Paper 2 Skills: Identify and Select (Cambridge (CIE) AS English General Paper): Revision Note
Exam code: 8021
Paper 2 summary
Paper 2 of your CIE AS English General Paper exam is the comprehension paper:
1 hour 45 minutes
50 marks
2 sections each worth 25 marks
50% of the AS level
Source materials will be provided in a separate insert booklet:
The materials may come from reports, reviews, essays, blogs, scripts, speeches and descriptions, and may include visual data such as diagrams or graphs
The materials will be up to 900 words in length
Below we break down the skills required to demonstrate your ability to identify and select explicit information in the Paper 2 exam, along with the types of questions that assess these skills.
Explicit versus implicit meanings
Explicit information is clear and directly expressed. Implicit refers to something that is understood, but not described or stated clearly or directly. Something stated implicitly uses implication, assumption and inference to generate meaning.
For example:
The long corridor was cold and windswept, making my candle flicker and the shadows quake and shudder. |
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Something that is implicit is inferred; this means you need to make a logical inference based on the evidence you are presented with. Essentially, it’s reading between the lines. In the above example, the fact that the corridor seems to be a frightening place is a logical inference to make, based on the fact that even the shadows “quake and shudder”.
Exam questions: identify and select
These types of questions require you to find explicit information directly stated in the source material. The command word is usually “identify”.
Examples:
Identify two pieces of evidence which show that Mungo uses a controlling style of leadership.
(8021/21, May/June 2024)
[2 marks]
Identify the reason why Polarstern and its crew spent nearly a year in the Arctic.
(8021/23, May/June 2024)
[1 mark]
Identify three of the reasons given why chess was not very popular before millions tuned in to watch The Queen’s Gambit.
(8021/22, May/June 2024)
[3 marks]
These questions reward concise, factual retrieval, and are typically worth 1 mark per answer.
To get full marks for these types of questions, it is important to:
Ensure you read each question carefully
Underline the command words and key terms in each question
Match the key terms to the correct details from the correct text
Ensure the number of points identified matches the number of marks on offer
State each point clearly and accurately:
Vague responses or those that introduce outside information (when not specifically requested) will lose marks
Avoid development:
These questions use the command word ‘identify’, meaning that you should name, select or recognise the points, rather than explaining or developing them
Worked Example
The text for this question can be found on page 6 of the May/June 2024 8021/22 insert (opens in a new tab).
Identify three of the reasons why chess was not very popular before millions tuned in to watch The Queen’s Gambit.
[3 marks]
To achieve full marks (3/3), you must state three distinct points from the list of unpopular associations:
It was associated with old men [1 mark]
sour looks [1 mark]
hours of boredom [1 mark]
and genius levels of memory and logic [1 mark]
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