China after 1949: the People's Republic, the Cultural Revolution and later reforms

Grade 10 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A to D, summaries in our words, written today. Card A: On October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong declared the People's Republic of China, ending the civil war between the Communist Party and the Nationalists. The Nationalists, led by Chiang Kai-shek, retreated to the island of Taiwan. Card B: In October 1971 the People's Republic took China's seat in the United Nations. In February 1972 President Richard Nixon visited China. Card C: In the Shanghai Communiqué of 1972, the People's Republic affirmed that Taiwan is part of China. The United States acknowledged that Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintained that there is one China. Card D: Both governments held that there is one China, and each claimed to be its rightful government. Until 1979 the United States recognized the Republic of China, on Taiwan, as China's government. In 1979 it set up formal relations with the People's Republic.

2. 1.

   Card C summarizes the 1972 Shanghai Communiqué. Which question is it better evidence for than card A, Ari asks?

   • What the People's Republic and the United States each said about Taiwan in 1972
   • Why the Nationalists left the mainland for Taiwan after the 1949 civil war
   • Whether people living on Taiwan accepted the wording of the 1972 communiqué
   • Whether the United States had formal relations with the People's Republic by early 1972
3. 2.

   Card D is a summary written today. What is it better evidence for than card C, Bo asks?

   • Why Nixon decided to visit China in February 1972, not earlier
   • What the People's Republic affirmed about Taiwan in the 1972 communiqué
   • Which government the United States recognized as China's before 1979
   • Whether the two governments settled their dispute about who rules China
4. 3.

   Cards A and D together. What do they show about the Nationalists after 1949, Jun asks?

   • They kept their claim, and the United States stopped recognizing them in 1971
   • They moved to Taiwan but still claimed to be China's rightful government
   • They kept their claim, which the People's Republic accepted by affirming Taiwan is part of China
   • They gave up their claim to China when they left the mainland for Taiwan
5. 4.

   A student says the 1971 UN seat meant the United States recognized the People's Republic. How do cards B and D answer, Kira asks?

   • The student is right: card D says the United States recognized China's government, and the seat went to China's government
   • The student is right: Nixon visited China in 1972, so the United States must have recognized it by then
   • The student is wrong: the United States recognized the People's Republic in 1949, so the seat changed nothing for it
   • The seat was a UN change in 1971, and card D dates US recognition of the People's Republic to 1979
6. 5.

   A student says the 1972 communiqué settled who should govern China. How do cards C and D answer, Luz asks?

   • Card D settles it, since the United States recognized the Republic of China until 1979
   • Card C settles it, since the People's Republic and the United States agreed about Taiwan
   • Neither card helps, since both are summaries written long after the events and cannot be trusted
   • Card C records wording about Taiwan, and card D shows two governments still claiming China
7. 6.

   Which claim do the four cards support, Milo asks?

   • The United States and the People's Republic agreed in 1972 that Taiwan was part of one Chinese state, ending the dispute
   • Nixon's visit in 1972 came before the People's Republic took China's UN seat
   • Two governments each claimed China after 1949, and the US recognized the Republic of China until 1979
   • The People's Republic's UN seat in 1971 ended US recognition of the Republic of China
8. 7.

   A student calls 1949 the start of China's division into two governments. Which cards support that, Pia asks?

   • Cards A and D: a government on the mainland and one on Taiwan, each claiming to be China
   • Cards A and B: 22 years passed between 1949 and 1971, so the division lasted that long
   • Cards B and C: the UN seat and the communiqué show two governments dealing with other countries
   • Cards B and C: both mention one China, so the two sides were already agreed

9. Use this

   Cards A and B, summaries in our words, written today. Card A (Columbia University, Asia for Educators): From 1958 the Great Leap Forward organized the countryside into communes. An estimated thirty million people lost their lives to starvation from 1960 to 1962. Card B (Harvard University, Invisible Histories): The famine's toll remains controversial. The official Chinese estimate is 15 million. The consensus of independent scholars is 30 to 35 million.

10. 8.

    Cards A and B give three figures for the famine. Which statement do they best support, Ren asks?

    • Sources differ on the toll, but the scholars' range and card A's figure cluster near 30 million
    • The sources disagree too much to say anything about the size of the famine
    • The toll was 30 million, because two sources give that number
    • The official 15 million is the safest figure, because the government kept the records at the time
11. 9.

    Card A says 'an estimated thirty million.' What does the word 'estimated' tell a reader, Tala asks?

    • The figure comes from an official list of each person, kept at the time
    • The figure is a minimum, so the true toll must be higher
    • The figure is a reckoning from other evidence, not a count of each person
    • The figure is a guess with no evidence behind it, made by scholars who had no records to use
12. 10.

    A student says the scholars' range is double the official estimate. What does card B show, Zee asks?

    • About two to a little over two times: 30 is twice 15, and 35 is about 2.3 times 15
    • Less than double, because the gap of 15 to 20 million is smaller than 30 million
    • Not comparable, because the scholars' figure is a consensus and the official one comes from the government
    • Exactly double, because 30 million is twice 15 million