What does Module 5 of the STAAR US History test cover?

Module 5 covers the Cold War and the civil rights era, roughly 1945 to 1975. It includes the origins of the Cold War and the policy of containment (the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, and NATO); the Cold War conflicts in Korea, Cuba, and Vietnam plus the arms and space races; McCarthyism and the second Red Scare; the African American civil rights movement (Brown v. Board of Education, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, nonviolent protest, and leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.); the major civil rights legislation; and the rights movements for women, Latinos, and American Indians that followed.

What was the policy of containment?

Containment was the central US Cold War strategy of stopping the spread of communism beyond where it already existed, rather than attacking the Soviet Union directly. It was put into practice through the Truman Doctrine (aid to nations resisting communism), the Marshall Plan (rebuilding Western Europe so it would resist communism), and NATO (a military alliance). Containment also explains why the United States fought in the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

What did Brown v. Board of Education decide?

In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional because separate schools are inherently unequal. The decision overturned the 'separate but equal' doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson and was a turning point for the civil rights movement, although actual desegregation faced fierce resistance and took years to achieve.

What were the major civil rights laws of the 1960s?

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin and banned segregation in public accommodations and discrimination in employment. The Twenty-fourth Amendment (1964) banned the poll tax. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 banned literacy tests and authorized federal oversight of elections, dramatically increasing Black voter registration. Together they dismantled Jim Crow and expanded the federal government's role in protecting rights.

How did other groups build on the civil rights movement?

The African American civil rights movement provided a model that other groups adapted. The women's movement pressed for equal pay and an end to gender discrimination. The Latino and Chicano movement, led by Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers, used boycotts and nonviolent protest to win better wages and conditions. The American Indian movement demanded treaty rights and tribal sovereignty. All borrowed the civil rights movement's tactics and language of equality.

TexasUS History

STAAR US History Module 5 Cold War and Civil Rights: a complete overview of containment, the Cold War conflicts, McCarthyism, the civil rights movement, and the expanding rights movements

A deep-dive guide to Module 5 of the Texas STAAR US History EOC: the origins of the Cold War and containment, the Cold War conflicts in Korea, Cuba, and Vietnam, McCarthyism and the Red Scare, the African American civil rights movement and its legislation, and the expanding rights movements, with the reporting categories and item patterns STAAR repeats.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.818 min readTEKS 113.41(c) Cold War and Civil RightsUpdated 2026-06-02

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What Module 5 actually demands
Origins of the Cold War
Cold War conflicts
McCarthyism
The civil rights movement
Civil rights legislation and expanding movements
Check your knowledge

What Module 5 actually demands

Module 5 carries the STAAR US History story through the postwar decades, roughly 1945 to 1975: the global rivalry of the Cold War and the domestic struggle for civil rights. It explains how the United States led the free world against communism, how Cold War fear affected Americans at home, and how African Americans and then other groups fought to make the promise of equality real. The dominant skills are cause and effect, distinguishing landmark laws and court cases, and reading stimulus sources. The module is heavy in History (Category 1) and Government and Citizenship (Category 3).

This guide ties together the matching dot-point pages, each with its own practice questions: origins of the Cold War, Cold War conflicts, McCarthyism and the Red Scare, the civil rights movement, civil rights legislation, and expanding rights movements.

Origins of the Cold War

The Cold War was the rivalry between the capitalist, democratic United States and the communist Soviet Union after World War II, fought through alliances, propaganda, and proxy wars rather than direct combat. As the Soviets installed communist governments behind an "iron curtain" in Eastern Europe, the United States adopted containment, stopping communism's spread through the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and NATO.

Cold War conflicts

Containment produced real conflicts. The Korean War ended in a stalemate that left Korea divided. The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) brought the world to the brink of nuclear war over Soviet missiles in Cuba. The Vietnam War became a long, unpopular struggle that ended in US withdrawal and a communist victory. An arms race and a space race (Sputnik to the Moon landing) ran alongside.

McCarthyism

The Cold War abroad bred fear at home. The second Red Scare and McCarthyism, led by Senator Joseph McCarthy, produced sweeping accusations of communism, often without evidence. Loyalty investigations, HUAC, and Hollywood blacklists punished people based on suspicion and association, eroding civil liberties, much like Schenck and Korematsu in earlier wars.

The civil rights movement

The civil rights movement fought to end segregation and win equality. Brown v. Board of Education (1954) struck down school segregation, overturning Plessy v. Ferguson. Activists used nonviolent protest: the Montgomery Bus Boycott (sparked by Rosa Parks, led by Martin Luther King Jr.), sit-ins, Freedom Rides, and the March on Washington (1963). Lawyers such as Thurgood Marshall won in the courts.

Civil rights legislation and expanding movements

The movement's pressure produced landmark laws under President Johnson's Great Society: the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (banning discrimination and segregation), the Twenty-fourth Amendment (banning the poll tax), and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (protecting the vote). These expanded federal power to protect rights. Inspired by this success, the women's movement, the Latino and Chicano movement (Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers), and the American Indian movement adopted the same tactics to expand their own rights.

Module 5 of the STAAR US History test covers the Cold War and civil rights (1945 to 1975): the origins of the Cold War and the policy of containment (the iron curtain, the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and NATO); the Cold War conflicts (the Korean War's stalemate, the Cuban Missile Crisis at the brink of nuclear war, and the unpopular Vietnam War) plus the arms and space races; McCarthyism and the second Red Scare eroding civil liberties through accusations, HUAC, and blacklists; the African American civil rights movement (Brown v. Board of Education overturning Plessy, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, nonviolent protest, the March on Washington, and leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall); the civil rights legislation (the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Twenty-fourth Amendment, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965) that expanded federal power; and the women's, Latino and Chicano (Cesar Chavez), and American Indian movements that built on the civil rights model. The recurring skills are cause and effect and distinguishing landmark cases and laws.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and application questions covering Module 5. Attempt them under timed conditions, then check against the solutions.

Define containment. (1 mark)
Name the three early tools of containment and what each did. (3 marks)
Explain why the United States fought in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. (2 marks)
Explain why the Cuban Missile Crisis was so dangerous. (2 marks)
Define McCarthyism and explain how it threatened civil liberties. (2 marks)
Explain what the Supreme Court decided in Brown v. Board of Education. (2 marks)
Explain how the Montgomery Bus Boycott used nonviolent protest. (2 marks)
State what the Civil Rights Act of 1964 did. (2 marks)
Explain why the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was significant. (2 marks)
Explain how the later rights movements built on the African American civil rights movement. (2 marks)

Solutions

Q1: The US policy of stopping the spread of communism beyond where it already existed, rather than directly attacking the Soviet Union.
Q2: The Truman Doctrine (aid to nations resisting communism), the Marshall Plan (economic recovery of Western Europe so it would resist communism), and NATO (a military alliance to defend against Soviet attack).
Q3: To contain the spread of communism in Asia, defending non-communist governments (South Korea and South Vietnam) under the policy of containment.
Q4: The United States discovered Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, and for thirteen days the superpowers stood on the brink of nuclear war until the Soviets agreed to remove them; it was the closest the Cold War came to direct nuclear conflict.
Q5: McCarthyism was making accusations of communist disloyalty, often without sufficient evidence; it threatened civil liberties because people were accused, fired, and blacklisted based on suspicion or association rather than proof, denying due process and chilling free speech.
Q6: That racially segregated public schools were unconstitutional because separate schools are inherently unequal, overturning the "separate but equal" doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson.
Q7: After Rosa Parks's arrest, African Americans refused to ride the segregated buses for over a year, using economic pressure and peaceful resistance until the courts ended bus segregation.
Q8: It outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, banning segregation in public accommodations and discrimination in employment.
Q9: It banned literacy tests and other discriminatory practices and authorized federal oversight of elections, dramatically increasing Black voter registration in the South and protecting the right to vote.
Q10: Women, Latinos, and American Indians adopted its strategies and language (nonviolent protest, organizing, legal challenges, appeals to equality) to demand their own rights, broadening the struggle for equality.

Sources & how we know this

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies, United States History Studies Since 1877 (19 TAC 113.41) — Texas Education Agency (2018)
STAAR US History Blueprint Effective as of Academic Year 2022 to 2023 — Texas Education Agency (2022)