Four phases, one big question
Four phases, one big question

This option is easier when you divide it into four phases: late Qing defensive reform, Republican instability and Japanese pressure, Soviet-style socialist planning, and reform and opening. Across all four, the core question is how China tried to modernise while preserving or recovering sovereignty.
Step-by-step lessons covering Edexcel A Level History The making of modern China, 1860–1997 for A Level History. Each lesson works through exam-style questions in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 format. Build a secure grasp of the outline narrative for your breadth and depth periods first, since the source-evaluation and historical-interpretations questions that carry a large share of the marks depend on that contextual knowledge.