Choosing a theme and a question
A theme is a big topic you care about: climate and disasters, an ageing society, inequality, conflict and peace, migration, or technology. Pick one that links the past to today.
Then make a question. A good question is clear, small enough to answer, and cannot be answered by yes or no.
- Weak: "Is climate bad?"
- Better: "How did burning coal and oil since 1850 lead to warmer weather today?"
Tip: start with why, how or what changed.
Research with sources
A source is anything that gives evidence about the past or present.
- Primary source: made at the time. Examples: letters, photos, laws, maps, census numbers, news reports of that day.
- Secondary source: made later by someone studying the time. Examples: textbooks, articles, documentaries.
Check every source with four questions: Who made it? When? Why (to inform, sell or persuade)? Do other sources agree? Use at least two different kinds of sources, and write down where each came from.
Numbers need care too: look at the unit, the year and who counted. A chart with a cut axis can mislead.
Tracing causes from the past
Most present issues have roots in earlier events. Draw a cause chain: old cause, then an event, then the issue today. Example: coal-powered factories (cause), growth of cities and trade (event), more carbon dioxide and a warming world (issue today).
Be careful: events happening one after the other do not always mean one caused the other. Look for evidence of a link, and say how sure you are.
Proposing a sustainable future
Sustainable means meeting the needs of people today without taking away the chances of people tomorrow. Think of a three-legged stool: people (health, fairness, education), economy (jobs, trade, saving) and nature (air, water, soil, species). If any leg is short, the stool tilts.
A good proposal has: the issue, the cause chain, one or two clear actions, who does what (you, school, government, companies), and how you will know it worked. Mention costs and trade-offs honestly.
Examples of actions: saving energy at home, planting trees, fair-trade buying, community care for older people, using the UN Sustainable Development Goals as a checklist.
Try it: your own mini-inquiry
Pick one issue in your town (for example, water or rubbish). Write one question. Find two sources, one primary (a photo or a number you collect yourself) and one secondary (a news article). Write who made each and why. Draw a three-link cause chain. Finally, propose one action for each stool leg.
Key formulas and definitions
- Steps: Theme, Question, Sources, Causes, Proposal
- Primary source = made at the time; secondary source = made later
- Check a source: who, when, why, do others agree?
- Cause chain: old cause, event, issue today
- Sustainable stool: people + economy + nature must all be strong
Worked examples
1. Is a school diary written in 1960 a primary or a secondary source for life in 1960?
Primary. It was made at the time by someone living then.
2. A company's advertisement says its product is the greenest. How do you check it?
Ask who made it (the company), why (to sell), and look for a second independent source such as a test report. The advert alone is weak evidence.
3. Make a cause chain for traffic jams in a city.
Old cause: many people move to the city. Event: more cars and few buses. Issue today: long jams and dirty air. Action idea: better public transport.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a theme that is too big, like "the world". Make it a small clear question.
- Using only one source, or only sources that agree with you.
- Treating a secondary source as primary, or believing an advert without checking.
- Ending with only a wish. A proposal needs actions, who does them and a way to check.