The 3-step active recall method

Re-reading notes is a futile process when your aim is to remember the information and successfully apply it in exam settings. Active recall is the method you use to ensure the information sticks for a long period of time.

But even active recall can be futile unless you have a structured way of implementing it. This is where the 3-step active recall method comes in, a structured method that is signature to the Levo Learning guides.

1. Step 1

   Answer up to 10 questions cold, closed book, even if you are unsure on the topic.

2. Step 2

   Answer the same questions again, but open book. Write the correct answer down even if it seems pointless.

3. Step 3

   Repeat as step 1 and answer the questions closed book again.

Worked across the WJEC A-Level Economics specification, one subtopic at a time.

The subject, and what is assessed

WJEC A-Level Economics is assessed by four units, two at AS and two at A2. AS Unit 1 lasts 1 hour 15 minutes and AS Unit 2 lasts 2 hours, each worth 20% of the A-Level.

A2 Unit 3 lasts 2 hours and A2 Unit 4 lasts 2 hours 30 minutes, each worth 30%. A2 Unit 4 covers all A-Level content and sets one essay in each of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and trade and development.

Memorisation, then application

Marks are given for applying content to the question that has been set, which cannot happen while the content is still being looked up. Step 1 shows what is actually held.

Step 2 puts the correct wording in front of you while the gap is still fresh. Step 3 repeats the cold test, and the difference between the first and third attempt is the part that has moved.

Every question in the guide is paired with its answer in the same document, so step 2 is done from the guide itself rather than from a separate set of notes.

What is inside the guide

Questions are grouped by topic and then by subtopic, following the WJEC specification. Open a topic to see its subtopics.

Sample questions

Taken from the WJEC A-Level Economics guide. Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.

1. Scarcity and Choice

   Why does choice arise in economics?

   Show the answer

   Choice arises because scarcity forces economic agents to decide between alternative uses of limited resources.

2. Demand and Supply in Product Markets

   What is the primary objective that consumers are assumed to pursue in economic theory?

   Show the answer

   Consumers are assumed to seek to maximise satisfaction or utility.

3. Demand and Supply in Labour Markets

   What does it mean to say that the demand for labour is a derived demand?

   Show the answer

   It means the demand for labour depends on the demand for the goods or services that labour produces, rather than being demanded for its own sake.

4. Resource Allocation

   What does profit signal to firms in a free market economy?

   Show the answer

   Profit signals where consumer demand is high relative to supply, indicating which industries are most valued by consumers.

5. Market Failure

   In the context of market failure, what does efficiency refer to?

   Show the answer

   Efficiency refers to the maximisation of the sum of consumer surplus and producer surplus.

6. Macroeconomic Theory (AS)

   What does the circular flow of income model illustrate about an economy?

   Show the answer

   It shows the continuous movement of money, goods, and services between households and firms in an economy.

7. Government Policy Objectives

   What does economic growth mean in the technical sense used by economists?

   Show the answer

   A lasting expansion in what the economy is able to produce, its productive potential, as distinct from a short-run rise in measured output.

8. Policy Instruments (AS)

   Why do economists usually regard capital expenditure more favourably than current expenditure?

   Show the answer

   Capital expenditure raises the economy's productive capacity and can generate future output and tax revenue that help service the borrowing used to fund it, whereas current spending is consumed immediately.

Questions about this guide

Other WJEC A-Level guides

All WJEC A-Level guides · All A-Level guides