1. Class Register Number
Name
10/SA2/HI
HISTORY
Monday 11 October 2010 1 hr 30 mins
VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA
SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL
VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA
VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA SCHOOL VICTORIA
VICTORIA SCHOOL
SEMESTRAL ASSESSMENT 2
(SECONDARY ONE)
INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES
Answer all questions.
Answer Sections A, B, C and D on writing paper.
Begin each section on separate sheets of writing paper.
Attach the answers for Sections A, B, C and D together.
INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES
Section A – 10 marks
Section B – 5 marks
Section C – 15 marks
Section D – 30 marks
Total marks = 60
This document is intended for internal circulation in Victoria School only. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior
permission of the Victoria School Internal Exams Committee.
_______________________________________________________________________
This question paper consists of 6 printed pages including this cover page.
[Turn over]

2. Section A
Multiple-choice Questions (10 marks)
Choose the most appropriate answer for the following questions. Please write your answers (A,
B, C or D) clearly in the writing papers provided.
1. When a historian finds an artefact and gives an interpretation, he has to
corroborate it. To corroborate is to _________.
A. find reasons to justify it
B. reflect on it
C. argue against it
D. find information to support it
2. Traders from India used to travel over this stretch of land to get to the South
China Sea before they discovered a trade route which led to the rise of
Palembang. What is its name?
A. Isthmus of Kra
B. Borneo
C. Bay of Bengal
D. Northern Celebes
3. Parameswara’s friendship with China was a friendship of necessity because
______________.
A. Melaka needed exquisite silk from China
B. Melaka needed China's trade expertise
C. Melaka wanted protection from enemy attacks
D. Melaka relied on natural resources from China
4. Which of the following is a form of cultural adaptation?
A. Qin Shihuang adopting legalism as his governing philosophy.
B. Southeast Asian rulers using Indian emblems of kingship.
C. Yijing spending six months at Palembang to study Sanskrit.
D. Ancient Indians adhering strictly to the caste system.
5. Southeast Asian social system is characterized by social mobility. Social mobility
refers to the ability to ________________.
A. change your family background
B. change your social class
C. move freely within the country
D. move out of the country
6. Traders in the Zhou dynasty were despised because________.
A. they were considered too wealthy
B. they did not give to the poor
C. they were considered as parasites
D. they conducted illegitimate businesses

3. A student studies hard but does not worry too much about his results because
he firmly believes that he should let things take their natural course. His
7. philosophy is similar to that of ____________.
A. Han Fei Zi
B. Lao Zi
C. Confucius
D. Mencius
8. Which of the following act(s) adheres to the teachings of Confucius?
I A young man gives up his seat to an elderly woman.
II Upon seeing that her mother is ill, a girl decides to brew soup for her.
III Students paying attention to the teacher in class and putting in their best effort
for their exams.
IV The government imposing harsh laws on its people.
A. II and III
B. II only
C. I, II and III
D. I and II
9. Hindus believe that the soul can be freed from the cycle of rebirth and join
Brahma, the God of Creation, only when ________________.
A. the person has donated enough money to the Hindu temples
B. the person actively spreads the religion to others
C. the person has done enough good deeds in several lives
D. the person is the king in at least one of his lives
10. According to Buddhist teachings, the first noble truth requires a person to know
that ____________________.
A. there is suffering in life
B. everything is transient
C. life is devoid of meaning
D. attachment is the evil of all things

4. Section B
Identification Work (5 marks)
1. Identify the objects and places in the following pictures. State your answers clearly in the
writing papers provided.
(a) Name this monument. [ 1m ] (b) Name this object. [ 1m ]
(c) Name this object. [ 1m ] (d) Name these statues. [ 1m ]
(e) Name the religion that is represented by this symbol. [ 1m ]

5. Section C
Source-Based Question (15 marks)
In answering the questions, you may use your knowledge and understanding of the period to help
you interpret and evaluate the sources.
2. This question is about the Indus Valley Civilisation.
(a) Study Source A.
What does this source tell you about the Indus Valley Civilisation? [ 4m ]
(b) Study Source B.
Why did the author make this comment? [ 5m ]
(c) Study Sources B and C.
How different are Sources B and C? [ 6m ]
Source A: A picture of a citadel in the city of Mohenjo-daro.
Source B: A view on the invasion of Indus Valley Civilisation.
Since the nineteenth century, India's ancient history has been altered by Europeans who
attempted to sow discord in the Indian society by using the Aryan invasion theory which is
completely made up. Today, it is necessary to re-examine the Aryan myth, look at the kinds of
misconceptions it has given and the recent scientific evidence which will prove that the invasion
never happened.

6. Source C: A historian's view on the evidence found in Mohenjo-daro.
Thirty-seven skeletons found in the ruins of Mohenjo-daro were put forth as evidence of a mass
killing at the hands of the Aryans. However, other historians have pointed out that these skeletons
were found in residential areas, rather than in the citadel, indicating that these skeletons did not
belong to people who died at war. In fact, detailed skeletal studies have shown that the victims
were different from the Indus people.
Section D
Structured Essay Questions (30 marks)
Answer ALL questions.
3. Government and Organisation of Society
a. Why were the lower castes in India willing to accept their positions? [ 4m ]
b. How did Qin Shihuang reduce the power of the shi? [ 4m ]
c. Do you agree that Melaka's strategic location was the only reason why it became a
major trading centre in Southeast Asia? [ 7m ]
4. Religion and Philosophy
a. Why did Southeast Asian rulers convert to Hinduism? [ 4m ]
b. How did Taoism, as a philosophy, turn into a religion? [ 4m ]
c. Do you agree that the role played by ancient rulers was the only reason why
religions spread in Southeast Asia? [ 7m ]
- End of Paper -
Copyright Acknowledgements:
Source A http://bialczynski.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/mohenjodaro2.jpg?w=455&h=306&h=306
Source B The Invasion That Never Was, Michel Danino and Sujata Nahar
Source C The Demise of Utopia, Contexts of Civilizational Collapse in the Bronze age of Indus Valley, Chris J.D. Kostman