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First teaching 2024

First exams 2026

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The 16 Mark "Explain the Importance of " Question (Edexcel GCSE History)

Revision Note

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Summary of Question 3

  • Question 3 requires you to identify and explain the importance of a key event on a given theme, such as relations with the Indigenous peoples

  • You will have three questions of which you will choose two to answer. Each question is worth 8 marks

  • This question will require you to use second-order concepts in your answer

Amount of marks 

16 (2 x 8 marks)

The time that you should spend on the question 

No more than 25 minutes 

  • An example of the type of question you may encounter can be seen below:

Exam question offering three historical topics, asking to explain the significance of two: Grant’s ‘Peace Policy’ (1868), the Goodnight-Loving Trail, and law enforcement roles post-1876.
An example of Question 3 in Paper 2P
  • In previous years, this question has focused on the following topics from the American West:

Year of Exam 

Question Topic 

2018

Option one: The Indigenous peoples' (Plains Indians) beliefs about land and nature for relations between Plains Indians and settlers

Option two: The Timber Culture Act (1873) for the settlement of the Plains

Option three: The Johnson County War (1892) for relations between homesteaders and cattlemen

2019

Option one: Changes in ranching for the cowboys’ way of life

Option two: The Exoduster movement (1879) for the growth of settlement

Option three: The extermination of the buffalo for the Indigenous peoples' (Plains Indians) way of life

2020

Option one: The Indian Appropriations Act (1851) for the Indigenous peoples' (Plains Indians) way of life

Option two: The Oregon Trail for early migration to the West

Option three: The Civil War for settlement in the West

2021

Option one: The expansion of the railroads for settlement in the West

Option two: Gold prospecting for conflict with the Indigenous peoples (Plains Indians)

Option three: New farming technology for farming in the West

2022

Option one: The Gold Rush (1849) for migration to the West

Option two: The US federal government for dealing with law and order

Option three: Red Cloud’s War (1866–68) for relations between the Indigenous peoples (Plains Indians) and the US government

2023

Option one: Horses for the Indigenous peoples' (Plains Indians) way of life

Option two: John Iliff for ranching on the Plains

Option three: The Battle of the Little Big Horn (1876) for US government policy towards the Indigenous peoples (Plains Indians)

How to explain importance

  • Importance is a key second-order concept in history

  • Second-order concepts allow you to:

    • Understand history 

    • Have a complex explanation 

  • Importance is decided using hindsight

    • Modern historians look at a time period and decide which events or people:

      • Created new ideas

      • Directly changed events at the time

      • Impacted a significant amount of people

      • Impacted key themes of the time period such as relations with Indigenous peoples and law and order

      • Had important long-term impacts that can be seen today

  • To understand importance, try visualising the events and people of a period as a set of falling dominoes

    • An important event, development or person is a domino which changes the direction of all of the dominos that come after it

A hand tips over dominoes, altering their course. Dotted lines highlight "Expected Course of History" and "New Course of History" due to a "Significant Event."
An illustration that uses dominos to explain how important events, developments or people can change the course of history
  • Historical importance is often:

    • Subjective

      • Each historian brings their own opinion on what events or people are important

    • Debatable

      • Historians use different evidence to come to their own conclusions about how important an event or a person was in history

  • Imagine the set of dominos again

    • An important development, event or person is a domino that, if taken out of the sequence, stops other dominoes from falling

      • This shows that the development, event or person is vital for causing the events of the period

    • An unimportant development, event or person is a domino that, if taken out of the sequence, does not stop the dominoes from falling

      • This shows that development, event or person did not significantly impact the events of the period

Two diagrams compare outcomes based on the sequence of events. Left: significant event shown by falling blocks. Right: less significant event with blocks intact.
An illustration showing importance as a set of dominos

How to answer an "Explain the importance of" question

  • When answering an "Explain the importance of" question, you need to read the question carefully

    • There are three options for the question. You must only select two of the options

      • If you only answer one of the questions, you will only be able to achieve a maximum of 8 marks

      • If you answer all of the questions, you will not have enough time or space to complete the questions to the best of your ability

    • To help you select your two options, consider:

      • Which of the three events that you have the best knowledge about

      • If you can explain why the event is important for the given theme in the question

  • Examples of the types of themes this question could ask about are:

    • Relations between different groups in the American West

      • A few examples of this theme are: the US government and the Indigenous peoples; cattle ranchers and homesteaders; white settlers and Chinese migrants

    • Migration

      • For this theme, you will need to explain how the given event increased or decreased migration to the West

    • Settlement

      • For this theme, you will need to explain how the given event increased or decreased the settlement of the American West by migrants

    • Ways of life

      • For this theme, you will need to explain how the given event affected how the specified group lived and worked. Types of groups that have been previously selected include the Indigenous peoples and cowboys

    • Key developments in the American West

      • A few examples of this theme are: the cattle industry; the railroads; homesteading; law and order

  • If you do not explain the importance of the event to the key theme in the question, you will be limited to 2 marks per option that you answer

"Explain the importance of" question structure

  • Your answer should consist of: 

    • Specific relevant knowledge 

    • Complex explanations showing:

      • How the event impacted the key theme in the question

      • How important the event was in the development of the American West

  • Your answers could be written in PEE paragraphs: 

    • P- Make a point about the question

    • E- Include knowledge to support the point you have made

      • Focused on the event mentioned in the question 

      • Show knowledge to demonstrate importance

    • E- Explain the question

      • Focus on the key demands of the questions 

      • Include a complex explanation showing your understanding of importance

  • To achieve full marks for one option, you should aim to write two paragraphs

    • 4 marks for each question are awarded for knowledge (K) 

    • 4 marks for each question are awarded for your analysis of second-order concepts consequences and significance (SOC) 

  • You must ensure that you write a response to two of the options in the correct place on the exam paper

    • The answer space is divided into two sections. You must indicate, with a cross in the box, which option you have chosen to answer in the first section.

      • You must repeat this process for your second option in the second answer section for this question

Multiple-choice question with one option checked: President Grant's 'Peace Policy' (1868) and its impact on Plains Indians; other options are unchecked.
An example of how to show which option you will be answering in the American West exam

Worked example of the "Explain the importance of" question

Worked Example

  1. Explain two of the following:

  • The importance of President Grant’s ‘Peace Policy’ (1868) for changes in the way of life of the Indigenous peoples (Plains Indians) (8)

  • The importance of the Goodnight-Loving Trail for the development of the cattle industry in the 1860s (8)

  • The importance of sheriffs and marshals for law and order after 1876 (8)

(Total for Question 3 = 16 marks)

Answer

Indicate your FIRST choice on this page.

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box. If you change your mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross.

Multiple-choice question with one option checked: President Grant's 'Peace Policy' (1868) and its impact on Plains Indians; other options are unchecked.

President Grant’s ‘Peace Policy’ was important for changes in the way of life of the Indigenous peoples because it reduced corruption in reservations (SOC). The Peace Policy replaced corrupt reservation agents with religious men (Quakers) with strong reputations for fairness and justice (K). This was important for changes in the way of life of Indigenous peoples because corrupt reservation agents had caused hardship in reservation life. Agents and local traders had cheated the Dakota Sioux for a long time before Little Crow’s War. As a result, the Indigenous peoples were treated more fairly in reservations, slightly improving their standards of living (SOC).

The Peace Policy also changed the Indigenous peoples' way of life because it encouraged them to assimilate into white American society (SOC). For example, Indigenous children were sent off the reservation to go to school where they were taught about white culture and not allowed to continue their traditional way of life (K). This was important because it made it harder for young people in the tribe to learn the traditional skills of their tribe. The schools also encouraged them to become Christian, so they would be considered more civilised by white settlers. This led to a complete loss of some Indigenous tribe's language and traditions (SOC).

Indicate your SECOND choice on this page.

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box. If you change your mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross.

A question asking to explain the importance of two topics: President Grant’s ‘Peace Policy,’ the Goodnight-Loving Trail for the cattle industry in the 1860s (marked), and the role of sheriffs and marshals post-1876.

The Goodnight-Loving Trail helped to develop the cattle industry because it showed the benefits of trading directly with Indigenous tribes (SOC). In 1866, Goodnight and Loving created the trail so that they could reach the Navajo's reservation. When they got there with 2,000 cattle, they sold the cattle for four times more than they could have sold them in Texas for (K). This developed the cattle industry because it opened up more markets for cattle ranchers to sell their cattle too (SOC). If cattle ranchers could develop positive relations with an Indigenous tribe, they could make a significant amount of profit and ensure that there was always a demand for their cattle.

The Goodnight-Loving Trail also helped develop the cattle industry because it supported the development of Wyoming (SOC). The Goodnight-Loving Trail ended at Cheyenne in Wyoming. The success of Goodnight and Loving's use of the trail encouraged other cattle drivers to use the trail. As a result, Cheyenne grew and Wyoming, in general, developed a successful cattle industry (K). This helped the cattle industry because it created more hubs from where cattle could be transported across America, especially to the North where cattle were worth more money. This encouraged more people to become cattle ranchers or cowboys, growing the cattle industry in the 1860s and 1870s (SOC).

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Zoe Wade

Author: Zoe Wade

Expertise: History

Zoe has worked in education for 10 years as a teaching assistant and a teacher. This has given her an in-depth perspective on how to support all learners to achieve to the best of their ability. She has been the Lead of Key Stage 4 History, showing her expertise in the Edexcel GCSE syllabus and how best to revise. Ever since she was a child, Zoe has been passionate about history. She believes now, more than ever, the study of history is vital to explaining the ever-changing world around us. Zoe’s focus is to create accessible content that breaks down key historical concepts and themes to achieve GCSE success.

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