Outside information are details a student learns from a lesson in class or prior knowledge on the topic. Information from the docs, cannot be used as outside information. Also, common or basic information should not be used for outside info. For example, to say the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack, could technically be info from a lesson. However, outside info is intended on being more specific examples, quotes, stats, and facts. So, to share that "the Japanese has small submarines in the harbor waiting for the first wave of planes to hit", is a detailed example of how it was a surprise attack.
Step 2 of the DBQ essay writing process is to make a list of outside information. In some cases this could include prior knowledge (for those who have studies or learned about the subject in the past). However, a good starting point is to review your notes and memory from the lesson on that topic in class. The more specific quotes, stats, facts and example you build into this list the more option you will have when you start writing.
A great example of adding outside info to an essay is to write as if the reader knows nothing about the topic. So, if you mention Martin Luther in an essay on the printing press, go into detail on what the Protestant Reformation was specifically. List church abuses that drove people to protest. Talk about the selling of indulgences and Martin Luther nailing the 95 Theses on the church door. All of this info is from the lesson in class. This practice can further demonstrate to the teacher that you know the material, make your essay more in depth, and help you to reach the required 50/50 split between outside info and info from the Docs.
The primary objective for most essays, including DBQ's, is to prove to the reader that your opinion/thesis is true. This must be done with a balance between outside information and the information from the documents. Many students make the mistake of writing as essay solely based on the info from the docs because they either do not know they need outside info, or they go the easy route of repeating facts from the docs thinking that is good enough. However, copying info from a document is not a skill teachers are trying to assess. Writers should strive for a 50/50 balance between docs and outside info.
Failing to use outside info is one of the biggest mistakes students make when writing DBQ essays. In reality, it is an easy step that does not take that much time and only makes your essay and argument better. Please come speak with your teacher if you have questions or would like to go through this process together.
