Transcript Was the Great Leap Forward a giant step backward?

Do Now: answer questions 1 – 3 from handout –
China’s Drive for Modernization
Reasons for
Communist Success
Great Leap
Forward
-Communists promised to
distribute free land to China’s
peasant farmers (90% of
population)
-The Soviet Union provided
money, weapons & training to
communist rebels.
-Chinese Nationalist
government was corrupt &
too weak to stop Mao’s forces
-During the 1950s & 60s,
Communist ended private
land ownership & established
huge collective farms.
-As many as 20,000 people
worked on the land, they
worked long hours
-The government owned the
farms & the crops grown on
them
 modernize – to update & develop new technology
 famines – a widespread shortage of food
 heavy industries – production of steel, mining &
machinery
 turmoil – extreme confusion & disorder
 Read the handout – The Great Leap Forward
 Create your own definitions for the vocabulary words
 Answer questions 1 – 3 in your notebooks
 Was the Great Leap Forward a giant step backward?