HSC Modern History Question Thread

[sudodds]

Hey Susie! I only just discovered the Events leading to Armistice dot point like 2 weeks ago haha, never knew it existed! If there was a question on this would it just involve discussing German home front/starvation, growth of Allied strategies and tactics due to industrial strength and battle of hamel, amiens and argonne (best way of remembering that name because after this battle the germans 'argonne'  )
cheers!

ahaha don't worry i was the same, that and reasons for allied victory I pretty much learned the day before. Thats pretty much everything yeah, you'd probably want to mention the capture of the Hindenburg line as well! And also the fact that the allied Generals were just a lot better at doing their job (eg. Foch, Currie and Monash)

[dancing phalanges]

ahaha don't worry i was the same, that and reasons for allied victory I pretty much learned the day before. Thats pretty much everything yeah, you'd probably want to mention the capture of the Hindenburg line as well! And also the fact that the allied Generals were just a lot better at doing their job (eg. Foch, Currie and Monash)

I'm pretty sure it said they captured the Hindenburg line right after argonne so would just saying that be sweet?

[marcusgrahamm]

Thanks for the assistance with the Gorbachev essay before!
I was wondering if you have any predictions for what the Germany and Cold War questions might be?

[sudodds]

I'm pretty sure it said they captured the Hindenburg line right after argonne so would just saying that be sweet?

Yes, but I'd probably want to explicitly mention the Hindenburg line, because it was that specific thing that was really the final straw for Ludendorff. Like in my class we didn't even really learn much about Argonne as a battle, the focus was way more on the capture of the Hindenburg line.

[sudodds]

Thanks for the assistance with the Gorbachev essay before!
I was wondering if you have any predictions for what the Germany and Cold War questions might be?

No worries! Can't say much for Germany aha, but i've got a hunch that it could be a Detente and Renewal and End pairing, as again, they know students neglect to study these areas in comparison to development!

[dancing phalanges]

Yes, but I'd probably want to explicitly mention the Hindenburg line, because it was that specific thing that was really the final straw for Ludendorff. Like in my class we didn't even really learn much about Argonne as a battle, the focus was way more on the capture of the Hindenburg line.

Ah okay yeah we never looked at argonne or any of the battles or the capture of the hindenburg line ahha didn't know that was even separate thanks susie!! and for germany predictions i reckon totalitarian is a fair shot

[marcusgrahamm]

I am praying with every bone in my body its detente! I just have this hunch they much defer from the trend of testing section 4 every second year... I'm hoping for totalitarianism in Germany, but I feel like it could honestly be anything...

[flashguts321]

Hi there,

I know you shouldn't place too much emphasis on predictions, but does anyone have any predictions for the Conflict In The Pacific (1937-1951) section? Can't find that much info on it, but have prepared 8 ish essay scaffolds.

Thanks

[dancing phalanges]

Hi there,

I know you shouldn't place too much emphasis on predictions, but does anyone have any predictions for the Conflict In The Pacific (1937-1951) section? Can't find that much info on it, but have prepared 8 ish essay scaffolds.

Thanks

i personally strongly believe there will be 1 question R.E reasons allied victory japanese collapse which would be perfect seeing you can cover heaps of info. my other inkling is on the impact of japanese occupation on occupied territories

[liya1234]

What would a soviet foreign policy and power struggle combined essay question look like? Would it be asking about how the aims of foreign policy changed during the power struggle or something similar? I haven't thought about that at all and didn't really realise they could draw a question from two sections like that so I should probably get onto that!

Also I've been having some trouble with Part B of the personality section - I cannot seem to push my mark above a 13.5 and I don't really know what else to improve without spending an hour on that section. Our trial question was really straightforward for our personality and I thought I had prepared well but i was given feedback that though i had a clear line of argument and good detail I needed greater overall depth and breadth (not really sure what this means as I covered all the dot points - do i need to just include more information under each??). If anyone has any advice on how to achieve a more sophisticated response (especially in the very limited time given for this section!!) it would really be appreciated. Thanks so much in advance!!

[sudodds]

What would a soviet foreign policy and power struggle combined essay question look like? Would it be asking about how the aims of foreign policy changed during the power struggle or something similar? I haven't thought about that at all and didn't really realise they could draw a question from two sections like that so I should probably get onto that!

Also I've been having some trouble with Part B of the personality section - I cannot seem to push my mark above a 13.5 and I don't really know what else to improve without spending an hour on that section. Our trial question was really straightforward for our personality and I thought I had prepared well but i was given feedback that though i had a clear line of argument and good detail I needed greater overall depth and breadth (not really sure what this means as I covered all the dot points - do i need to just include more information under each??). If anyone has any advice on how to achieve a more sophisticated response (especially in the very limited time given for this section!!) it would really be appreciated. Thanks so much in advance!!

Oh I think you misunderstood what I meant aha - when I said combo, I meant the two questions as a whole. Like one question would be on power struggles, the other would be soviet foreign policy aha. Sorry for the confusion.

HOWEVER.

There is nothing actually stopping them from combining sections, and it is something that my teacher is predicting they may do soon - namely a power struggles essay that spans the entire period, from 1917 to 1941, rather than just the period directly after Lenin's death. If you were to be faced with this question specifically, I'd have a paragraph on early Bolshevik power struggles (Biggest one here would be Civil War, but could also discuss Trotsky's and Lenin's early and tense relationship, and the Provisional Government), the Trotsky v. Stalin power struggle (could also bring in Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin) and then Stalin v. everyone (eg. Purges, show trials, etc. etc.)

In terms of how to improve the personality study, once you get to the 13+/15 marks, it is usually only detail that is the differentiator. When handing in drafts and practice essays, my teacher often would just say 23+ or 13+ rather than give me an exact mark, just because once it gets to that point, according to him, its very much dependant upon who is marking it. That may not be the answer you want aha, but essentially a 15/15 to one marker may be a 13/15 for another, because at that point it is just a) does it have enough detail to warrant the mark, and b) links (ie. can you link factors to each other individually, and can you then link factors to a broader theme?).

Hope this helps!

Susie

[Primallis]

Hello people,

With the Spanish Civil War, I know it falls under the Collapse of Collective Security dot point but could it also be interpreted as a policy of appeasement since Britain and France only provided basic medical relief to the Republicans so too not start a future war with the Fascist powers? AJP Taylor states that the League was already ''dead" by this point so it was basically the policy of appeasement by Britain and France being used to subdue Hitler & Mussolini rather than the league? Just wanted to hear people's thoughts.

Good luck my fellow Modern Students.

[ayylmaolad]

(b) Evaluate Hitler’s role in the Nazi state between 1933 and 1939.

How would i go about answering this question? I don't know where to begin and any help will be very appreciated 

[liya1234]

Oh I think you misunderstood what I meant aha - when I said combo, I meant the two questions as a whole. Like one question would be on power struggles, the other would be soviet foreign policy aha. Sorry for the confusion.

HOWEVER.

There is nothing actually stopping them from combining sections, and it is something that my teacher is predicting they may do soon - namely a power struggles essay that spans the entire period, from 1917 to 1941, rather than just the period directly after Lenin's death. If you were to be faced with this question specifically, I'd have a paragraph on early Bolshevik power struggles (Biggest one here would be Civil War, but could also discuss Trotsky's and Lenin's early and tense relationship, and the Provisional Government), the Trotsky v. Stalin power struggle (could also bring in Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin) and then Stalin v. everyone (eg. Purges, show trials, etc. etc.)

In terms of how to improve the personality study, once you get to the 13+/15 marks, it is usually only detail that is the differentiator. When handing in drafts and practice essays, my teacher often would just say 23+ or 13+ rather than give me an exact mark, just because once it gets to that point, according to him, its very much dependant upon who is marking it. That may not be the answer you want aha, but essentially a 15/15 to one marker may be a 13/15 for another, because at that point it is just a) does it have enough detail to warrant the mark, and b) links (ie. can you link factors to each other individually, and can you then link factors to a broader theme?).

Hope this helps!

Susie

Oh that makes more sense - i'm so used to thinking about this period in terms of the syllabus i'd be so thrown off if we got a question like that so thank you for explaining that!! also i was going through some really old past papers and i think back in around 2007 they had a question about the impact of Stalinism on foreign policy which was really interesting to consider as well

And I guess i just need to work on making those links clearer in part B and maybe writing in a more sophisticated register. thanks for all your help!!

[rodero]

Hey guys,

Can someone please give me a quick rundown of Hitler's accession to power? Mainly an overview of the backdoor deals that happened and their years. Thanks !