these diagrams – don’t try to save space in the exam. Each diagram you draw should take up half an A4 page.
9. Identify the outcome verb: make sure you do this before answering the question, so you know exactly what the verb (i.e, what you are being asked to do) means in the context of the question. Example: analyse, compare, evaluate, discuss, outline, explain, define, state. Candidates often lose marks in the Economics exam by not correctly identifying the correct outcome verb in the question and answering based on that.
10. Keep up-to-date with relevant topical issues: this could include topics such as price levels, exchange rates, interest rates, unemployment figures, economic growth figures (GDP, GNP) government budgetary position, etc. If you decide to do a question on the paper that requires any current knowledge, it must be current and exact! You must use the latest figures and they must correlate with the marking scheme.