Edexcel A-Level Politics | Paper 2 | 2026 Predicted Paper | Question 6(b) Mark Scheme
Question 6 Mark Scheme: Multiculturalism
Question 6 is a 24-mark Political Ideas essay, worth 8 marks each for AO1, AO2 and AO3. “To what extent” requires students to compare areas of agreement and disagreement within multiculturalism and reach a supported judgement about the degree of unity or division.
For both questions, students should compare liberal, pluralist and cosmopolitan multiculturalism and use the prescribed thinkers, Isaiah Berlin, Charles Taylor, Bhikhu Parekh, Tariq Modood and Will Kymlicka, to deepen those comparisons. The specification centres multiculturalism on balancing cultural and religious diversity with civic unity, including recognition, culture and identity, minority rights, diversity and different forms of integration.
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 some comparison, but analysis and evaluation are uneven or 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 and 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. |
Question 6(b)
Question
To what extent do multiculturalists disagree about how minority groups should be integrated into wider society?
This question is specifically about integration. Students should distinguish integration from assimilation and segregation, and compare the different models identified by Edexcel: individualist integration, multicultural integration and cosmopolitan integration.
Pearson's 2024 examiner report is especially useful here because an actual Question 6(b) focused on integration. Examiners said stronger responses accurately defined the different forms of integration and organised their essays around themes such as integration, assimilation and balancing diversity with unity.
Indicative content
Arguments suggesting considerable disagreement
Liberal multiculturalists place considerable importance on individual integration.
Liberal multiculturalism supports diversity while retaining tolerance, individual autonomy and civic unity in the public sphere.
Individualist integration treats minority members principally as individual claimants and equal citizens.
Cultural accommodation should therefore remain compatible with individual rights.
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