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Paper 2 Section B Question Types » Paper 2 Section B Question (a): Similar or Different?

What you'll learn this session

Study time: 30 minutes

Edexcel spec: Assessment overview

What Paper 2 Section B question (a) asks and how it is marked
How to spot whether the question wants similarities or differences
How to make every point compare both sides
Comparison words that keep your answer on track

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What question (a) asks

Paper 2 Section B is about your breadth study in change. Question (a) is the first part: 6 marks out of the 30 for the option. It tests AO1 (knowledge) and AO2 (explaining, using the idea of similarity or difference). There is no choice and nothing to read. The question always looks like this:

The question

"Explain TWO ways in which something in one period was different from (or similar to) the same thing in another period."

Spend about 9 minutes on it, out of roughly 45 for the whole option. This is our guide, not an official rule.

Key terms:

Similarity: something the two periods or situations share.
Difference: something that changed between the two.
Comparison: a point that deals with both sides at once, with a fact about each.

Step 1: check the question word

The question fixes the direction. Some ask for differences and some ask for similarities. If you answer the wrong one, your points cannot earn marks. Underline "different from" or "similar to" before you write anything. Then underline the thing being compared (for example, "the powers of local councils") and the two periods. Every point must be about that thing and only that thing.

Step 2: each point covers both sides

This is where most marks are won or lost. A point that only describes one period is not a comparison. Examiners want a fact about the first period, a fact about the second, and a clear link between them.

❌ One side only

"In 1848 councils did not have to do anything about public health." This says nothing about the other period, so it is not yet a comparison.

✅ Both sides

"In 1848 councils did not have to act, whereas in 1875 they had to." Now there is a fact on each side and a link between them.

You need two different ways. Give only one and you are capped at half marks, however good it is. In plain words, the marking works like this. A simple comment scores lowest. Points explained with specific facts score in the middle. The top band needs a clear comparison, with a specific fact about each period, for both of your ways.

Step 3: use comparison words

These words make your comparison obvious. For differences use: whereas, while, but, in contrast, on the other hand, unlike. For similarities use: both, also, likewise, in the same way, just as. A good pattern for each paragraph is: name the way, give the fact for period one, give the fact for period two, add a short reason why that matters.

Worked example: public health, 1848 and 1875

This is just an example. You do not need to study this period. Here is a fact file so anyone can follow it (in the exam you get none, and use what you have learned).

Fact file: public health in England and Wales

The Public Health Act of 1848 set up a General Board of Health in London.
A town only got a local board of health if one tenth of its ratepayers asked for one, or if its death rate was above 23 per 1,000 people.
Local boards could employ a medical officer of health, but they did not have to.
Many towns did nothing, and the General Board was closed in 1858.
The Public Health Act of 1875 covered the whole of England and Wales and gave every local authority duties.
Local authorities now had to provide clean water, drains and sewers, and to deal with rubbish.
Local authorities also had to employ a medical officer of health.
Both Acts aimed to cut disease spread by dirty water and poor drains, and both left the day-to-day work to local bodies.

Question

Explain TWO ways in which public health law in 1875 was different from public health law in 1848. [6 marks]

A plan

Check: the word is "different", the thing is public health law, the periods are 1848 and 1875.
Way 1: whether councils had to act. 1848: only if asked or a high death rate. 1875: every authority.
Way 2: medical officers. 1848: optional. 1875: compulsory.

Weaker answer

In 1848 there was a Public Health Act and a General Board of Health. In 1875 there was another Act that made towns cleaner. They were different because the 1875 one was better.

A similarity question is answered the same way, with different words. For example: "Both Acts left the day-to-day work to local bodies. In 1848 these were local boards of health, and likewise in 1875 it was local authorities who had to provide water and sewers."

What holds it back: each sentence covers one period, "better" is not explained, there are no specific facts about both sides, and only one vague way is given.

Common mistakes

Wrong direction. Giving differences when the question says "similar to".
One period only. Describing 1848 in full and forgetting 1875.
Only one way. The mark is capped, so always write two.
Two ways that are the same point. "Water" and "drains" can both be "councils had duties", so choose clearly different areas.
Vague words. "Better" and "worse" earn little. Say what exactly changed.

Exam-style question

This time the question asks for similarities. Write your own answer, using the same plan. Aim for two short paragraphs of 50 to 70 words. Here the fact file stands in for the knowledge you would bring from your studies.

Question

Explain TWO ways in which public health law in 1875 was similar to public health law in 1848. [6 marks]

Model answer

One similarity is the aim. Both Acts were meant to cut disease spread by dirty water and poor drains, and in 1848 and 1875 alike the law tried to make towns cleaner. The 1848 Act set up boards to tackle this, just as the 1875 Act made authorities provide clean water and sewers.

Another similarity is who did the work. Both Acts left the day-to-day work to local bodies, such as the local boards of health in 1848 and the local authorities in 1875. Both also involved a medical officer of health, who was optional under the 1848 Act and compulsory under the 1875 Act, so in each case a named official watched over local health.

Exam tip

Check your two paragraphs for a comparison word. If you cannot find "whereas", "but" or "both" in each, rewrite it so the second period is clearly set against the first.

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