ADVANCED SUBSIDIARY (AS)
General Certificate of Education
Government and Politics
Assessment Unit AS 2
assessing
The British Political
Process
[SGP21]
Assessment
MARK
SCHEME
12431.01
,General Marking Instructions
Introduction
The main purpose of the mark scheme is to ensure that papers are marked accurately,
consistently and fairly. The mark scheme provides teachers with an indication of the
nature and range of students’ responses likely to be worthy of credit. It also sets out the
criteria which they should apply in allocating marks to students’ responses.
Assessment objectives
Below are the assessment objectives for GCE Government and
Politics. Students should be able to:
AO1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of political institutions,
processes, concepts, theories and debates.
AO2 Analyse and evaluate political information, arguments and theories;
identify parallels, connections, similarities and differences between the
political systems studied.
AO3 Construct and communicate coherent arguments making use of a range of
appropriate political vocabulary.
Not all AOs are assessed in every question. In shorter, factual recall questions only
AO1 may be assessed. In longer extended writing responses all three AOs may be
assessed.
Quality of students’ responses
In marking the examination papers, teachers should be looking for a quality of response
reflecting the level of maturity which may reasonably be expected of a 17 or 18-year-old
which is the age at which the majority of students sit their GCE examinations.
Flexibility in marking
Mark schemes are not intended to be totally prescriptive. No mark scheme can cover all
the responses which students may produce. In the event of unanticipated answers,
teachers are expected to use their professional judgement to assess the validity of
answers.
Positive marking
Teachers are encouraged to be positive in their marking, giving appropriate credit for what
students know, understand and can do rather than penalising students for errors or
omissions. Teachers should make use of the whole of the available mark range for any
particular question and be prepared to award full marks for a response which is as good as
might reasonably be expected of a 17 or 18-year-old GCE student.
Awarding zero marks
Marks should only be awarded for valid responses and no marks should be awarded
for an answer which is completely incorrect or inappropriate.
Examples and evidence
In a subject such as Government and Politics, the use of relevant examples and
evidence is crucial. However, the amount of evidence/examples required depends
upon the nature of the question.
• shorter, factual recall questions may require
12431.0 2 no evidence/examples at all.
1
, • other short questions may require an example is given but not developed.
• some source-based questions may identify an example and the task for students is to
identify and then explain this example (and usually provide another).
12431.0 3
1
General Certificate of Education
Government and Politics
Assessment Unit AS 2
assessing
The British Political
Process
[SGP21]
Assessment
MARK
SCHEME
12431.01
,General Marking Instructions
Introduction
The main purpose of the mark scheme is to ensure that papers are marked accurately,
consistently and fairly. The mark scheme provides teachers with an indication of the
nature and range of students’ responses likely to be worthy of credit. It also sets out the
criteria which they should apply in allocating marks to students’ responses.
Assessment objectives
Below are the assessment objectives for GCE Government and
Politics. Students should be able to:
AO1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of political institutions,
processes, concepts, theories and debates.
AO2 Analyse and evaluate political information, arguments and theories;
identify parallels, connections, similarities and differences between the
political systems studied.
AO3 Construct and communicate coherent arguments making use of a range of
appropriate political vocabulary.
Not all AOs are assessed in every question. In shorter, factual recall questions only
AO1 may be assessed. In longer extended writing responses all three AOs may be
assessed.
Quality of students’ responses
In marking the examination papers, teachers should be looking for a quality of response
reflecting the level of maturity which may reasonably be expected of a 17 or 18-year-old
which is the age at which the majority of students sit their GCE examinations.
Flexibility in marking
Mark schemes are not intended to be totally prescriptive. No mark scheme can cover all
the responses which students may produce. In the event of unanticipated answers,
teachers are expected to use their professional judgement to assess the validity of
answers.
Positive marking
Teachers are encouraged to be positive in their marking, giving appropriate credit for what
students know, understand and can do rather than penalising students for errors or
omissions. Teachers should make use of the whole of the available mark range for any
particular question and be prepared to award full marks for a response which is as good as
might reasonably be expected of a 17 or 18-year-old GCE student.
Awarding zero marks
Marks should only be awarded for valid responses and no marks should be awarded
for an answer which is completely incorrect or inappropriate.
Examples and evidence
In a subject such as Government and Politics, the use of relevant examples and
evidence is crucial. However, the amount of evidence/examples required depends
upon the nature of the question.
• shorter, factual recall questions may require
12431.0 2 no evidence/examples at all.
1
, • other short questions may require an example is given but not developed.
• some source-based questions may identify an example and the task for students is to
identify and then explain this example (and usually provide another).
12431.0 3
1
