Name:  

Date:  
Block: 

Unit 10:  
The Cold War & 
the Modern Era 
Due Completed:  
A-Day: Friday, May 18, 2018 
B- Day: Thursday, May 17, 2018 
 1941-1945: The US & USSR become allies 
 
The  relationship  between  the  United  States  and  the  USSR  had  always  been  strained  because  the 
political  ideologies  each  supported,  capitalism  and  democracy  in  the  US  and  communism  and  a  command 
economy  in  the  USSR,  were  opposed  to  one  another.  Their  relationship  was  further  tested  following  Stalin’s 
decision  to  sign  the  non-aggression  pact,  or  the  Nazi-Soviet  Pact,  with  Nazi  Germany  in  1939.  Stalin’s  decision 
and  occupation  of  Poland  in  1939  led  the  United  States  to  publicly  condemn  the  USSR.  While  angry  with  the 
USSR,  the  United  States  did  not  forget  that  Nazi  Germany  was  the  greatest  threat  to  international  collective 
security.  United  States  president Franklin Delano Roosevelt hesitated to sever all ties with the USSR and instead 
sought  to  improve  relations  as  Hitler  was  picking  up  speed  in  1940.  In  June  1941,  Hitler  broke  the  Nazi-Soviet 
Pact  and  invaded  the  USSR.  This  was  the  perfect  opportunity  for  the  United  States  to  leverage  this  betrayal  to 
gain  a  new  ally  to  defeat  the  Nazis.  The  United States sent an aide to assess the Soviet military situation and by 
the  end  of  October,  the  first  ​Lend-Lease  aid  to  the  Soviet  Union  was  sent.  Lend-Lease  aid  was  a  package that 
provided  significant  military  supplies  and  other  assistance  to  the  Allies.  Stalin  left  the  Axis  powers  and  joined 
the Allies. 
During  the  war,  there  were  several  disagreements  between  the  United  States  and  the  USSR.  In spite of 
these  differences,  the  defeat  of  Nazi  Germany was a joint success.  This victory over the Nazis did not magically 
fix  the  relationship  between  the  United  States  and  the  USSR.  The  United  States  was  still  concerned  about  the 
spread  of  Soviet  communism  and  Stalin’s  totalitarian  rule.  The  USSR  was  frustrated with America’s hesitance to 
treat  it  as  part  of  the  international  community  and  their  slowness  in  entering  World  War  II.  As  the  war  was 
nearing the end, this distrust continued to grow. 
 
1. Why did the United States and the USSR 
fight together as allies in 1941? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2. Did the United States and the USSR ever 
fully trust one another? Explain. 
 
 
 
 
   
  Source: ​http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2009634186/​ and 
3. Using your understanding of how the United  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/THIS_MAN_IS_YOUR_FRIEND._RU
SSIAN_-_NARA_-_515795.jpg/800px-THIS_MAN_IS_YOUR_FRIEND._RUSSIAN_-_NARA_-_5157
States and the USSR became allies and their  95.jpg​ ​Title: ​This man is your friend: Russian He fights for freedom. ​Date Created/Published: 
[Washington, D.C.] : U.S. Government Printing Office ; 1942. 
levels of trust, what problems might emerge 
in the postwar period?   What does this American propaganda poster reveal 
  about the relationship between the United States 
  and USSR in 1942? 
 
 
 
 
 

 
1
 February-July 1945: The War Conferences  
 
1945  was  an  important  year  because  it  marked  the  end  of  World  War  II  and  the  emergence  of  new 
relationships  between  the  remaining  world  powers:  the  United  States  and  the  USSR.  Prior  to  the  official  end of 
World  War  II,  the  Allies  (United  States,  USSR,  and  Britain)  hosted  two  conferences:  Yalta  in  February  1945  and 
Potsdam  in  July  1945.  These  conferences  were  designed  to  help  decide  what  would  happen  to  Europe, 
specifically, Germany, at the end of World War II. In between the conferences, delegates from 50 nations meet in 
San  Francisco  for  the  United  Nations  (UN)  in  April  of  1945.  The  United  Nations,  much  like  the  original  intent  of 
the  League  of  Nations,  was  created  to  maintain  international  peace  and  security.  By  May  1945,  Germany 
surrendered to the Allies. 
 
1. What was the purpose of the 1945 war conferences in Yalta and Potsdam? Given your prior knowledge 
of war conferences and agreements, what problems might arise?  
 
 
2. What major events occurred between Yalta and Potsdam? How might these events impact the 
relationships between the Allies? 
 
 
 
 
February 1945: ​Yalta Conference 
Who: ​Churchill (Britain), Roosevelt (USA), Stalin (USSR) 
What: ​A ​meeting​ between three of the Allies of World War II to discuss Europe's postwar reorganization. 
Where: ​Yalta in Crimea  
War Stage:​ Germany was not defeated. 
What were the key points of the meeting?  
● Germany would be split into four occupied zones 
● Germany would undergo demilitarization and denazification  
● Germany would pay reparations partially in the form of forced labor 
● The Declaration of Liberated Europe would allow for free elections in Eastern Europe 
● Stalin pledged to permit free elections in Poland and to form a government of “national unity” composed of 
communists and non-communists  
● Stalin agreed to enter the fight against the Empire of Japan when Germany was defeated  
 
3. What was the purpose of the conference at Yalta? 
 
 
 
4. Why do you think did Stalin pledged to permit 
free elections in Poland?  

 
Source: 
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Yalta_conference#/media/File:Yalta_summit_1945_
  
with_Churchill,_Roosevelt,_Stalin.jpg

2
 July 1945: ​Potsdam Agreement 
Who: ​Churchill (Britain), Truman (USA), Stalin (USSR) 
What: ​The ​agreement​ between three of the Allies of World War II for the military occupation and reconstruction 
of Germany 
Where: ​Potsdam near Berlin 
War Stage:​ Germany was defeated. 
At Potsdam, there were arguments about the details of the agreement reached at Yalta. For example, 
there were disagreements about the boundaries for the four occupied zones of Germany. There were also 
disagreements about the amount of reparations the USSR wanted to take from Germany. The United States and 
Britain believed the USSR wanted too much and this would repeat the situation created by the Treaty of 
Versailles where the massive reparations hurt the German economy and fueled the rise of the Nazis.  
Harry S. Truman, the new president of the United States was also frustrated because Stalin began to 
arrest non-communist leaders of Poland after agreeing to a government of “national unity.” Additionally, even 
though there were supposed to be free elections in Eastern Europe, the United States and Britain noticed that 
communists were rising to power in Eastern Europe. 
While there were many disagreements, there were some agreements such as:  
● Germany would be demilitarized and disarmed  
● German society would be remade along democratic lines by repeal of all discriminatory laws from the 
Nazi era  
● Germans deemed to be “war criminals” would be arrested and tried  
 
5. What disagreements were there at Potsdam? 
Why? 
 
 
 
 
 
6. What do these disagreements reveal about the 
changing relationship between the United States 
and the USSR? 

 
Source: 
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Potsdam_Conference#/media/File:L_to_R,_British_Prime_Mini
ster_Winston_Churchill,_President_Harry_S._Truman,_and_Soviet_leader_Josef_Stalin_in_the..._-
_NARA_-_198958.jpg  

 
7. How did the peace conceived at Yalta differ from the peace conceived at Potsdam? Why? 
 
 
 
 
8. How might these differences impact the relationship between the United States and the USSR? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

3
 1947: The Birth of the Cold War 
 
During the war, the United States and USSR cooperated to defeat Nazi Germany. However, after the war 
ended, disagreements over reparations and the emergence of communist governments in Eastern Europe 
strained the relationship. Many of the enduring ideological and pre-war disagreements surfaced. Between 1945 
and 1947, Stalin went back on his pledge to allow free elections in Eastern Europe and to have coalition 
governments of both communist and non-communist leaders. During these two years, communists seized 
control of many Eastern European nations. This made the United States nervous because Stalin was defiant and 
the United States feared the ideological spread of communism. By 1947, the distrust heightened between the 
United States and USSR leading to a conflict known as the Cold War. The Cold War was a state of political and 
military tension after World War II between powers in the Western Bloc (the United States and its capitalist allies) 
and powers in the Eastern Bloc (the Soviet Union and its communist allies). The term "cold" is used because 
there was no direct fighting between the two sides, however, there were proxy wars or wars between other 
nations supported by the two sides.  
Source: ​https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/us​-sovie 
 
9. What action did Stalin take that heightened the tension between the United States and USSR? Why did 
these actions concern the United States?  
 
 
 
 
10. What was the Cold War? Why was the Cold War considered “cold”? 
 
 
 
 

The Cold War: 1945-1991 

 
From  1945  until  1991,  two  superpowers,  the  US  and  USSR,  with  political  and  economic  differences 
engaged  in  the  Cold  War.  The  Cold  War  caused  a  series  of  international incidents that brought the world to the 
brink  of  disaster.  After  World  War  II  ended,  both  the  Soviet  Union  and  the U.S. wanted to influence Europe with 
their  systems of government and economy. In 1946, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill declared that 
an  iron  curtain  had  “descended  across  the  continent”  dividing  Europe  into two hostile camps. The Soviet Union 
influence Eastern Europe, while the U.S.A. influenced Western Europe. 
 
11. What was the iron curtain?  
 
 
 
12. What did the iron curtain symbolize about international relations?  
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
4
 Reference Sheet: The Cold War (1945-1991) 
 
 

The Western Bloc:   The Eastern Bloc: 

U.S.A. & NATO allies  ​Warsaw Pact allies & USSR 
Economic System:   Economic System:  
Capitalism  Communism 

Political System:   Political System:  

Democracy  Totalitarian 
The United States wanted to 
contain communism​ so they 
VS:  The USSR wanted to ​promote 
communism​ and spread these ideas 
pursued the policy of containment.   to other countries. 
Containment was a strategy of keeping  The promotion of communism was a 
communism within its existing boundaries  strategy of expanding communism outside 
and preventing its further expansion. This  its existing boundaries. This policy meant 
policy meant the United States would  the Soviet Union would ​support any nation 
support any nation facing an external or  facing external or internal aggression from 
internal communist threat.  the Western bloc. 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

5
Notes: Intro to the Cold War
Country Ideologies

Democracy ​ - A form of government in which power is held by people under a free electoral
system.

Capitalism ​– Economic system based on private ownership of the means of production and
distribution, and characterized by profit, a free market, and open competition.

Dictatorship ​- A government controlled by one person or a small group of people.

Communism ​– Economic idea that the community as a whole should own all property and run all
business and industry

1. What is a Cold War?

2. What is a surrogate and how are they involved in the Cold War?

3. Why is the US concerned about the Greek Civil War?

4. What is Containment?

6
The Truman Doctrine and Containment  1. Why did Truman implement the Truman 
In  1947, United States President Harry Truman declared a  Doctrine? 
new  foreign policy for the US, called the Truman Doctrine.   
The  ​Truman  Doctrine  stated  the  United  States  would   
provide  political,  military  and  economic  assistance  to  all   
nations  under  threat  from  communist  forces.  Before  the 
2. What idea motivated the Truman Doctrine? 
Truman  Doctrine,  the  US  stayed  out  of  regional  conflicts 
that  did  not  directly  involve  their  country,  but  the Truman   
Doctrine  made  it  clear  that  the  US  would  actively  resist   
the  USSR.  In  the  same  year,  Truman  sent  military  and   
economic  aid  to  both  Greece  and  Turkey  to  resist  3. How would this policy impact the United 
communist  threats.  The  Truman  Doctrine  was  motivated  States’ relationship with the USSR? 
by  the  idea  of  ​containment or limiting communism to the   
areas already under USSR’s control.     
 
Source: ​https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/truman-doctrine    

The Marshall Plan 

The  ​Marshall  Plan  was  a  policy  used  by  the 
United  States  to  strengthen  democratic 
governments  by  providing  food  and  economic 
assistance  to  war-ravaged  European  countries  to 
help  them  rebuild  after  the  war. The Marshall Plan 
was  motivated  by  the  idea  that  countries 
recovering  from  the  war  were  vulnerable  to 
communist  threats.  To  ensure  that  communism   
did  not  spread,  the  United  States  provided  about 
$13  billion  to  Western  nations  to help rebuild their  4. Why was the Marshall Plan passed? 
economies.  Although  the  USSR  was  offered   
participation,  they refused and blocked benefits to   
Eastern  Bloc  countries,  such  as  East  Germany   
and  Poland.  The  USSR  saw  the  Marshall  Plan  as   
an  attempt  to  buy  the  support  of  smaller  5. How would this policy impact the United States’ 
countries.   relationship with the USSR? 
   
Source: 
https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/marshall-plan    
 
 
5. What were the motives for the Marshall Plan?

6. What was the Berlin Crisis? How did the West respond?

   

7
 China Falls to Communism 
 
1. Who was Emperor Puyi?  
 
 
 
 
2. Who was Sun Yat-Sen? 
 
 
 
 
3. What were some of the weaknesses of the Republic of China?  
 
 
 
 
4. What kind of aid does the Soviet Union provide China? How does this lead to the growth of Communism? 
 
 
 
 
5. Who took over after Sun Yat-Sen? What did he do?  
 
 
 
 
6. What were the two side of the Civil War in China? Who led each side?  
 
 
 
 
7. Why did the Civil War in China pause between 1932-33 and 1937-45? 
 
 
 
 
8. Who won the Civil War?  
 
 
 
9. Where did the losing side go?  
 
 
 
10. Who controlled China after the Civil War?  
 
 
 
 

8
 Mao Zedong’s Rule of Communist China
 
After decades of civil war, Mao Zedong and his supporters established the People’s Republic of China, a Communist 
nation, in 1949. Mao was a ​totalitarian dictator​ whose methods for gaining, consolidating, and maintaining control are 
exemplified through his two most well known policies: ​the Great Leap Forward ​and ​the Cultural Revolution​.  
 

 
 
Directions:​ As you read the information below, annotate it by placing a “G” next to examples of methods that Mao used to gain 
power in China, a “C” next to examples of methods he used to consolidate his power, and an “M” next to examples of methods 
used to maintain power. Then, complete the questions accompanying the documents. At the end of the activity, fill in the 
graphic organizer below.  
 
GAIN  CONSOLIDATE  MAINTAIN 

     
Gaining power​ is the process of getting it and  Consolidating power​ is the process of taking control  Maintaining power​ is the process of keeping one’s 
expanding it.  from other people who also have power.   power.  

 
The Great Leap Forward (1958-1961) 
Watch ​this video about the Great Leap Forward​, examine  The Great Leap Forward was an economic and social plan 
the images below and read the text, then answer the  used from 1958 to 1960 which aimed to use China's vast 
questions that follow.    population to rapidly transform mainland China from a 
  primarily agrarian (or farming) economy dominated by 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlbB3cmgPmo   peasant farmers into a modern, industrialized communist 
  society.   
 
Mao Zedong based this program on the Five Year Plans used 
by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union.  
Document 1
The Great Leap Forward is now widely seen—both within 
China and outside—as a major economic and humanitarian 
disaster, with estimates of the number of people killed by 
famine during this period ranging from a minimum of 14 
million to as many as 43 million.  
Source: New World Encyclopedia. “Great Leap Forward.” 
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Great_Leap_Forward 
 
 
   
In Xinyang county, Henan, during the Great Leap Forward era, 
 
commune members worked in the night, using lamps as light, 
1959.  
 
Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Xinyang_working_at_night.jpg  

9
Document 2  Document 3 
Great Leap Forward Famine Death Estimates 
Deaths (millions)  Authors  Year 

23  Peng  1987 

27  Coale  1984 

30  Ashton, ​et al  1984 

30  Banister  1987 

30  Becker  1996 

32.5  Cao  2005 

36  Yang  2008 

Chang and 
38  2005 
Halliday 

38  Rummel  2008 

42 min.  Dikotter  2010 

43-46  Chen  1980 

 
Backyard furnace to produce steel during the Great Leap Forward  Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Leap_Forward  
era, 1958. 
Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Backyard_furnace4.jpg 

Document 4 

 
Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Birth_rate_in_China.svg  
 

10
 1. What were the goals of the Great Leap Forward?  
 
 
 
2. What was a “commune”?  
 
 
 
3. What was the result of the attempt to have peasants make steel on their communes during the Great Leap Forward? 
 
 
 
4. Did the Great Leap Forward’s policies lead to more food production in China? Why or why not? 
 
 
 
5. What were the effects of the Great Leap Forward in China? 
 
 
 
6. Was the Great Leap Forward successful? Explain. 
 
 

 
The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) 
Watch this ​NTDTV video on the Cultural Revolution ​and ​this  The ​Chinese Cultural Revolution ​was a massive social upheaval 
documentary about the Cultural Revolution​, examine the  from 1966 through 1976 brought on by a struggle for power 
images below and read the text, then answer the questions  within the Communist Party of China, in which at least half a 
million people died and the People's Republic of China was brought 
that follow.  
to the brink of civil war. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGpmVs0_Dbc  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPuvFXv8Gos   The Cultural Revolution was initiated by Party Chairman Mao 
Zedong in 1966 to reassert his leadership after the disasters of the 
Great Leap Forward. After the failures of the Great Leap Forward, 
Document 1  other party members challenged Mao’s authority. In response, Mao 
and his supporters purged the CCP of those who opposed him, 
trained Chinese youths to worship Mao and his sayings, and then 
empowered those young people to rebel against their elders to 
defend Mao’s revolution. In the chaos and violence that ensued, 
much of China's artistic legacy was destroyed and millions were 
persecuted, some of whom lost their lives. 
Source: “Cultural Revolution.” New World Encyclopedia. 
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Cultural_Revolution 

 
The Chinese People's Liberation Army is the great school of Mao 
Zedong Thought, 1969. A poster from the Cultural Revolution, 
featuring an image of Chairman Mao, and published by the 
government of the People's Republic of China. 
Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cultural_Revolution_poster.jpg 

11
Document 2  Document 3 

 
Panchen Lama, a religious leader in Tibetan Buddhism, denounced 
during a struggle session, 1964. 
Source: 
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Panchen_Lama_during_the_struggle_(thamzing)
_session_1964.jpg 
Red Guards on the cover of an elementary school textbook from 
1971. 
Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Red_Guards.jpg 
 
 

Document 4  Document 5 

 
  A scene from the ​Red Detachment of Women​, a play written during 
A 1968 map of Beijing showing streets and landmarks renamed  the Cultural Revolution that glorified Mao, 1972.  
during the Cultural Revolution. Andingmen Inner Street became  Source: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Revolutionary_opera.jpg  
"Great Leap Forward Road", Taijichang Street became the "Road for 
Eternal Revolution", Dongjiaominxiang was renamed 
"Anti-Imperialist Road", Beihai Park was renamed 
"Worker-Peasant-Soldier Park" and Jingshan Park became "Red 
Guard Park." Most of the Cultural Revolution-era name changes 
were later reversed. 
Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beijing_1968_I.jpg 

 
 
 

12
 1. What were the goals of the Cultural Revolution? 
 
 
2. What were the ​Four Olds​? 
 
 
3. What methods did Mao use to change Chinese culture during the Cultural Revolution? 
 
 
4. How did Mao try to change education in China during the Cultural Revolution?  
 
 
5. Who were the Red Guards? 
 
 
6. Who was targeted and denounced by the Red Guards? Why did the Red Guards denounce these people? 
 
 
7. What methods did the Red Guards use to denounce “counter-revolutionaries?” 
 
 
8. Why do you think Mao gave young people so much power during the Cultural Revolution? 
 
 
9. What ended the Cultural Revolution? 
 
 
10. What were the effects of the Cultural Revolution in China?  
 
 
 
 
  Great Leap Forward  Cultural Revolution 
   
 
 
 
 
Methods Mao   
used to gain,   
consolidate,   
 
and maintain   
his power   
through each   
policy   
 
 
 
 
 
 

13
 Cold War Alliances 

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)  The Warsaw Pact 

   
In 1949, the United States, Canada and ten other  In 1955, the USSR responded to the formation of NATO 
countries formed a new military alliance called ​NATO or  by creating their own alliance called the ​Warsaw Pact​. 
North Atlantic Treaty Organization​. These newly  The USSR had a number of ​satellite states.​ A satellite 
aligned member states agreed to protect one another if  state is a country that is formally independent in the 
any one of them were attacked.   world, but under heavy political, economic and military 
influence or control from another country. The Warsaw 
Pact included the USSR and seven satellite states in 
Eastern Europe. While NATO functioned as an alliance, 
the USSR used the Warsaw Pact to control their 
satellite states. 

6. What was NATO?  8. What is a satellite state? 

   
   
  9. What was the Warsaw Pact? 
   
   
  10. How did the Warsaw Pact function differently 
7. How might this alliance have impacted the  from NATO? 
relationship between the United States and the   
USSR?   
  11. How might this alliance have impacted the 
  relationship between the United States and the USSR 
 
 
 
12. Based upon what you’ve read above, were the United States and the USSR moving closer to or further 
away from international conflict between 1945 and 1955? Explain. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

14
 The Butter Battle
 
Directions​: After watching the animated video answer the 
following questions.  
1. How do the Yook respond to the Zook aggression?  

2. How do the Zook respond to the Yook weapons?  

3. Who is always there to cheer the Yook’s up?  

4. Where does everyone go when the Bitsy Big-Boy Boomeroo is going to be used?  

5. Write a Paragraph: Who wins the Butter Battle?  

The Cold War: The Race is On!  

 
6. What started the Arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union? 

7. What was the Arms Race?  

8. What started the Space Race?  

9. What was the Space Race? 

10. Who was Yuri Gagarin?  

11. How did the United States respond?  

12. What was the Apollo 11?  

15
The Korean War and Why There are Two Koreas 
By History.com, adapted by Newsela staff on 01.11.18 - Word Count 933 - Level 1110L 

 
Image 1. South Korean soldiers patrol inside the barbed-wire fence at Imjingak Pavilion near the border village of Panmunjom, the demilitarized zone which has separated the two Koreas since the Korean 
 
War, in Paju, South Korea, on March 27, 2012. Photo by Ahn Young-joon for AP Photo.

On June 25, 1950, the Korean War began when some 75,000 soldiers from the North Korean 
People’s Army poured across the 38th parallel. That was the boundary between the Soviet backed 
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the north and the pro-Western Republic of 
Korea to the south. This invasion was the first military action of the Cold War (1945-1991). The Cold War was a 
larger conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was called "cold" because the U.S. and Soviet 
Union didn't fight each directly, but instead engaged in a war of threats.   
By July, American troops and their allies, working with the United Nations, had entered the war to help 
South Korea. As far as American officials were concerned, it was a war against international communism led 
by the Soviet Union. Communism is a system where one political party controls all aspects of a country's 
government and society. After some early back-and-forth across the 38th parallel, the fighting stalled and 
casualties mounted with nothing to show for them. Meanwhile, American officials worked anxiously to fashion 
some sort of armistice with the North Koreans. The alternative, they feared, would be a wider war with the 
Soviet Union and China – or even, as some warned, World War III.  
The Two Koreas  
Since the early 1900s, Korea had been a part of the Japanese empire. After Japan lost World War II 
(1939-1945), it fell to the Americans and the Soviets to decide what should be done with it. In August 1945, the 
U.S. divided the Korean peninsula in half along the 38th parallel, giving the Soviets the area north of the line 
and the Americans the area to its south.  
By the end of the decade, two new countries had formed on the peninsula. In the south, the 
anti-communist dictator Syngman Rhee enjoyed the reluctant support of the American government. In the 
north, the communist dictator Kim Il Sung enjoyed the slightly more enthusiastic support of the Soviets. 
Neither dictator was content to remain on his side of the 38th parallel, and fighting had already taken place 
along the border – resulting in more than 10,000 deaths.  
The Korean War And The Cold War  
Even so, the North Korean invasion came as a surprise to American officials. To them, this was not 
simply a border dispute on the other side of the globe. They saw it as the first step in a communist campaign to 
take over the world, so they believed that staying out of the war was not an option.  
At first, the U.S.-led war effort in Korea was designed simply to get the communists out of South Korea 
– and it went badly for the U.S. and its allies. The North Korean army was well-disciplined, well-trained and 

16
well-equipped; Rhee’s forces, by contrast, were frightened, confused and seemed inclined to flee the battlefield 
at any provocation.  
By the end of the summer, President Harry Truman and General Douglas MacArthur, the military 
commander in charge, had decided on a new set of war aims. Now, for the U.S. and its allies, the Korean War 
was an offensive war to “liberate” the North from the communists.  
Initially, this new approach was a success. An amphibious assault at Inchon pushed the North Koreans 
back to their side of the 38th parallel. American troops crossed the boundary and headed north toward the Yalu 
River, the border between North Korea and Communist China. The Chinese started to worry about protecting 
themselves. Chinese leader Mao Zedong sent troops to North Korea and warned the United States to keep 
away from the Yalu boundary unless it wanted full-scale war. 
“No Substitute For Victory”  
This was something that President Truman and his advisers decidedly did not want. They were sure 
that such a war would lead to Soviet attacks in Europe, the deployment of atomic weapons and millions of 
senseless deaths. Yet General MacArthur believed anything short of this wider war meant knuckling under to 
the communists.  
As President Truman looked for a way to prevent war with the Chinese, MacArthur did all he could to 
provoke it. In March 1951, MacArthur sent a letter to Joseph Martin, a Republican leader in Congress, who 
leaked the letter to the press. “There is,” MacArthur wrote, “no substitute for victory" against international 
communism.  
On April 11, President Truman fired the general for insubordination. 
The Korean War Reaches A Stalemate  
In July 1951, President Truman and his new military commanders started peace talks at Panmunjom. 
Still, the fighting continued along the 38th parallel as negotiations stalled. Both sides were willing to accept a 
ceasefire that maintained the 38th parallel boundary, but they could not agree on whether prisoners of war 
should be forcibly sent back home. (The Chinese and the North Koreans wanted prisoners forcibly sent home; 
the United States said no.) Finally, after more than two years of negotiations, the different sides signed an 
armistice on July 27, 1953. The agreement allowed the POWs to stay where they liked; drew a new boundary 
near the 38th parallel that gave South Korea an extra 1,500 square miles of territory; and created a 2-mile-wide 
“demilitarized zone” that still exists today.  
Casualties Of The Korean War  
The Korean War was relatively short but exceptionally bloody. Nearly 5 million people died. More than 
half of these – about 10 percent of Korea’s prewar population – were civilians. (This rate of civilian casualties 
was higher than that of World War II.) Almost 40,000 Americans died in action in Korea, and more than 
100,000 were wounded. 
 
Directions: After reading the article above, write a one paragraph (3-5 sentences) summary of the most 
important information from the article.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

17
 The Cold War Gets Hot: The Korean War 
 
1. Who gained possession of Korea after World war II?  

2. What did the United States and the Soviet Union decide to do about Korea after the World War II?  

3. Why was the United States worried when the North Koreans invaded the South?  

4. Who lead the United Nations forces in Korea? 

5. At one point, the North Koreans are driven out of South Korea, and the North Korean Capital is 
captured. What turned the United Nations forces back?  

6. How did the Korean War End?  

TED-Ed: The Rise and Fall of the Berlin Wall  

On August 13, 1961, construction workers began tearing up streets and erecting 
barriers in Berlin. This night marked the beginning of one of history’s most infamous dividing 
lines: the Berlin Wall. Construction continued for a decade as the wall cut through 
neighborhoods, separated families, and divided not just Germany, but the world. Konrad H. 
Jarausch details the history of the Berlin Wall. 
1. The Wall was built to: 
a. Keep the Western spies out 
b. Prevent flooding in the former German capital 
c. Keep East Germans from leaving their country 
d. Show the West it's impotence 
2. The East Germans wanted to leave: 
a. Because of the bad climate 
b. Due to the outdated rock music 
c. Since they lacked work 
d. To improve their standard of living 
3. The Berlin Wall: 
a. Helped stabilize the Communist government 
b. Cut off West Berliners from their hinterland 
c. Provided a canvas for Western graffiti artists 
d. Was a training ground for mountain climbers 
4. The Wall fell because: 
a. President Reagan demanded it 
b. Secretary General Gorbachev allowed it 
c. The people of East Berlin rose up and smashed it 
d. The many tunnels under it made it collapse 

18
 5. How did the Wall shore up the East German government in the short run and why did it 
become a symbol of Communist repression in the long run? 

6. Compare the economies and environments of West and East Germany during the time 
when the Berlin Wall was in place. 

7. What effect would the loss of young people have on a country? 

8. Discuss some of the design strategies used by the Soviet government when 
constructing the Berlin Wall. How did this change over time? Why do you think this was 
the case? 
 
 
 
 

The Berlin Wall Readings  

The  Berlin  Blockade  was  one  of  the  first  major   

international  crises  of  the  Cold  War.  The  Berlin 
Blockade  was  an  attempt  in  1948 by the USSR to limit 
the  ability  of  the  Allies  (France,  Great  Britain  and  the 
United States) to travel to their sectors of Berlin. After 
World  War  II,  Germany  was  divided  into  occupation 
zones.  Berlin  was  located  inside  USSR-controlled 
eastern  Germany  but,  the  United  States  and  other 
Allies  controlled  western  portions  Berlin  so  there 
were  questions  of  whether  portions  of  the  the  city 
would  become  part  of  USSR-controlled  eastern 
Germany.  On  June  24,  1948,  Soviet  forces  blockaded 
rail,  road,  and  water  access  to  Allied-controlled  areas 
of  Berlin  in  an  attempt  to  get  the  Allies  to  give  up 
their  sections  of  the  city.  The  United  States  and 
United  Kingdom  responded  by  airlifting food and fuel 
to  Berlin.  Realizing  that  they  would  not  be  able  to 
force  the  Allies  out  without  an  armed  conflict,  the 
USSR  forces  lifted  the  blockade  on  land  access  to   
western  Berlin  and  the  crisis  ended  on  May  12,  1949. 
Berlin remained divided for the rest of the Cold War.  

19
 1. What caused the Berlin Blockade? 
 
 
 
 
2. How did the British, French, and United States get past the Soviet Union’s blockade? 
 
 
 
 
3. How did the Berlin Blockade impact the relationship between the United States and the USSR? 
 
 
 
 
 

T​ he Berlin Wall, an iconic symbol of the Cold War, was initially constructed starting on August 13, 
1961, and dismantled in the weeks following November 9, 1989. Part of the Iron Curtain, the Berlin Wall 
was the most prominent part of the German Democratic Republic’s border system. 
Conceived by the East German administration of Walter Ulbricht and approved by Soviet leader 
Nikita Khrushchev, the wall was a long separation barrier between West Berlin and East Germany (the 
German Democratic Republic), which closed the border between East and West Berlin for a period of 
28 years. It was built during the post-World War II period of a divided Germany, in an effort to stop the 
drain of labor and economic output associated with the daily migration of huge numbers of 
professionals and skilled workers between East and West Berlin, and the attendant defections, which 
had political and economic consequences for the Communist bloc. It effectively decreased emigration 
(escapes; ​Republikflucht​ in German) from 2.5 million between 1949 and 1962 to 5,000 between 1962 and 
1989. 
However, the creation of the Wall was a propaganda disaster for East Germany and for the 
communist bloc as a whole. It became a key symbol of what Western powers regarded as Communist 
tyranny, particularly after the high-profile shootings of would-be defectors.  
Source: h
​ ttp://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Berlin_Wall 

 
Illustration of the structure Berlin Wall as it was in the 1980s. After it was initially built, the Berlin wall 
was updated to include two parallel walls, a smooth pipe on the top making it difficult to climb over, 
barbed wire, guard dogs, watchtowers, and beds of nails. 
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Structure_of_Berlin_Wall.sv 

20
 1. Where was the Berlin Wall located? Why did  Watch this T​ estTube News video entitled 
the Soviet Union build it?  “Why Was a Wall Built Around West Berlin?” 
  and ​The Wall​ (start-9:10), and American film 
  from 1962 and read the text below, then 
  answer the questions to the right.  
2. What were the effects of the erection of the   
Berlin Wall?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7YE-N4
  48fg​ and 
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Bi6tiW
  NCk  

3. Based on the events described in the videos and text about the Berlin Wall, how did people 
living in Warsaw Pact countries felt about the USSR? How did the Soviet Union maintain its 
control over satellite nations? 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The Cuban Missile Crisis Notes 

1. What was the US afraid might happen in Cuba? Why? 
 
 
 
2. What did President Kennedy want in Cuba?  
 
 
 
3. What happened in Cuba in 1962? 
 
 
 
4. What was the impact on the United States? 
 
 
 
5. What was the Cuban Missile Crisis?  
 
 
 
6. How did it end?  
 

21
 The War in Vietnam Notes
 
1. What is the Domino Theory?  
 
 
2. Why did the War in Vietnam start?  
 
 
3. Who was Ngo Dinh Diem and why is he important?  
 
 
4. What happened in the Gulf of Tonkin (called the Gulf of Tonkin Incident)?  
 
 
5. How did Americans feel about the United States getting involved in the war?  
 
 
6. What was Vietnamization?  
 
 
7. What happened in 1975? 
 
 
 

End of the Cold War:

Revolts in Eastern Europe
1. Why were Eastern European countries ready to revolt against the Soviet Union?

2. Describe the reasons for revolt, the revolt, and the outcome of the revolt in Hungary.

3. Describe the reasons for revolt, the revolt, and the outcome of the revolt in Czechoslovakia.

22
 Video & Reading: Détente 
Watch the ​Media Rich Learning Video on Détente​, read the transcript from the video, and answer the 
questions below. ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAhDQxPHvP0  

[0:20] By the time Richard Nixon reached the White House in 1969, the Cold War  1. Why did the USSR and USA enter 
had been underway for more than two decades. The superpowers [USA and USSR]  a period of détente? 
had reached a crossroads. They could continue the saber-rattling and 
confrontations that threatened to plunge the world into nuclear war, or they could 
 
agree to disagree and seek areas of mutual interest.   
   
[0:46] In 1969, they chose the latter and a decade of relative calm in the Cold War   
began. In Europe, West German Chancellor Willy Brandt called it ​Ostpolitik​. In the   
United States, Nixon and his national security adviser Henry Kissinger called it 
 
détente​. It did not end the Cold War but it created a framework for cooperation 
 
among the rivals. 
  2. Identify two events that showed 
[1:14] In 1972, President Nixon embarked on a diplomatic trip that came to  that relations between the US and 
symbolize ​détente​. When he touched down at Capital Airport near Peking [China]  USSR improved when Richard 
Nixon became the first American president to be welcomed in the communist  Nixon was President.  
People's Republic of China. It was a historic opening in the Cold War. During a 
week of diplomacy and cultural exchange, two former enemies made great   
progress toward normalizing relations.   
   
[1:54] Not to be outdone, the Soviet Union reached out to the West as well. Leonid   
Brezhnev [General Secretary of the Communist Party (title of the leader, similar to 
 
a President) of the Soviet Union] saw ​détente ​as​ ​an opportunity to gain access to 
 
valuable foreign aid and open its borders to international trade. 
 
 
[2:10] In May 1972, the Kremlin in Moscow [Soviet Union] played host to the   
American president. Together, Nixon and Brezhnev signed the first-ever agreement   
to limit nuclear weapons. The SALT 1 [Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty] and ABM 
3. According to Richard Nixon’s 
treaties were largely symbolic, but they represented a mutual effort to work 
address to the Soviet people, what 
towards cooperation and coexistence.  did the US and USSR need to do to 
 
prevent conflict between the two 
[2:40] President Nixon appealed to the Soviet people and their leaders,   
superpowers?  
“...to be better as we look at the prospects for peace we see that we 
have made significant progress at reducing the possible sources are   
direct conflict between us, but history tells us that great nations   
have often been dragged into a war without intending it by conflicts 
 
 
between smaller nations. As great powers, we can and should use 
 
our influence to prevent this from happening. Our goal should be to   
discourage aggression in other parts of the world and particularly   
among those smaller nations that look to us for leadership and   
example. With great power, goes great responsibility.”    
 
 
 

23
 [4:24] ​Détente​ continued under President Gerald Ford, notably with the signing of  4. Why do you think President 
the 1975 ​Helsinki Final Act​. In Helsinki, Finland, President Ford, Chairman  Gerald Ford referred to the human 
Brezhnev, and thirty-three other world leaders formally acknowledged the  rights agreement in the Helsinki 
Final Act as “a time bomb” for the 
post-World War II borders in Europe and recognized “The universal significance of 
Soviet Union?  
human rights and fundamental freedoms.” Chairman Brezhnev was nervous about 
the human rights provisions, but his Foreign Minister, Andrei Gomyko,reassured   
him that it was, “Just a piece of paper.” President Ford said the issue was, “a time   
bomb” for the Soviets for it established an internationally accepted standard by   
 
which communist governments could be held accountable for the treatment of 
 
[their] citizens. 
 
 
 
[7:33] In the United States, a new President Jimmy Carter made human rights the 
 
centerpiece of his new administration.  
 
“The passion for freedom is on the rise.   
Tapping into new spirit there can be no nobler   
nor more ambitious task for America to 
5. According to the video, why did 
undertake on this day of a new beginning than 
détente end?  
to help shape a just and peaceful world that is 
truly humane.“    
   
[8:09] President Carter spent three years working in vain to further the calls of   
world peace and to bring an end to the Cold War. By the end of his term, the Soviet   
Union's Arsenal equaled the US and America's world supremacy was being openly   
challenged.   
   
[8:32] In 1979, America's old ally in the Middle East, the Shah of Iran, was forced 
from power during the Iranian Revolution. Nine months later, student followers of 
the Shiite Cleric Ayatollah Khamenei stormed the American embassy. Scores of 
Americans were taken captive and held for more than a year. The hostage crisis 
coupled with the shifting balance in the Cold War convinced many Americans that 
their nation had lost its international power and prestige. Then, on Christmas Day 
1979 the Soviets struck a vital blow to ​détente ​when they invaded Afghanistan to 
prop up a failing Marxist dictatorship. 
 

[9:20] ​Détente​ had taken the chill off of the Cold War, but it had never been a 
solution to the deep-seated hostilities that caused it. By 1980, the temperature 
was falling and sabres were unsheathed. New actors waited in the wings as the 
stage was set for the final decisive battle of the Cold War. 

   

24
 The End of the Cold War:  
The Soviets invade Afghanistan  
 
1. What happened in 1978 in Afghanistan?  
 
 
2. What did the New government of Afghanistan do?  
 
 
3. Why did the Soviet Union send troops into Afghanistan?  
 
 
4. How did the United Nations General Assembly respond?  
 
 
5. What were some of the real reasons that the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan?  
 
 
 

The End of the Cold War:  

Gorbachev & Perestroika 
 
1. Who was Mikhail Gorbachev? What did he want to do?  
 
 
2. What was Glasnost?  
 
 
3. What was Perestroika? What was its impact on the Soviet Union?  
 
 
4. What happened in Berlin in 1990? 
 
 
5. What happened to the Soviet Union in 1991? 
 
 
6. How did the Cold War end?  
25
 Decolonization & Nationalism Triumphant:  
Crash Course World History #40 
1. (1:45) Why might World War II be responsible for the lack of emerging empires in the second half 
of the twentieth century? 
 
 
 
2. (3:10) What year was the Indian National Congress formed? 
 
 
 
3. (4:45) How many people were displaced during the decolonization of India? 
 
 
 
4. (5:30) Why was Gandhi assassinated? 
 
 
 
5. (6:50) How many island make up Indonesia? 
 
 
 
6. (7:10) What practice accounted for 25% of the total Dutch national budget? 
 
 
 
7. (8:00) What was the Khmer Rouge? 
 
 
 
8. (9:15) According to John Green, what is one of the most problematic legacies of colonialism? 
 
 
 
9. (10:00) Why did African nations struggle so much after Europeans decolonized? 
 
 
 
 
 

26
 Globalization: Part One 
Introduction 
 
➡ Directions: Identify where the clothing you are wearing right now was made on the diagram 
below.  

 
 
5. How do you think what you are wearing became clothing and came to be owned by you? 
Identify at least ​four​ steps in the process.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   

27
What is globalization? 
➡ Directions: Read the text below, then watch the E​ xplainity video “Globalization Easily 
Explained”​ and answer the questions that follow. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJ0nFD19eT8  
 
Globalization is the process by which the world is becoming increasingly interconnected as a 
result of increased trade and cultural exchange.  
 
Throughout most of human history, we have become more interconnected through trade 
and cultural diffusion, but since the mid-1900s the pace of globalization has increased 
rapidly.  

 
Global Shipping Routes ca. 2008 
Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shipping_routes.png  
 
Questions 
1. What is globalization?  2. According to the video, what technological 
  innovations have made globalization 
  possible?  
 
 
 
 

3. Based on the scenario given in the video, why was the company from country B able to sell 
their televisions at a cheaper price than companies from country A? 
 
 
 
 

4. Based on the video, identify one positive effect and one negative effect of globalization 
and explain why each is positive or negative.  
 
 
 
 

28
 Positive Effect  Negative Effect 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

What can t-shirts reveal about the causes and effects of 
globalization? 
➡ Directions: Watch ​the series of videos from National Public Radio’s Planet Money T-Shirt Project​ and read the 
accompanying transcript then answer the questions that follow. 
 
In 2013, reporters for the National Public Radio show Planet Money decided to create 
t-shirts to sell to their listeners so they could follow and report on how the shirt was created 
from the seed of the cotton to the delivery of the shirt to their office in New York City. They 
recorded the process and interviewed the people who contributed to creating the t-shirts.  
Globalization made the creation of the Planet Money t-shirt in these videos a world-wide 
process.  
Part I: Cotton​: h​ ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYa4zneKbeY&list=PLp-wXwmbv3z8aAJrhyttiqPMiKy0WVJym&index=2  
(0:00) O​ ur​ t-shirts started here, or near here anyway,  1. Where was the cotton for the 
on a cotton farm in the​ ​Mississippi Delta.​ ​America, it  t-shirt grown?  
turns out, exports more cotton than any other   
country in the world.    
   
(0:16) F ​ or ​about a century, America maintained its   
cotton dominance by using slave labor. ​Today, it does   
so using technology.    
Bowen Flowers, cotton farmer, “This is the John   
Deere app and it shows where the pickers and   
tractors are. We can go into the screen on a picker   
and see what the picker driver’s actually see on the 
screen.”   2. Identify three examples of 
Farmer, “It’s showing it picking; it’s picking the cotton  technology that you see in the 
off the stalk.”  process of growing and harvesting 
Adam Davidson, reporter, “So it drives itself?”   cotton.  
Farmer, “Yeah.”   
   
(0:56)​ Bowen Flowers is a third-generation   
Mississippi cotton f​ armer. Even the seeds he is using   
are a feat of engineering to rival the iPhone. Most   
American cotton seeds are made in a lab like this one   
at the Monsanto​ ​Corporation. Genes from bacteria   
are added to the cotton to make it more   
pest-resistant and tolerant of herbicides.    

29
   3. How do you think the technology 
(1:21) T ​ here's a debate over the safety of genetically  you identified effects the process of 
modified crops. For American cotton farmers though,  growing and cost of cotton and the 
it's mainly been settled. Twenty years ago there was  cotton industry? 
no GM (genetically-modified) cotton. Today, over   
ninety percent of​ ​American cotton is genetically   
modified.   
   
(1:40) A ​ ll this technology: the machines that   
automatically bail the cotton, the specially designed   
trucks to haul those bales away, the high-speed gins   
that removed those lab-design seeds, all this   
technology has an impact.    
   
(​1:57) ​Since the 1950s, cotton yields have almost   
tripled.    
Adam Davidson, reporter, “You have been harvesting   
all this​ ​cotton. How many t-shirts have you made?”    
Flowers, “Oh gosh, there’s no telling. Do you happen   
to know that answer?”    
We didn’t know, but we went back and looked it up.   
The answer: from just this one farm in just one year   
there's enough cotton to make 9 million t-shirts.   
That's a t-shirt for every single person in New York 
City.   
Part II: Machines​: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJOteam-zWw&list=PLp-wXwmbv3z8aAJrhyttiqPMiKy0WVJym&index=3  
(0:00) O​ ur cotton leaves the United States and goes  4. Identify three tasks that the 
around the world to Columbia​, ​Indonesia, and  machines featured in this video 
Bangladesh where it goes from plant to fabric with  complete.  
barely a human being involved, just lots and lots​ c ​ ool   
machines, which we set to music.    
   
(0:19) O ​ ur cotton first went to spinning factories l​ ike   
this one. Raw cotton is sucked up and laid down into   
bigsheets, straightened and pulled into long feathery   
ropes like an infinite ponytail, stretched, twisted, and   
with a final twist becomes yarn.   
   
(0:46) T ​ hen it is sent on big spools to the next step: 
the circular knitting machine where our yarn is turned   
into fabric. It’s washed, dyed, and voila: fabric for our 
shirts.  
 
(1:22) S ​ oft, comfy, and a high-tech engineering 
marvel.  
 
 

30
 5.What effect do you think these machines have on the process of creating fabric? How 
might this process have been different before these machines were invented? 
 
 
 
6. How is the process in this video similar and different to changes in manufacturing that 
took place during the Industrial Revolution? 
 
 
 
 
Part III: People​: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6T1MvHyUic&t=76s  
(0:00) O ​ ur men's t-shirt was made here, in this factory  7. In which two countries were the 
in Bangladesh. Here's one of the​ p ​ eople who made it.   t-shirts made? Why do you think the 
  t-shirts were made in these two 
(0:10) O ​ ur women's t-shirt was​ ​made here, in this  countries and not the United States? 
factor in Colombia.    
   
(0:32) D ​ oris and Jasmine share a job, but they're   
separated by the economic r​ ealities of the countries   
they live in. Bangladesh is much poorer than 
Columbia​ ​and the role the garment industry plays in  8. How often does Jasmine work? 
Bangladesh, the role of our t-shirts, is very different.  How much money does she make? 
   
(0:54) J​ asmine Acktar lives with her brother,   
sister-in-law and, roommate in a tiny rooming house.   
There's no running water, just a gas stove to cook.   
There is a small TV​ ​and a bookcase that holds all her   
belongings. She leaves for work at 7am each day, six 
days a week. She makes one of the lowest wages in  9. Why did Jasmine start working in 
the world. about $80​ a ​ month.  the garment industry? 
   
(1:25) J​ asmine has been working in clothing factories   
since she was 16 years old and she is not alone. Four   
million people in Bangladesh work in the garment   
industry. That's double the number from a decade   
ago which raises the question, what has driven four   
million people to work long hours in these factories  10. For a woman like Jasmine, what 
for some of the lowest wages in the world?  are the benefits and costs to 
  working in the garment industry in 
(2:03) T ​ o answer that question we went back with  Bangladesh? 
Jasmine to the village where she grew up.​ A ​ lot of   
garment workers come from villages like​ ​Jasmine's   
where people worry about getting enough food to eat   
and sometimes don't and where girls are seen as an   
economic burden. The solution? Find a husband with   
the means to support your daughter but finding a   
good husband costs money, the dowry. In Jasmine's 

31
family, her older sister's dowry sent the family into  11. How is Doris’s life different than 
debt.  Jasmine’s?  
    
(2:35) J​ asmine Acktar, “Every day a man would come   
demanding money. I said, ‘Why are we sitting here   
doing nothing?’ I was adamant that we go to the city   
and earn more. I went there, worked, and helped my   
parents with money. Gradually, we paid our debt.   
   
(2:51)​ This was Jasmine's trade-off. Long hours and a 
monotonous low-wage job, but in a​ f​ actory she says  12. What is the difference between 
that feels safe, better than others she's worked in-an  the effects of the garment industry 
improvement, however slight, over life of even more  in Bangladesh and Columbia? 
crushing poverty in a village.    
(3:16) I​ n the middle of our t-shirt project, the worst   
garment industry disaster in history​ h ​ appened in   
Bangladesh: the factory collapse of Rana Plaza.   
Suddenly, the world was considering questions that   
we've been considering: who are the​ p ​ eople that   
make our clothes? What are their lives like?   
(3:35) M ​ ore than a thousand people died that day.   
They died seeking the same things that Jasmine was 
seeking a few more calories in their diet, the chance,   
maybe, to pay off a debt. They died,​ ​in other words, 
trying to make the same trade off that Jasmine had- a 
life of extreme poverty for one slightly better off.  
(3:57) O ​ ur women's t-shirt was made in a country with 
a much more advanced economy. In Columbia things 
there are different. 
Doris Restrepo lives there with her mother in a small 
apartment and she supports the two of them on the 
salary she earns at the factory where our shirts​ w ​ ere 
made.   
Doris Restrepo, “I image that the people who are 
going to use the T-shirt are people from the United 
States. Gringos. Fat. I imagine that they are fat 
people, because the shirts that we make are 
immense. And thus, we know that it is for gigantic 
people.”  
(4:39) D ​ oris makes almost four times what Jasmine 
makes in Bangladesh and can imagine a life outside 
the garment industry. Doris has a small side business 
selling pastries door-to-door and dreams of one day 
opening her own business. 
Doris Restrepo, “If everything turns out well this year, 
this is my last year in garments.” 
(5:08) I​ n Columbia, the garment industry is just an 
industry, but in Bangladesh it's a social upheaval. 
Millions of women​ l​ ike Jasmine living lives that just 

32
 twenty years ago would have been hard to 
imagine-lives filled with new risks and new 
possibilities.​ ​Most of the money Jasmine earns at the 
factory she sent home to her family but​ s​ he keeps 
about 10 bucks a month for herself for food or maybe 
an impulse​ p​ urchase on her one day off a week 
(5:40) W
​ e talked to both labor activists and factory 
owners about the impact of our t-shirt on the lives of 
people in Bangladesh. Is our shirt providing 
opportunities for people like Jasmine or is it taking 
advantage of a desperate population? 
(5:55) B​ oth the activists and the owners told us the 
same thing, that the worst possible outcome from 
tragedies like the factory collapse of Rana Plaza 
would be for the garment industry to leave 
Bangladesh altogether, but what they don't agree on, 
what they're fighting about right now,​ is ​what more 
needs to be done to improve the lives of workers in 
Bangladesh and​ ​what does it all have to do with the 
price of our t-shirt? 
Part IV: Boxes​, ​Part V: You​: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4aZzxEnIhE​ & 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9Amsk9_dJc  

(0:00) O ​ ur t-shirts got from the factories in Colombia  13. Why are containers important to 
and Bangladesh back home to us in this a shipping  the shipping industry? What effect 
container. This one right there, that's ours.   do they have?  
(0:19) C ​ ontainers are the unsung innovation that   
makes the global economy possible. Containers came   
on the scene in the 1960s. They made shipping which   
used to be a huge pain, much more effi​cient.    
(0:38) T ​ he container is loaded on to ​our ship,   
captained by this guy. ​The ship leaves Columbia a   
week later and it arrives in Miami. Our container,​ with   
our​ ​shirts inside, then gets loaded back onto a truck   
and then onto a train where it makes its way North.   
This whole journey, thousands of miles of ships, trains   
and,​ ​trucks cost just pennie​s per shirt.   
(1:15) [​ It is] a tiny fraction of the cost of the raw   
materials in our shirt, far less than the ​cost to print the   
design our shirt, and a drop in the bucket compared   
to what​ ​it costs for our shirts to take the final leg of 
the journey from our warehouse to you. So here's to   
you shipping container: humble hero of the global 
economy. 

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Globalization: Part 2 
Introduction 
 
➡ ​Directions​: Read the description below, then respond the prompts. 
 

 
Some historians argue that globalization started in the late 1400s, when explorers like Christopher Columbus and 
Vasco da Gama sailed to parts of the world that had little direct contact with one another like Europe and the 
Americas, southern and eastern Africa, and southern and southeast Asia. After the turning point that was the Age 
of Exploration, the pace of globalization increased because of innovations in technology and motivations to gain 
wealth, and exchange culture.  
 
A lot has changed since the 15th century. Read the descriptions of the methods for globalization’s spread in the 
15th century and then explain how we address those same needs today.  
 

In the 15th century people...    Today we... 

 
Communicated over long distances    communicate over long distances by… 
by writing letters that were carried     
by messengers on foot, horseback,     
or ship.     
   
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Traded over long distances by  trade over long distances by… 
shipping goods on foot, with the   
help of horse-drawn wagons, or on   
ships to markets where they were   
sold to buyers in person. If traders   
from Europe or Africa wanted to   
trade in the Americas it took   
between eight and twelve weeks to   
sail one way.    
 
 
 
 

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Why has there been an increase in globalization in the 20th and 21st 
centuries? 
➡ ​Directions​: As you learn about the four primary reasons why globalization has increased in the 20th and 21st 
centuries, answer the questions accompanying the documents and fill out the graphic organizer below.  

Reasons Why Globalization Has  Why did the examples given lead to 
Examples 
Increased  increased globalization? 

   
 
 
 
Innovation in Communication   
Technology   
 
 
 
 

   
 
 
 
 
Innovation in Transportation 
 
 
 
 
 

   
 
 
 
Promotion of and increase in free   
trade   
 
 
 
 

   
 
 
Availability and access to 
 
inexpensive and highly skilled 
 
labor   
 
 

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Reason #1: Innovation in ​Communication Technology 

Timeline of Communication   
Innovation  Watch ​this video from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ​explaining how 
  mobile phones have become an important tool for farmers in Africa.  
105 CE- Paper invented in China   
751- Paper introduced to the Muslim world 
1450- Johannes Gutenberg’s printing press   
invented 
Since the establishment of the first civilizations, innovations in 
communications technology have made it easier and faster for people to 
1843- Long distance telegraph line invented 
communicate over long distances. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the speed 
1844- Paper produced using wood pulp   of innovation has accelerated making it possible for us to communicate with 
1876- Telephone invented   one another across the globe in real time on cell phones as we walk down 
1901- The first radio signals transmitted   the street. Through the internet, we can now buy goods made by people 
1939- First black and white televisions sold   who live on a different continent and transfer money to them with the click 
1954- First color televisions sold   of a button even if we use different currency. The innovations that have 
made that possible have increased the rate of globalization. 
1958- The first photocopier  
 
1973- The first handheld mobile phone (4.4 
lbs)  
1976- Personal computers sold to the public  
1983- Mobile phones sold to public  
1989- Prototype for the World Wide Web 
(internet) built  
1992- First text message sent  
1995- Amazon.com launched 
1998- Google launched  
1999- The first smartphone is released in 
Japan    
 
2003- Skype video calling service is launched   Mobile phone evolution, 1992-2014. 
2004- Facebook launched   Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mobile_Phone_Evolution_1992_-_2014.jpg 

2005- YouTube launched  

2006- Twitter launched 

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 1. Identify two effects of the 
innovations in the ‘“Timeline 
of Communication 
Innovation.” 
 
 
 
 
 
2. Based on the video from the 
Bill and Melinda Gates 
Foundation, what effects can 
mobile phones have on 
farmers in Africa? 
 
 
   
   
Source: World Bank Group, ​http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.CEL.SETS.P2?view=chart

 
 
3. Based on the graph of 
internet users worldwide, 
describe the trend in the 
number of people using the 
internet since 1990. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4. Based on the graph of world 
mobile cellular subscriptions, 
describe the trend in the 
number of people using cell 
phones since 1990.   
   
Source: World Bank Group, ​http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.CEL.SETS.P2?view=chart

 
 
 
 
 
5. How might the innovations in 
communication technology 
described above have 
increased globalization in the 
20th and 21st centuries? 
 
 
 
 

37
 Reason #2: Innovation in ​Transportation 
In the 20th and 21st centuries, 
innovations in transportation, 
specifically having to do with 
shipping, have made it faster and 
less expensive for goods to be 
transported from one place to 
another. This has opened up new 
possibilities for where goods are 
produced and where they can be   
sold, which has brought most of  Chinese container ship docked at a port in the Netherlands.  
the world into the globalized  Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CSCL_Globe_(ship,_2014)_001.jpg   
economy. 

Watch this ​Ted-Ed video, “How 

Containerization Shaped the 
Modern World”​ explaining the 
effects of innovation in shipping 
container technology on the 
process of globalization. 

 
Container truck in Alexandria, Egypt.  
Source:​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CMA_CGM_container.JPG  

1. Based on the Stages of 

Container Ship Development 
Chart, identify three changes 
that have occurred in the 
development of container 
ships since the 1960s. 
 
 
   
  A freight train with shipping containers travelling through Texas.  
Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Denton_September_2015_04_(Union_Pacific_freight).jpg  
2. What innovation did Malcolm 
McClean come up with? What  Stages of Container Ship Development 
problems did it solve?  Time Period  Length (m)  Width (m)  Shipping Containers Held  Speed (knots) 
 
  1960s  190   27  1,000  16 
  1970s  210  27  2,000  23 
 
3. How might containerization  1980s  210-290  32  3,000  23 
have increased globalization 
mid-1980s  270-290  37-41  Above 4,000  24-24.8 
in the 20th and 21st 
centuries?  1992  290-320  39.6-47.2  Above 4,900  25 

1996  306-310  38-40  Above 6,000  25 

Since 2000  355-360  38-40  Above 8,000  25 

Source: Statistics from the Korea Maritime Institute, reported by UNESCAP 
http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/pub_2194_ch2.pdf 

38
Reason #3: Promotion of and increase in ​free trade 
Free Trade Vocabulary 
export​- good or  import- ​good or  tariff​- a tax on  quota​- a fixed  free trade​-  standard of living​- 
service that is  service that is  goods coming in  amount of  international trade  one’s level of 
sent out of a  brought into a  or out of a  something or  in which there are  wealth and 
country  country  country  number of things  no restrictions on  material comfort 
that can be  what is traded, 
produced,  how much is 
exported, or  traded, or how 
imported  much it costs to 
trade.  
 

Free trade ​is the name given to international trade in which there are no restrictions on ​what is traded​, ​how much 
is traded​, or ​how much it costs to trade​.  
 
Countries prevent free trade by requiring companies to pay ​tariffs​ on goods that they ​import​ or ​export​, or by establishing 
quotas​ that set a limit on the number of goods traded. A country can use tariffs and quotas to either encourage or 
discourage trade. For example, Country A might raise tariffs on imports to discourage computer companies from Country B 
selling their laptops in Country A. Country B’s computer companies would be less likely to sell laptops in Country A because 
they would have to pay money to Country A’s government in the form of tariffs and doing so would lessen their profit. 
Country A might also raise tariffs to give the computer companies in their country an advantage over companies from other 
countries with hopes of keeping more factories, computer stores, and related jobs in their country.  
 
People who support free trade view tariffs and quotas as ​“barriers of trade”​ and want to get rid of them so companies and 
workers can move freely across international borders to make and sell their goods and services. They believe that by doing 
this, companies will be able to make products as inexpensively as possible, people will be free to move to where they can 
find work most easily, and in the end, more people will have jobs, companies will make more profits, and consumers will be 
able to get goods and services at the best price. Right now, there are no examples of purely free-trade economies, but 
several organizations are working activity to make that a reality.  
 
When barriers to trade like tariffs and quotas are lifted, the pace of globalization is accelerated because businesses see an 
opportunity to make more profit, so they build more factories where labor is inexpensive and more stores where people are 
wealthy enough to purchase their goods. The places where the factories and stores are built, and where the company is 
headquartered, are then more interconnected. 

1. What methods might a  2. Why do supporters of free  3. How might more free trade have 
country use to prevent free  trade support it?  increased globalization in the 
trade?  20th and 21st centuries?  

     
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Organizations that Promote Free Trade 
Some organizations promote free trade because its serves their interests. The actions they have taken to make free trade a 
reality are some of the reasons why globalization has increased in the 20th and 21st centuries. In the activities below, you 
will learn about two such organizations: multinational corporations and the World Trade Organization. 
 
What are multinational corporations? 
A ​multinational corporation​ is a business that owns or controls production of goods or services in one or more countries 
other than their home country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation or a transnational corporation. The 
world’s most well known companies are multinational corporations. For example, McDonald's, which is an American-owned 
company has restaurants in countries all over the world and gets ingredients for their food from multiple countries. Clothing 
manufacturers like Nike might get the cotton to make their materials from the United States, then ship that cotton to 
Bangladesh to have it turned into a shirt, and then have it shipped to Berlin, Germany to sell it. 
 
Why do to multinational corporations support free trade? 
Businesses are able to profit the most if they keep costs for materials and manufacturing low, while selling for the highest 
price possible. Different parts of the world have different “​standards of living​,” which means that they have different levels of 
wealth. Multinational corporations support free trade for three main reasons. 
1. Free trade enables multinational corporations to buy materials at the lowest cost possible without having to pay 
tariffs. 
2. Because of free trade, they can build factories in countries with low standards of living which means that they do 
not have to pay workers as much money as they would in countries with higher standards of living.  
3. Multinational corporations can then sell their goods, which they made with as little cost as possible, to people in 
wealthy nations that have high standards of living and who will pay the highest price without having to pay tariffs. 

1. What is a multinational 
corporation? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2. Why do multinational 
corporations support free 
trade? 
 
 
 
 
   
  Nike stores in Berlin, Germany; Osaka, Japan; and Paris, France. ​Source ​1​, ​2,​ and ​3​. 
 
 
 
 
 

40
 World Trade Organization 
What is the World Trade Organization? 
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization that negotiates trade agreements between countries. 
Through their agreements, which most countries in the world have signed, the WTO sets the rules for international trade.  
 
According to the WTO, their goal is “​to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their 
business, while allowing governments to meet social and environmental objectives” and to “to help trade flow as freely as 
possible.” The WTO ​encourages free trade by requiring governments to lower tariffs, quotas, and other restrictions to trade 
through the contracts they sign.  
 
The WTO also helps countries settle trade disputes, which usually arise when one country accuses another of not following 
the rules of agreements that were negotiated with the WTO. Usually, a dispute occurs when one country raises tariffs on 
another, or gives subsidies (money from the government) to their own companies so they can have an advantage over 
foreign businesses. 
 
Why does the World Trade Organization support free trade? 
The World Trade Organization supports free trade because, according to their website, they believe that trade without 
restrictions encourages economic activity in all countries involved and that by following the same rules, trade between 
countries will be fairer. The WTO believes that free trade benefits the most people in the world by providing employment to 
those in less developed countries who are making goods while giving people in more developed countries less expensive 
goods.  
 
Sources: ​https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/who_we_are_e.htm​; ​https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/what_stand_for_e.htm 

1. What is the World Trade 

Organization (WTO)? 
 
 
 
   
World Trade Organization Logo.   2. What is the goal of the WTO? 
Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:World_Trade_Organization_(logo_and_wordmark).svg 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Why does the WTO support free 
trade? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

41
Reason #4: Availability and access to ​inexpensive and highly skilled labor 
Businesses often try to cut the costs of making products or providing services so they can maximize their profits. One of the 
ways they do this is by paying workers less money. Globalization and free-trade agreements have made it possible for 
multinational corporations to look for workers around the world who have the skills they need at the lowest costs they can 
find.  
Depending on the product or service that the company provides, they need workers with different skills. For example, sewing 
t-shirts is a skill that can be taught to most people and does not require much formal education, so a clothing company can 
find workers to do this job in countries with the lowest labor costs possible as long as they train them to operate the 
machines used to make the clothes. As a result, many clothing manufacturers make their goods in countries like Bangladesh 
where there is a low standard of living.  
Editing a book, on the other hand, requires that the person reading it have a deep understanding of language and writing 
techniques, so an author would need to find an editor with those skills. Some authors have been able to find the least 
expensive editors who qualify for this job in places like the Philippines or India where the standard of living is lower than 
places like the United States or Europe, but many people have a formal education in English.  
The availability of high skill laborers at a low cost has increased the rate of globalization in the 20th and 21st centuries 
because multinational corporations find it beneficial to hire workers at the lowest cost and people with skills and education in 
less developed countries want jobs that will bring them more wealth. As a result of this exchange, extreme poverty in 
countries with people who are employed by multinational corporations has decreased.  
 
Source: “Self Pub Companies Outsourcing Editing?” ​http://newbieauthorsguide.com/2012/07/02/self-pub-companies-outsourcing-editing/  

The map to the right shows the global  Global Minimum Wages per hour in US Dollars, 2014 
minimum wages per hour in US dollars. 
States and subnational jurisdictions less 
than 20,000 km​2​ in area and with data 
available are shown as colored circles. No 
circles are shown for small states without 
data available. 
 
Key 
​ $10.01–$16.88 
​ $7.51–$10.00 
​ $5.01–$7.50 
​ 3.00$–$5.00 
​ $2.01–$3.00 
​ $1.01–$2.00 
​ $0.00-$1.00 
​ No minimum wage   
​ No data  Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_global_minimum_wages_per_hour_in_USD.svg  

In the map to the right, the average  Education Index, 2008 

education of the inhabitants of each 
country falls into three broad categories: 
high​, ​medium​, and ​low​ educational 
development. The darkest green 
represents the most educated population 
and the deepest red represents the least 
educated. 

 
Source: ​https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Education_index_UN_HDR_2007_2008.PNG  

42
 1. Why do multinational companies hire people from other countries to make their goods and provide their services? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2. Based on the maps above, what regions of the world have the highest wages? Which have the lowest wages? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Based on your response to question 4b, which regions are multinational corporation most likely to make their 
goods in and which regions are they most likely to sell their goods in? Why? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4. Based on the maps above, which regions of the world have low wages and high education? Why might a 
multinational corporation want to manufacture goods in these regions? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5. How might the availability of inexpensive and highly skilled labored have increased globalization in the 20th and 
21st centuries? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

43