Paper 4 — The Global Economy
The 8-Mark Examine Guide
Provenance (built 2026-09-29): no raw "definitive guide" to this tariff exists in
~/Downloads/FINSTO/ for WEC14 (checked directly; that folder's per-tariff guides cover WEC12
and WEC11 only). forge-exam-technique-guide.md §2 ("Section B's 8-mark part") was read in full
first and its central finding — that this is the exact point on the paper where evaluation
becomes required — is not re-argued from scratch, only independently re-verified and given a
worked-example layer. Three full mark schemes/examiner reports were read directly with
pdftotext -layout from ~/Downloads/home 4/ubuntu/economics_ial_u4_complete/ for this pass:
October 2023 and January 2021 in full (mark scheme + examiner report), January 2025 (examiner
report only — no mark scheme for that series exists in the archive used).
WEC14 Section B's 8-Mark "Examine Two…" Part — Tariff Deep-Dive
1. What the tariff actually is, verified
Knowledge 2 + Application 2 + Analysis 2 + Evaluation 2, flat and additive, no levels — confirmed
directly in both mark schemes read in full this pass (October 2023 Q7(c); January 2021 Q7(d)).
The command word is "examine two [effects/problems/disadvantages]," and the letter carrying it
varies by series — 7(c) in October 2023, 7(d) in both January 2021 and January 2025 (per that
series' own examiner report). This is the exact tariff forge-exam-technique-guide.md §2
identifies as the paper's real evaluation cutoff: the 6-mark part above it credits none; this
8-mark part credits 2, and the examiner reports are explicit about it being genuinely required,
not merely available.
2. The cutoff, independently re-verified against the primary PDFs
Confirmed directly, not taken on trust from the facts bank, in two of the three series read for this document:
- October 2023 (depreciation of the rupee): "For 8-mark questions and above, evaluation is a key requirement and should be included."
- January 2025 (Ghana's national debt): "For an 8-mark question and above, evaluation is a key requirement and should be included."
Near-identical wording, four series apart, independently checked — this document's own
re-verification lines up exactly with what forge-exam-technique-guide.md §2 already states,
strengthening rather than contradicting it.
3. "Copying the extract earns zero analysis" — confirmed on this specific tariff, twice
This is the 8-mark part's most repeated real failure mode across the two series whose mark schemes and reports were read in full for this document:
- October 2023: "Several candidates copied paragraphs from the extract and were not able obtain analysis marks."
- January 2025: "Many copied paragraphs from the extract and did not explain it." — and earlier in the same report, in the general summary: "Many copied paragraphs from the extract and did not explain it."
The mechanism, stated once rather than per-quote: a mark scheme credits Analysis for what a candidate does with a fact from the source — the linked explanation — not for reproducing the fact. If a sentence would be exactly as true with the extract booklet closed, it isn't earning an analysis mark, whatever the Application mark it might separately earn for citing the figure.
4. Real worked examples, verified directly against primary PDFs
| Series | Letter | Real task | Knowledge+Analysis (up to 4) | Application (2) | Evaluation (2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2023 | 7(c) | Examine two effects of the rupee's depreciation | e.g. improved current-account position "as its exports become relatively cheaper" | The rupee moved from Rs 175/$ to Rs 205/$, a ~17% fall | "Impact... depends on PED for imports and exports... if the Marshall-Lerner condition is met" |
| Jan 2021 | 7(d) | Examine two causes of income inequality within advanced economies | e.g. discrimination by gender/age "could lead to a lack of opportunities" | Top 1% income share rose from 6% (1980) to 11% (2014) | "Significance will be different in different advanced economies... but wages appear to be the most significant factor" |
| Jan 2025 | 7(d)* | Examine two disadvantages of an increase in Ghana's national debt | Not independently re-extracted (no mark scheme in archive used) | "Relevant use of the sources" per the examiner report | "Candidates could attain both the evaluation marks for explaining them" |
*Jan 2025 row is examiner-report-only, as no mark scheme for that series exists in the archive used for this document — stated plainly rather than presented as equally verified.
5. Self-mark check
- Did I write a genuine evaluation sentence — a stated condition the effect depends on — not a third analysis point relabelled?
- Are my two examined points genuinely distinct mechanisms, not the same one stated twice in different words?
- Did I quote or cite the extract's data and then do something with it — build a chain, not just drop the figure in as an unexplained fact? (§3 above — this is the tariff's single most repeated real failure, confirmed twice directly for this document.)
- Did I attempt evaluation at all? Some candidates in both series read for this document "did not make an attempt of writing any points" on evaluation here — a genuine, confirmed way to lose both marks for free, distinct from writing a weak evaluation.
6. Sources and honest gaps
Primary sources used directly this pass: the full October 2023 and January 2021 mark
schemes and examiner reports; the full January 2025 examiner report (no mark scheme for that
series exists in the archive used, stated explicitly rather than papered over). research/ veridian/WEC14-verified-facts.md and forge-exam-technique-guide.md §2 were read first, and
this document's independent re-check of the evaluation-cutoff claim (§2) is additive
confirmation, not a first discovery.
Genuine gaps:
- This document independently re-verified the evaluation-cutoff finding in 2 of the 3 series
checked (the two whose mark schemes were read); it does not claim to have re-checked all 13
series' mark schemes for this document specifically, only what
forge-exam-technique-guide.mdalready states as its own coverage (2 series, 4 years apart). - Jan 2025's exact Knowledge/Application/Analysis wording is not independently verified against a mark scheme, for the reason stated above.