The Industrial Revolution Spreads
Teacher Resources
Driving Question: How were different regions impacted by the spread of industrialization?
What happens when industrialization goes global? As you’ll see, change doesn’t always equal progress. Explore how industrialization reached new regions—and the effects it left in its wake.
Learning Objectives:
- Analyze the scale of the Industrial Revolution and its impact on various regions of the world.
- Evaluate how the Industrial Revolution spread to different regions and how people adapted to changes in communities, networks, and production and distribution.
Vocab Terms:
- export
- factory
- innovation
- manufacturing
- middle class
- reform
Opener: The Industrial Revolution Spreads
Check out these before and after images to draw conclusions about the impacts of the Industrial Revolution on Manchester, England.
Transformation of Manchester
Impacts of Industrialization
The Industrial Revolution transformed the lives of everyone living in Britain. But the transformation that started in Britain spread quickly and affected people in every corner of the globe.
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Guiding Questions
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Before you read
Preview the questions below, and then skim the article. Be sure to look at the section headings and any images.
While you read
Look for answers to these questions:
- How did the Industrial Revolution change family structures in Britain?
- What roles did women and children play in the industrial economy? Did they benefit from factory labor?
- What kinds of benefits or opportunities did the Industrial Revolution create for people in Britain?
- How did the Industrial Revolution affect the daily lives and labor of people outside of Europe, such as enslaved Africans or colonial subjects?
- How did wheat power England’s factories, and how did the demand for wheat transform wheat-producing societies around the world?
After you read
Respond to this prompt: Imagine you’re a new wage-laborer who recently moved from a rural farm community to an industrial city. Using information from the article, explain how your life has changed. What new hardships or opportunities might you face?
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Guiding Questions
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Before you read
Preview the questions below, and then skim the article. Be sure to look at the section headings and any images.
While you read
Look for answers to these questions:
- How did industrialization influence migration patterns?
- How did industrialization drive urbanization?
- What are some major factors the author gives to explain international migration?
- Why didn’t more Chinese and Indian migrants move to the Americas?
After you read
Respond to these questions: Is this history of migration in the nineteenth century “usable” in evaluating and thinking about migration today (meaning can you see similarities between migration then and now)? How, or why not?
Industrialization Around the World
Industrialization spread to different regions and nations at different times. The effects of industrialization on those places varied dramatically.
Closer: The Industrial Revolution Spreads
You’ve just read a lot about the impacts and spread of the Industrial Revolution. Use this quick closer activity to boil down those changes to their simplest terms.
Life in the Industrial Revolution
The industrial revolution changed the world. Perhaps the most visible transformation was the growth of railroads, which spread across Europe and into European colonies, spreading industrialization and transforming landscapes.
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Guiding Questions
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Before you watch
Preview the questions below, and then review the transcript.
While you watch
Look for answers to these questions:
- How did widespread railways help bring the Industrial Revolution to more people?
- How did railroads shape our ideas of space and time?
- What were some arguments that people in the long nineteenth century used against railroads?
- What effect did industrialization have on our worldview about progress?
- How is the internet like the railroad?
After you watch
Respond to these questions: Do you agree that railroads changed the way that humans think about time and space? Why or why not?