Lesson 4

4 The position of women and ethnic minorities Quiz: Pearson Edexcel History, Unit 14

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson 4, The position of women and ethnic minorities: 20 multiple choice questions for the Pearson Edexcel GCSE History (1HI0), Unit 14: Russia and the Soviet Union, 1917–41, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. What did the Soviet decree of 1936 introduce regarding abortion?

    • Banned most abortions
    • Free medical access
    • Encouraged family planning
    • Total legalisation everywhere

  2. Which 1930s policy massively increased female participation in industrial work?

    • Workforce mobilisation
    • Traditional domesticity
    • Mandatory homemaking
    • Voluntary early retirement

  3. What was the main goal of the 1920s policy known as korenizatsiya?

    • Enforcing Russian culture
    • Promoting local languages
    • Banning regional customs
    • Abolishing ethnic republics

  4. Which ethnic group was deported from the Soviet Far East in 1937?

    • Swedes
    • Estonians
    • Armenians
    • Koreans

  5. What did the policy of Russification enforce across the Soviet Union?

    • Russian language use
    • Local minority dialects
    • Complete political federalism
    • Regional autonomy

  6. Which factor enabled some Soviet women to achieve factory management roles by 1934?

    • Abolished patriarchy
    • Hereditary noble status
    • Matriarchal governance
    • Employment equality

  7. What common challenge did Soviet women face while working in the 1930s?

    • Exemption from housework
    • Universal paid nannies
    • Automatic promotions
    • The double burden

  8. Why were specific ethnic minority groups targeted for repression in the 1930s?

    • Demanding higher wages
    • Accusations of disloyalty
    • Refusing religious practice
    • Excessive financial wealth

  9. Which dedicated women's organisation was closed down by the Soviet state in 1930?

    • Zhenotdel
    • Komsomol
    • Gosplan
    • Sovnarkom

  10. What characterised women's overall social position in the Soviet Union during the 1930s?

    • Complete domestic liberation
    • Universal matriarchal rule
    • Employment gains offset
    • Total political equality

  11. Which Soviet female aviator became famous for record-setting flights in 1938?

    • Valentina Grizodubova
    • Nadezhda Krupskaya
    • Clara Zetkin
    • Alexandra Kollontai

  12. Which region was home to many Muslim minorities affected by Soviet policies?

    • Central Asia
    • The Baltic states
    • The Caucasus alone
    • Siberia alone

  13. Which action marked the shift from 1920s minority tolerance to 1930s repression?

    • Purging national elites
    • Expanding local autonomy
    • Funding regional art
    • Protecting minority rights

  14. Why were the Volga Germans forcibly deported from their homes in 1941?

    • Industrial strikes
    • Wartime suspicion
    • Tax evasion
    • Religious extremism

  15. Which 1920s policy established distinct national republics within the Soviet Union?

    • Forced assimilation
    • Centralised Russification
    • Imperial annexation
    • Federal ethnic territories

  16. Why were women generally paid lower average wages than men in the USSR?

    • Shorter legal shifts
    • Low-paid job concentration
    • Official wage caps
    • Lower skill levels

  17. Which Soviet policy forced nomadic Central Asian peoples into settled farming?

    • Rapid industrialisation
    • Forced collectivisation
    • Korenizatsiya
    • Cultural revolution

  18. What archetype did the 1930s Soviet 'new woman' stereotype promote?

    • Wealthy entrepreneur
    • Traditional homemaker
    • Rural peasant
    • Industrial worker

  19. Why did feminists criticise the Soviet family law of 1936?

    • Restricted divorce and abortion
    • Banned women from universities
    • Abolished maternity leave
    • Ended female suffrage

  20. Which negative outcome affected certain ethnic groups under Soviet policy between 1924 and 1941?

    • Deportation and persecution
    • Complete national independence
    • Compulsory russification halted
    • Universal voting rights

All Pearson Edexcel History quizzes