Cambridge IGCSE Global Perspectives (0457): Topic: Education for all — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions use the topic Education for all from the Cambridge IGCSE Global Perspectives (0457) syllabus for examination in 2025, 2026 and 2027, Version 2 (published April 2025), sections 2 to 4. Questions 1–9 practise the source-based skills of Component 1 Written Exam; questions 10 and 11 practise planning for Component 2 Individual Report and Component 3 Team Project. Knowledge of the topic is not assessed, so answer from the sources. Every source, place, person and number is fictional.

Revise with the study guide and revision notes; see the hub and checklist.

Questions

1. A fictional school newsletter says: (i) “Our school opened a second library room this year.” (ii) “The new library room is the best thing that has happened to our school.” Identify which statement is a fact and which is an opinion. [2]

2. A company that sells revision books says: “Every pupil needs extra revision books to pass national exams.” Explain what is meant by a vested interest and identify the vested interest in this statement. [3]

3. Study Source A.

Source A – original text written for Marlbridge. Fictional data from the Ministry of Learning of the fictional country of Corvania. Primary completion rate: the percentage of children who finish primary school.

Region	2015	2025
Capital District	92%	95%
Coastal Province	74%	86%
Northern Highlands	58%	71%

The Ministry says: “These figures prove that education for all has nearly been achieved in Corvania.”

(a) Identify the region with the smallest rise. [1] (b) Calculate by how many percentage points the gap between Capital District and Northern Highlands narrowed between 2015 and 2025. Show your working. [2] (c) Explain two reasons why the data does not prove the Ministry’s claim. [4]

4. Study Source B.

Source B – original text written for Marlbridge. All people and places are fictional.

A parent, a farmer in a village in the Northern Highlands of Corvania: “My daughter finished primary school top of her class. The nearest secondary school is two hours’ walk away, and the bus costs more than we earn in a week at harvest. I want her to study, but I also need her help on the farm.”

Corvania’s Minister of Learning: “We have built more primary schools in the last ten years than in the thirty years before. Our next step is to make sure every primary school has trained teachers. We cannot build secondary schools everywhere at once.”

Report by Lanterns, a fictional education charity: “In the rural areas where we work, the move from primary to secondary school is when many children leave education. Distance and cost are the barriers families mention most often.”

(a) Identify the parent’s perspective on secondary schooling. [2] (b) Explain why the Minister and the parent have different perspectives on this issue. [4]

5. Study Source C.

Source C – original text written for Marlbridge. From the annual report of Open Road, a fictional charity in the fictional town of Esterby: “Last year we ran a free school bus for 120 girls from three villages to Esterby Secondary School. Attendance among these girls rose from 68% to 83% in one school year. In three other villages without a bus, attendance rose from 70% to 76% over the same year. The bus alone raised attendance by 15 points. We are asking the regional government to fund buses for every village.”

(a) Evaluate the evidence in Source C for the claim that “the bus alone raised attendance by 15 points”. [8] (b) Suggest how the claim that free school buses raise girls’ attendance could be tested more reliably. [6]

6. Study Source D.

Source D – original text written for Marlbridge. A letter to the Esterby Herald, a fictional newspaper: “Teaching every subject in English from the first year of school is the answer. Within five years our exam results will be the best in the region. Every parent I have spoken to wants it.”

Identify one prediction and one generalisation in Source D, and explain why each weakens the argument. [4]

7. Using Source B, explain two causes of children leaving education after primary school in the Northern Highlands, and one possible consequence. [6]

8. Study Source E.

Source E – original text written for Marlbridge. Both writers are fictional.

Argument 1, by a teachers’ union leader: “Secondary school should be free for every child. When families must pay, the poorest children leave first. Education is a human right and our country cannot develop without educated citizens. In my own school, three pupils left last term because of fees.”

Argument 2, by an economist: “Corvania should not make secondary school free yet. Ministry figures show almost three in ten children in the Northern Highlands do not finish primary school. Money spent on free secondary places would mostly help families in the Capital District, whose children already reach secondary school. Fixing primary schools first would help the children furthest behind.”

Evaluate the two arguments in Source E. Which argument is better supported? Give reasons for your judgement. [10]

9. Using all the sources, assess two actions the Corvanian government could take to help more children in the Northern Highlands continue to secondary school:

• Action 1: build new secondary schools in the Northern Highlands.
• Action 2: give free bus passes to all secondary pupils in the region.

Which action would be more effective? Explain your judgement with reasons and evidence from the sources. [12]

10. You are planning a Component 2 Individual Report on Education for all.

(a) Suggest a global research question on this topic that divides opinion. [2] (b) Identify one local or national perspective and one global perspective your report could include. [2] (c) Explain how you would judge whether the sources you find are reliable and credible. [4]

11. A team of four in the fictional town of Esterby finds that younger pupils at a nearby primary school have no quiet place to do homework after school.

(a) Identify the local issue and suggest one action the team could take. [2] (b) Explain how the team could measure the success of its action. [3] (c) Identify two aspects of collaboration listed in the syllabus and explain how one of them would help this team. [3]

Answers

1. Statement (i) is a fact, because it can be checked [1]. Statement (ii) is an opinion, because “best thing” is a personal judgement that cannot be proved [1]. [2] Examiner insight: Give the reason as well as the label; a bare “fact/opinion” may not show you understand the difference.

2. A vested interest is when a source would gain if people accept its view [1]. The company sells revision books [1], so it would make more sales if parents believe every pupil needs them [1]. [3] Examiner insight: Name exactly what the source gains; “it might be biased” earns nothing on its own.

3. (a) Capital District, which rose by only 3 percentage points [1]. (b) Gap in 2015: 92 − 58 = 34 points; gap in 2025: 95 − 71 = 24 points [1]. The gap narrowed by 10 percentage points [1]. (c) Completion measures only finishing primary school, not reaching secondary school or how well children learn [1], so a high rate can hide children who finish primary but cannot read well or never continue [1]. In the Northern Highlands, 29% of children still do not finish primary school [1], so “nearly achieved” ignores a large regional gap hidden by the best-performing region [1]. [7] Examiner insight: In (c), anchor each reason in a number or word from the source, such as the 71% figure or the word “prove”.

4. (a) She wants her daughter to continue studying [1], but distance, the cost of the bus and the family’s need for her work on the farm make secondary school very hard to reach [1]. (b) The Minister looks at the whole country with a limited budget [1], so prioritises trained teachers in primary schools, which reach the most children [1]. The parent sees the direct effect on one child [1], and the bus fare compared with family income makes secondary access her most urgent issue [1]. [6] Examiner insight: “Explain why” needs the reason behind each view (role, experience, responsibility), not just a restatement of the two views.

5. (a) Attendance with the bus rose 15 percentage points, from 68% to 83% [1], a clear rise in the group that had the bus [1]. But villages without a bus also rose, by 6 points [1], so something else was raising attendance that year [1]. At most about 9 points (15 − 6) may be linked to the bus, so “alone” is not supported [1]. One school year cannot show whether the effect lasts [1]. 120 girls from three villages may not represent other villages [1]. Open Road is asking for funding, a vested interest that may lead it to present results favourably [1]. [8] (b) Compare similar villages, some given a bus and some not, chosen fairly [1], so any difference is more likely caused by the bus [1]. Measure attendance over several years [1]. Use registers checked by someone independent of the charity [1]. Include more villages [1]. Ask girls and families why attendance changed [1]. [6] Examiner insight: Using the source’s own comparison figures (the villages without a bus) is worth more than a general comment about sample size.

6. Prediction: “Within five years our exam results will be the best in the region” [1]; it cannot be checked now and the writer gives no evidence for it [1]. Generalisation: “Every parent I have spoken to wants it” [1]; it is based on an unknown and probably small group of parents, stretched to support a policy for the whole country [1]. [4] Examiner insight: Quote the exact words; then explain the weakness, not just the label.

7. Distance: the secondary school is two hours’ walk away [1], so attending daily is very hard [1]. Cost and work: the bus costs more than a week’s harvest earnings and the family needs her on the farm [1], so studying costs the family money and help [1]. Consequence: a pupil “top of her class” may leave with only primary schooling [1], limiting her future choices of work or study [1]. [6] Examiner insight: Keep causes and the consequence clearly separate, and develop each with a “so” or “which means”.

8. In the real exam, extended answers are marked with levels of response, not point by point; each point marked below shows the kind of content that earns credit. Argument 1 gives a clear reason: fees push the poorest out first [1]. “Human right” is a value; persuasive, but it does not show free secondary school is the best use of money [1]. Its evidence is three pupils at one school [1], anecdotal and too small to generalise from [1]. A union leader may gain from more pupils and teaching jobs, a possible vested interest [1]. Argument 2 uses data consistent with Source A: 71% completion means almost three in ten do not finish primary [1]. It links the policy to who would benefit [1], but “mostly help” Capital District families is a prediction with no data given [1]. It compares two options, weighing priorities [1]. Judgement: Argument 2 is better supported because it uses data and compares alternatives, though both lack full evidence [1]. [10] Examiner insight: Judge the quality of each argument’s evidence and reasoning; agreeing with one side’s conclusion earns little.

9. In the real exam, extended answers are marked with levels of response, not point by point; each point marked below shows the kind of content that earns credit. Action 1 tackles the distance barrier in Source B, a two-hour walk [1]. Schools last many years, so it is sustainable [1]. But it is slow and costly; the Minister says schools cannot be built “everywhere at once” [1]. New schools need trained teachers, which are still lacking even in primary schools [1]. It does not remove the family’s need for the child’s farm work [1]. Action 2 tackles cost directly, since the bus costs more than a week’s harvest earnings [1]. Source C suggests attendance rose with a bus, though perhaps by about 9 points, not 15 [1]. It could start quickly [1]. But it costs money every year, so depends on the budget [1]. Existing secondary schools also need room for extra pupils [1]. Judgement: bus passes help more children sooner; new schools are the better long-term answer [1]. A reasoned conclusion: start bus passes now while building schools, noting that the bus evidence comes from a charity with a vested interest [1]. [12] Examiner insight: Support each judgement with a detail from a named source, and compare the actions directly.

10. (a) For example: “Should national governments, rather than charities, pay to get every child into school?” It is open to debate [1] and applies across many countries, so it is global [1]. (b) National: for example a ministry of education weighing the cost against other spending [1]. Global: for example an international organisation working towards Sustainable Development Goal 4 [1]. (c) Check the author’s expertise [1]. Check for a vested interest or purpose, such as fundraising [1]. Check how recent it is [1]. Check how data was collected, or whether independent sources agree [1]. [8] Examiner insight: A “What is…” question asks for description; start with “Should…” or “To what extent…”.

11. (a) Issue: younger pupils have nowhere quiet to do homework [1]. Action: a weekly supervised homework club in the school library, with the school’s permission [1]. (b) Record attendance at each session [1]. Ask pupils and teachers short questions before and after about homework completed [1]. Compare the results with the measure of success the team identified in its Explanation of Research and Planning [1]. (c) Any two from the syllabus list, such as agreeing targets and deadlines [1] and dividing tasks [1]. For example, agreed deadlines make sure permission letters and the room booking are ready before the first session [1]. [8] Examiner insight: Plan how to measure success at the start, or you have no baseline to compare with.

Where marks are usually lost

• Using outside knowledge instead of the sources.
• Labelling a statement without quoting it or explaining why.
• Mixing up percentage points and percentages.
• Missing a source’s comparison data, such as the villages without a bus.
• Calling a source biased without saying what it gains.
• Describing two actions separately instead of comparing them on cost, speed, reach and sustainability.
• Ending an extended answer without a clear judgement.
• Planning a Team Project action with no way to measure success.

Next steps

• More coursework planning: Individual Report practice and Team Project practice; more source work: Written Exam practice.
• Find your weak spots with a free diagnostic.
• Book a free trial class.

Official syllabus

Cambridge IGCSE Global Perspectives (0457) syllabus for examination in 2025, 2026 and 2027, Version 2 (published April 2025).