Social Studies 11 Provincial Exam

To all the Grade 11 students preparing for their Socials 11 Provincial exam, here are some tips to help streamline your studying over the next few days:

1. Do not occupy yourself with the little details. Study from the past provincials (use the BC Ministry of Ed website as well as other sites, like questionbank.ca) to determine which kinds of questions come up all the time. There are certain questions that get tested over and over again (e.g. The Canadians at the Battle of Hong Kong in WWII fought with Commonwealth forces and were taken POW– that’s always the answer!), so familiarize yourself with those questions and target study accordingly.

2. Learn the 3-5 things tested in each section. For example, in the government module, in addition to understanding the different political ideologies and party platforms, be sure to know what an order-in-council is, how the amending formula to the Canadian constitution works, and when the notwithstanding clause has been invoked. Go through each module and try to identify the 3-5 main ideas that you need to master to do well on the multiple choice section.

3. Refine your POE techniques. For students who have been preparing for the SAT, you know how to use Process of Elimination to your advantage! Eliminate the answer choices that are way off base, and pick from what’s left. You would be surprised how much easier it is to select the correct answer from two choices than it is from 4 or 5 choices.

4. Tell yourself the Canadian history story. Write it out as a story beginning with World War I and move your way to present day. This way, you can connect all the big ideas together and slot the details into the story as you move through the decades. Break the story down by themes (e.g. Foreign policy: Interwar period is characterized by Canada’s growing autonomy from Britain; Cold War period is characterized by Canada’s warm and cool relationship with the U.S. on military, political, social and cultural issues).

5. Practice, practice, practice. Doing old provincials is the only way to go at this point. Identify the way in which the essay themes and the MC questions are asked, and study accordingly. Pay particular attention to the Government module (12 questions out of 55 on the MC), and Human Geo (11 questions out of 55 on the MC), as those contain lots of points.