Level 5 exemplars and comments Paper 1 Question 1

1 1 Level 5 exemplars and comments Paper 1 Question 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 comments The candidate was able to provide a clear and detailed description of the changes in agriculture, rural areas and among farmers regarding the condition of sannong . The answer showed a good use of concepts in explaining changes such as urbanization , labour force and income gap . The candidate demonstrated appropriate use of sources in answering the Question . The candidate was able to point out two social problems closely relating to the negative impact of the changes in the condition of sannong . For example, the identification of the income gap problem was supported by the sources in the answer; the decrease of social harmony arising from the income gap problem was also sufficiently explained.

2 The candidate showed good knowledge of the latest developments in China, with which he/ she provided some relevant information to explain the problems. The sources, in general, were well used in a synthesized way in the area of explanation, providing evidential support and allowing the candidate to make inferences. The candidate suggested measures which, to a large extent, could fundamentally solve the problems. For example, by improving the transportation in the rural areas, several benefits could be brought about and finally the problem of income disparity between rural and urban people could be tackled. Moreover, the candidate was able to explain the causes of the social problems in a systematic manner; therefore, the explanation on how the measures could solve the problems was more convincing. For example, the candidate suggested adopting some kind of scientific research in farming so as to solve the problem of food quality on the mainland.

3 However, some attention should have been placed on suggesting the measures in terms of cost-effectiveness, possibility of extensive application and time factors, etc. in solving the problems. 8 Question 2 9 10 11 12 comments The candidate fully fulfilled the requirements of the Question . The candidate explained and justified clearly and logically his/her stance, with a well- structured , clear and in-depth elaboration. The candidate identified and explained clearly and in detail two reasons (self-esteem of young people, society becoming more utilitarian-oriented) for an increasing number of young people in Hong Kong undergoing plastic surgery from Source A, demonstrating a thorough understanding of relevant concepts and the characteristics of Hong Kong society.

4 The candidate provided a convincing discussion on the basis of a critical evaluation of the ban from a variety of perspectives ( the potential risks on young people specifically, the characteristics of personal development of young people, the effects of the ban and the rebuttals to the contention of freedom restriction), exemplifying a high Level of analytical and argumentation skills. 13 Question 3 14 15 16 comments The candidate demonstrated a thorough understanding of the demands of the Question . The candidate identified and described the trends of international tourism clearly by deploying the figures in the source appropriately. The candidate explained fully how the potential benefit, economic growth, will be brought about by the trends in international tourism.

5 The candidate drew appropriately on the sources to provide a clear explanation of the relationship between the trends and global concerns. The candidate conjured up a well- structured and logical explanation of why global warming and cultural conflict arouse global concerns, exemplifying a high Level of data analysis and thorough understanding of the issue. 17 Level 5 exemplars and comments Paper 2 Question 1 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 comments The candidate pointed out four factors from different perspectives including political and economic ones, and from different stakeholders. The candidate was able to avoid the use of ungrounded conspiracy as many candidates did, and used concrete evidence like the White Paper , alleged police violence, etc.

6 To support his/her arguments, and also gave a sense of understanding the situation and background well. The example of House News, however, seemed to be poorly chosen as the lack of advertisements was not the main reason for its closing down, according to the founders. There were other, better examples that the candidate could have given rather than this one. The candidate agreed with the statement to a large extent, and showed a good understanding of the meaning of governance, as well as how a high degree of press freedom could help. Some concrete local examples were cited, such as vote rigging in the 2012 District Council election, Headline News, etc. The candidate was able to successfully link such examples to different concepts related to good governance, such as monitoring of the government, legitimacy, consolidation of public opinion, etc. There were minor, occasional glitches in some arguments due to failure to present clear cut examples.

7 Yet overall, the discussions and explanations were clear and carefully thought through. 25 Question 2 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 comments The candidate was able to delineate the barriers to achieving consensus, conflicting interests and different concerns among different stakeholders, exhibiting a high Level of analytical skills. The candidate provided an in-depth elaboration on the conflicting views on the technicalities/ details of the legislation on standard working hours and illustrated the arguments with appropriate examples. The candidate showed a thorough understanding of the conflicting intra-sectoral interests, those between low-skilled and high-skilled labour.

8 The candidate demonstrated an ability to think from multiple perspectives in the detailed and comprehensive discussion of the improvement in various aspects of quality of life with the implementation of standard working hours, the social, environmental and political aspects. 34 Question 3 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 comments The candidate provided an in-depth and multiple-perspective analysis of the effects of the entertainment industry ( understanding other cultures, cultural rejection) by deploying a wide variety of examples for illustration. The candidate provided an explanation which was highly relevant to the characteristics of global culture, such as Americans learning traditional Chinese values through martial arts films, demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the related concepts.

9 The candidate gave some criteria for comparing the effectiveness of soft power with other ways to increase governments world influence, the Level of constraints, the time span of the impact. The candidate formulated logical and sound arguments, though a wider range of examples could have made the arguments more comprehensive. The candidate exhibited a high Level of analytical power and multi-perspective thinking, exemplifying a Level 5 performance.