Well… that’s odd. BBC Bitesize, one of the first resources GCSE candidates turn to for exam preparation, doesn’t list Economics as a subject on their ‘All GCSE Subjects’ page. Save for Home Economics, which discusses food and nutrition, you’ll find nothing economics-related; nothing about money markets and economic laws.
Even stranger: if you search Bitesize for GCSE Economics, it returns a multitude of hits – anything from a historical perspective to a geographical one – and, of course, economics from a business perspective, but there are no materials specifically designed to prepare you for Exam 8136, Papers One and Two.
And yet, Economics is a valid GCSE subject, as proven by the Department for Education syllabus:
| GCSE Economics syllabus: |
|---|
| Understanding Economics: introduction to Economics, the role of markets, the roles of money and financial markets, the role of government; international trade and globalization. |
| Skills to learn: understand and explain economic concepts, apply that understanding to current and historic economic conditions, formulate reasoned judgments using qualitative and quantitative data. |
| Using quantitative skills: calculation of percentages, averages, revenue and income. |
| Graphing calculated data. |
| Interpreting quantitative data from graphs and charts, and from other economic data sets |
Never mind the lag in Bitesize’s otherwise admirable stores of information. Superprof provides you with easily digestible nuggets of knowledge, starting with this overview.
Exam Overview
We can start by stating the obvious: that the Economics GCSE tests you on all of the concepts you learned in class. And, like every other GCSE exam you’ll sit, it’s not a matter of straightforward questioning and multiple choice answers.
Granted, there are multiple choice questions but even they demand that you apply what you learned in class; it’s not a simple matter of choosing the answer that best fits the question.
Besides, less than half of each Paper consists of multiple choice questions; the rest requires you to write out your responses and, in some cases, justify them.
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A few questions require the use of mathematics and you will be allowed to use a calculator. Additionally, you will have at least one question that calls for you to plot your response in a graph. Again, the question is not straightforward; you will have to understand the effects an increase in supply has on quantity and price to come up with the right answer.
That means you have to apply what you know about the laws of supply and demand.
You’re allowed three and a half hours for the exam; one hour and 45 minutes for each paper. That may seem a generous allotment for just 50 questions (26 on Paper 1 and 24 on Paper 2) but don’t be fooled. Instead, think of that bounty of time as a measure of how intensively this exam will test your knowledge of Economics.
Not just in how well you remember economic concepts and ideas, either, but how well you can apply them.
Testing your working knowledge of economics is the way school prepares you for the best universities for Economics in the UK. Let’s find out exactly how they do it.
Paper One Needed Knowledge
Paper 1 covers how markets work.
The first part of this paper is multiple choice; the questions touch on basic knowledge of economic concepts. You’ll run across challenges that test you on the workings of competitive markets, demand curves and the factors that drive them, and price elasticity.
And then, the questions get more complex and call for you to write out your answers, rather than select one from a given set.
Again, the topics centre on basic economic theory. You’ll be asked to explain the correlation between a reduction in income with the equilibrium market price of automobiles, for instance.
Further into the paper, you’ll confront math questions; those you’ll use a calculator for. Those questions revolve around workforce productivity and profit margins. Not only will you have to use mathematics for these questions but you will also have to explain how those results impact general economic activity.
Perhaps the most challenging questions come toward the end of the paper. They relate to real-world events such as the 2008 economic downturn’s effect on labour and materials; outlooks and forecasts.
Another such question calls for you to elaborate on the economic impacts of growing environmental concerns.
For these questions, you’ll not be asked to calculate anything. Your task is to use your critical thinking and reasoning skills to define the problems as you understand them, highlight their economic impacts and outline how one in a limited set of vendors can affect similar vendors’ business and profit margins.
In other words, you have to show your know what an oligopoly is and what its effects are from an economic perspective.
In all, Paper 1 goes a long way to explore your knowledge of basic economics. Let’s see what Paper 2 has in store for you.
Paper Two Needed Knowledge
This paper centres on how the economy works. It too starts with 10 multiple choice questions about general knowledge of economics but from a much broader perspective. Many of these questions deal with the economy’s impact on government and policy-making.
Still, they’re fairly simple and, if you’re well grounded in economic principles, you’ll breeze right through them. You could even say that they serve well as a warmup for the more intensive work yet to come.
Paper Two’s next few questions are direct: explain this economic concept, your understanding of that economic phenomenon and list two causes of the other trend.
By the time you get halfway through this paper, your thinking cap should be nice and warm. That’s good, because things start to get intense at this point.
You will be asked to analyse a data set and render your conclusions, expound on income inequality and reason why the government should keep interest rates low. You’ll delve into the economic aspects of globalisation and whether it helps or harms individual economies.
The last question invites you to speculate on whether increased globalisation is good or bad for developed economies, and you must detail your reasoning. Clearly, this is a question no textbook can give you a pat answer to; you have to present your thoughts and ideas as they relate to this topic.
The calibre of these questions shows that you’re expected to have moved beyond the basics of economics.
What the Examiner’s Report Shows
Reading Paper 1’s report, it’s clear that few students had any problems answering the multiple choice questions, although two of them (5 and 9) proved more difficult.
Likewise, the majority of students were well able to answer any question involving calculations but lagged a bit when justifying their answers or drawing any conclusions relative to economics.
For Paper 2, the report states that most students found the multiple choice questions easier for this paper, as reflected in the number of correct answers selected.
However, the more abstract questions, the ones that called for critical thinking and reasoning were met with some difficulty. Even one requiring calculation proved to be among the most challenging.
Indeed, overall, the consensus seems to be that past students’ greatest deficit was in analysing and explaining their reasoning. Developing critical thinking skills and the ability to formulate deep arguments – not simply skimming the surface of economic theory would go a long way towards helping you earn the best marks on your Economics GCSE papers.
If you’ve not yet done so, it would be a good idea for you to study these reports - as well as AQA past papers so you’ll know where the exam’s pitfalls are and work to avoid them when you sit your exams.
Also, making examiners’ reports a part of your study plan will help see you through your Economics A-Level because they point to larger trends of gaps in students' knowledge of economics.
What You Need to Know For Economics GCSE
To excel in your Economics GCSE, you should know what’s expected of you. The most efficient way to know what you’ll be tested on is to look over your course syllabus:
- the main economic groups: consumers, producers and government
- the factors of production: enterprise, capital, land and labour
- the basic framework of the economic ‘problem’
- why markets exist and what their roles are
- supply and demand at all levels – individual and market, including competitive markets
- how markets determine price and resource allocation
- the importance and correlation of productivity, price, profit, and revenue
- the role the financial sector plays in the economy
Understanding these and other concepts, including political economics, meaning government economic objectives and the role of government in economics will bring you closer to your best possible marks on your exams.
However, as noted in the examiners’ reports, understanding them isn’t enough. You have to be able to apply that understanding to the various economic situations posed as questions in your exam booklets.
Whereas many of your exams – Maths, Languages and Sciences call for repeating memorized information and using learned skills, Economics GCSE instructs you to explain economic concepts and the reasoning behind your understanding of them.
Simply studying revision materials won’t be enough to ensure passing marks. You will have to build the skills necessary to reason out issues relating to the economy: the ability to think critically, taking numerous variables into consideration.
Furthermore, you have to grasp that these economic concepts you’re tasked with explaining are not abstract; they are a part of what’s going on in the world today. So, to build your understanding of economics in action, taking in podcasts and other media that offer different economic perspectives is critical to broadening your understanding of economics in today’s world.
Indeed, you should make such listening and discussion a part of your revision process.
Now, find out the best graduate jobs for Economics majors…
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