This set has ten original exercises, ordered from easier to harder, with no mark labels. All towns, organisations and figures are invented. Check the assessment details for your own exam year on the Cambridge page, and follow your school’s rules on assessed work.
Write each answer on paper before opening the explanation. For the wider map of skills, see the subject guide.
The exercises
1. Scope. A student’s theme is “young people and technology”. Rewrite it as one question that names a group, a place and a period.
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There are many good versions. One example: “How do Year 10 students at one secondary school use their phones during a school week, and how do they describe the effect on their sleep?”
It names the group (Year 10 students), the place (one school), the period (one school week) and two things to find out. “Young people” and “technology” on their own are too wide to research.
2. Issue or conclusion? Which of these is a question about an issue, and which already contains its conclusion? (a) “Why the canteen must stop selling sweet drinks.” (b) “Should the canteen sell sweet drinks?”
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(b) is the issue question. It leaves room for more than one answer.
(a) announces its conclusion, so research would only hunt for support. Turning it into (b) lets you weigh both sides.
3. Tracing a source. A social media post says: “Study proves 80% of teenagers sleep under six hours.” Its link goes to a news article, which says the figure comes from a 2019 survey of 120 students at one college. What should you do next, and what can you not say?
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Next, find the original survey and check who ran it, how students were chosen and the exact question asked.
You cannot say that 80% of teenagers sleep under six hours. The figure concerns 120 students at one college in 2019. The post also uses “proves”, which a single small survey cannot support.
4. Date and context. A 2015 report says 40 of 200 households in the village of Kampung Seri had piped water. What percentage had piped water, what percentage did not, and what can a 2026 reader safely say?
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40 ÷ 200 = 0.2, so 20% had piped water. The remaining 160 households are 160 ÷ 200 = 0.8, so 80% did not. Check: 20% + 80% = 100%.
A 2026 reader can say only that this was the position in 2015. It may have changed, so current evidence is needed before describing the village today.
5. Sample. A student stands at the school bicycle shed and asks 60 students whether they would cycle more if there were a safe lane. 45 say yes. Give the percentage and one reason it cannot describe the whole school.
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45 ÷ 60 = 0.75, so 75% of those asked said yes.
The students were asked at the bicycle shed, so they are probably already cyclists. Their answers may differ from students who come by bus or car. The result describes the 60 people asked, not the whole school.
6. Association or cause. In one invented region, months with higher ice cream sales also have more sunburn cases. Does ice cream cause sunburn? Suggest a better explanation.
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No cause is shown. Both could be linked to a third factor: hot, sunny weather. More people are outside and buy ice cream, and more people are exposed to strong sun.
A careful sentence: “Ice cream sales and sunburn cases rise together, which may be explained by hot weather, and this data cannot show that one causes the other.”
7. Comparing perspectives. In the invented town of Bandar Teja, a commuter survey says a fare rise is “unfair”. The bus company says it is “necessary”. Why might both be reasonable, and what should a careful report do?
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The two sources answer different questions. Commuters are reporting what the fare means for their budgets. The company is reporting what it costs to run buses.
A careful report states each source’s question and position, checks what evidence each uses, and avoids saying one is simply “right”. It may then weigh which evidence is stronger for the specific claim being tested.
8. Counterargument and limit. A student concludes: “Our survey shows that the new timetable improves student mood.” The survey asked 50 students one question on a Monday. Write a counterargument and a limit sentence.
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Counterargument: students may have been in a better or worse mood because it was Monday, or because they were asked to rate mood right after a favourite lesson.
Limit sentence: “This survey covers 50 students on one day, so it can suggest a pattern in that group but cannot show that the timetable caused a change in mood.”
9. Reflection. Turn this description into a reflection: “We held three meetings and made a poster.”
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One example: “At first I thought the poster was the main task. After the second meeting I saw that our question was too wide, so we narrowed it to one year group. Next time I would check the scope before planning any design.”
It says what changed in thinking, why it changed and what the student would do differently. The original only listed activities.
10. Responsible help. A parent asks a teacher three things about a student’s project: (a) explain what makes a research question answerable, using an invented theme; (b) rewrite the student’s own question for the report; (c) check that the student understands how to record a source. Which are suitable as teaching, in general, and what should the family do first?
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(a) and (c) are teaching of a skill. (b) is doing part of the assessed work, which is not suitable.
The family should first read the school’s rules on assessed work and ask the school what help is permitted and what should be recorded. Those rules take priority over any general guide. See integrity and responsible assistance.
If you got these wrong
| Exercise | Slip | Revisit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Question too wide, no group or period | Questions and research scope |
| 2 | Conclusion built into the question | Separate an issue from a conclusion |
| 3, 4 | Stopped at the repeated statement, or ignored date | Sources and credibility |
| 5, 6 | Sample or cause claims too strong | Data interpretation and limitations |
| 7 | Treated one perspective as the answer | Comparing perspectives |
| 8 | No counterargument or limit | Reasoned explanation |
| 9 | Described activity only | Reflection and improvement |
Log the slips using the method in the revision planning guide. A single repeated row is your next study block.
When to consider a teacher
Self-study may be enough if your mistakes change from one exercise to the next. If the same slip returns, a teacher can watch your reasoning and pick new original exercises to match. Read more on the Global Perspectives tuition page.