Dunman HIST MS PRELIMS 2026

Preliminary Examination 2026 Sec 4 EXP/5NA History Marking Scheme. SECTION A (Source-Based Case Study) 1(a) Study Source A. Why do you think Mao Zedong made this speech at that time? Explain your answer. [5] Level LEVEL DESCRIPTOR Mark L1 Answer based on lifting from the source e.g. Mao made this speech at that time to support the Korean people's war of liberation and to resist the attacks of U.S. imperialism. [1] L2 Answer based on context or impact without message Context e.g Mao made this speech because at the time, China had just become communist one year ago and was consolidating its power post -revolution but faced the threat of American troops approaching the Yalu River, the border that China shared with North Korea. Hence, it was wary of American influence in Asia, particularly after the US involvement in Japan and Taiwan as well as the broader Cold War tensions Impact e.g. Mao made this speech because he wanted the Chinese people to feel threatened by American aggression and believe that intervention in Korea was necessary to protect China. As a result, they would be more likely to support Mao’s decision to send Chinese forces into Korea and unite behind the Communist government against the USA. [2] L3 Answers based on message without action word, impact & context e.g. Chairman Mao (Speaker) made this speech because he wanted to convince the citizens of China (Target Audience) that intervening in the Korean War was necessary to resist American imperialism and protect China (Message: Inference). This is evident in Source A where Mao says, “In order to support the Korean people's war of liberation and resist the attacks of U.S. imperialism and its running dogs, thereby safeguarding the interests of the peoples of Korea, China, and all other countries in the East” (Message: Evidence). This means that Mao was portraying China’s intervention as a necessary and justified act of defence against American aggression (Message: Explanation). [3] L4 Answers based on message, impact and context Award the higher mark in the level for more developed answers. e.g. Chairman Mao (Speaker) made this speech because he wanted to convince the citizens of China (Target Audience) that intervening in the Korean War was necessary to resist American imperialism and protect China/ USA was a threat to China (Message: Inference). This is evident in Source A where Mao says, “In order to support the Korean people's war of liberation and resist the attacks of U.S. imperialism and its running dogs, thereby safeguarding the interests of the peoples of Korea, China, and all other countries in the East” (Message: Evidence). This means that Mao was portraying China’s intervention as a necessary and justified act of defence against American aggress ion (Message: Explanation). He made this speech because at the time, China had just become communist one year ago and was consolidating its power post-revolution but faced the threat of American troops approaching the Yalu River, the border that China shared with North Korea. Hence, [4-5]

it was wary of American influence in Asia, particularly after the US involvement in Japan and Taiwan as well as the broader Cold War tensions (Context). Thus, Mao made this speech because he wanted the Chinese people to support Mao’s decision to send Chinese forces into Korea and unite behind the Communist government against the USA (Impact on Target Audience). 1(b) Study Source B. Are you surprised by this source? Explain your answer. [5] Level LEVEL DESCRIPTOR Mark L1 Surprised / Not Surprised based on provenance, context or logic reasoning with no explanation Provenance unexplained e.g I am not surprised by this source because it was made by a Chinese Communist Party official.(1 mark) OR Provenance and Context unexplained. e.g I am not surprised by this source because it was made by a Chinese Communist Party official. Therefore, it is expected that he would place responsibility for China's involvement in the Korean War on the Soviet Union, especially given the worsening relations between the two countries at the time (2 marks). OR Logic Reasoning e.g. I am surprised by Source B because although Peng Chen says that Mao was "strongly against the war in the first place", China eventually sent troops to Korea. This is surprising because if Mao was strongly opposed to the war, one would expect China not to become involved (2 marks) [1- 2] L2 Surprised / Not Surprised based on source content with explanation Award the higher mark for more developed answers. e.g. I am not surprised (Stand) by this source because it tells me that China entered the Korean War because it was pressured by Stalin to send troops on behalf of the Soviet Union (Explanation: Inference). This is evident when Peng Chen states that “Comrade Mao Zedong was strongly against the war in the first place. But after the war started, Stalin said that if the Soviet Union sent in troops, this would mean a World War and he therefore demanded China to send troops instead.” (Explanation: Evidence) This suggests that China did not initially want to become involved in the Korean War. However, Stalin was unwilling to send Soviet troops because he feared this could lead to a World War. Therefore, he pressured China to intervene instead, and China agreed to send its troops (Explanation of evidence). [2-3] L3 L2+Surprised / Not Surprised based on cross -reference to other sources / contextual knowledge e.g. I am surprised by Source B (Stand) because it is contradicted by Source E. Both sources differ on Mao's attitude towards China's involvement in the Korean War (Basis of Comparison). Source B suggests that Mao was reluctant to enter the war and that China intervened only because Stalin pressured it to do so but Source E [4]

shows Mao actively supporting intervention ( Matching Statement). This is evident when Mao states, "We should enter the war, we must enter the war."(Evidence from Source B). This suggests that Mao believed entering the war was necessary and beneficial for China (Explanation for Source B). Therefore, as Source E portrays Mao as supportive of intervention while Source B portrays him as reluctant, I am surprised by Source B. OR. e.g I am surprised by Source B ( Stand) because it is contradicted by Source E regarding China's motive for entering the Korean War (Basis of Comparison) Source B suggests that China entered the war only because it was pressured by the Soviet Union. In contrast, Source E suggests that China chose to intervene because it believed doing so would benefit both China and the communist cause (Matching Statement). This is evident when Mao states, "If we are successful, we can open up a communist base in Korea and can inspire the Korean people. This will be extremely advantageous for China, Korea, the Far East, and the world." (Evidence from Source E). This shows that Mao viewed intervention as beneficial to China's interests and the spread of communism (Explanation of Source E). Therefore, Source E suggests that China had its own security and ideological interests for entering the war, which contradicts Source B's claim that Soviet pressure was the only reason for China's intervention. Hence, I am surprised by Source B. OR e.g I am not surprised by Source B (Stand) because it is supported by my contextual knowledge of the Korean War. Source B suggests that China entered the war after Stalin pressured China to send troops instead of the Soviet Union. This is consistent with the historical context (Matching Statement), as Stalin was unwilling to commit Soviet troops directly to the conflict because doing so could ha ve led to a direct confrontation with the United States and escalated the Korean War into a wider global conflict. As a result, the Sovie