How to Achieve an A* in A-Level History

A-Level History is a challenging yet rewarding subject that requires a deep understanding of historical periods, critical engagement with sources and interpretations, and the ability to construct well-argued, evidence-based essays. To secure an A*, you must combine detailed factual knowledge with sophisticated analysis and a clear writing style.

This guide outlines the key strategies and skills needed to achieve top marks in both examination papers and coursework.

Understand the Specification and Assessment Objectives

Start by familiarising yourself with the assessment objectives (AOs). All exam boards assess similar skills, usually across three key AOs:

• AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of historical events, terms, and concepts; produce well-structured and substantiated arguments.
• AO2: Analyse and evaluate primary sources, considering provenance, context, and content.
• AO3: Analyse and evaluate historical interpretations, assessing different historians' arguments.
• AO4(coursework only): Conduct an independent enquiry using evidence, producing a substantiated argument.

Knowing which AO applies to each question will guide how you approach your answers.

Build Detailed and Organised Knowledge

To write convincing essays, you must have strong content knowledge. This means more than just learning dates, it involves understanding causation, change over time, continuity, significance, and consequence.

Effective Revision Strategies:

• Create topic overviews and detailed timelines.
• Organise notes by themes (e.g. politics, economics, society, religion).
• Use colour-coded mind maps for different factors.
• Develop fact banks with key dates, quotes, events, and figures.
• Use dual coding (combining visuals with text) to aid memory.

Make sure you understand not just what happened, but why it happened, how it changed over time, and what the consequences were.

Master Essay Technique (AO1)

High-level essay writing is essential for an A*. You must present a coherent, focused argument supported by precise evidence.

Top Tips for Essay Writing:

• Plan before you write. Structure your response logically.
• Begin with a clear introduction that outlines your argument and addresses the question.
• Use analytical topic sentences to begin each paragraph.
• Include precise evidence (dates, names, events) to support your points.
• Use linking phrases to maintain flow and coherence.
• Address counter-arguments where relevant.
• Conclude by reasserting your judgement, clearly answering the question.

Avoid narrative or storytelling and focus on analysis, not just description.

Source Analysis Skills (AO2)

For source questions, you're expected to evaluate utility or reliability based on provenance, content, and context.

Provenance = PAC

• Purpose – Why was it created?
• Audience – Who was it for?
• Content – What does it say or show, and how reliable is that?

Top Tips:

• Consider the author, their position or bias, and how this affects the source’s value.
• Use your own knowledge to assess what the source omits or exaggerates.
• Avoid generic comments like “this source is biased” instead explain how and why.
• Always link back to the question – is the source useful for the specific issue at hand?

Practise regularly with unseen sources from your period to build confidence.

Interpretations Analysis (AO3)

Interpretations questions require you to compare historians’ views and assess the evidence they use.

Key Skills:

• Identify the argument in each interpretation.
• Analyse the evidence and reasoning the historian uses.
• Compare how each historian supports their view.
• Evaluate the strengths and limitations of each interpretation based on your own knowledge.

Avoid:

• Saying an interpretation is wrong or biased.
• Simply paraphrasing the interpretations without analysis.

Instead, engage critically with what each historian is arguing and how convincingly they do so.

Learn to Use the Question Language

All questions have command words that signal how you should respond. Understanding these is vital for targeting top-level marks.

• “Assess the validity…” means: Weigh evidence for and against, then judge how valid the claim is.
• “To what extent…” means: Present arguments on both sides and decide how far something is true.
• “How far do you agree…” means: Make a supported argument with evaluation and a clear judgement.
• “Compare the value…” (sources) means: Assess usefulness based on context and provenance.

Always return to the exact wording of the question in your topic sentences and conclusion.

NEA / Coursework (AO1 & AO4)

The NEA (Non-Exam Assessment) is worth up to 20% of your final grade. It’s your opportunity to show independent research and critical thinking.

Coursework Success Checklist:

• Choose a focused, arguable question (e.g. “How far was Stalin personally responsible for the purges?”).
• Use a range of primary and secondary sources, including historians with contrasting views.
• Structure your essay with a clear line of argument, supported by evidence.
• Evaluate interpretations, not just describe them.
• Use correct referencing and include a bibliography.
• Stick closely to the word count and formal academic tone.

Start early and allow time for drafting and refining your argument.

Practise Timed Answers and Use Examiner Feedback

Essay-writing under timed conditions is a skill that improves with practice. Do not rely on memorised essays instead, train yourself to think quickly and write clearly. Practice with exam past papers, Revision World contains all the available past papers.

Tips:

• Do regular timed questions (20, 30, 45 minutes).
• Use mark schemes and examiners’ reports to see what top answers include.
• Ask your teacher for detailed feedback and act on it.
• Keep a folder of your best essays and model answers.

Consistency and refinement are key to reaching the A* level.

Revise Actively and Organise Your Studies

Avoid passive revision (simply rereading notes). Use active techniques:

• Create your own revision timetable on Revision World and stick to it.
• Create your own quizzes or flashcards.
• Teach someone else the topic.
• Use revision clocks and “10-minute topics” to break down complex ideas.
• Write essay plans from memory.
• Use dual coding: combine diagrams, timelines, and bullet points.
• Record and listen back to summary notes.

Stick to a revision schedule that revisits content regularly and mixes essay practice with content recall.

Final Words of Advice from A* Students

• “Start your revision early, especially for interpretations and source work.”
• “Use historians' arguments, but make them work for your essay and don’t just list them.”
• “Think like a historian, always analyse, evaluate, and make a judgement.”
• “Every sentence in your essay should serve your argument.”
• “Don’t just learn facts. Understand the bigger picture and the causes, consequences, changes over time.”