Year 12 Subject survival guide

Subject: Economics

Advice on:

1)General/classwork tips

  • Don’t panic if you don’t understand economic theory at first because it will click in the end.
  • Highlight every new word you learn along with the definition- get them from the book or ask the teacher because they can get you lots of marks and help your fundamental understanding of the course, and exam questions.
  • Ask questions! Economics isn’t an easy subject to grasp and the concepts are hard so don’t be afraid to ask if you don’t understand something because if you don’t understand a small thing in the beginning, it will lead the greater confusion when you try to master the bigger concepts later on.
  • Write everything down! It will be helpful for your understanding if you write stuff down in your lessons, especially in your own words or the teachers words because it’ll stick in your mind longer than if you just sit there are listen.
  • Make a log of all of the graphs you’re given and draw them properly the first time. These are very important for exams so keep a log of them as you go along so you don’t lose track. Practise drawing them (especially labelling the axis and basic things that get you marks) and memorise them because they can get you easy marks.
  • After every lesson make sure that you understand everything in the lesson because A-Levels go at a fast pace and you need to grasp everything as you go along otherwise you’ll get overwhelmed. Go on Tutor2u, read books, ask teachers or watch youtube videos.
  • Use all the resources you can get your hands on- don’t just rely on class notes, read around the subject so you get a full knowledge, and remember that the textbooks include everything you need to know so build upon your class notes with books.
  • Watching the news will set you up for unit 1 but especially unit 2 and A2 because it helps your understanding of case studies and applying economic theory to this.
  • Don’t wait for the teacher. If you have extra time or no homework read ahead in the book, try and grasp concepts you haven’t learned yet in lesson which will help with revision, cement the topic in your head, and make the lessons easier.

2)Homework tips

  • Watch YouTube. Online there are loads of videos where people and teachers explain topics in economics so if you’re struggling with an essay (or revision) go online and type in the exam board and unit and it’ll give you verbal explanations which are sometimes a bit better than the economics jargon you can get sometimes in a text.
  • Stick to the KPAE essay structure;K(knowledge= definition) P (application = examples) A (analysis= explain the examples and graph and how they relate to economic theory) E (evaluation= how the economic theory can change depending on different factors). For each point you make put a definition (know these off by heart) then apply your knowledge (possibly with a graph or examples from the case study text) then analyse it by explaining the economic theory. Then evaluate. Don’t get frustrated with evaluation- use ‘’it depends on’’ so will something work in the real world, over a short/long period of time, if it’s got inelastic demand, if… so you’re analysing how successful something will be or how much it’ll go the way the economic theory says depending on a different factor that could change the outcome.

3)Exam tips – ways to get the best grades

  • Make sure you know all of the possibilities of the different topics and questions that could come up- ask or go through all the past papers to see what always comes up. Make sure that you’re able to answer all the possible questions on each topic to give yourself the best chances.
  • When revising, don’t just use one book. Use a range of books because they all give slightly different information, and using all of them will give you the most rounded picture of the course and all of the key information so you don’t miss out on anything.
  • Timing is everything. Make sure you work on a one mark per minute basis; so if a question is worth 4 marks you spend max 4 minutes. This can vary for longer questions but make sure you practise again and again so you know the timing you’re capable of and are able to adjust the order of the questions you do according to timing. Time management is crucial because if you don’t finish it could cost you a grade. Know how much time you can spend on each question and if you don’t know the answer to one straight away- move on! Then go back to it later.
  • There’s no specific order you have to do questions in, but most people like to start with number 1 because it warms you up. But with this tactic you have to be careful not to eat into the time for the bigger essays so if you can do the short questions quickly, do them first. If not, go for the big ones so you know you get them done.
  • Know your graphs. You can pretty much put them in any question and you should put it if it’s correct, even if you think you’ve got all of the marks, just in case.
  • When marking past papers it’s useful to get teachers to mark them so that you get an accurate mark, but also go through what your teacher has marked, check it with the mark scheme (so you always know what the examiner is looking for) and go on the examiner’s report (which gives you exemplar essays so you know what to do-both can be found on the exam board website). But also mark papers yourself so you know where you’re going wrong.
  • After every past paper write down everything you got wrong and struggled with- this will give you revision focus.
  • It’s never too early to start past papers. Do one just a few months into the course to see where you’re struggling. Don’t expect the best grade but it will indicate what you need to work on outside of class.

Edited by: Scarlett Stock. Written by: Ed Tomlinson-Morrell & Scarlett Stock. Front cover by: Ben Fuller.