9.2 Question 1 Practice And Model Responses

A city council reports that only 18 per cent of journeys to school are made by public transport. It proposes reduced student fares and additional morning buses.

Source 2

A parents’ group argues that buses are unreliable and overcrowded. It believes families will continue using cars unless safety and punctuality improve. The group values convenience and protection of younger children.

Task 1: Retrieval

Question

According to Source 1, what percentage of school journeys are made by public transport?

Model Answer

18 per cent.

This requires only the exact information. Extra explanation would not improve the answer.

Task 2: Identify And Explain A Perspective

Question

Describe the parents’ group’s perspective on reducing car journeys to school.

Model Response

The parents’ group believes that cheaper fares alone will not persuade families to stop using cars. It sees unreliable and overcrowded buses as the main barriers and is particularly concerned about the safety of younger children. Its perspective values convenience, punctuality and protection, so it would support improvements to service quality before expecting families to change their behaviour.

Why It Works

It states the overall position.
It explains the group’s view of the cause.
It identifies values.
It links the perspective to a likely course of action.
It uses source material without copying whole sentences.

Task 3: Significance

Question

Which barrier to public-transport use is most significant: cost, reliability, overcrowding or safety? Explain why.

Model Response

Reliability is the most significant barrier because families must arrive at school and work at fixed times. Even a cheap bus is unlikely to be used if it regularly arrives late or fails to appear. Unreliability also makes safety and overcrowding harder to manage because passengers may wait longer and then crowd onto the next service. Although cost affects low-income families directly, reduced fares will have limited impact unless the service can first be trusted.

Why It Works

It makes one clear choice.
It uses criteria: practical impact and influence on other problems.
It develops more than one reason.
It compares the chosen factor with an alternative.
The final judgement remains consistent.

Independent Practice

Rewrite Challenge

Write an alternative response choosing safety as the most significant barrier. Use severity, age of those affected and parental willingness as criteria.

Question 1 Checklist

Before Moving On

Have I used only the named source?
Have I identified rather than defined when asked for an example?
Does my perspective answer include position, reasons and values?
Does my significance answer use a clear criterion?
Have I explained rather than repeated the source?

Lesson Summary

Short retrieval questions need precise answers.
A perspective answer should reconstruct a coherent viewpoint.
A significance answer requires a criterion and developed justification.
Different choices can be valid when the reasoning is credible.