Early Cold War Topics

1. To what extent were the domestic policies of Eisenhower and Truman affected by a backlash against the New Deal and FDR?

2. The 1950’s have been coined the “Age of Consensus.” To what extent did the domestic policies of Truman and Eisenhower encourage this development?

3. Assess the successes and failures of the domestic policies of either the Eisenhower or Truman Administrations.

4. Assess the part played by differing ideologies in the origin of the Cold War?

5. In what way and with what results was Germany the key focus of the early stages of the Cold War?

6. Define and analyze the importance of the following: Marshall Plan, Berlin Airlift, NATO,

7. For what reasons, and with what results, were there disagreements between participants at the conferences of Yalta and Potsdam?

8. “An unnatural alliance that was bound to fall apart after the defeat of a common enemy.” To what extent does this statement explain the origin of the Cold War?

9. To what extent did the United States antagonize the Soviet Union at the beginning of the Cold War?

10. Compare and contrast the policies of the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R. towards Korea between 1945 and 1955.

11. To what extent was the Korean War a limited war?

12. Who was responsible for starting the Korean War?

Here are a couple of articles that are really helpful in handling the historiography of the Cold War. I would review them, if I were you.

http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/korea/roberts.html

http://www.anzasa.arts.usyd.edu.au/ahas/cworigins_historiography.html

Yalta Potsdam overview

http://www.johndclare.net/cold_war4.htm

I shall return

The reports of my demise are greatly exaggerated. As such, we will continue forward as planned. The test will be Tuesday. The IA rough drafts are due by Tuesday. Be prepared to turn in a reading packet on Tuesday. If you have questions, I will continue to answer them here. I am assuming I will be back next Monday when we will start the Cold War and set up times to discuss the IA's. I hope you have a glorious Thanksgiving.

Another Opportunity for Dean to get 5 points of e.c.

I thought this one was interesting considering what we are studying. Do you think it is practical and appropriate for this individual to face prosecution? If so, should anyone, regardless of which side they fought on, be charged with war crimes if they killed civilians?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091117/ap_on_re_eu/eu_germany_nazi_investigation

World War II

1. Assess the social and economic causes of WWII.
2. Compare and contrast the causes of WWI and WWII?
3. Assess the long term and short term causes of WWII?
4. Why did the United States become involved in WWII?
5. Compare and Contrast naval warfare in WWI and WWII.
6. Evaluate the effectiveness of air power in WWII.
7. To what extent was WWII a total war
8. To what extent did technological developments ensure victory in WWII?
9. Assess the level of mobilization of one homefront during WWII.
10. Assess how one group of American minorities was affected by WWII
11. Assess the social and economic effects of WWII on one nation?
12. Assess the impact of WWII on the economy of the United States.
13. How did WWII effect women in the United States?
14. How did Soviet and Western visions of "the Peace" differ?
15. Analyze the results of WWII
16. What were the short term and long term results of WWII.

Racial Issues

I found an article that I thought was interesting in light of our discussion with Dr. Loewen. Any thoughts?

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,567120,00.html?test=latestnews

Edit-Fine, let's do this the I.B. way. Five E.C. points for the most insightful comment. I'd offer food, but for many of you, points are more interesting. :-)

Hitler

This unit isn't quite as complex as the Stalin and Mao units, because I really would prefer you to use the two of them for any comparison on the IB test. However, it is possible that you will stumble into a question that makes sense to use Hitler. Additionally, knowledge of Hitler will help you with the WWII questions.


1. Describe the conditions in Germany that led to the rise of the Nazi Party.
2. To what extent did the post-WWI conditions allow Hiter to rise to power as opposed to his own personal skills and ideology.
3. Why was Hitler so gosh darn angry?
4. Describe the propaganda techniques of Adolf
5. To what extent was Hitler able to create total control over Germany.
6. To what extent was Hitler able to eliminate opposition within Germany?
7. To what extent was the domestic policy of Hitler successful?

Mao and Single Party States

I am posting the outline of single party states that is issued by IBO. I have also added some possible questions below the outline. The questions you will be asked on the test will come from the following bullet points. Always be prepared to compare Mao and Stalin on EVERY question.



Origins-
- Conditions that produced authoritarian and single-party states
- Emergence of leaders: aims, ideology, support
- Totalitarianism: the aim and the extent to which it was achieved

Establishment-
- Methods: force, legal
- Form of government, (left-and right-wing) ideology
- Nature, extent and treatment of opposition

Domestic Policy-
- Structure and organization of government and administration
- Political, economic, social and religious policies
- Role of education, the arts, the media, propaganda
-Status of women, treatment of religious groups and minorities

1. To what extent did Stalin and Mao follow their stated ideologies?
2. In what ways did Stalin and Mao use and misuse education and arts?
3. Compare and Contrast Stalin and Mao's use of media and propaganda.
4. Compare and Contrast the domestic policies of Mao and Stalin.
5. Analyze the methods used and conditions which helped in the rise to power of Stalin and Mao.
6. Evaluate the successes and failures of Stalin and Mao.
7. Compare and contrast the status of women during Stalin's and Mao's reign.
8. Compare and contrast the methods used to maintain the regimes of Mao and Stalin.
9. How did Mao and Stalin gain power?
10. How did Mao's ideology differ from Stalin's ideology?
11. To what extent did China and the Soviet Union become totalitarian nations?
12. To what extent and by what methods were Mao and Stalin able to eliminate opposition?

What adventures did you have this summer?

It has been a wonderful summer for the O'Donnell family. We spent a week in Washington D.C. and then a week in Colonial Williamsburg. The area around Williamsburg was a brand new experience for me. On the 4th of July, we listened as the Declaration of Independence was read from the veranda at the old Virginia Statehouse. However, my favorite moment was going to the archeological dig at Jamestown. Standing above the archeological team as they began to unearth the remains of a 16th century kitchen was amazing. All in all, it was a wonderful trip. So that was the big adventure of my summer, what did you do during summer vacation?

IA topics

Hope you are having a wonderful summer. If you have any questions or concerns about the IA's, please feel free to post here. I check the blog fairly regularly and will try to get back to you as soon as possible. Just in case you forget what your topic was, I have placed the entire list on docushare.

Stalin and The Soviet Union

1. What led to the rise of the communists in Russia?
2. What led to the rise of Joseph Stalin?
3. To what extent did Stalin maintain or deviate from the Marxist and Leninist ideology?
4. Describe the political/economic/social policies of Joseph Stalin.
5. To what extent was Stalin a totalitarian leader?
6. What methods were used by Stalin and the communist party to maintain control?
7. Describe the nature and extent of Stalin’s attempts to limit opposition.
8. How did Stalin utilize social institutions (education, arts, theatre, media, propaganda) to maintain control?
9. How did Stalin’s regime affect he lives of women, religious groups, and ethnic minorities?

Here are some websites that might be useful for you during the Stalin unit. They are not a substitute for notes, but rather an addition.

http://www.saskschools.ca/curr_content/history20/#UNIT2

http://revision-notes.co.uk/IB/History/Russia/index.html

Great Depression Questions

1. What were the political and economic causes of the Great Depression?
2. To what extent was Wall Street’s crash responsible for the Great Depression?
3. How effective was Hoover at battling the Great Depression?
4. How effective was the New Deal at combating the problems of the Great Depression?
5. What was the political impact of the Great Depression?
6. Describe the criticisms of the New Deal.
7. Compare and contrast the Great Depression in Canada and the United States?
8. How did the Great Depression affect various groups of Americans?
9. How was popular culture affected by the Great Depression?

Great War Essay Questions

1. What were the long-term and short-term causes of WWI?
2. To what extent was Germany (could be any nation) responsible for the outbreak of the Great War?
3. To what extent was WWI a “total war?”
4. How did new developments in weaponry affect the conduct of WWI?
5. What was the social and economic impact of WWI?
6. Compare and Contrast two nation's mobilization of their respective homefront (economy, propaganda, gender roles, stifling dissent, and raising an army).
7. To what extent did the Paris Peace conference address the causes of WWI?
8. Why did the League of Nations fail?
9. To what extent was Wilson responsible for the failure of the U.S. Congress to ratify the Versailles treaty?
10. What were the short-term and long-term results of WWI?
11. Why did a "fair peace" fail to emerge from the Paris Peace Conference?

ALL HAIL HENRY KISSINGER

Hi,

Sorry I was absent today, but Scott has managed to catch my cold. Don't worry, we are now pumping antibiotics into the water at our house. As for our fine Kissinger packet, I spent part of the morning going through it and creating questions for our Friday seminar. I have listed the questions and the student who is assigned to it. Although you are expected to understand and be able to contribute to all of the questions, you will lead the conversation and be an expert on a single topic. If you need anything clarified, feel free to post. Let the fun with Henry begin...


TOPICS:

1. After the death of Bismarck, how did German behavior exacerbate tensions in Europe? Please examine Wilhelm’s leadership style. Kassie, Joey, Shawn, Jon

2. In what ways was an archaic Russian political/diplomatic system partially to blame for exacerbating tensions in Europe? Seth, Lisa, Matt, Ashley

3. Explain the events and policies that led to a Russian switch from a German ally to a French one. Julie, Jamie, Mariah, Logan

4. Explain how Germany mishandled Great Britain’s diplomatic priorities and France didn’t. Dean, Severn, Drew, Hannah

5. Once the triple entente was formed, how did Germany mishandle European crisis. CeCe, MacKenzie, Leif, Andy

6. in what ways and for what reasons did Germany play “chicken” in Bosnia and Morocco (1911)? Why does Kissinger believer that this approach was a mistake? Brett, Devon, Odin

7. What is the Crowe memorandum and what is its significance? McKenzie, Brigitte

TOPICS CHAPTER 8: Into the Vortex

1. How does the issue of mobilization change the principles guiding casus belli? Casey, Sarah, Emily, Linzi

2. Why does Russia need "total war" rather than a localized conflict? Tess, Susannah,Maxine, Mel

3. How does the Schlieffen plan jettison the strategic concepts of Moltke? Rachel, Kyle, James, Hunter

4. Why does Durnovo suggest Russia must avoid war? Kelsie, Meghan, Katherine, Kathleen

5. How did Germany mismanage the conflict immediately prior to the war? Tyler, Brandon,Brittney, Hanna

6. How did British vacillation contribute to the conflict? Lamb, Haley, Jenny, Natalie

7. Compare Kissinger's approach with Fay. Merideth, Ben, Connor, Elizabeth

Chapter 9: The New face of Diplomacy

Why couldn’t a compromise peace be reached earlier in the war?-Brittney, Jennifer, Logan, Angela,

Why does Kissinger argue that all of the major powers were losers as a result of the war? Emily, Alanna, Caleb, Jerrette,

How does the League of Nations differ from the traditional European approach and specifically the British approach to foreign policy? Taylor, Brigitte, Trevor,

According to Kissinger, what were the flaws in Wilson’s League of Nations plan? Jessica, Kelsey, Cristine, Elizabeth

What challenges did France face after WWI in regards to Germany? Beth, Dallas, Trever, Meghan,

How does France try to address these issues at the Treaty of Paris? Abigail, Janessa, Trever, Ilene

What difficulties were faced in implementing the U.S. vision at the Paris Peace Conference? How was its organization one of the chief flaws? Mary Kate, Mariah, Drew, Karissa

To what extent were Wilson’s 14 points systematically undermined and eliminated at the Paris Peace Conference. Breanna, Ben, Caitlin Jaimie

Essay Questions for Emergence of the Americas in global affairs 1880-1929

What were the political, economic, social, and ideological reasons for the U.S. entering global affairs? Which one of the four was the most significant?

What caused the Spanish American War?

What was the effect of the Spanish American War?

Describe how Big Stick Diplomacy, Dollar Diplomacy, and Moral Diplomacy were applied and effected the Western Hemisphere.

2009 Speech and Debate Champions

Congratulations to the FHS speech and debate team. Coach Lougheed just called to let me know that Flathead won the state tournament in Billings. Just as it has been every tournament this year, it was extremely competitive with Flathead edging Bozeman by 1 1/2 points. We are all very proud of the coaches and students who have given so much to the school and the speech and debate program. Savor this moment. You deserve it.

QUESTIONS FOR THE CIVIL RIGHTS ERA

In what ways and for what reasons did the Civil Rights movement become more radical?

Evaluate the impact that the Black Panthers/Black Power movement had on the Civil Rights movement.

In what ways did the Civil Rights movement make progress between 1950 and 1965?

In what ways was MLK a critical factor in the success of the Civil Rights movement?

To what extent did the Civil Rights movement succeed by 1968?

Describe the tactics used by various advocacy groups within the Civil Rights movement such as the NAACP, CORE, SNCC, SCLC, Black Panthers, and the Nation of Islam.

To what extent was the Warren Court the critical factor in the success of Civil Rights movement?

Describe Southern resistance to the Civil Rights movement.

SPEECH AND DEBATE/ORCHESTRA STUDENTS-Please read

We have had some adjustments to the schedule. You will want to check out the calendar for a more complete overview. However, I have assigned a one-page summary of the MLK's Letter from a Birmingham Jail that will be due on Monday. The letter is posted on docushare. Your Pageant worksheet, which is also posted, is not due until Thursday.

For those of who are also in orchestra, on Monday we will be taking the Alabama Literacy test. Please drop by my room to pick one up when you have a chance or you can download it from docushare. You will also need to pick up the MLK/Malcolm X speech packet which is due on Tuesday.

Have a great day.

Reconstruction/Jim Crow questions

Here are some questions to consider from the Reconstruction/Jim Crow era.

1) Compare and contrast Presidential and Congressional Reconstruction. Be sure to address goals, practices, and results.

2) Describe the treatment of African Americans during the Jim Crow era.

3) How did the South attempt to resist Reconstruction?

4) Why do some historians view Andrew Johnson as the wrong President at the wrong time?

5) Why were the Radical Republicans unable to accomplish their goals in the South?

6) Compare and Contrast the philosophies of Washington and DuBois.