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Russia in Ruins: Can the Nation Survive?is one in a series of NEWSMatters programs.Each 15-20 minute video in the NEWSMattersseries examines an issue or topic in the news.The video is supported by a poster pertainingto the topic and a teacher’s guide. TheNEWSMatters program is designed to promotediscussion and critical thinking in the class-room. NEWSMatters videos will rarely if everprovide clear-cut conclusions about an issue.Rather, each video’s goal is to leave more questions in viewers’ minds than answers. The supplementary materials are designed tohelp focus and direct these questions and togenerate thought and debate about the topic.These materials are flexible. You can controlthe pace and length of each lesson, and youcan use any, all, or none of these materials.

Russia in Ruins: Can the Nation Survive?explores the present crisis in Russia. The videolooks at why this huge nation has failed toadapt easily to capitalism. The question centralto this video is whether Russia can overcomethe oppression of its past and become a stable,modern nation. Students are asked to decideif the United States should help Russia.Many activities in this booklet focus onRussian history because events in the pasthelp explain why the current crisis exists.Eight of the following activities are designedfor your students to organize and completeon their own. The other activities aredesigned for classroom participation andteacher presentation.

NEWSMatters

Russia in Ruins: Can theNation Survive?

About NEWSMattersNEWSMatters Teacher’s Guide

for

Russia in Ruins: Can theNation Survive?

Readiness Activity(An activity to be done before viewing the video)

This activity will help your students become familiar with some of the important terms andthemes in Russia in Ruins: Can the Nation Survive? before they watch the video. Divide theclass into five groups. Assign each group three of the names and terms listed below. Onemember of each group should record an agreed-upon definition or description of each nameor term and then present these definitions to the entire class for discussion.

NEWSMatters is produced by Knowledge Unlimited®, Inc.Video copyright © 1999, Teacher’s guide copyright © 2001

by Knowledge Unlimited®, Inc., all rights reserved. ISBN 1-55933-274-3

Knowledge Unlimited NewsMatters, P.O. Box 52, Madison, WI 53701

rubledevaluationcommunistserfsCold War

czar Karl MarxVladimir LeninrevolutionSoviet Union

dictatorshipMikhail Gorbachevperestroikaglasnostdemocracy

Vol. 2 No. 4

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Discussion Questions

These questions will help you and your class review important points made in the video. Thequestions will also give some structure to your discussions about Russia in Ruins: Can theNation Survive? After your students view the video, ask them to comment on these questions.Some questions have specific answers and others are more open-ended. You may wish to usethese questions as a springboard for further discussion.

■ What effect does the devaluation of the ruble have on most Russians?

■ When did Russia become a democracy? How did this happen?

■ How was Russia ruled before the communists took over?

■ How did the communists take over in Russia? What was life like for most Russians under

communism? Why were some Russians dissatisfied with this life?

■ What was the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics?

■ Why did the United States fear the Soviet Union during the Cold War? Why did the Soviet Union

fear the U.S.?

■ Why is organized crime a problem in Russia today?

■ What are some of the changes that Russia has undergone in the last ten years? How have these

changes made the country better? How have they made it worse?

■ What should the U.S.’s policy be toward Russia? What, if anything, should the U.S. do for Russia?

■ Why would Russians consider going back to a communist system?

■ Do you think Russia would be better off as a communist or a capitalist nation? Why?

■ Why does the United States care whether Russia collapses?

■ Why does the U.S. care whether Russia becomes a communist state again?

■ How might communism be different in Russia today than it was before the collapse of the

Soviet Union?

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Capitalism and Communism reproducible activity

The writings of Karl Marx, a German social scientist and revolutionary, formed the basis for communism. In a pamphlet that he wrote with Friedrich Engels, called “Manifesto of theCommunist Party,” he outlined his theory of history. He wrote that history is a series of conflicts between the working class and the ruling class. He predicted that eventually the rulingclass will be overthrown by the workers. The result will be a classless society in which the farms,factories, and businesses are publicly owned — that is, they will be owned by everyone, not by a small group of capitalists. The slogan of the Communist Party is: “From each according to hisability, to each according to his needs.” The idea here is that under a communist system, thewealth will be shared evenly among the people and used for the public good because it won’t be concentrated in the hands of a few rich people.

Private ownership of business and industry is the essence of capitalism, or free enterprise.Under a capitalist system, businesses compete against one another for customers. The company that best meets the needs of consumers will sell the most products or services.Consumers are free to buy whatever they can afford.

In the space provided list as much as you can about how businesses are run under capital-ism and communism. For example, think about how salaries might be decided under eachsystem. Think about or research what profits are. How important do you think profits are in a capitalist system? In a communist system?

Capitalism

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Communism

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CLASSROOM DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:• Today most nations have economic systems that combine capitalism with socialism. Socialists

are like communists in that they believe in public ownership of at least some businesses.Economies that contain some elements of capitalism and socialism are called “mixedeconomies.” Even in the United States, the government has some control over the economy,especially through the use of interest rates and taxes. The U.S. government also collects taxes from certain groups of people and gives this money to others. Discuss how your lifewould be different if you lived in a country where the economy was totally capitalistic. What would life be like in a purely communist society?

• Which of these systems makes the most sense? Has either lived up to its ideals when put intopractice? How have capitalism and communism succeeded and how have they failed? Why?

Soviet Union Map reproducible activity

On the map, fill in the names of all the countries that were members of the former SovietUnion. Have all of these countries broken away from Russia? Shade in the countries that arestill part if Russia.

CLASSROOM DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:• What did Russia do to take over so many countries?

• Why did Russia lose control of these countries?

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Vocabulary reproducible activity

In your reading and research about Russia, the Soviet Union, and communism, you willcome across Russian words, names, or other terms related to Russia that you might not be familiar with. The list below contains some of these words. Draw a line from each word or term to its definition. If necessary, do more research to learn the meaning of each.

1. bolsheviks a. a program through which the Soviet Union took over private business and farms

2. czar b. in English, the name of this Russian police and spy organization means “Committee for State Security”

3. Duma c. Political Bureau, policy making body of the party’s Central Committee

4. five-year plan d. congress

5. glasnost e. farms controlled by the government

6. the KGB f. once the home of the Russian czar, this is now the nation’s capitol

7. kolkhozy, or collective farms g. restructuring or changing of the government and economic systems

8. Kremlin h. members of the majority

9. marxists i. workers

10. mensheviks j. council

11. perestroika k. openness in discussion of political problems

12. Politburo l. members of a minority

13. proletariat m. name given to countries controlled by the Soviet Union

14. satellites n. followers of the ideas found in the “Manifesto of theCommunist Party”

15. soviet o. this title first went to the Grand Prince of Moscow butlater was applied to the Russian ruler

NOTE TO THE TEACHER:Cover the answers when making copies of this page to hand out.

Answers: 1-h, 2-o, 3-d, 4-a, 5-k, 6-b, 7-e, 8-f, 9-n, 10-l, 11-g, 12-c, 13-i, 14-m, 15-j

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Russian Leaders in History class activity

Trace Russian history by telling what happened during the rule of each of the leaders listedbelow. You may wish to divide the class so that one or more students researches each name.Then students can share their research with the whole class.

After students have completed the assignment, you can ask them to share what they havelearned in oral reports for the class. Or you can construct a class-wide timeline. To do this,label a long piece of paper, starting at the year 1500 and ending at the present. Ask eachstudent or group of students to write a paragraph about the person assigned to them. Theparagraphs can be attached to the timeline at the appropriate dates.

Ivan IV (the Terrible) 1547-1584

Peter I (the Great) 1682-1725

Catherine II (the Great) 1762-1796

Alexander I 1801-1825

Nicholas I 1825-1855

Alexander II 1855-1881

Alexander III 1881-1894

Nicholas II 1894-1917

Vladimir Lenin 1917-1923

Josef Stalin 1929-1953

Nikita Krushchev 1958-1964

Leonid Brezhnev 1964-1982

Mikhail Gorbachev 1988-1991

Boris Yeltsin 1991-1999

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Serfs reproducible class activity

Serfs were midway between slaves and free persons. They were generally considered to bebound to the land. They were part of a piece of property, like the soil itself. They usually grew their own crops on a small piece of land, but they owed part of these crops, along withsome of their labor, to the owner of the property. The property was called a manor, and itsowner was the lord. This system in which a lord had control over a large property and itsserfs was called “manorialism.”

Manorialism began in the fourth century. Most countries ended serfdom by the 1600s,although a few serfs still existed in France until the late 1700s. Russia, however, did not end serfdom until 1861.

Research manorialism, and then as a class discuss the following questions:

How did serfdom come about in the first place?

What was the daily life of a serf like?

How did a serf benefit from the manorial system?

Slavery did not end in America until the end of the Civil War. How did slavery differ from serfdom?

Why did serfdom end?

Why do you think serfdom did not end in Russia sooner?

Do you think having serfs for so long hurt Russia in any way? Why or why not?

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The Cold War reproducible activity

The Cold War did not involve actual fighting on a wide scale. The Cold War is the term usedto describe the period after World War II when democratic nations and communist nationscompeted and distrusted each other. On one side were the Soviet Union and its communistallies. The other side included the United States and most western nations.

The western nations accused the Soviet Union of trying to spread communism throughoutthe world. The Soviets charged the U.S. with trying to interfere with the governments of othercountries. The Soviets believed that poor people wanted to overthrow their rulers and set upsocialist or communist systems.

The Cold War was considered to be over when the Soviet Union collapsed and no longerappeared to be a threat to the West. Today, it may be hard to realize how much someAmericans feared that the Cold War could lead to a “hot” war.

Research the Cold War period. Then write a few sentences after each of the words or namesbelow defining it or explaining its importance during the Cold War. Use a separate sheet ofpaper if necessary.

Berlin Wall

Fidel Castro

Cuban missile crisis

Iron Curtain

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

nuclear arms race

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization

Sputnik I

U-2 spy planes

civil defense

fallout shelters

ADVANCED ACTIVITY — SHORT ESSAY OR CLASS DISCUSSION: • What nations became communist after World War II? Why do you think these countries

became communist? Which ones are still communist today?

• Is the United States engaged in any “cold wars” today? Explain your answer.

Essays reproducible activity

Use a separate sheet of paper to write a short essay based on one of the following ideas.

1. Between 1918 and 1920, Russia had a civil war as the communists fought to take over thenation. Although western nations opposed communism, they did not want to get involved inanother war at the end of World War I. At that time, Winston Churchill, one of Great Britain’sleaders, said the West should help Russia. He said, “You cannot remake the world withoutRussia. You cannot go on into victory and prosperity and peace and leave that vast propor-tion of human race suffering torture in the night of barbarism.” However, his nation, alongwith other nations, did little to keep Russia from being taken over by communists.

Now experts say the economic crisis in Russia could make the nation again turn to communism.

Do you think Mr. Churchill’s statement is true today? Should the U.S. and the Westhelp Russia out of its present crisis? Why or why not?

2. Admiration for the Soviet planned economy gained ground when a worldwide depressionfollowed the Wall Street crash of 1929.

Some people thought the Great Depression proved that capitalism had failed. Other poorpeople wanted any kind of government that could give them help, jobs, and food. In fact, atthat time the U.S. did seem to adopt some socialist ideas, but it never became communist.

Why do you think the U.S. managed to keep its free enterprise system? Which socialistideas did we adopt? Which survived?

3. What do you think of the slogan: “From each according to his ability, to eachaccording to his needs”? Do you think this is a fair way to distribute goods? Do youthink it is efficient? Can it work? Explain you answer.

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Russia in Editorial Cartoons reproducible activity

Editorial cartoons are an enjoyable way to examine serious concerns. Each of these two cartoons illustrates an idea about Russia. Use the space below to explain the point each cartoon is trying to make. Do you think the cartoonists make their points effectively?Why or why not? What do the cartoons say about Russia?

CLASSROOM DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• Of these cartoons, which one do you think makes the most important point about Russia?Why? Do you agree with that point? Why or why not?

• What do you think makes a good or successful editorial cartoon?

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Russia in the News reproducible activity

For one week, play close attention to newspaper and television news stories about Russia.Then fill in the information requested below.

■ Make a list of the headlines about Russia that ran in your newspaper in one week.

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■ Did most of the stories you found focus on the Russian government, the economic crisis, Russia’srelationship to the rest of the world, or some other topic? (If it was another topic, which topic?)

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■ Briefly summarize the most interesting news story about Russia you found.

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■ Overall, what kind of news coverage does Russia receive in your state or region? Do you think yourlocal newspaper and televisions covers international news well? Does news about Russia get a lot of coverage? Why do you think that is?

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■ What kind of coverage does Russia get in national newspapers and on national TV news?

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■ What do you know about Russia that you did not know one year ago? How did you learn this information?

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What is the Russian ruble worth now? You can find the value of the ruble in your newspaperor on the Internet. How many rubles are needed to equal one U.S. dollar?

Use the chart in the space below and show how the ruble changes over a period of four weeks.First record the starting value. For a value, use the number of rubles that equal one U.S. dollar.Make an entry on the same day once a week. In the space below the chart write a sentence or twoabout anything that happened during the week that might have affected the value of the ruble.

What happened during

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CLASSROOM DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• From your chart, does it appear that the ruble is getting weaker or stronger? • Have you read anything in the news lately that offers hope for the ruble?

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The Ruble reproducible activity

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Number of rubles equal to $1