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World Geography and Cultures B

Course Description

World Geography and Cultures B is a continuation of World Geography and Cultures A. This course continues on the trajectory covering the geography, culture, and history of South and Southeast Asia, East Asia, the Americas, and Eastern Europe. It also explores globalization and the impact of terrorism, population and poverty, environmental issues, and technology across the world. The Nystrom Desk Atlas is required.

Credits: 5
Languages: English and Spanish
Released: 2010

State Standards

Course Content

Unit 6 — South And Southeast Asia

California World History Content Standards:
Students:

Understand the connections among natural resources, entrepreneurship, labor, and capital in an industrial economy. (10.3.5)
Analyze the emergence of capitalism as a dominant economic pattern and the responses to it, including Utopianism, Social Democracy, Socialism, and Communism. (10.3.6)
Describe the rise of industrial economies and their link to imperialism and colonialism. (10.4.1)
Discuss the locations of the colonial rule of such nations as England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States. (10.4.2)
Explain imperialism from the perspective of the colonizers and the colonized and the varied immediate and long-term responses by the people under colonial rule. (10.4.3)
Describe the independence struggles of the colonized regions of the world, including the roles of leaders, such as Sun Yat-sen in China, and the roles of ideology and religion. (10.4.4)
Analyze the causes of the Cold War, with the free world on one side and Soviet client states on the other, including competition for influence in such places as Egypt, the Congo, Vietnam, and Chile. (10.9.2)
Understand the importance of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan, which established the pattern for America’s postwar policy of supplying economic and military aid to prevent the spread of Communism and the resulting economic and political competition in arenas such as Southeast Asia, Cuba, and Africa. (10.9.3)
Discuss the establishment and work of the United Nations and the purposes and functions of the Warsaw Pact, SEATO, NATO, and the Organization of American States. (10.9.8)
Understand the challenges in the regions, including their geopolitical, cultural, military, and economic significance and the international relationships in which they are involved. (10.10.1)
Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns. (10.10.2)
Discuss the important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy. (10.10.3)
Students analyze the integration of countries into the world economy and the information, technological, and communications revolutions. (10.11)

Unit Objectives
Upon completion of this Unit, students will:

Identify the physical regions of South Asia, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region, and identify the major resources available in the region.
Describe how the early civilizations helped shape the culture of present-day South Asia.
Describe the importance of Hinduism and Buddhism in the region, explain why Hinduism is both a religion and a way of life, and summarize the Buddha’s teachings and explain why Buddhism appealed to so many Asian peoples.
Describe the social system of early South Asians.
Describe the influence of Muslim culture in the development of South Asian culture.
Identify the political, economic and social causes and effects of imperialism in South Asia and the problems that South Asian nations faced after shedding colonial rule.
State the methods used by Gandhi to shape the independence movement in India.
Describe the current political systems in the region.
Explain the causes and effects of the conflict between Hindus and Muslims in South Asia.
Describe what progress South Asia has made in agriculture and industry.
Identify changes to the social systems of India and other South Asian nations and the causes of these changes.
Describe the current challenges facing the nations of South Asia.
Identify the physical regions of Southeast Asia.
Describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region and identify the major resources available in the region.
Describe how the early civilizations helped shape the culture of present-day Southeast Asia.
Explain how the Indian culture influenced the Southeast Asian culture
Explain how imperialism affected the nations of Southeast Asia.
Explain the effects of the Cold War on the region.
Explain why nationalist movements grew in Southeast Asia.
Describe the current economic and political challenges that Southeast Asia faces today.
Describe how religion has affected the development of art in South and Southeast Asia.
Gain a better understanding of cultural diffusion through their study of art and literature in the region and describe the current trends of the arts and literature in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
Identify the physical regions of Australia and Oceania, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region, and identify the major resources available in the region.
Describe the history of colonization of Australia and New Zealand.
Describe the differences between island culture and mainland culture.

Unit 7 — East Asia

California World History Content Standards:
Students:

Consider the influence of the U.S. Constitution on political systems in the contemporary world. (10.1.3)
Understand the connections among natural resources, entrepreneurship, labor, and capital in an industrial economy. (10.3.5)
Describe the rise of industrial economies and their link to imperialism and colonialism. (10.4.1)
Discuss the locations of the colonial rule of such nations as England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States. (10.4.2)
Explain imperialism from the perspective of the colonizers and the colonized and the varied immediate and long-term responses by the people under colonial rule. (10.4.3)
Describe the independence struggles of the colonized regions of the world, including the roles of leaders, such as Sun Yat-sen in China, and the roles of ideology and religion. (10.4.4)
Compare the German, Italian, and Japanese drives for empire in the 1930’s, including the 1937 Rape of Nanking, other atrocities in China and the Stalin-Hitler Pact of 1939. (10.8.1)
Identify and locate the Allied and Axis powers on a map and discuss the major turning points of the war, the principal theaters of conflict, key strategic decisions, and the resulting war conferences and political resolutions, with emphasis on the importance of geographic factors. (10.8.3)
Describe the political, diplomatic, and military leaders during the war. (10.8.4)
Discuss the human costs of the war, with particular attention to the civilian and military losses in Russia, Germany, Britain, the United States, China, and Japan. (10.8.6)
Compare the economic and military power shifts caused by the war, including the Yalta Pact, the development of nuclear weapons, Soviet control over Eastern European nations, and the economic recoveries of Germany and Japan. (10.9.1)
Analyze the causes of the Cold War, with the free world on one side and Soviet client states on the other, including competition for influence in such places as Egypt, the Congo, Vietnam, and Chile. (10.9.2)
Understand the importance of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan, which established the pattern for America’s postwar policy of supplying economic and military aid to prevent the spread of Communism and the resulting economic and political competition in arenas such as Southeast Asia, Cuba, and Africa. (10.9.3)
Analyze the Chinese Civil War, the rise of Mao Tse-tung, and the subsequent political and economic upheavals in China (e.g., the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and the Tiananmen Square uprising.) (10.9.4)
Discuss the establishment and work of the United Nations and the purposes and functions of the Warsaw Pact, SEATO, NATO, and the Organization of American States. (10.9.8)
Understand the challenges in the regions, including their geopolitical, cultural, military, and economic significance and the international relationships in which they are involved. (10.10.1)
Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns. (10.10.2)
Discuss the important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy. (10.10.3)
Students analyze the integration of countries into the world economy and the information, technological, and communications revolutions. (10.11)

Unit Objectives
Upon completion of this Unit, students will:

Identify the physical regions of China, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the country and the major resources available in the country.
Describe how the early civilizations helped shape the culture of present-day China.
Describe the importance of the three schools of thought on the culture in the region.
Describe the social systems of China and some achievements of Chinese civilization.
Understand the causes of China’s strained relations with the west.
Identify the political, economic and social causes of imperialism in China
Describe the causes of the Chinese civil war and communist rule in China.
Explain the causes and effects Mao Zedong’s policies on the development of the culture of China and how economic policies changed after Mao’s death.
Identify the physical regions and major resources of Korea and describe how the early civilizations helped shape the culture of present-day Korea.
Explain the role of Korea in the cultural diffusion of other Asian countries.
Describe the causes and effects of the Korean War and understand why reunification is difficult for the two Koreas.
Identify the physical regions of Japan, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the country, and identify the major resources available in the country.
Describe how the early civilizations helped shape the culture of present-day Japan.
Describe the importance of the China in the development of Japanese culture.
Describe the social systems of early Japan.
Describe the effects of western contact on Japanese culture.
Describe the role of Japan in World War II and explain the effects of World War II on the economic and cultural growth of Japan.
Describe the various changes that have shaped Japanese society since 1945.
Identify the factors that helped Japan become an economic superpower and determine what challenges Japan faces today.
Gain a better understanding of the literature and arts of Japan.

Unit 8 — The Americas

California World History Content Standards:
Students:

Consider the influence of the U.S. Constitution on political systems in the contemporary world. (10.1.3)
Compare the major ideas of philosophers and their effects on the democratic revolutions in England, the United States, France and Latin America. (10.2.1)
Understand the unique character of the American Revolution, its spread to other parts of the world, and its continuing significance to other nations. (10.2.3)
Trace the evolution of work and labor, including the demise of the slave trade and the effects of immigration, mining and manufacturing, division of labor, and the union movement. (10.3.4)
Understand the connections among natural resources, entrepreneurship, labor, and capital in an industrial economy. (10.3.5)
Analyze the emergence of capitalism as a dominant economic pattern and the responses to it, including Utopianism, Social Democracy, Socialism, and Communism. (10.3.6)
Describe the rise of industrial economies and their link to imperialism and colonialism. (10.4.1)
Discuss the locations of the colonial rule of such nations as England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States. (10.4.2)
Explain imperialism from the perspective of the colonizers and the colonized and the varied immediate and long-term responses by the people under colonial rule. (10.4.3)
Describe the independence struggles of the colonized regions of the world, including the roles of leaders, such as Sun Yat-sen in China, and the roles of ideology and religion. (10.4.4)
Analyze the causes of the Cold War, with the free world on one side and Soviet client states on the other, including competition for influence in such places as Egypt, the Congo, Vietnam, and Chile. (10.9.2)
Understand the importance of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan, which established the pattern for America’s postwar policy of supplying economic and military aid to prevent the spread of Communism and the resulting economic and political competition in arenas such as Southeast Asia, Cuba, and Africa. (10.9.3
Discuss the establishment and work of the United Nations and the purposes and functions of the Warsaw Pact, SEATO, NATO, and the Organization of American States. (10.9.8)
Understand the challenges in the regions, including their geopolitical, cultural, military, and economic significance and the international relationships in which they are involved. (10.10.1)
Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns. (10.10.2)
Discuss the important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy. (10.10.3)
Students analyze the integration of countries into the world economy and the information, technological, and communications revolutions. (10.11)

Unit Objectives
Upon completion of this Unit, students will:

Identify the physical regions of Mesoamerica and the Caribbean Islands, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region, and identify the major resources available in the region.
Identify the physical regions of South America, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region, and identify the major resources available in the region.
Describe the early foundations of culture and civilization of Latin America and explain achievements of the various ancient civilizations of Latin America and its effects on current-day culture.
Describe the effects of European exploration on the ancient civilizations of the Americas.
Identify the causes and effects of colonization of the Americas.
Explain what mercantilism is and its effects on the relationships between colony and mother country.
Compare and contrast the colonization practices of the Portuguese to the Spanish and other European nations.
Describe the various social features of life in the Latin American colonies.
describe causes of the various revolutionary movements in Latin America, identify the key leaders and figures in the fight for independence, explain the key events leading up to the independence movements, and describe the problems that the newly independent nations faced.
Explain the causes for further unrest in Latin America during the 1800’s.
Describe the role that the United States played in Latin America during the 1800’s and in the development of Latin American economic and political systems.
Describe the reasons that different countries chose different political and economic systems.
Define land reform and its effects on the social and political systems in Latin America.
Explain how the Cold War affected Latin American politics.
Assess the evolving relationship Latin American nations have with the United States.
Describe the causes and effects of rapid population growth in the region.
Identify ways in which the various Latin American nations have worked cooperatively to combat common difficulties both regionally and internationally.
Explain the cause and effect of the drug trafficking trade network.
Describe ways in which democratic governments have succeeded or failed to establish themselves in various Latin American nations.
Gain a better understanding of the environmental challenges that the region faces.
Identify various social challenges that face Latin America today including urbanization and changing roles of the Church.

Unit 9 — Eastern Europe

California World History Content Standards:
Students:

Understand the connections among natural resources, entrepreneurship, labor, and capital in an industrial economy. (10.3.5)
Analyze the emergence of capitalism as a dominant economic pattern and the responses to it, including Utopianism, Social Democracy, Socialism, and Communism. (10.3.6)
Discuss the locations of the colonial rule of such nations as England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States. (10.4.2)
Analyze the arguments for entering into war presented by leaders from all sides of the Great War and the role of political and economic rivalries, ethnic and ideological conflicts, domestic discontent and disorder, and propaganda and nationalism in mobilizing the civilian population in support of “total war”. (10.5.1)
Examine the principal theatres of battle, major turning points, and the importance of geographic factors in military decisions and outcomes. (10.5.2)
Explain how the Russian Revolution and the entry of the United States affected the course and outcome of the war. (10.5.3)
Understand the nature of the war and its human costs (military and civilian) on all sides of the conflict, including how colonial peoples contributed to the war effort. (10.5.4)
Describe the effects of the war and resulting peace treaties on population movement, the international economy, and shifts in the geographic and political borders of Europe and the Middle East. (10.6.2)
Understand the widespread disillusionment with prewar institutions, authorities, and values that resulted in a void that was later filled by totalitarians. (10.6.3)
Understand the causes and consequences of the Russian Revolution, including Lenin’s use of totalitarian means to seize and maintain control. (10.7.1)
Trace Stalin’s rise to power in the Soviet Union and the connection between economic policies, political policies, the absence of a free press, and systematic violations of human rights. (10.7.2)
Analyze the rise, aggression, and human costs of totalitarian regimes (Fascist and Communist) in Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union, noting especially their common and dissimilar traits. (10.7.3)
Compare the German, Italian, and Japanese drives for empire in the 1930s, including the 1937 Rape of Nanking, other atrocities in China, and the Stalin-Hitler Pact of 1939. (10.8.1)
Understand the role of appeasement, nonintervention(isolationism), and the domestic distractions in Europe and the United State prior to the outbreak of World War II. (10.8.2)
Identify and locate the Allied and Axis powers on a map and discuss the major turning points of the war, the principal theatres of conflict, key strategic decisions, and the resulting war conferences and political resolutions, with emphasis on the importance of geographic factors. (10.8.3)
Describe the political, diplomatic, and military leaders during the war. (10.8.4)
Discuss the human costs of the war, with particular attention to the civilian and military losses in Russia, Germany, Britain, the United States, China, and Japan. (10.8.6)
Compare the economic and military power shifts caused by the war, including the Yalta Pact, the development of nuclear weapons, Soviet control over Eastern European nations, and the economic recoveries of Germany and Japan. (10.9.1)
Analyze the causes of the Cold War, with the free world on one side and Soviet client states on the other, including competition for influence in such places as Egypt, the Congo, Vietnam, and Chile. (10.9.2)
Understand the importance of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan, which established the pattern for America’s postwar policy of supplying economic and military aid to prevent the spread of Communism and the resulting economic and political competition in arenas such as Southeast Asia, Cuba, and Africa. (10.9.3)
Describe the uprisings in Poland (1952), Hungary (1956), and Czechoslovakia (1968) and those countries’ resurgence in the 1970s and 1980s as people in Soviet satellites sought freedom from Soviet control. (10.9.5)
Analyze the reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union, including the weakness of the command economy, burdens of military commitments, and growing resistance to Soviet rule by dissidents in satellite states and the non-Russian Soviet republics. (10.9.7)
Discuss the establishment and work of the United Nations and the purposes and functions of the Warsaw Pact, SEATO, NATO, and the Organization of American States. (10.9.8)
Understand the challenges in the regions, including their geopolitical, cultural, military, and economic significance and the international relationships in which they are involved. (10.10.1)
Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns. (10.10.2)
Discuss the important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy. (10.10.3)
Students analyze the integration of countries into the world economy and the information, technological, and communications revolutions. (10.11)

Unit Objectives
Upon completion of this Unit, students will:

Identify the physical regions of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, describe how location has affected the agricultural and physical geography of the region, and identify the major resources available in the region.
Describe how the Byzantine civilization influenced the culture of Eastern Europe and trace the rise and decline of the Byzantine Empire.
Describe how the Eastern Slavic lands became isolated from Western Europe.
Explain the significant changes that occurred in Russia during the reigns of Ivan III, Ivan IV, Peter the Great, and Catherine the Great.
Describe why revolutionary movements formed in Russia and explain the causes the results of the Russian Revolution.
Explain why Karl Marx advocated doing away with the existing economic system.
Describe the rise of dictatorship in Russia and identify how Stalin’s rule affected developments in the Soviet Union.
Describe the causes and effects of Russian involvement in World War I.
Describe the reasons for the Cold War and its impact.
Describe and analyze the events that led to the fall of communism.
Describe the results of the postwar recovery in Eastern Europe.
Identify the conditions in the 1970’s and 1980’s that caused the Soviet Union to retreat from communism.
Gain a better understanding of the social system and cultural developments of Russia including the various cultural achievements of Russian musicians and fine arts performers and the achievements of Russian authors despite the limitations of free speech.
Describe the problems that Eastern European governments faced after the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Gain a better understanding of the issues that Russia and its neighboring republics face in the 21st Century.
Understand the problems that the Soviet Union faced in disarming their nuclear arsenal and the reasons why it pursued nonproliferation.
Explain how ethnic conflicts arose among various groups forced to live in the newly formed nations and republics.

Unit 10 — Global Issues

California World History Content Standards:
Students:

Analyze how change happens at different rates at different times; understand that some aspects can change while others remain the same; and understand that change is complicated and affects not only technology and politics but also values and beliefs. (Chronological and Spatial Thinking 2)
Use a variety of maps and documents to interpret human movement, including major patterns of domestic and international migration, changing environmental preferences and settlement patterns, the frictions that develop between population groups, and the diffusion of ideas, technological innovations, and goods. (CST 3)
Relate current events to the physical and human characteristics of places and regions. (CST 4)
Construct and test hypotheses; collect, evaluate, and employ information from multiple primary and secondary sources; and apply it in oral and written presentations. (Historical Research, Evidence, and Point of View 4)
Analyze human modifications of landscapes and examine the resulting environmental policy issues. (Historical Interpretation 5)
Understand the challenges in the regions, including their geopolitical, cultural, military, and economic significance and the international relationships in which they are involved. (10.10.1)
Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns. (10.10.2)
Discuss the important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy. (10.10.3)
Analyze the integration of countries into the world economy and the information, technological, and the information, technological, and communications revolutions. (10.11)

Unit Objectives
Upon completion of this Unit, students will:

Explain why the world is becoming increasingly interconnected and identify global issues.
Analyze the impact of global trade and globalization.
Identify the key organizations promoting globalization and explain protests against globalization.
Analyze the connections between globalization and fundamentalism.
Analyze the role international organizations play in establishing and maintaining global security.
Describe case studies of terrorist organizations, analyze the root causes of terrorism, and evaluate key threats to global security.
Define terminology related to population growth, explain the causes and effects of population growth, and analyze the challenges presented by the current rate of population growth.
Describe the various concerns related to the environment, the impact of global warming on the future of the Earth, identify the ways in which the environment is suffering due to industrialization, and understand why there are differences between developing nations and developed nations in regard to environmental protection.
Describe the ways in which technology has changed our lives today and explain the negative implications of advanced technology such as genetic engineering and computer viruses.
Understand the ways in which advanced technology and post-cold war sentiment inspired changes in values and cultures around the world.
Understand international desires to maintain peace and provide basic human rights for all citizens of the world.