Discuss the view that the production of iron and steel was the most important factor in the industrialization of two countries.

The question requires that candidates offer a considered and balanced review of the role of the production of iron and steel in the industrialization of two countries. The two countries may or may not be from the same region and their processes of industrialization may or may not have been contemporaneous with each other. Candidates may offer equal coverage of the importance of iron and steel, or they may emphasize their evaluation of one; however, both aspects will be a feature of the response. A comparative approach may or may not be used. Candidates may refer to how improvements in iron production allowed countries, such as the United Kingdom, to make better use of their resources and satisfy their own market. Developments in iron and steel also led to mass production, and the development of railway systems and steamships. While other relevant factors, for example transportation, power, mass production or communication, may be referred to, the bulk of the response will remain on the issue raised in the question.

The question required candidates to offer a considered and balanced review of the role of the production of iron and steel in the industrialization of two countries. Several responses were seen to this question, but most were limited to general assertions that indicated some ways in which iron and steel were used in the production of railways, ships and so on. There was little attention paid to the demands of the question that asked candidates to consider the process of industrialization in two countries.