2024 IB DP History Practice Paper with Answers

To construct a high-scoring essay, students should structure their response as follows:

1. Introduction: Contextualize the rise of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte and the transition from the Second Republic to the Second Empire in 1852. State a clear thesis evaluating the degree of domestic stability achieved by 1870.

2. Economic Policies: Discuss the success of state-led modernization, including Baron Haussmann's rebuilding of Paris, the expansion of the national railway network, the creation of modern investment banks (such as the Credit Mobilier), and the 1860 Cobden-Chevalier free trade treaty. Argue how economic prosperity was used to legitimize the regime and defuse social unrest.

3. Social and Educational Reforms: Analyze policies aimed at winning working-class support, such as the legalization of strikes in 1864, the tolerance of limited trade union activity, and educational reforms led by Victor Duruy.

4. Political Liberalization (The Liberal Empire): Examine the transition from the 'Authoritarian Empire' (1852-1860) to the 'Liberal Empire' (1860-1870). Highlight how granting more power to the Legislative Body, easing press censorship, and amnesty for political opponents co-opted moderate critics but also emboldened radical republicans.

5. Failures and Limitations: Evaluate the persistent structural weaknesses, such as the alienation of the Catholic church due to his Italian policy, the growing strength of republican opposition led by figures like Leon Gambetta, and how the stability of the regime remained overly dependent on foreign policy prestige, which ultimately collapsed due to the Franco-Prussian War rather than internal revolution.

6. Conclusion: Summarize the arguments, concluding that while Napoleon III achieved remarkable mid-term economic and social stabilization, his political reforms failed to establish a durable constitutional consensus independent of his personal rule and military success.

Marking criteria:

13-15 marks: Demonstrates a clear understanding of the complexity of Napoleon III's domestic policies. Offers a balanced and well-structured analysis of both success (economic modernization, social pacification, liberal reforms) and failure (unresolved political opposition, dependence on foreign success). Supported by precise historical detail.

10-12 marks: Analysis is generally sound but may favor one aspect (e.g., economic successes) over others. Well-structured but with fewer specific historical details.

7-9 marks: Descriptive rather than analytical. Focuses on general narratives of Napoleon III's reign without clearly addressing the concept of 'stabilization' or the timeline of 1852-1870.

4-6 marks: Limited knowledge, lacks structure, and contains significant inaccuracies.

1-3 marks: Little to no understanding of the topic.

A strong essay should address both the political and economic dimensions of the New Deal's impact on African Americans:

1. Introduction: Define the historical context of the Great Depression, noting that African Americans suffered disproportionately due to systemic racism. Outline the thesis that the New Deal was a vital economic lifeline but fell short of challenging institutional segregation, while sparking a historic political realignment.

2. Economic Impact - Relief and Employment: Discuss positive impacts, such as the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) providing jobs to hundreds of thousands of Black workers. Note the role of the Public Works Administration (PWA) in mandating quotas for hiring Black labor.

3. Economic Impact - Limitations and Discrimination: Analyze how key New Deal legislation excluded or harmed African Americans. The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) led to the eviction of Black tenant farmers and sharecroppers in the South. The National Recovery Administration (NRA) permitted lower wage scales for Black workers or failed to protect them. The Social Security Act of 1935 excluded domestic and agricultural sectors, where the majority of Black Americans worked.

4. Political Impact - Realignment: Explain the dramatic shift in voting patterns, where the majority of African American voters moved from the Republican Party (the party of Lincoln) to the Democratic Party, driven by economic assistance and the visible advocacy of Eleanor Roosevelt.

5. Political Impact - Representation and Limitations: Discuss the 'Black Cabinet,' a group of African American advisors led by Mary McLeod Bethune who advised the Roosevelt administration. Balance this by explaining Franklin D. Roosevelt's reluctance to support federal anti-lynching legislation or civil rights bills out of fear of alienating Southern Democrats in Congress whose support he needed for New Deal legislation.

6. Conclusion: Reiterate that the New Deal's economic impact was a mixture of essential survival aid and systemic exclusion, while its political impact permanently altered the US electoral landscape.

Marking criteria:

13-15 marks: Offers a balanced, in-depth discussion of both political and economic impacts. Successfully weighs positive outcomes (relief jobs, political realignment, the Black Cabinet) against negative ones (structural discrimination in the AAA and NRA, exclusion from Social Security, lack of civil rights legislation). Supported by strong historical evidence.

10-12 marks: Good understanding of both economic and political dimensions, but may be stronger in one area. Well-structured with clear analysis but slightly less detailed evidence.

7-9 marks: Focuses primarily on describing New Deal programs in general with limited specific connection to African Americans, or presents a one-sided view.

4-6 marks: Lacks historical depth and structure, demonstrating minimal understanding of the New Deal's racial dimensions.

1-3 marks: Highly inaccurate or irrelevant response.

An effective essay should evaluate the achievements and shortcomings of Reza Shah's modernization drive:

1. Introduction: Outline Reza Shah's rise to power and his vision of creating a strong, centralized, and secular Iranian state. State a clear thesis evaluating the extent of his success.

2. Modernization Achievements (Infrastructure and Administration): Discuss the creation of a strong centralized state and a modernized standing army. Detail infrastructural achievements, most notably the Trans-Iranian Railway constructed without foreign loans. Highlight administrative and educational modernization, including the establishment of secular schools and Tehran University.

3. Legal and Cultural Reforms: Analyze judicial reforms that replaced traditional Sharia courts with a secular civil code based on European models. Discuss secularization efforts, including the symbolic and controversial Kashf-e hijab (banning of the veil) and the forced adoption of Western dress for men.

4. Failures and Limitations (Political Oppression): Discuss the authoritarian nature of the regime, characterized by the brutal suppression of political opposition, tribal leaders, independent newspapers, and trade unions.

5. Failures and Limitations (Economic and Cultural Alienation): Analyze how heavy taxation fell on the peasantry to fund industrialization, and how the forced settlement of nomadic tribes devastated rural economies. Discuss how coercive secularization deeply alienated the influential Shi'a clergy and traditional merchant classes (bazaaris). Note that despite nationalistic rhetoric, the oil sector remained under British control (AIOC).

6. Conclusion: Conclude that while Reza Shah successfully built the physical and administrative framework of a modern nation-state, his top-down, coercive methods and neglect of rural economic welfare left his reforms without broad popular support, making the regime vulnerable when external pressures arose in 1941.

Marking criteria:

13-15 marks: Provides a highly analytical and balanced evaluation of Reza Shah's policies. Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of infrastructure, legal, educational, and cultural changes, balanced against political suppression and economic shortcomings. Excellent structure and clear thesis.

10-12 marks: Good analytical structure covering several areas of modernization, though some aspects may be treated in greater depth than others. Sound historical knowledge.

7-9 marks: Descriptive account of Reza Shah's reign with limited evaluation of 'success' or structural balance. Focuses mostly on listing changes.

4-6 marks: Superficially addresses the topic with significant gaps in chronological or thematic knowledge.

1-3 marks: Vague or inaccurate response.