Depth study: The USA, 1919–41 — IGCSE History (0470) questions by topic
The interwar United States is examined through both social and economic lenses: the Ku Klux Klan's impact in the 1920s, right-wing opposition to the New Deal, agricultural problems behind the Depression, and the Klan's origins all feature as question topics.
Discuss, explain, describe, how-far and outline lead the command words, worth from 20 to 40 marks, across 34 questions from 2023 to 2025 papers, one of the largest sets on the page. Because 40-mark essays demand sustained argument across an entire response, practise structuring paragraphs around distinct factors before writing, then use instant marking to see whether your conclusion followed logically from the evidence you balanced.
What examiners look for
- Strong answers, according to the reports, examined the Klan's growth in membership, its reinforcement of Southern segregation, support for Prohibition and promotion of anti-communism during the Red Scare, backed with examples of Klan violence.
- Examiners praise essays detailing how and why the Republican Party opposed the New Deal, including resistance to higher public spending, taxation and interference in states' rights, then balancing this against opposition from the Liberty League and radicals such as Huey Long and Dr Townsend.
- A recurring theme in strong responses is weighing one named opposition group against several alternatives rather than describing only one in isolation.
May–June 2025, Paper 11
May–June 2025, Paper 12
Not everyone in America benefited from the boom of the 1920s. Which industries did not benefit from the boom in the 1920s?
Answer this question and get it marked →The New Deal dominated the 1930s in the United States. What were the main measures of the Second New Deal?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 13
What were the tariffs introduced in the 1920s?
Answer this question and get it marked →What is meant by the term 'Roaring Twenties'?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 41
Write an account of how the Roaring Twenties changed society in the USA.
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of how the Depression affected American society.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 42
Write an account of new developments in industry in the 1920s.
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of the changes experienced by women in the 1920s.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2025, Paper 43
Write an account of the development of advertising in the USA in the 1920s. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of the intolerance faced by black Americans in the 1920s. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →February–March 2024, Paper 42
Write an account of the problems facing American banks as a result of the Great Depression.
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of right-wing opposition to the New Deal.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 12
The United States faced many problems in the 1920s. What was the 'Red Scare'?
Answer this question and get it marked →Roosevelt had to deal with much opposition to the New Deal. Describe how Roosevelt reacted to the Supreme Court decisions of 1935–36 about the New Deal.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 42
Write an account of the problems faced by farmers in the USA in the 1920s.
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of the measures taken by Roosevelt to help the unemployed.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2024, Paper 43
Write an account of the measures taken by Hoover to deal with the effects of the Depression. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of Roosevelt's reforms to the banking system. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 42
Write an account of Henry Ford’s contributions to economic growth in the USA in the 1920s.
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of the effects that the Jim Crow laws had on the lives of black people in the South.
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2024, Paper 43
Write an account of how Americans reacted to the introduction of Prohibition. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →Write an account of the First New Deal. [15]
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 13
The abolition of slavery did not improve the situation of black Americans as much as some people had hoped. What were the Black Codes?
Answer this question and get it marked →In the 1920s, old and new ideas clashed in the United States. Describe the impact the motor car had on the lives of Americans in the 1920s.
Answer this question and get it marked →Roosevelt's New Deals dominated America during the 1930s. Who was Huey Long?
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 42
How important were technological innovations as a reason why older industries declined in the USA in the 1920s? Explain your answer.
Answer this question and get it marked →How significant were tariffs as a reason for economic problems in the USA by 1929? Explain your answer.
Answer this question and get it marked →May–June 2023, Paper 43
How important was the impact of the Ku Klux Klan on the USA in the 1920s? Explain your answer. [40]
Answer this question and get it marked →How significant was the Republican Party in opposing the New Deal? Explain your answer. [40]
Answer this question and get it marked →October–November 2023, Paper 42
How important were problems in agriculture as a cause of the Depression in the USA in the 1930s? Explain your answer.
Answer this question and get it marked →How significant an aspect of the New Deal was improving the lives of the workers? Explain your answer.
Answer this question and get it marked →