Edexcel A-Level Politics | Paper 2 | 2026 Predicted Paper | Question 5(a) Mark Scheme
Question 5 Mark Scheme: Feminism
Question 5 is a 24-mark Political Ideas essay, worth 8 marks each for AO1, AO2 and AO3. The command phrase “To what extent” requires students to identify areas of agreement and disagreement within feminism, compare them directly, and reach a sustained judgement about the degree of unity.
Pearson requires students to consider both sides and to use specific thinkers from the feminism section of the specification. If either is missing, the response cannot progress beyond Level 2. The prescribed feminist thinkers are Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Simone de Beauvoir, Kate Millett, Sheila Rowbotham and bell hooks.
Levels of response
Level | Marks | Characteristics |
Level 1 | 1–4 | Superficial knowledge, limited comparison and largely unsupported judgements. |
Level 2 | 5–9 | Some accurate knowledge and emerging comparison, but analysis and evaluation are only partly developed. |
Level 3 | 10–14 | Mostly accurate knowledge, focused comparison and generally effective evaluation, with some supported judgements. |
Level 4 | 15–19 | Accurate, carefully selected knowledge, consistent comparative analysis and mostly substantiated judgements. |
Level 5 | 20–24 | Thorough knowledge, perceptive and sustained comparison, consistently substantiated evaluation and a fully focused, justified conclusion. |
These are the current Edexcel levels for the feminism questions in Paper 2.
Question 5(a)
Question
To what extent do feminists agree that differences in the behaviour of men and women are principally shaped by society rather than sex?
This question is fundamentally about human nature and the sex/gender distinction. Strong responses should compare equality feminism with difference feminism, while also using the four main strands of feminism where relevant.
The Edexcel specification distinguishes sex, meaning biological differences, from gender, meaning roles ascribed by society. It also explicitly requires students to understand the division between equality feminism, which seeks equality between men and women, and difference feminism, which argues that men and women have fundamentally different natures.
Indicative content
Arguments supporting the view that behaviour is principally shaped by society
Most feminists distinguish sex from gender.
Sex refers to biological differences.
Gender refers to roles and expectations society assigns to men and women.
Many feminists therefore argue that characteristics traditionally described as “masculine” and “feminine” are socially produced rather than biologically inevitable.
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