China after 1949: the People's Republic, the Cultural Revolution and later reforms
Grade 10 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
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.
Card D is a summary written today. What is it better evidence for than card C, Bo asks?
- Which government the United States recognized as China's before 1979
- Whether the two governments settled their dispute about who rules China
- Why Nixon decided to visit China in February 1972, not earlier
- What the People's Republic affirmed about Taiwan in the 1972 communiqué
A student wants to know why the Nationalists went to Taiwan. Cards A to D are all summaries. How far do they help, Esme asks?
- They show the Nationalists chose Taiwan to keep their claim to China alive
- They explain the move as a reaction to the People's Republic being declared on October 1
- They explain it: the United States recognized the Republic of China on Taiwan until 1979
- They give the move and its date but no reasons, so another source is needed
Cards A and D together. What do they show about the Nationalists after 1949, Jun asks?
- They gave up their claim to China when they left the mainland for Taiwan
- 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 kept their claim, and the United States stopped recognizing them in 1971
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 seat was a UN change in 1971, and card D dates US recognition of the People's Republic to 1979
- 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
A student says the 1972 communiqué settled who should govern China. How do cards C and D answer, Luz asks?
- Neither card helps, since both are summaries written long after the events and cannot be trusted
- Card D settles it, since the United States recognized the Republic of China until 1979
- Card C records wording about Taiwan, and card D shows two governments still claiming China
- Card C settles it, since the People's Republic and the United States agreed about Taiwan
Which claim do the four cards support, Milo asks?
- Nixon's visit in 1972 came before the People's Republic took China's UN seat
- The People's Republic's UN seat in 1971 ended US recognition of the Republic of China
- Two governments each claimed China after 1949, and the US recognized the Republic of China until 1979
- The United States and the People's Republic agreed in 1972 that Taiwan was part of one Chinese state, ending the dispute
A student summarizes cards B and D: 'The UN seat in 1971 and Nixon's visit in 1972 show the United States accepted the People's Republic as China's government.' What is wrong, Noah asks?
- A seat and a visit show a change at the UN and contact, while card D dates recognition to 1979
- The visit came before the seat in the order of events, so it cannot show that the United States accepted anything
- The United States voted for the seat in 1971, which card B leaves out
- The visit shows acceptance, but the UN seat is a separate matter
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.
Cards A and B give three figures for the famine. Which statement do they best support, Ren asks?
- The sources disagree too much to say anything about the size of the famine
- Sources differ on the toll, but the scholars' range and card A's figure cluster near 30 million
- The official 15 million is the safest figure, because the government kept the records at the time
- The toll was 30 million, because two sources give that number
Card A says 'an estimated thirty million.' What does the word 'estimated' tell a reader, Tala asks?
- The figure is a guess with no evidence behind it, made by scholars who had no records to use
- The figure is a reckoning from other evidence, not a count of each person
- The figure is a minimum, so the true toll must be higher
- The figure comes from an official list of each person, kept at the time
A student says the scholars' range is double the official estimate. What does card B show, Zee asks?
- Less than double, because the gap of 15 to 20 million is smaller than 30 million
- About two to a little over two times: 30 is twice 15, and 35 is about 2.3 times 15
- Exactly double, because 30 million is twice 15 million
- Not comparable, because the scholars' figure is a consensus and the official one comes from the government
