Secondary 4 History Preliminary Examination Paper 3

Answer Key & Marking Scheme - Prelim Version 3

Section A: Structured Response

Question 1: German Grievances (Treaty of Versailles)

• Mark Allocation: 8 Marks
• Response Framework:
  • L1 (1-3m): Basic listing of clauses (e.g., reparations, loss of land).
  • L2 (4-6m): Explaining the impact of clauses (e.g., reparations led to economic hardship).
  • L3 (7-8m): Comprehensive explanation linking clauses to the feeling of humiliation and injustice.
• Expected Points:
  • War Guilt Clause (Art 231): Forced Germany to accept sole responsibility; seen as a moral insult.
  • Reparations: £6.6 billion was an impossible sum, designed to keep Germany weak.
  • Territorial Loss: Loss of Alsace-Lorraine and the Polish Corridor split the country and removed resources.
  • Military Restrictions: Army limited to 100,000 men; no air force; seen as leaving Germany defenseless.

Question 2: Japan's Aggression

• Mark Allocation: 8 Marks
• Response Framework:
  • L1 (1-3m): Simple mention of resources or the Great Depression.
  • L2 (4-6m): Explaining the link between economic crisis and the need for expansion.
  • L3 (7-8m): Detailed causal link showing how economic desperation fueled militarist ideology.
• Expected Points:
  • Great Depression: Collapse of trade led to unemployment and social unrest.
  • Resource Scarcity: Japan lacked oil, rubber, and iron; Manchuria offered a solution for self-sufficiency.
  • Militarist Solution: Military leaders argued that territorial conquest was the only way to save the economy.

Question 3: Stalin's Rise to Power

• Mark Allocation: 8 Marks
• Response Framework:
  • L1 (1-3m): Mentioning Lenin's death or the Purges.
  • L2 (4-6m): Explaining how his role as General Secretary helped him.
  • L3 (7-8m): Synthesis of political maneuvering, ideology, and control of the party apparatus.
• Expected Points:
  • General Secretary Role: Controlled appointments; filled the party with loyalists.
  • Ideology: "Socialism in One Country" was more practical than Trotsky's "Permanent Revolution."
  • Manipulation of Rivals: Played Zinoviev and Kamenev against Trotsky before turning on them.

Question 4: USA Containment Policy

• Mark Allocation: 6 Marks
• Response Framework:
  • L1 (1-3m): Mentioning fear of communism.
  • L2 (4-6m): Explaining the "Domino Theory" or the desire to protect capitalist markets.
• Expected Points:
  • Ideological Threat: Fear that communism would spread to Western Europe.
  • Truman Doctrine: Commitment to support "free peoples" resisting attempted subjugation.
  • Economic Stability: Marshall Plan aimed to rebuild Europe so poverty wouldn't lead to communist revolutions.

Section B: Extended Response

Question 5: Japan's Surrender

• Mark Allocation: 20 Marks
• Marking Descriptors:
  • L1 (1-7m): Descriptive account of the atomic bombs or US strengths.
  • L2 (8-13m): One-sided argument (e.g., only bombs or only conventional war).
  • L3 (14-20m): Balanced evaluation. Weighs the bombs against other factors.
• Framework:
  • Agree (Atomic Bombs): Hiroshima/Nagasaki caused unprecedented shock; provided the Emperor a "face-saving" reason to surrender without admitting military defeat.
  • Disagree (Other Factors): Conventional bombing of Tokyo; Soviet invasion of Manchuria (removed hope of a negotiated peace via USSR); US naval blockade (starvation/resource depletion).
  • Conclusion: The bombs were the catalyst (accelerated the end), but the military situation had already made defeat inevitable.

Question 6: Stalin's Rule

• Mark Allocation: 20 Marks
• Marking Descriptors:
  • L1 (1-7m): Simple list of policies (Five Year Plans, Purges).
  • L2 (8-13m): One-sided argument (e.g., only focusing on industrialization or only on terror).
  • L3 (14-20m): Balanced evaluation of "benefit" vs "cost."
• Framework:
  • Beneficial: Rapid industrialization (Five Year Plans) turned USSR into a superpower; eliminated illiteracy; provided security against Nazi Germany.
  • Disastrous: Collectivization led to famine (Holodomor); Great Purges created a culture of fear; Gulags and political executions.
  • Conclusion: While the state became stronger and more industrial, the people suffered immense human loss and loss of liberty.