What the Research Says

Source analysis is a core skill for Edexcel History. Practising with a wide variety of sources — written, visual, statistical — builds the evaluation skills needed for “How useful” and inference questions. The more sources you practise with, the more automatic the analysis process becomes.

Step-by-Step Method

1. 1
   Find a source — Use past papers, textbooks, or online archives.
2. 2
   Identify content — What does it tell you? What details are relevant to the enquiry?
3. 3
   Consider provenance — Who created it? When? Why? For what audience?
4. 4
   Apply own knowledge — Does your knowledge support or challenge what the source says?
5. 5
   Write a utility evaluation — How useful is this source for the specific enquiry? Why?

When and How Often

15 minutes per source. Practise at least 2 per week.

Common Mistakes

• ❌
  Focusing only on reliability — The exam asks about usefulness, not reliability.
• ❌
  Ignoring provenance — Who wrote it and why is worth marks.
• ❌
  No own knowledge — You must bring in your own contextual knowledge to access top marks.