World
War 1
with a
difference!!!
Since most of you have studied World War
1 to death, this topic will be covered
differently.
You will work in groups to answer specific questions relating to the start of WW1.
Each group is to represent one or more of the key countries and you will have to develop a strong
argument defend your country’s position
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To what extent did militarism contribute to the start of WW1?
The German attack on Belgium was responsible for the start of WW1?( England and France)
The Iron Dice: Germany had no choice but to mobilize in August 1914: How far is this true?(
German accuses the world)
How far were Austria Hungary and Serbia responsible for the start of WW1? ( Russia and
Germany)
Was the Britain’s entry into WW1 an attempt to win the Anglo German Naval race? (
Germany and Italy)
The division of Europe into two blocs was responsible for the outbreak of the War.
As usual, for the presentation, you need to present both points of view and then sum up.
You may use a power point to display statistics, pictures and key words but the presentation needs
to focus on arguments rather than description of events
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Focus of the presentation:
Evidence to support your argument: Facts, figures and most of all historian’s views
Evidence to challenge your argument and then a conclusion
e.g: Did Russia start WW1?
For : yes... Army, mobilization, determination to support Serbia, tensions with A-H.....
For no.....Germany gave AH Blank cheque, historian Sydney Fay thinks not, Germany had no
business to attack Belgium, it should have attacked Russia etc ....
Length of presentation: 10 -15 minutes
Grading: Marks out of 40
Presentation: 20 + Essay feature: 20
What is essay feature: Your presentation is the basis for your essay. This essay is to be written up
after the presentation is completed. We will discuss how it is to be written up and it will form the
basis of a magazine about the causes of WW1: It will be a complete set of notes on the causes of
WW1 for all of you to refer to.