Welcome to the Russian dictatorships section of the site.

Those of you who used the old site will know it as predominantly a vehicle to discuss Russian history. These pages are designed to support Little Heath A2 students studying for their summer examination. Our examination board is OCR, and the paper is Russia and its rulers 1855 – 1964. The paper code is Y318.

As before, we envisage that different students will use different parts of the site in different ways. Most students find the schemes of work and assessment sections above as particularly useful for reference. You should however also look at the additional materials section. This has lots in it to support and extend your studies. Look for example at the excellent quotation bank from a previous student. Below this post will be articles of news about Russian history. You will also see posts here that will be used for online discussion homeworks where we will want you to add (ideally constructive) comments.

Above all however, we want this to be your site. However you use it is fine, but please take ownership of it.

Mr Kydd

(askydd@yahoo.co.uk)

Oh and just for old times sake, here are two top historians (Mr Jarrett and me circa 2030 ?) debating the origins of the Russian Revolution – perhaps…

Please find here the department’s 5Rs document (Research, Reflect, Review, Read around, and Respond to feedback). It sets out what A Levels students should expect from us, and what we expect from you.

Finally,  this is a complete list of all the past questions from the old course. However, students are reminded that the latest Ofqual pronouncements on examinations which instructed the boards that;

  • All parts of the course must be examined.
  • No question should be (exactly) repeated.

You class teacher will discuss what this means for your revision with you. Perhaps more useful in essay planning is this revision work booklet.

Mr Kydd.

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BBC Soviet witness reports

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Obviously I am not teaching Russia  this year. That said, I did stumble across this excellent collection of BBC reports from across the twentieth Century. It is well worth a look.

Mr Kydd

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Repression board work from today’s lesson.

Causes of repression

And as a three paragraph plan for a 40 minutes essay

Acton lecture – legitimacy theses

repression3

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Khrushchev’s foreign policy videos

As promised.

 

 

 

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Enrichment – something to discuss in History Society. Is Putin the new Red Tsar?

Private Eye - 22nd January 2020

Private Eye – 22nd January 2020

All,

So much of our Russian work is about levels of autocracy, central control and personality cults. It was once said of Stalin, that “all the past repeats itself, but acts only behind new masks”. We have discussed the place of Putin in the list of Russian rulers a number of times, but many would argue that recent developments have put the threat to Russian liberal democracy at a new level.

Three questions?

  • Does it?
  • If it does – how valid are parallels with our time period (1855 – 1964)?
  • Is the real lesson of our course (and indeed of the chaos of Yeltsin’s Russia) that liberal democracy cannot be effective in a country as diverse and huge as Russia?

Have a look at the links below – what do you think? Please be aware that different positions can be taken on all these issues…

  • Click here for an article from The Guardian suggesting that Putin’s ministers were not told of their recent forced resignation plans!
  •  Click here for Putin challenging Poland about its role in the Holocaust in the Second World War. Is this rewriting history?
  • Click here for a discussion of the treatment of Pussy Riot.pots
  • Click here for the article What happened to Russian democracy?
  • Click here for a list of political exiles Putin is accused of murdering.
  • Click here for a discussion of the staged pictures of Putin as an all action hero.
  • Click here for Peter Pomeranstev’s “Nothing is True and Everything is Possible: Adventures in Modern Russia”.

Have a read / listen / think, and make your own mind up. We will discuss this in History Society in the near future.

Mr Kydd.

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Board work from today’s lesson.

All,

As promised, below are the board screenshots from the last two lessons. Please remember, – back-to-back in timed conditions.

essay-plan-communists-and-tsars-rule-in-the-same-way-40-45-minutes

timeline-of-turning-points

Turning points planMr Kydd.

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History Society – recent content for those who missed the sessions Stalin in 1941 – Man of Steel (excellent for the role of war) and Red Flag (excellent on the attraction of Communism and Stalinist industrialisation)

For those of you who missed the recent sessions. These are excellent / worth a watch (even if you don’t get cake).

1941 – Stalin, man of Steel.

Red Flag – 1917 (people’s Century)

 

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From today’s lesson – Plan – economic modernisation was the only meaningful reason for for change in the Russian countryside in the period 1855 – 1964 – Discuss

economic modernisation

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The 2018 interpretations paper – consequences of the Great Reforms

220px-RR5220-0009RFrom today’s lesson;

Your papers are due at the start of next week. Remember that you will get a marked 29/30 answer done in examination conditions in next Thursday’s Know The Standard evening. I am now off to get some therapy, having heard was my voice actually sounds like.

Mr Kydd.

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Summer work videos

Video to watch and note. X2 sides of A4 for each plesae. Again I will be take these in in our first lesson.

 

2. Visit the excellent Russian Revolution: Hope, Tragedy, Myths

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From today’s lesson – analysis on the minorities and that treated the peoples essay plan

Please click here for today’s notes on the minorities.

Who treated the peoples of Russia better

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