DBQ Writing Tips

Document Based Questions
Document Based Questions, more commonly referred to as DBQs, are nearly impossible to fail, provided you
follow these few easy tips.
1. Address the task.
2. Label the documents according to the task.
3. Organize your thoughts.
4. Be sure essay completes the task, not summarized the documents.
5. Know how you are being graded.
Tip #1
Answer the questions to each and every document. Never leave one blank.
From the January 2008 Global Regents Exam:
Topic: Government Systems
Document 2
Sample Document
. . . Peter’s military reform would have remained an isolated incident in Russian military history had it not left a
distinct and deep impression on the social and intellectual composition of all Russian society, and even
influenced future political developments. The military reform itself made necessary other innovations, first to
maintain the reorganised and expensive military forces, and then to ensure their permanency. The new
recruiting methods, by spreading military obligations to classes hitherto [up to this time] exempt, and thus
affecting all social classes, gave the new army a more varied composition, and completely altered existing
social relationships. From the time that noblemens’ serfs and servants joined the new army as ordinary recruits
instead of only as menials or valets [servants], the position of the nobility, which had been preponderant
[dominant] in the old army, was completely changed...
- Source: Vasili Klyuchevsky, translated by Liliana Archibald, Peter the Great, St. Martin’s Press
2a. According to Vasili Klyuchevsky, what was one way Peter the Great attempted to control the Russian
people? [1]
Peter the Great created new recruiting methods for the military, which now required men who used to be
exempt to serve in the military.
2b. According to Vasili Klyuchevsky, what was one effect Peter the Great’s reform had on the Russian nobles?
[1]
This reform impacted the nobles by required them to work alongside peasants instead of being served by them.
Take your time and be sure you are answering the question that is being asked.
Each document question is assigned a point value. Your grade will improve with each
correct document answer.

Tip #2
Label the documents according to the task. You can usually find the topics the DBQ is about in the historical
context.
DBQ historical context and task from the January 2008 Regents.
Historical Context:
Throughout history, governments have sometimes attempted to control the thoughts and actions of their people.
Three such governments include Russia under the rule of Peter the Great, Germany under the rule of Adolf
Hitler, and China under the rule of Mao Zedong. The efforts of these governments greatly affected their societies.
Task:
Choose two governments mentioned in the historical context and for each:
• Describe the efforts of the government to control the thoughts and/or actions of its people
• Discuss an impact of this government’s efforts on its society
You are limited to the options in the historical context. There is no reason to worry if you don’t know what any
of them are. There are a series of documents that will help to trigger your memory.
A sample thesis for this task is:
Both of these bodies attempted to control their people and significantly impacted their society.
Label each document according to the historical context.
The label for the sample document would be Peter the Great.
This will help you choose which option(s) you will be doing and will help you connect
them to the task.
Tip #3
How you organize your information is almost as important as the information itself.
The most important thing to remember is that this essay IS NOT A SUMMARY OF THE
DOCUMENTS. You have a task to complete and you must do so using both the documents and outside
information.
Outside information is facts, examples, and/or terms that are about the topic and/or task but are not in
the documents.
Analysis is another important part to the completion of the essay. You must make connections between
your facts and the task and also make connections between your facts themselves. Avoid a “shopping
list” of facts.
o For example, I need oatmeal, butter, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and raisins. What are these?
Ingredients. Why do I need them? To make oatmeal raisin cookies. Nowhere in that list does it
say cookies but you look at the ingredients and made a connection between them. That’s
analysis.
There is no one correct way to organize your information, but it must be logical and clear. This
is a great place to practice all those English techniques you have learned!

The following is a suggestion on how to organize your essay:
Part of Essay Suggested Format Applied to this Task
1. Lead Sentence There have been a variety of governments since the beginning of
2. Definition of civilization. A government is in charge of keeping order within
Introduction Topic
society. Two examples of these political bodies are Russia under
3. Main Points Peter the Great and Germany under Adolf Hitler. Both of these
4. Thesis bodies of government attempted to control their people and
Statement significantly impacted their society.
Body
Paragraphs
Conclusion
1. Topic Sentence
2. Document #
- Explanation of
document
relevant to the
main point
- Outside
information
relevant to the
main point &
document
(the more of this
you have the
better)
3. Document # (if two
documents are
relevant to the same
main point)
- Explanation of
document
relevant to the
main point
- Outside
information
relevant to the
main point &
document
4. Concluding Sentence
1. Restate Thesis
2. Summarize
Main Points
3. Final Thought
Peter the Great made some interesting changes to Russia’s
government. Russia was constantly playing ‘catch-up’ to Western
Europe since they were dominated by the Mongols until the 16 th
century. While Western Europe was going through their
Renaissance, Russia was just gaining their independence. Peter,
who came to power in the late 17 th century, was desperate to
westernize his country. After spending time in Western Europe both
working on the docks and dining with royals, Peter used his
absolute power to institute several reforms that impacted society
and military. According to Document 1a, Peter created a beard tax
in which men would have to pay a tax in order to keep their beards.
Since the largest part of Russia population was peasant, most
Russians could not afford to keep their beards and had to shave
them. This was extremely difficult for the population to accept as
their beards were tied to their Orthodox religion, culture, and
geography; however, one cannot disobey the orders of an absolute
monarch. Peter also made changes to the military. He mandated all
social classes to participate in the military. (Doc 2) This was the
first time serfs entered the armed forces as soldiers and not servants
to the nobles who served in the army. Although serfdom will
remain prevalent in Russia up until Alexander II emancipated them
in 1861, this created a brand new dynamic between rich and poor in
the Russian military. One would have to conclude that filtered
down through the rest of society as well. Peter is referred to as Peter
the Great due to his westernization reforms in Russia and therefore
greatly impacted Russia.
The purpose of government is to provide social order; however,
some rulers use their political power to control the minds and
actions of their people, which greatly impacts the society. Peter the
Great of Russia and Adolf Hitler of Germany are two examples of
rulers who did just that. One can only speculate the course history
would have taken without these two men.
Obviously you would need a second body paragraph on Germany under Adolf for this sample essay but
you get the idea on how to organize your thoughts, use the documents, and address the task.
You can also clearly see that there is a balance between outside info and info used from the documents.
Remember, this essay is not a summary of the documents. You must use the documents to complete the
task in order to pass this essay.

Tip #4
Know how you will be graded.
The following is the rubric that we must use on the NYS Regents Exams for both Global and US History.
Document Based Question Scoring Rubric
Score of a 5:
Shows a thorough understanding of the theme or problem
Thoroughly develops all aspects of the task evenly and in depth
Is more analytical than descriptive
Incorporates relevant information from a majority of the documents
Incorporates substantial relevant outside information
Richly supports essay with relevant facts, examples and details
Demonstrates a logical and clear plan of organization; includes an introduction and a conclusion that are beyond a
restatement of the theme
Score of a 4:
Develops all aspects of the task but may do so somewhat unevenly
Is both descriptive and analytical
Incorporates relevant information from a majority of the documents
Incorporates relevant outside information
Supports the theme with relevant facts, examples and details
Demonstrates a logical and clear plan of organization; includes an introduction and a conclusion that are beyond a
restatement of the theme
Score of a 3:
Develops all aspects of the task but with little depth or develops most aspects of the task in some depth
Is more descriptive than analytical
Incorporates some relevant information from some of the documents
Incorporates limited relevant outside information
Includes some relevant facts, examples, and details; may include some minor inaccuracies
Demonstrates a satisfactory and clear plan of organization; includes an introduction and a conclusion that may be a
restatement of the theme
Score of a 2:
Minimally develops all aspects of the task or develops some aspects of the task in some depth
Is primarily descriptive; may include faulty, weak or isolated application or analysis
Incorporates little relevant information from the documents or consists of primarily relevant information copied from the
documents
Presents limited relevant outside information
Includes few relevant facts, examples, and details; may include some inaccuracies
Demonstrates a general plan of organization; may lack focus; may contain digressions; may not clearly identify which aspect
of the task is being addressed; may lack an introduction and/ or conclusion
Score of a 1:
Minimally develops some aspects of the task
Is descriptive; may lack understanding, application or analysis
Makes vague, unclear references to the documents or consists primarily of relevant and irrelevant information copied from
the documents
Presents no relevant outside information
Includes few relevant facts, examples, or details; may include inaccuracies
May demonstrate a weakness in organization; may lack focus; may contain digressions; may not clearly identify which aspect
of the task is being addressed; may lack introduction and/ or a conclusion
Please note that in order to earn a Regents 4 or 5 you must use analysis – the how, why, so what.
Always use specific details and key terms as often as possible. You had to learn those vocab words for a reason.
If you are stuck, ask for help. We can’t tell you answers but we can help you relax and unblock your brain. The
worst thing you could do is not write an essay.