Extended response questions on the executive tend to be worded as follows:

Compare the role of the executive branch in making policy in two political systems you have studied.(Specimen Paper)

and

Compare the effectiveness of the Executive in making policy in two political systems you have studied. (2018)

Despite the fact that the questions above refer specifically to the policy-making function of the executive, the SQA Marking Instructions refer to all aspects that could be covered when studying this section of the course.

We are going to attempt the 2018 question:

Compare the effectiveness of the Executive in making policy in two political systems you have studied.

It is worth 12 marks, so remember the technique for this type of extended response question:

Under examination conditions, the writing of a response to this style of question should take no more than 25 minutes.

You are not going to write your response to this question under examination conditions, so you should expect this task to take around 1 hour to complete.

For 12-mark responses, a maximum of 8 marks can be awarded for knowledge and understanding (description, explanation and exemplification) and the remaining four marks for demonstration of the higher-order skill of analysis. 

It is advisable to include 4 descriptive points, 4 examples and 4 pieces of analysis.

You should include three separate paragraphs. These could be related to:

1. the distribution of power

2. the function of policy-making

3. the relationship between the executive and other branches of government.

Within each paragraph you would write about BOTH the US and UK executives. Do not write half an essay on the UK executive and half on the US executive. There will not be any comparative analysis which is what this question demands.

It is important to note that this question is asking you to compare the effectiveness of the executive in both the US and UK. This means that you should not simply describe. Writing simple but focused analytical statements such as 'This is significant as it shows that the UK/US executive is effective with regards to.....because.....' would work well in this extended response.

There is no requirement for you to write an introduction or conclusion for a 12-mark extended response style question.

You may upload your work to your student folder.

There has not been a 20-mark extended response taken from the Executive section of the Political Systems course in recent years.

For the 2021 examination the 20 mark essay will be in the Political Systems unit. This means that the essay that will appear in this section of the exam could be on constitutions, legislatives or executives.

With this in mind, in would be a good idea to practise writing a 20-mark essay on the executives. 

Attempt the following question and upload it to your student folder:

"Some executives have more influence than others". Discuss (20)