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An educational curriculum from the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library

68.77.89 Curriculum

Czechoslovakia's Peaceful Transition from Communist Rule to Democracy

  • Home
  • About
  • Modules
    • 1968: Life Under Communism, Warsaw Pact Invasion, Exile
    • 1977: Artists’ Censorship, Samizdat, Charter 77, Persecution
    • 1989: Student Protests, Velvet Revolution, Democracy
    • Legacy: Lasting Impact, Global Influence
  • Contact Us

1968: Life Under Communism, Warsaw Pact Invasion, Exile

The 1968 Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II.

Photo © 1968 Paul F. Goldsmith

Module 1: 1968

Synopsis

The 1968 Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), and continued until 21 August 1968 when the Soviet Union and other members of the Warsaw Pact invaded the country to halt the reforms. After the invasion, Czechoslovakia entered a period known as “normalization“: subsequent leaders attempted to restore the political and economic values that had prevailed before Dubček gained control of the KSČ. Gustáv Husák, who replaced Dubček and also became president, reversed almost all of Dubček’s reforms. The Prague Spring inspired music and literature such as the work of Václav Havel, Karel Husa, Karel Kryl, and Milan Kundera‘s novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being.

Sources and Outcomes

In Module 1, students will examine life in Czechoslovakia under communism and the subsequent 1968 invasion by the Soviet Union. The NCSML has selected primary and secondary sources that provide teachers and students with a rich collection of political, social, economic, and cultural perspectives across four designed activities.

Each activity is centered on a compelling question that invites students to construct their understanding, ask additional questions about the past, and apply their thinking to the contemporary world. In order to support these outcomes, teachers will find an array of instructional strategies and processing routines you can utilize and adapt for students. Additionally, a variety of performance tasks supporting students’ deep content understanding and develops skill sets usable beyond the classroom provide authentic contexts for the demonstration of meaningful learning.

Download the Module Overview

 

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Activities for this Module

Activity 1: Communist Life in Czechoslovakia

To what extent and in what ways are our lives impacted by the political and economic systems we live with?

Activity 2: Socialism with a Human Face

How does a free society encourage true cultural expression and how is the latter related to the former?

Activity 3: The Warsaw Pact Invasion

Does a country ever have a right to invade another one that doesn’t operate according to their liking?

Activity 4: Normalization and Exile

How does a society cope with invasion and oppression?

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