To successfully write a DBQ short answer response, one must carefully read or examine the historical context from Part A, the document, and the question or questions associated with it.

The answer to these questions can often be located directly within the document. Other times, one must refer back to specific information given in the historical context of the DBQ.

It should be noted that the documents upon which short answer questions are based can be textual (e.g., speech, law, etc.) or visual (e.g., political cartoon, map, etc.).

View the examples of documents and short answer questions:
Indirect DBQ Short Answer Question
Direct DBQ Short Answer Question

The average... Japanese consumes 10 times as much of the world’s resources as the average Bangledeshi. Japan and Bangladesh have the same [number of people] but [these people] have a vastly different effect on their ecosystems [environments].