EdExcel Unit 2 - Notes from an Online CPD Session

Here are some of the notes from an online CPD session. Our EdExcel Unit 2 Macro Study Companion is available now from our online store - here is the link to use

Unit 2 comments

Mean score: 54.1 out of 80 marks (compared to 53.2 in June 2011)
Standard deviation: 14.6 (compared to 14.6 in June 2011).
‘A’ grade boundary 63 marks
‘E’ grade boundary 36 marks
Both questions were accessible to candidates: Approximate percentage of candidates choosing each question
• 55% chose Q1 (Real income and unemployment)
• 45% chose Q2 (UK growth and balance of payments)

Improving performance

1. Accurate definition / understanding of what each term referred to
   
2. Make explicit use of the data in Extract referred to
3. Include % signs and dates
4. When referring to the data ensure the following are not left out if used e.g. £ sign or billions units
5. Explain causes rather than listing them e.g. Two possible causes of falling real disposable income during 2010
6. Analysis improvements always sought: e.g. Likely impact of falling real incomes on the price level & output, using AD/AS diag
   1. However, some candidates did not label their diagrams accurately (tut tut!)
      
   2. Refer to the impact on both price level and output (this means read the question!)
      
   3. Aim for sequential answers - making connectives (we love connectives at Tutor2u!)
      

Evaluation improvement

Question: Evaluate the likely impact of falling real incomes on the price level & output, using AD/AS diag.
Evaluation worth 4 marks:
Apply it to the UK - bring real world data into the answer (context matters)
Consider the circumstances when the size of the impact on price or output would be different (stage of the economic cycle)
Effect of other factors improving or exacerbating the situation e.g. exchange rate movements, tax changes, business confidence

Evaluate macro policies that might be used to reduce unemployment

1. Always refer to the data provided
2. Avoid standard evaluation points (ceteris paribus, magnitude, etc) unless they can be applied to the question
3. Weigh up the relative effectiveness of each policy option
4. Consider short term and long term impact such as threat of default on the national debt or fairness of burdening future generations with debt
5. Demand and supply-side approaches
6. Focus on causation and appropriate policy responses - when explaining causes look for clues in the extracts and add in alternative / additional causes from the student's own real world awareness

Note: Many students taking this paper had entered superb essays for the RES competition on youth unemployment and could draw on this when building strong evaluation!

In unit 2 evaluation questions, the best answers have a sense of real world context, students know what is happening in the economy and the limits of policy when tackling deep-rooted problems.

Question: Evaluate the benefits of economic growth

Sound analysis of the benefits
Good use of examples from the current situation
A few wrote only about the costs and not the benefits
How to improve –

1. Define the terms
2. Plan the essay
3. Find three different benefits (much flows from having an accurate interpretation of what economic growth actually is)
4. Consider scale of benefit and who receives the benefit
5. Discuss sustainability (essential!)
   
6. Contrast growth in a boom from coming out of a recession (neither of which is truly economic growth!)