8 replies to this topic

[LegendaryDB]

My two worst study themes are 1A - Devolved Decision making in Scotland and 2- Health and Wealth

I really need help so here are a few questions someone can hopefully answer

1. How do you revise for modern studies- I usually juust read over my notes and essay
2.To what extent is there a link between income and health? - I know some stuff to write in this essay but i don't know how i would go about structuring it!
3.Critically examine recent government policies to reduce poverty

Basically we have had 6 different teachers this year and we finally got a decent teacher in January. So we got taught the health and wealth unit extremely badly because we had two supply teachers who were retired history teachers and didn't have a clue So yeah i'm really worried abut the exam now. I got an A in the prelim, JUST, and i'm worried that i'll end up with a C. I seem to be quite good at the DMEs

So any help given would be great

thanks

[Allan_r_123]

My two worst study themes are 1A - Devolved Decision making in Scotland and 2- Health and Wealth

I really need help so here are a few questions someone can hopefully answer

1. How do you revise for modern studies- I usually juust read over my notes and essay
2.To what extent is there a link between income and health? - I know some stuff to write in this essay but i don't know how i would go about structuring it!
3.Critically examine recent government policies to reduce poverty

Basically we have had 6 different teachers this year and we finally got a decent teacher in January. So we got taught the health and wealth unit extremely badly because we had two supply teachers who were retired history teachers and didn't have a clue So yeah i'm really worried abut the exam now. I got an A in the prelim, JUST, and i'm worried that i'll end up with a C. I seem to be quite good at the DMEs

So any help given would be great

thanks

Hey. First of all - i really don't think you have anything to worry about if you got an A in the exam, but it is understandable you are apprehensive about it. Basically, because there is so much course content and the wording of the questions are so variable it is near impossible to memorise every possible essay that could come up. The way I find it best to study for Modern Studies - is to go through each unit and write up a big list of every topic and area within that. For example:-

Unit 1 - Health And Wealth
Original Aims of NHS
Challenges of NHS
Government Reports
Health Inequalities
Gender Inequalities
Racial Inequalities
Link Between Health and Wealth
What Has the Government Done to Tackle Inequalities?
Have these Measures been Successful?

That is just an example, and the way I have done it here is just a rough sample but it illustrates my point. You will be best just to go through each individual unit at a time doing that and then go over each area and just keep revising your notes on the individual sections. Once you have studied one section, tick it off the list as you go and it helps keep you on track. I also find making mind maps helps me with modern studies, something that I actually never really do to study! Once you go through each section doing that, you will find you have a better overall understanding of that whole unit with a deal of background knowledge that you can apply to any type of essay - as well as DME's.

Okay, now the link between income and health. Basically it's common sense to be honest and you just have to remember the general link. If you think about it, If you are poor and have a low income you aren't going to live in a very good area. This means it is likely you will live in poor housing (damp etc.) As a result this will contribute to your poor health. Those living in such run down areas suffer depression and are likely to commit suicide too. Also, people who live in low income are more likely to make poor lifestyle choices (smoke, drink, have a poor diet etc.) all of which obviously linking to poor health. However, interestingly the richer you are you make better lifestyle choices (smoke less, drink less etc.) despite the fact you would think the more wealthy would be the ones to afford to do so.

That's the general link you have to know between income and health - basically that the poorer you are will cause a knock on effect and in turn give you ill health. You should also include some examples such as Men in Drumchapel (a poor area) are 3x as likely to suffer heart disease before aged 65 than men in Bearsden (a well off area). You should try and back up all the points you make ith some evidence and background knowledge.

You should also try and sot government reports into Health and Wealth essays, as they basically confirm that the poorer are unhealthier and also the divide between north and south etc. You should know about The Black Report 1980, Health Survey for England 1998, The Acheson Report 1998, The Bristol University Report 1999 and the Caci Report 2006. I presume you have some notes on these - if not give me a message and I will hook you up with some stuff no bother.

Now - about the 'Critically examine recent government policies to reduce poverty' question.
With the Health and Wealth topic a big area of it is inequalities as I am sure you know. These are with Health and Wealth, Gender and Race. You need to be aware of what causes these inequalities, what the government has done to tackle these and then whether or not they have been successful. These are standard questions that often come up in many forms - but they are quite good to have once you get to know them.
For the Poverty question you asked in particular:-

The Causes of Poverty
Here you should just explain what causes people poverty. This is things like high unemployment, poor education, low pay, part-time work, single parents, being elderly, being disabled, ethnic minorities etc.

What Has the Government Done?
Here you can talk about the policies they have introduced to tackle them. You should mention thigns such as National Minimum Wage, The New Deal, Sure Start, Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Pension Credit, Equal Pay Act 1970 etc.

How Effective Have These Policies Been
This is where you should analyse the policies individually and conclude on their effectiveness. For example, you would say how the minimum wage has increased the pay for 1.3 million people - but on the other hand the UK minimum wage is very low in comparison to international rates. You could also comment on the pension tax credit by talking of how between 1997 and 2003 poverty fell for both children and pensioners, but statistics show recent government initiatives have been less successful.

The main thing in these questions is being very analytical and concluding on whether or not each policy introduced has been effective.

When answering such essays, keep trying to refer back to the question when concluding.

If you don't have notes on anything I have mentioned or have any further questions please let me know Good luck - you will be fine!

[LegendaryDB]

Wow, thanks a lot. I will try revising health and wealth with those headings. To be honest it was a very lucky A because all the questions that came up were easy

1.-How MSPs hold the government to account
2.How media influences voting behaviour (i am hoping this comes up in the exam)
3.I did the "recent Governments have failed to tackle race and gender inequalities" Discuss. I can do questions on race and gender inequalities and government's effectiveness at tackling them. That's about the only bit of health and wealth i can do! haha
4. was something about Inequalities in South Africa

The other disappointing thing is that since we got taught so badly we didn't do America so i don't have a choice in the exam

Are those all the headings i should revise for health and wealth? Or are there more?

There was also another question that i couldn't do. It was Recent Governments have used taxes and benefits to redistribute Wealth" Discuss- What a joke of a question. I just assume you first describe the taxes then analyse how effective they are then describe benefits and analyse them too? The thing is it's just the analysing bit i can't do, because most of my textbooks are out of date. I cant find any statistics. E.g i wouldn't have known that about the minimum wage if you hadn't told me :| Do you know anywhere that i could get some god statistics from. I do know another one i think - 1/4 children are now in poverty but it used to be 1/3?

As for Government reports, I have no clue. I have heard of them but know nothing about them :|

Yea for that government measure to reduce poverty. I was really unsure because i thought surely they can't expect you to write all that. I suppose you wouldn't put as much in on health? Would you keep gender, race and the other causes of poverty seperately? Or would you just put them all in a paragraph saying that they caused poverty. Then would you single out policies to deal with race inequalities from policies to deal with gender inequalities for example? Aah i hate structuring modern studies essays!

Sorry to bother you with more questions, haha!

Thanks very much for that reply, it was VERY useful! Are you doing modern studies this year too?

[Allan_r_123]

Lol yeh I am sitting it this year - in fact I am crashing it. However I just had a brilliant teacher and a really great interest in it so I have been doing quite well throughout and am quietly confident hehe.

First of all - don't worry about only having one international issues question. We only done USA so I don't have a choice either. However, you just need to make use of what you have and therfore know your international issues topic inside out so you will be able to answer any possible question. The way I think of it, by having more than one choice it could just confuse matters for you, so just think as though no other people have choices and it's compulsory just for you to do the South Africa one.

Erm I think I maybe have a few more health and wealth headings as I was just giving you an example there, but I will have a look for you tomorrow (rushing to work soon hehe) and I can email you or something with what I am using. I will also do this for you with some statistics that you can learn and slot into the majority of your essays. I have a note of a good website too with really up to date statistics I will also look out for you. But in the mean time it's wise to just view the bbc website. I have gotten a lot of new statistics that are perfect there, for example inr elation to the success of Sure Start and how child poverty has been reduced in recent years.

I will also summarise government reports for you and send you them. You basically just have to know for them what each shows. It is highly unlikely you will get a specific question on them as you can't particularly analyse them at all. But they are really useful for background knowledge to back you up in the DME and can also be used for extra examples and support within essays.

For a question on how poverty has been reduced, I think I would do the following sort of structure:-
1. Introduction
2. First Cause of Poverty (eg. poor education) and use examples to show how that will make you poor
3. A strategy used to tackle poverty, saying how it has in fact been reduced
4. Another cause of poverty, eg race, once again using examples
5. Strategies to reduce poverty again (in relation to race this time)

I think I would generally use that structure, but I like to quickly scribble down a wee plan before I starty my essays just so I have a set, structure plan to follow.

I will get organised and PM you with the stuff tomorrow. Also feel free to ask any more questions and I will do my best to help! It's jsut lucky I had a brilliant teacher this year Al

[LegendaryDB]

Thanks Yeah I am crashing it too. I also really enjoy it but it's a lot of work! I was actually considering doing politics at uni at some point lol, but nah. Haha i wish we'd had a good teacher at the start of the year but I can't really dwell on that anymore! I am currently working my way through gender inequalities which is pretty easy, then i'll move on to race inequalities. In reality i only have today, tomorrow and friday to revise modern studies, then 3 days before the exam :| EEK! haha. Ah well


Did your teacher have any useful predictions of what they think will come up this year?

Thanks a lot for your help. REALLY appreciated!

[LegendaryDB]

Just a couple more questions, lol, sorry! If you were doing the essay "the elderly and children are most vulnerable to poverty" Discuss Wuld u obv do a paragrpah on child poverty then elderly poverty then discuss other groups that are vulnerable. But would you be like Children & elderly aren't because the government has already done a lot to help elderly and children, so they're not actually most vulnerable? Also i kinda don't know anything about child poverty. So any help on that would be good ta. Also for ur essay plan you only do 2 groups? Surely you have to discuss more than that and surely you will need to do a paragrpah on unemployment as it's the main cause of poverty?

[Allan_r_123]

Hey - Sorry I didn't get a chance to email you the stuff I promised. I've been pretty hectic lately helping my girlfriend study for her Higher Maths, getting my own studies done and working! lol.

I should have it all sorted for you at some point soon and forward you it though!

Erm my teacher was at a big modern studies meeting thing, with the head examiner who sets the exam - and she said he basically hinted at inequalities being a main part in the exam for health and wealth. So she is advising us to really know our inequalities inside out, with what the government has done to solve them and how effective they have been. She has a feeling the powers of the PM and maybe the civil service... she also thinks somethin about voting behaviour with maybe even pressure groups. They are just her general advice though.

Erm in relation to your essay question - I think I would split it into the two sides of how children and elderly are most vulnerable to poverty, then on the other hand how they are not. I would do this by a paragraph at a time, maybe with the first explaining how children are with some reasons (single parents etc.), then a paragraph in rebuttal saying how the government has sorted that so they are not and that there is other groups.
I would then do a paragraph on how the elderly are and their causes, poor income through pension. Then a paragraph how they are not etc.

I think that's the general layout I would take for that one. Yeh I am considering taking politics as an elective study along with my uni course. What are you planning on doing at uni btw?

[LegendaryDB]

Oh right we don't do decision making in the central government unfortunately. Hmm i hope it's on some sort of race or gender inequalities in the exam! Also i have a really strong feeling that it will be voting behaviour just because it wasn't in it lat year, lol. Let's hope so. Hmm i would have thought you would have to say what other groups are vulnerable to poverty in that one :S I'm going to Dundee Uni to Study Law What about you?

[Allan_r_123]

Well you kinda are saying that other groups are vulnerable to poverty. In the rebuttal arguments you wold say how the government has reduced poverty for the previous group (either children or elderly) and then go on to state that therefore other groups are more vulnerable to it (such as single parents or whatever). That way you are showing that there are more vulnerable groups...

That sounds good, I am doing International Business at strathclyde Scotlands top business skl =D