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    Cambridge International AS & A Level Global Perspectives & Research 9239
    Example Candidate Responses (Component 3 Team Project)


    • Introduction

      The main aim of this resource is to exemplify standards of the Cambridge International AS & A Level Global Perspectives & Research, Component 3 Team Project, and show how different levels of candidates' performance relate to the subject's curriculum and assessment objectives. 

      Candidate responses have been selected from four Cambridge centres from the November 2021 series to exemplify a range of candidate responses across the presentation and reflective paper. All candidates seen in the recordings of the live presentations were contacted and permissions provided to use the videos from their Team Project submission. 

      The candidate responses are followed by examiner comments on how and why marks were awarded so that you can understand what candidates have done to gain their marks and what they could do to improve. The examiner comments also helps teachers to assess the standard required to achieve marks beyond the guidance of the mark scheme and the syllabus. There is also a list of common mistakes. 

    • Assessment criteria
      • Presentation (25 marks)

        •
      • Reflective Paper (10 marks) 


    • Now that you have read the assessment criteria, you may want to practise marking the presentations and reflective papers . Watch each candidate's presentation, making a note of the strengths and weaknesses and give a mark, before you read the examiner comments and marks below. Complete the same task for each reflective paper candidate response.



    • Presentation: Example Candidate Response - high

      Presentation title: What are the best solutions to prevent and solve poverty?


    • show/hide  Presentation transcript
      We are going to talk to you about Poverty. We will touch on different sides of poverty; we will explain what poverty is when looking at it from different perspectives. [Team member 1] will talk about the social and cultural point of view; [Team member 2] will tell us more about the political perspective and I will touch on the economic side of things.

      We want to give you a small explanation of why we choose poverty as a subject. The 3 of us do not suffer from the effects of poverty, however, others do. And with the ongoing pandemic, people tend to forget other problems like Poverty. And that is why we wanted to talk about it, to make sure people understand that it is still an ongoing problem and that it has gotten worse the past year!

      Poverty, what is poverty? How can we describe poverty from an economic perspective? Poverty in the eyes of economists is a state in which a person, a community or a neighbourhood lacks the financial resources to achieve a minimum standard of living. So, poverty means that the level of income of a person or a group of people is below a certain threshold. This threshold is so low that basic human needs can just be met. Receiving income that is below this threshold is considered living in poverty. The effects of living in poverty can be horrendous, people living without proper housing, clothing struggling to be able to eat healthy food or drink water every day. Although poverty seems to be a worldwide problem concerning millions of people around the world, poverty is also different in a lot of countries. because the threshold that determines whether someone is poor or not can differ per country. However, the IPL international poverty line has been set at $1.90 per day. Global estimates are that around 689 million people live in absolute poverty right now.

      Let's start with a local view of Poverty.

      In Maastricht, around 8.2% of the inhabitants live in poverty. We have a place in the top 10 municipalities with the highest number of habitants living in poverty. When compared with the averages of the Netherlands as a country we have a higher average of people living in poverty in Maastricht, which shocked me. I was under the impression that Maastricht would score 'better' on this list. And that is another problem with poverty.

      You can not always tell when someone lives in this state of poverty. People tend to not talk about it and sink into an even deeper hole without trying to get help for the situation they are in. This can make the situation for people in poverty even worse. if you get to the point where you live in poverty the smart thing to do is get help for your financial situation. let people know what you are undergoing and get help. In the Netherlands, we have certain safeguards in place where you can explain your situation and get help from financial advisors. They will help you to limit your expenses and will try to help you pay off your debt if that is applicable.

      Even with this available help people still live in poverty. In the Netherlands, about 6.2% of the population lives in poverty. With a poverty threshold of €1090 per month which almost a million people don't pass. This seems rather alarming, however, it is an improvement when compared with the numbers from several years ago. In 2013 7.4% of our population was living in poverty! So we are making small progress on the national level.

      So there is a slight improvement, however, are we going to keep that up or even improve the situation faster? I think we can keep the progress up. On a global level, people have been hit hard financially by the lockdown. Businesses had to close down and people have been struggling financially. However, with the election in the Netherlands promises of improvement and support for those who need it have started to arise.

      When we take a look at Maastricht once again, we can see that people are fighting for change. 6 of the political parties have agreed to a program in which they will get 50 households who live in poverty and have extensive debts, a financial plan and a guide to slowly get their lives back on track. Furthermore, before the year is out they want to make a plan to attack the poverty in and around Maastricht.

      On a national level, things are starting to change as well. Food Banks are starting programs to support the people who need to get their food at the food banks. An example of this support is the 10 point plan created by a food bank in Groningen. This foodbank helps its 'customers' with a 10 point plan attack on poverty. Some examples are:

      1. Only buy things you can afford!

      2. Getting help when in a big debt has to become faster, right now it can take up to 4 months to get people to listen to your story.

      3. Trying to remove the own risk of health care for people who live in poverty.

      when looking at the biggest picture, international poverty, I am not sure if we are going the right way. at least we should be able to do better. because of the differences between countries on poverty we do not have a clear view of the real numbers. We do have estimates of absolute poverty, the $1.90 a day, and from those numbers we can conclude that we must do better.

      There are some great ideas and initiatives out there to help reduce poverty around the world. For example: Improving the transition from school to work of the vulnerable work population. And implementing policy measures to reduce household debt and vulnerability to housing price changes.

      Another great idea is to create a worldwide organisation that makes a centralised policy around poverty and the battle against poverty. Another thing that would help would be to make sure people are warned about the risks of borrowing money. There are some regulations around these risks already however we could improve them, make sure that vulnerable people can not miss the warnings, maybe even make it harder for them to borrow money because it will eventually put them in even more debt and make them even poorer. And lastly, we need to make sure everyone has the opportunity to get out of poverty, We need to give the poor the tools to become financially healthy again. Courses on finance, debt and interest, financial advice and learn them how to get back on their feet.


    • Multimedia materials

    • Examiner commentary on the presentation
    • Presentation: Example Candidate Response - middle

      Presentation title: The impact of the internet: Cyberbullying


    • show/hide  Presentation transcript
      Hello everybody, I'm going to talk about the impact of the internet focusing on Cyberbullying.

      So the problem, what is cyberbullying?:
      Cyberbullying is bullying with the use of digital technologies. It can take place on messaging platforms, gaming platforms and on social media.
      Cyberbullying includes sending hurtful and mean messages, impersonating people, embarrassing someone and Spreading lies about someone [uhm]. The incidents of depression and suicides caused by cyberbullying are rising. A growing problem that leads to depression and anxiety cannot be left unnoticed.

      Global Relevance. So, this is Dr. Sameer Hinduja, and he is a Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University , and he said that 34% of students worldwide have experienced cyberbullying at least once in their lifetime. People that have experienced cyber bullying in their life time are nearly 2 times more likely to attempt suicide. Another global [uhm] cyberbullying research survey in 2008, found out that 43% out of 2,000 students that they have tested have said that they have experienced cyberbullying too. Then we have Ipsos, that’s an American study, has ranked the highest cyberbullying rates throughout the world and it is based on parents' testimony, because they are more likely to be concerned. [Uhm] the study is from 2018 and here you can see the results. India has the most cyberbullying rates and Germany, our neighbour country has 17%.

      Local Relevance. In the Netherlands, the Association of Universities (VSNU) is going to draw up a plan to better support scientists that are intimidated and threatened. Professors and university educators face online hate campaigns, death threats and home harassment a lot. [Uhm] on this picture, the cover, you see Marion [uhm] Koopmans and shes on dutch television. She is part of the plan. [Uhm] in the article they talk about Catherine E. de Vries. She is a Dutch political scientist and she receives a lot of swear words everyday.  "I hope you get corona," was one of the death threats she has received. It even went so far that they made her address public and they threatened her family. She wants this to stop. [Uhm] online hate is rampant. Dutch moderators receive thousands of hate reports every day. Especially during elections and Sinterklaas. They end the article with: "We can't help the scientists, [uhm] , to silence those who are trying to, those who are trying to silence them through intolerance, sexism and threats, however we can support them. I disagree. I found a political solution and Britt, my team mate, has found  [uhm] an educational solution.

      So, a political solution. I think that we can only.[uhm, uhm] tackle cyberbullying by tackling anonymity. A Dutch professor of social psychology, Paul van Lange, says the largely lack of social control on social media accounts is the perfect breeding ground for hatred to occur.

      Bullies should be punished. When a target goes to [uhm] goes to court they should be able to sue the person that has violated them. However, it is in most cases hard to find the guilty party, due to the many majority of fake accounts online. [Uhm] meaning the people spreading the lies or rumours can’t be punished.

      So I think you need to show proof of your identity, before making an account on social media. This means an improved verification process that allows for accurate identification of the person behind the account. This way cyberbullying will diminish.

      [Uhm] In the Netherlands, [uhm] a Dutch singer named Gordon is fed up with all the anonymous hate reactions online. Since the large amount of anonymous hate reactions on the Press release website, he decided to no longer remain silent. He started a petition that has already been signed up more than forty thousand times. He said that you should hold people accountable for the things they post on social media and prevent people from hiding behind a false name when making offensive remarks. [Uhm] This is only possible with stronger real name policies and enforcement. [Uhm] In China they already took control of [uhm] social media and they have controversially banned certain social media platforms, and anonymizers. The operators of social networks are responsible for removing posts that are considered as rumours. Rumours are identified by undermining [mora] morality, the authenticity of information and undermining the social system. So these [uhm] Social networks should put them in different categories therefore they need several licenses. [Uhm] spreading false information and online hatred is a crime and is punishable for up to seven years in prison. This has in fact stopped false information and mean comments from spreading.

      However in most, in some  countries [uhm] people are prosecuted for their opinion. So anonymity has its value. The Chinese government [uhm] has control because they don't want anyone directly threatening the government’s power. So any information that could harm the government's power will be deleted, because they will say it's false or it's a rumour even though it's not false or a rumour. So hiding their identity is [uhm] can be a value to be able to express your opinion there. And everybody should be able to encrypt their communications and personal data as an essential protection of their rights to privacy and free speech." The Chinese laws on social media simply limit those established standards of free speech. And governments shouldn’t determine what speech is true and what is not.

      So, I think that tackling anonymity is still the best solution, because the negative aspects of anonymity outweigh the positive aspects. Especially, in America and countries within Europe, where everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right includes the freedom to have opinions and to receive or convey information or ideas. So, if you want to share your opinion, you may. There is just no excuse to hide behind a false name. Besides, the identity data does not necessarily have to be made public. They can be withheld from the judiciary. [If] Only if something that clearly involves false and harmful information, [uhm] the justice system should investigate it and know where the information came from, to be able to catch the bully. The rights to privacy will not be harmed when the court and government [uhm] can only look into your data when the judge approves it, just like the police needs a warrant before they can make an arrest. [Uhm], so, to be clear, all users should be subject to an enhanced verification process that enables accurate identification only when required by law [uhm], by law enforcement. When the sources can be traced, we can hold people accountable for what they post on social media, and we can catch the cyber bully and they can be punished accordingly.

      These are my sources if you want to look further into this subject.

    • Multimedia materials
    • Examiner commentary on the presentation

      Click here for examiner comments and mark awarded
    • Common mistakes candidates made in the presentation

      • Some candidates only identified their own perspective and did not refer to alternative views and approaches, including those of the other members of their team.
      • Some presentations provided only an informative overview of their issue which describes what it is, rather than making an argument about why it is a problem and proposing a solution.
      • Candidates made the mistake of not making any reference to their visual aids when speaking, meaning that they did not then support their argument.


    • Reflective Paper: Example Candidate Response - high


      Initially, our group work was quite organized. We agreed on the topic of illiteracy on day 1 after a class discussion. From then onwards, I took charge and brainstormed sub-topics and delegated them for us to research individually; [Team member] searched about the causes of the issue whereas I focused on the consequences. This method was effective as we could gather a considerable amount of information in a short period of time without any uncertainty as to who would research what. It was also useful as we realized early on that our issue was much more complex than we had thought and targeting specifically female illiteracy would allow for more focused, nuanced perspectives, and thus more interesting solutions. As for communication, most of our in-person meetings were in school rather than outside of school due to COVID risks. However, in between classes we talked and called frequently on WhatsApp which was sufficient enough to let us clarify our perspectives and keep track of each other's individual progress on our presentations.

      However, the third COVID wave and closure of schools greatly hindered our productivity. Not only were we both irregular during online classes but there were many instances where I received late responses or none at all. In fact, the majority of the time I was the one who reached out, which became more frustrating as time passed as it felt like I was the only one contributing. For example, when it came to differentiating our solutions, it was me that suggested both of our perspectives instead of [Team member] speaking up as he was having trouble coming up with his own ideas. Although taking the initiative at the start was a strength of mine, eventually, it was me that ended up carrying the burden of most of our research, which led to many all-nighters and thus lower quality work. To avoid similar situations again I should be more assertive when it comes to the completion of work and not compromise my own well-being for others' unreliability. This would not only improve our efficiency but also give us some well-needed motivation.

      While working on our final team solution, one of our team’s strengths was we were thoughtfully able to compromise whenever our ideas clashed. Thus, we had almost no arguments and work was slow but smooth. For example, despite the improved safety of bicycles that I talked about, [Team member] insisted that my solution wasn’t effective as girls riding bikes alone are still vulnerable and could be harmed. Eventually, we both agreed that the situation might not ever be 100% safe and I introduced a modification in which girls in a community would map the safest route to school and then travel in groups which is less risky than going alone. Another concern I raised was regarding the scope of [Team member]’s solution, which was from a religious lens and focused on raising awareness about female education to eliminate regressive attitudes- why should this only be limited to masjids and Islamic TV channels? I suggested that different means of raising awareness such as social media, radio, and other TV channels could reach a wider audience over a longer period of time which is more effective, and thus we included it as part of our team solution. Finally, we added another change regarding the implementation of our solutions, which was to prioritize cities with the lowest literacy rates first to make a bigger impact where it's most needed.

      Before my research, I assumed that barriers to female education were merely due to a lack of funding and conservative mindsets in some parts of the world- however, after finishing the project I have a much clearer understanding of how complex this issue really is. Not only have I learned about how factors such as distance to school, menstruation, textbook bias, and even something as seemingly insignificant as household chores affect girls’ lives, but I have also realized how all these issues are interlinked and lead back to negative attitudes toward girls going to school. Perhaps this is one of the reasons I was quite skeptical about [Team member]’s solution at first. I thought it would take generations to even make a dent in a mindset as deeply ingrained as this one. However, evidence regarding similar successful solutions in the past in his presentation gladly proved me wrong and I am now hopeful for a more enlightened Pakistan. As for further research, we could find the literacy rates for each city, as well as age demographics (dropout rates and enrollment per grade). For this, we could consult government archives, UNESCO data, or the most recent consensus. This data would help us implement our solution more efficiently as we could know whether to target primary or secondary school children and which cities to prioritize.


    • Examiner commentary on the reflective paper

    • Reflective Paper: Example Candidate Response - middle


      The teamwork went fine. All of us made sure that each one of us knew what was expected from them and attended the zoom meetings. We learned our personal team roles by the Belbin test, due to this we can now recognize our strengths and become more tolerant of our weaknesses. we tested our team fit in a practical team building exercise.

      When the introduction was finalized and the project was clear we were ready to brainstorm about the project in brainstorm sessions. During these sessions we were invited to join breakout rooms where we were given time to brainstorm. We chose our objectives, what are the goals and end product, divided team roles and appointed a scrum master. [Teacher] was our scrum master and made sure we did everything as we planned. 

      After brainstorming we chose three perspectives who were related to each other, had enough valid sources and were most related to the nuclear energy debate. We chose a topic that was both interesting and controversial making the subject debatable and relevant for this project. After doing quick research on different topics that meet our acquirements we decided that the nuclear energy debate fitted the best. The tasks were divided and each one of us chose a perspective. By choosing perspective, we assured that each one of us was interested and motivated in the subject. My personal perspective was the economical aspect., it is very relatable to the economics lessons I have been following for over three years so my knowledge I have built up was very useful for further research on the perspective. We helped each other out on the perspectives as we brainstormed on the topics during the sessions so we all were aware of each perspective.

      [Teacher] was our scrum master and made sure we did everything as we planned. He was in control of the time management and did a good job. Some members of the team were further than the others and were almost finished whilst the other members were still at the start of their transcript. To prevent this inconsistency within our time management in the future, we will have to re-evaluate personal progress within the group.

      The best solutions after researching each perspective were presented and evaluated. All the proposed solutions were compared and so we have concluded, nuclear energy must always be safe for the environment, environmental damage must be minimized at all costs and it has to satisfy three requirements; accessibility, availability and acceptability and it must be better for the climate. Thus being renewable, ecological and non-air polluting. This can be achieved by securing safety regulations and waste disposal management. The environmental and political aspect both agreed on the solution that human work should be replaced by machines for extra safety and to be sure no mistakes are made in the construction process. The placement of nuclear power plants should be far away from society to prevent disastrous situations.

      My interest and knowledge about nuclear energy, on a local and global scale, has increased. The research on the environmental, political and economical aspects changed the way I look at nuclear energy. At first, my belief was that it was extremely harmful for the environment and a very dangerous energy source, this due to things I heard in my city, Maastricht. people said that the local power plant, Tihange, is a threat to the environment of Maastricht and this formed my negative belief on nuclear energy. However, after this project I learned that nuclear energy has a great potential and is actually a good alternative energy supply that is better for the environment than fossil fuels. Environmental regulations like nuclear waste management must be made and further research on nuclear energy should be done to use nuclear energy to its optimum and replace fossil energy.



    • Examiner commentary on the reflective paper

    • Common mistakes candidates made in the reflective paper

      • Candidates sometimes only described what their team had done and did not identify strengths and weaknesses of their work together which would have led to an evaluation.
      • Some reflective papers asserted what the candidate knows or believes about the issue and did not engage with how their thinking has changed or developed. This means that they did not reflect on the impact of alternative perspectives.
      • Reflection needs to be on the effect of alternative perspectives on the issue. Some candidates reflected instead on their development of skills (of making presentations, for example, or doing research) which does not gain credit.