Activity 1 - Which events should we revise?

  1. Mind-Map - Create a concept-map using Padlet, Mindmup or any other similar mind-mapping tool (or create a sketchnote by hand!). In the middle write ‘The Korean War 1950-53’.
  2. Summarise - Now fill in your mind-map with key historical information and facts about the main events of the unit. Review your notes and summarise using the following headings and events:
    1. Causes - Red Scare, Soviet atomic bomb, Loss of China, Failure of Joint Commission for Korea, Division of Korea, Border Clashes, Nature of DPRK/ROK, Withdrawal of Soviet/US troops, Dean Acheson’s Perimeter Speech, Role of Stalin and Mao
    2. Course - First Phase (June 1950-Oct 1950): US Response, US 8th Army, MacArthur, UN Response, Resolution 82/83/84, Fall of Seoul, NKPA Blitzkrieg, Battle of Busan Perimeter, Battle of Incheon, Second Battle for Seoul, Shift to Rollback, Pursuit to Yalu River. Second Phase (Oct 1950-July 1951): Five Chinese Phase Offensives, Truman threatens Nuclear Weapons, Shift to Limited War, General Ridgway Reforms, Move to Attrition, UNC Counter-offensives, MacArthur’s public attacks on Truman and dismissal. Third Phase (July 1951-July 1953): Ceasefire talks begin, Kaesong Talks, five item road map, line of control issue, POW issue, see-saw battles, MacArthur Hearings, Election of Eisenhower, Death of Stalin, Panmunjom Agreement, Opposition of Syngman Rhee, Kansas Line, DMZ, NNRC.
    3. Resolution - Kaesong Talks and Five-Point Roadmap: agenda, ceasefire line, supervisory arrangements, pows, political settlement, repatriation issue, NNSC, MAC, Eisenhower’s visit, Massive Retaliation and Brinkmanship, Role of Stalin in blocking talks, Death of Stalin, Atomic threats, Opposition of Rhee, Korean Armistice Agreement, DMZ, Failure of Geneva Conference.
    4. Impact - Casualties, DPRK: Economic damage, Stalinist Reconstruction, Juche/Chollima, Collectivisation, Nationalisation, Consolidation of Kim Il Sung’s power, purges of rivals, cult of personality. ROK: Economic damage, US Aid, Rhee’s consolidation of power, April Revolution 1960, Military Coup 1961, Park Chung-hee’s reforms, Miracle on the Han River, ROK/US Mutual Defense Treaty 1953, Korea-Japan Treaty 1965, DPRK hostility. PRC: War costs, delays to Five-Year Plan, Peng Dehuai, Failure over Taiwan. USSR: New military technology, Tension with China, Failure in CW, European Rearmament. USA: NSC-68, Military Spending, NATO Rearmament, Containment in Asia, ANZUS/SEATO, Treaty of San Francisco, Disillusionment with Truman’s Policies, MacArthur Hearings, Presidential Election, Eisenhower Threats.
  3. Revise - Use your mind maps to help you revise the historical content for your upcoming assessment and final exams. Make sure you store a copy with your other revision materials.

Activity 2 - What was our inquiry?

  1. Recall -  Examine the statement of inquiry for this unit again and consider how it applies to what you’ve studied:
    1. The consequences of modern wars are far reaching, highlighting the interconnected nature of the global system
  2. Analyse - With a partner, discuss how this statement of inquiry could be applied to the Korean War. Consider the following questions:
    1. Connect - How is the statement of inquiry connected to what you have studied?
    2. Extend - Does the statement of inquiry extend your thinking about the Korean War in any way?
    3. Challenge - What is challenging or confusing about the statement of inquiry? 
  3. Discuss - Does the statement of inquiry apply to the Korean War? What other events in history might it also apply to?
  4. Evaluate - What were the most significant consequences of the Korean War?

Activity 3 - How might we be assessed?

  1. Essay Plan - Try practicing for your end of unit review by essay planning previous questions on this topic. Use this essay mark-scheme to help:
    1. Discuss the economic and political impact of the Korean War on the Korean peninsula. Nov 2019
    2. Discuss the impact of foreign intervention on the Korean War (1950–1953). Nov 2017
    3. To what extent were foreign powers responsible for the outbreak of the Korean War? Specimen Paper
    4. Evaluate the impact of foreign powers on the causes and development of the Korean War - Teacher Example
    5. “The Korean War wasn’t resolved for three years because Stalin didn’t want the war to end”. To what extent do you agree with this statement? - Teacher Example

Further Reading for Revision

OBLIGATORY READING
  1. Malkasian, C. (2001). Osprey Essential Histories: The Korean War 1950-1953
RECOMMENDED READING
SUPPLEMENTAL READING
  1. Thomas, N., & Abbott, P. (1986). Osprey Men at Arms: The Korean War 1950-1953
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