Brebner High School Grade 9 History: World War II and Cold War Study Notes

Administrative Details and Examination Instructions

• Institution: Brebner High School.
• Subject: History.
• Grade: Grade $9$.
• Term and Year: Term $2$: SBA $2026$.
• Total Marks: $35$ marks.
• Personnel:     * Examiner: Mr. M Naidu.     * Moderator: Mr. B Khosi.
• Mandatory Instructions for Students:     * Read each question carefully.     * Use a black or blue pen for writing.     * Pencils may only be used for drawing diagrams.     * Students must include both their name, surname, and class on the answer sheet.

Key Historical Chronology: World War II and the Cold War

• Conclusion of World War II:     * World War Two officially ended in the year $1945$.     * The conflict ended in the country of Japan (noted as option D/C in the assessment).
• The Cold War Timeline:     * Start Date: The Cold War began in the year $1945$, immediately following the conclusion of World War Two.     * End Date: The Cold War reached its conclusion in the year $1989$.     * Contextual Conclusion: The Cold War ended following the internal collapse of the USSR.

Global Superpowers and Geopolitical Entities

• The Concept of a Superpower:     * A superpower is defined as the most powerful country in the world.
• Post-War Global Superpowers:     * After the war, there were two primary global superpowers: the USSR and the USA.
• Acronyms and Identity:     * USA: Stands for the United States of America.     * USSR: Stands for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.     * Identification Note: The USSR and the Soviet Union are the same country, not two different countries.
• Western Capitalist Nations:     * Countries identified as capitalist include the USA, Britain, and France.

Political and Economic Systems

• Capitalism:     * An economic system based on competition and private ownership.     * Capitalism is considered the opposite of Communism.
• Communism:     * A system where the government controls the economy and where there is only one political party.
• Conflict Models:     * The Cold War: A war that is not fought directly against another country.     * Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD): A situation where both sides of a conflict are guaranteed to be destroyed no matter who starts the conflict.

Post-War Reorganization and Military Incidents

• Division of Germany:     * After the conclusion of World War Two, Germany was divided into $4$ distinct zones.     * Note: It was not divided into North and South (the assessment clarifies this is a False statement).
• Atomic Warfare:     * A total of $2$ atomic bombs were dropped during World War Two.     * These atomic bombs were dropped specifically on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Evaluation Metrics for SBA 2026

• Section A Breakdown:     * Question 1 (Multiple Choice): Worth a total of $20$ marks ($10$ questions worth $2$ marks each).     * Question 2 (Match the Columns): Worth a total of $10$ marks ($5$ definitions worth $2$ marks each).     * Question 3 (True or False): Worth a total of $5$ marks ($5$ assertions worth $1$ mark each).     * Total Marks for Section A: $35$ Marks.