A-Level History NEA: Planning a Historical Investigation

The non-exam assessment (NEA), the historical investigation or coursework, is a compulsory part of A level History in England and counts for 20 per cent of the qualification at every board. It is marked by your school or college and moderated by the board. Unlike the examined papers, it rewards planning over many months, and the most common problems (a question that cannot be answered, a topic that breaks the board's rules, sources described rather than evaluated, historians summarised rather than weighed, and careless referencing) appear before a word of the final essay is written.

This material covers those decisions. It sets out the requirements that shape the choice of question, using the main boards as examples: AQA's Historical Investigation places the issue in a context of about 100 years, is about 3,500–4,500 words long (with a penalty above 4,500), and requires the evaluation of three primary sources of at least two types and of the differing interpretations of two academic historians; Pearson Edexcel's coursework centres on a historical debate and the evaluation of three historians' interpretations in 3,000–4,000 words; OCR's topic-based essay is also 3,000–4,000 words. Board rules are revised from time to time, so the material always tells you to check your own board's current specification and your centre's deadlines.

The quiz tests the requirements and the method: which question titles work and why, what counts as a primary source or an academic interpretation, what footnotes are for, what counts as plagiarism, and what a teacher may and may not do after reading a draft under the JCQ rules. The flashcards fix the requirements and the key terms. The written work sets eight planning tasks, such as turning a weak title into a strong one, planning the structure of the argument, evaluating a primary source for an investigation, handling two historians who disagree and writing a correct reference, each with a reference answer and key points. The oral exam plays the part of a supervisor who asks you to explain and justify your plan, one question at a time, with brief feedback at the end.

The material explains requirements and method; it does not supply topics to copy or finished text, since the investigation must be your own work.

• Explain the main requirements of the A level History non-exam assessment at your board
• Frame an analytical question that can be answered within the rules
• Select and evaluate primary sources for an investigation
• Use and evaluate the interpretations of academic historians
• Structure a sustained argument that integrates evaluation
• Reference sources honestly and follow the rules on feedback and plagiarism

Practice material written by Zestly, based on the non-exam assessment requirements of the A level History specifications (for example AQA 7042 Component 3, Pearson Edexcel 9HI0 coursework and OCR Y100, versions current in September 2026) and the JCQ instructions for non-examination assessments.