Global History Thematic Essay Review New York State has identified twenty-four themes of Global History. Of those twenty-four, only twelve have ever been used for a thematic essay on the Global History and Geography Regents exam, and only seven have been repeated more than once. This review sheet lists the seven themes that have been repeated on the Regents exam starting with the those most frequently asked, provides the prompts that have been used in the past and suggested topics that will help students prepare for the exam. Topic choices have been made so students have less topics to prepare for the exam. For example, it is suggested that students be prepared to write about Nelson Mandela and the end of Apartheid because that topic can be prepared for thematic essays on Change and Human Rights,. Please use this table of contents to help navigate the document. Theme # of Times on the Regents Review Topics 1a. Change: Individuals who have caused change 8 Mohandas Gandhi Nelson Mandela 1b. Change: Revolutions and turning points 9 Neolithic Revolution Industrial Revolution French Revolution Russian Revolution 2. Human and Physical Geography 9 Rivers Mountains 3. Human Rights 4 Indian Independence Movement Apartheid in South Africa 4. Science and Technology 3 Printing Press Steam Engine 5. Conflict 3 French Revolution Russian Revolution 6. Belief Systems 2 Hinduism Islam 7. Environment and Society 2 Deforestation Desertification
CHANGE- Individuals who caused change Previous prompts: August, 2014 Select two political leaders and for each Describe the historical circumstances that brought this political leader to power Explain one policy or practice that was put into effect under this leader Discuss how this policy or practice affected a specific group of people or society or region June, 2014 Select two individuals who have challenged tradition or authority and for each Describe the established tradition or authority as it existed before it was challenged by the individual Discuss how the individual challenged established tradition or authority Discuss the extent to which change was achieved as a result of this challenge January, 2012 Select two individuals from your study of global history and for each Describe the historical circumstances that led this individual to develop or modify an idea Explain an action taken by this individual as a result of this idea Discuss how this individual s idea affected a society June, 2010 Select two individuals and for each Explain a specific idea developed by the individual Describe the historical circumstances that surrounded the development of the idea Discuss how the idea influenced a group or a nation or a region January, 2006 Choose two philosophers and/or leaders and for each Explain a major idea or belief of that philosopher or leader Discuss how that idea or belief changed one nation or region August, 2005 Identify two leaders who changed the society in which they lived and for each Describe one situation the leader attempted to change Describe one action the leader took to change this situation Discuss the impact of that action on the society in which the leader lived 1
January, 2004 Identify two individuals who have changed global history and for each : Explain one belief or achievement of that individual Discuss the positive and/or negative effects of the individual s belief or achievement August, 2002 Choose two individuals from your study of global history and geography and for each individual chosen: Discuss two specific changes made by the individual in a specific nation or region Evaluate whether these changes have had a positive or a negative effect on that nation or region Change-Individuals Suggested Topics : Mohandas Gandhi and Nelson Mandela Change-Individuals Topic #1: Historical Circumstance Changes Made Impact (Effects) 2
Change-Individuals Topic #2: Historical Circumstance Changes Made Impact (Effects) 3
CHANGE- Revolutions and turning points Previous prompts: June, 2013 Select two revolutions and for each Describe the historical circumstances leading to this revolution Discuss the political, economic, and/or social effects of this revolution January, 2013 Select two situations where the collapse of a government has led to significant changes in a country or region and for each Describe the historical circumstances that led to the collapse of a government Discuss the political, social, and/or economic changes that occurred as a result of the collapse of that government January, 2008 Identify two nonpolitical revolutions that brought important intellectual, economic, and/or social changes to societies and for each Describe one change brought about by this nonpolitical revolution Discuss an impact this nonpolitical revolution had on a specific society or societies June, 2007 Choose one example from global history where a government attempted to change society and Describe the change the government wanted to bring about Explain why the government wanted to make this change Describe one specific policy the government used to try to bring about this change Discuss the extent to which this change was achieved January, 2005 Identify two 20th-century political events and for each Discuss the historical circumstances surrounding the event Evaluate the extent to which this event has had a positive or a negative effect on global history June, 2004 Identify two major turning points in global history and for each : Describe the historical circumstances surrounding the turning point Explain how each turning point changed the course of history 4
January, 2003 Choose one political revolution from your study of global history and geography and: Explain the causes of the revolution Describe the effects this political revolution had on society Evaluate whether the changes that resulted from the political revolution resolved the problems that caused it August, 2001 Identify two turning points from your study of global history and for each : Describe the causes and key events that led to the turning point Explain how each turning point changed the course of history for nations and peoples January, 2001 Define the term industrialization Select one nation you have studied and discuss two specific examples of the ways in which industrialization changed the lives of workers in that nation Discuss the response of the workers, reformers, and/or government to these changes Non-Political Revolutions Suggested Topics : Neolithic Revolution and Industrial Revolution Non-Political Revolution Topic #1: Historical Circumstances/Causes Impact (Effects) 5
Non-Political Revolution Topic #2: Historical Circumstances/Causes Impact (Effects) 6
Political Revolutions Suggested Topics : French Revolution and Russian Revolution Political Revolution Topic #1: Historical Circumstances/Causes Short Term Impact (Effects) Long Term Impact (Effects) 7
Political Revolution Topic #2: Historical Circumstances/Causes Short Term Impact (Effects) Long Term Impact (Effects) 8
Human and Physical Geography Previous prompts: January, 2015 Select two geographic features and for each Discuss how this geographic feature influenced the political, economic, social, and/or historical developments in a country or region June, 2012 Select two different geographic features and for each Discuss how this geographic feature influenced the development of a specific civilization or region Discuss how this geographic feature promoted and/or limited the interaction of this civilization or region with another civilization or region January, 2011 Select three different geographic features and for each Discuss how this geographic feature influenced the historical and/or cultural development of a specific civilization, empire, country, or region January, 2009 Select two different geographic factors and for each Explain how the geographic factor affected the development of a specific nation/region Discuss how that geographic factor promoted or hindered cultural diffusion August, 2008 Select two different nations/regions and for each Explain why the society modified their environment Explain how the people of that specific nation/region modified their physical environment Discuss the effect this modification had on that nation/region August, 2003 Select one geographic factor that influenced life in a nation or region before A.D. 1500, and using specific examples, discuss the influence of that geographic factor on the people of that nation or region Select a different geographic factor that influenced life in a nation or region after A.D. 1500, and using specific examples, discuss the influence of that geographic factor on the people of that nation or region 9
June, 2002 Select two changes that a society or two different societies have made to their land or surrounding environment, and for each change: Identify the society in which the change took place Describe how the physical environment was changed by human activity Discuss how the change in the physical environment affected society January, 2002 Choose two nations and/or regions and for each: Identify and describe two geographic factors in each nation and/or region Explain how each factor has influenced the historical development or a specific historical event in each nation and/or region June, 2001 Select one geographic feature from your study of global history. Explain how this geographic feature has had an effect on the historical development of two nations or regions Be sure to include specific historical examples in your essay. 10
Geographic Features that Humans have Modified Suggested Topics: Rivers and Mountains Geographic Features that Humans have Modified Topic #1: How the geographic feature affected a nation/region How humans modified the geographic feature in one nation/region to best fit their needs 11
Geographic Features that Humans have Modified Topic #2: How the geographic feature affected a nation/region How humans modified the geographic feature nation/region to best fit their needs 12
Regions/Nations Affected by Geographic Features Suggested Topics: Great Britain and Japan Regions/Nations Affected by Geographic Features Topic #1: Identify the geographic factors that influenced that nation/region. Explain how the geographic factors influenced the historical development of that nation or region. 13
Regions/Nations Affected by Geographic Features Topic #2: Identify the geographic factors that influenced that nation/region. Explain how the geographic factors influenced the historical development of that nation or region. 14
Human Rights Previous prompts: January, 2014 Select two individuals and for each Describe the historical circumstances that led the individual to defend human rights Describe a method the individual used to defend human rights Discuss the extent to which the individual s effort was successful June, 2009 Select two different examples from history where human rights have been denied to groups of people and for each Explain the historical circumstances that led to the denial of human rights Describe how the human rights of that group were denied Discuss an action taken by an individual, a group, or a government that attempted to end the human rights violations January, 2007 Select two groups who have experienced human rights violations in a specific nation or region and for each Describe one historical circumstance that led to a human rights violation in the nation or region Describe one example of a human rights violation in that nation or region Discuss the extent to which a government, a group, or an individual made an attempt to resolve this human rights violation June, 2000 Define the term human rights Identify two examples of human rights violations that have occurred in a specific time and place Describe the causes of these human rights violations For one of the violations identified, discuss one specific effort that was made or is being made to deal with the violation 15
Human Rights Violation Suggested Topics : Indian Independence Movement and Mohandas Gandhi and Apartheid in South Africa and Nelson Mandela Human Rights Violation Topic #1: Historical Circumstances/Causes Describe Human Rights Violations Describe the Actions of a Person/Group that Attempted to Resolve the Human Rights Violation 16
Human Rights Violation Topic #2: Historical Circumstances/Causes Describe Human Rights Violations Describe the Actions of a Person/Group that Attempted to Resolve the Human Rights Violation 17
Science and Technology Previous prompts: August, 2012 Select two technological innovations and for each Describe the existing technology that was replaced by this new technological innovation and how this new innovation changed the existing technology Discuss the effects this new technological innovation has had on a society or the world June, 2011 Select two technological innovations and for each Discuss why the technological innovation was important during a specific time period Discuss the positive and/or negative effects this technological innovation had on a society or on humankind August, 2000 Identify two scientific or technological advances that had a major impact on global history Explain the relationship between the scientific or technological advance and a specific historic event or period in history Analyze how these advances changed the course of history 18
Science and Technology Suggested Topics: Printing Press and Steam Engine Science and Technology Topic #1: Historical Circumstances/Causes Effects 19
Science and Technology Topic #2: Historical Circumstances/Causes Effects 20
Conflict Previous prompts: August, 2013 Select two armed conflicts and for each Describe the historical circumstances leading to this armed conflict Discuss the ways in which this armed conflict affected a specific group of people, a country, and/or a region June, 2006 Identify one conflict that has threatened peace in a nation or region and Discuss one major cause of that conflict Identify two opposing groups involved in the conflict and discuss one viewpoint of each group Discuss the extent to which the conflict was or was not resolved June, 2003 Identify two ethnic, religious, political, and/or cultural conflicts and for each : Discuss the historical circumstances that led to the conflict Analyze the effect of this conflict on two groups involved 21
Conflict Suggested Topics: The French Revolution and World War I Conflict Topic #1: Historical Circumstances/Causes Effects 22
Conflict Topic #2: Historical Circumstances/Causes Effects 23
Belief Systems Previous prompts: August, 2009 Select two belief systems from your study of global history and for each Explain one major idea of the belief system Discuss the effects the belief system has had on the politics, society, and/or the economy of a specific nation or region June, 2008 Choose two major belief systems and for each Explain key beliefs and/or practices Discuss an influence the belief system had on the lives of its followers or the society in which it was practiced Belief System Suggested Topics: Hinduism and Islam Belief System Topic #1: Beliefs and Practices Effects of the Belief System on its Followers or the Society in which it was Practiced 24
Belief System Topic #2: Beliefs and Practices Effects of the Belief System on its Followers or the Society in which it was Practiced 25
Environment and Society Previous prompts: 1 August, 2011 Select two global issues that have occurred since the end of World War II and for each Describe how this issue has affected a specific country or region or the global community Explain a solution that has been proposed to address the issue Discuss the extent to which this solution has been successful in solving the issue June, 2005 Select two different global problems and for each Describe one major cause of the global problem Discuss one effect of the global problem on a specific nation or region 1 The August, 2011 theme was Change-Global Problems it has been moved under Environment and Society here 26
Environment and Society Suggested Topics: Deforestation and Desertification Environment and Society Topic #1: Causes Effects Describe an Attempt to Solve the Issue 27
Environment and Society Topic #2: Causes Effects Describe an Attempt to Solve the Issue 28