Transcript Key
EOCEP
Release Items
by Standard and Indicator
Realigned to 2011 standards in August 2011
Indicator 1.1
(Additional release item for this indicator found in Teacher’s Guide)
Which colonial region had the most religious diversity
during the 1700s?
A. New England colonies
B. Southern colonies
C. Middle colonies
D. Backcountry
Key: C
Released SCCSS Presentation ’07
From Teacher’s Guide
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Key: B
Emily was born in the colonies. Her parents emigrated from England in the early
1700s. Her parents came because they were searching for freedom of religion and
because her father wanted to work in a large city and make money by exporting
agricultural goods. In which colony did Emily’s family live?
A. Massachusetts
B. Pennsylvania
C. Connecticut
D. Georgia
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This item focuses on the religious and economic “pull” factors that influenced
emigration to the American colonies in the early eighteenth century. The item provides
a short vignette, which students must connect to their knowledge of the different
colonial regions at the time. To answer the question, students must understand the
circumstances affecting Emily and her family and determine which colony they most
likely settled in as a result. This requires knowledge of the economic and religious
characteristics of the New England, middle, and southern colonies and to which region
each colony belonged.
The key is B. Pennsylvania welcomed religious diversity and included the large port
city of Philadelphia from which large amounts of goods were exported through the
shipping industry.
Options A, C, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. Massachusetts was not
known for being open to those of diverse religious beliefs. In addition, Connecticut did
not have a large city for exporting goods. Georgia did not enjoy much religious diversity
and acceptance and also lacked a large port city for shipping goods.
Indicator 1.2
(Release item for this indicator)
What was the American colonists' primary objection to the taxes
imposed by the Stamp Act?
A. It was the first time the British tried to control the colonies.
B. It set the rate so high that it harmed the colonial economy.
C. It had not been approved by colonial representatives.
D. It interfered with merchants' right to free trade.
Key: C
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
Indicator 1.3
(Release item for this indicator)
Read the quotation below and answer the question that follows.
The representative of the French people…have determined to set forth in a
solemn declaration the natural, unreliable, and sacred rights of man…[and
reinforce] the happiness of all.
-French National Assembly, 1789
Which important U.S. document influenced this excerpt?
A. the Bill of Rights
B. the U.S. Constitution
C. the Articles of Confederation
D. the Declaration of Independence
Key: D
Indicator 1.4
(Release item for this indicator)
Which newspaper headline best illustrates the ineffectiveness of the
Articles of Confederation?
A. Whiskey Rebellion Begins in Western Pennsylvania
B. New York Imposes Tariff on Connecticut Goods
C. Supreme Court Denied Power of Judicial Review
D. Land Ordinance of 1785 Issued by Congress
Key: B
Indicator 1.4
(Additional release item for this indicator)
What was an important argument that the Federalists made in support
of a new constitution?
A. It would weaken slavery.
B. It would protect states' rights
C. It would strengthen the economy.
D. It would protect the rights of the individual.
Key: C
Indicator 1.5
(Release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s Guide)
Key: C
George Mason wrote in 1787 that “The purse and the sword must not be in the same hands.”
Which principle in the U.S. Constitution best reflects the concern expressed in this quotation?
A. due process of law
B. popular sovereignty
C. separation of powers
D. independent judiciary
This question focuses on separation of powers, one of the fundamental principles of the U.S. Constitution. The question
requires students to read and understand the quote provided and relate the quote to the concept of separation of powers.
In order to answer this question, students should be familiar with the ideas behind separation of powers and its
significance in the creation of the new government under the Constitution. Students should be able to relate their
knowledge of the colonists’ reasons for wanting to separate from Britain and the failure of the Articles of Confederation
to the inclusion of the three-branch government under the new Constitution. Students need not be familiar with this
quote from George Mason to answer the question. By accessing this knowledge of separation of powers and then
associating “the purse” with finances and “the sword” with military, students should be able to relate the quote to the
concept.
The key is C. In the Constitution, control of taxation (the purse) rests with the legislature, and powers as commander in
chief (the sword) rest with the executive.
Options A, B, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. The quotation does not relate to the right of every citizen to
be protected against arbitrary action by government or to the principle that sovereignty in the United States rests with
the people. In addition, Mason was not talking about the role of the judiciary, which has the power neither of the purse
nor of the sword.
Indicator 1.6
(Release item for this indicator)
Which aspect of economic policy did Thomas Jefferson and
Alexander Hamilton agree upon?
A. The U.S. government should pass a protective tariff.
B. The U.S. government should use liquor taxes to raise revenue.
C. The U.S. government should pay off the war debt to foreign
countries.
D. The U.S. government should insure deposits in the Bank of the
United States.
Key: C
Indicator 1.7
(Release item for this indicator)
Read the quotation below and answer the question that follows.
We are unanimously of opinion, that the law passed by the legislature of
Maryland, imposing a tax on the Bank of the United States, is unconstitutional.
-McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819
Which was one important outcome of this court decision?
A. the principle of no taxation without representation
B. the establishment of a federal government
C. the strengthening of judicial review
D. the creation of a national bank
Key: C
Indicator 2.1
(Release item for this indicator)
Which characteristic is most commonly associated with the westward
expansion of the United States?
A. industrialism
B. mercantilism
C. individualism
D. reformism
Key: C
Indicator 2.2
(Additional release item found in Teacher’s Guide)
During the 1800s, what was frequently cited as a justification for
U.S. expansionist policies in clashes with other nations?
A. Bill of Rights
B. Social Contract
C. Manifest Destiny
D. Gospel of Wealth
Key: C
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
From Teacher’s Guide
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Key: C
•
How did the concept of manifest destiny affect the relationship between the United
States and Mexico?
A. It inspired the defense of the Alamo.
B. It discouraged settlement in California.
C. It helped the United States justify the annexation of Texas.
D. It prevented the United States from taking control of the Gulf of Mexico.
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This item focuses on the role of manifest destiny in the Mexican War and the
acquisition of Texas during the mid-nineteenth century. The item requires students to
understand the concept of manifest destiny and apply that concept to their knowledge
of the relationship between the United States and Mexico during this time.
The key is C. Manifest destiny provided the ideological justification for the seizure of
Texas from Mexico after the creation of the Republic of Texas.
Options A, B, and D provide plausible yet incorrect responses. The Texans defended
the Alamo because their lives depended on it and because they were fighting to secede
from Mexico. Manifest destiny was not a significant factor in their defense of the
Alamo. Manifest destiny did not discourage the settlement of California; on the
contrary, it inspired and justified American settlement in California, which was a
Mexican territory in 1848. Finally, taking control of the Gulf of Mexico was not a goal
of the United States that manifest destiny prevented.
Indicator 2.3
(Release item for this indicator)
Look at the graph below and answer the question that follows.
Bales of Cotton Produced in the South, 1729-1860
Which factor most encouraged the trend shown in the graph?
A.
B.
C.
D.
an increase of paid cotton workers in the South
the growth of industrial production in the South
the rise of textile manufacturing in England and the United States
an increase in the number of railroad lines that crossed the continent
Key: C
Indicator 3.1
(Release item for this indicator)
(Additional release item for this indicator found in Teacher’s Guide)
What did the South gain from both the Compromise of the 1850 and
the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
A. an enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Law
B. a provision to honor the Mason-Dixon line
C. the gradual elimination of slavery in the territories being added to
the nation
D. the use of popular sovereignty in making decisions about slavery
in the territories
Key: D
From Teacher’s Guide
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Key: B
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What did the Mexican Cession, “Bleeding Kansas,” and John Brown’s Raid have in
common?
A. All were examples of Manifest Destiny.
B. All provoked increased debate over slavery.
C. All were sparked by conflict with Native Americans.
D. All helped Democrats win the ensuing presidential election.
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This item focuses on three events that contributed to the conflict that led to the
American Civil War. To answer this question, students must be familiar with each
event and be able to determine what the events had in common. In this case, all three
events demonstrated the increasing tension over the issue of slavery in the United
States.
The key is B. Gaining new territory following the Mexican War led to more debates
over whether the land should allow slavery. “Bleeding Kansas” describes the fighting
that broke out as a result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. The act called for the
citizens of each area to vote to determine whether Kansas and Nebraska would be free
or slave states. In Kansas, intense fighting broke out between pro- and anti-slavery
factions as a result. Finally, in 1859, abolitionist John Brown incited a raid on an
armory at Harper’s Ferry as a means to the abolition of slavery.
Options A, C, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. John Brown’s Raid and
“Bleeding Kansas” were not examples of Manifest Destiny. Also, these events were not
sparked by Native American conflicts. Finally, the events did not lead to a Democratic
win in the next presidential election. In contrast, the election of 1860 marked a
Republican victory.
Indicator 3.2
(Release item for this indicator)
In the fall of 1862, what was one immediate effect of President
Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation?
A.
B.
C.
D.
It ended the Civil War.
It created confusion in the South.
It abolished slavery in all states of the Union.
It led European countries to ally with the South.
Key: B
Indicator 3.3
(Release item for this indicator)
What was one significant economic reason why the South remained
poor after Reconstruction?
A. the physical damage to the South that resulted from the Civil War.
B. the shortage of labor as freemen left plantations for
northern factories
C. the high taxes imposed on the southern states as punishment
for secession
D. the money printed by the Confederacy that led to inflation
in the South
Key: A
Indicator 3.3
(Additional release item for this indicator)
How did the Freedmen's Bureau assist freed slaves in the South after
the Civil War?
A. It helped them start small businesses.
B. It gave them each forty acres of land.
C. It set up a sharecropping system for them.
D. It created educational opportunities for them.
Key: D
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
Indicator 4.2
(Release item for this indicator)
How did the federal government use tariffs in the late 1800s to help
the United States grow into an industrial power?
A. to tax U.S. industry as a source of federal income
B. to convince other nations to buy newly available U.S. products
C. to support U.S. businesses that imported the newest technologies
D. to discourage U.S. consumers from buying foreign-made products
Key: D
Indicator 4.3
(Release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s Guide)
Key: C
Which philosophy of the early 1900s is expressed in the following quotation? Nature’s cure for most social and
political diseases is better than man’s. –Nicholas Murray Butler, President of Columbia University
A. socialism
B. communism
C. Social Darwinism
D. Gospel of Wealth
This item focuses on the ideology of Social Darwinism during the early 1900s. The item requires students to
understand the quote provided and connect it to the theory of Social Darwinism. This theory asserts that the strongest
or fittest will survive and flourish in society, while the weak and unfit will not. Students need not be familiar with this
quote in order to answer the question, but they should be familiar with the terms socialism, communism, and Gospel of
Wealth in order to rule them out as possible answers.
The key is C. The quote reflects Social Darwinism, Darwin’s idea of survival of the fittest as applied to societies. The
word “nature” in the quote provides an additional clue for students to connect to any knowledge they may have of
Darwin and his theory.
Options A, B, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. Both socialism and communism, to different degrees, call
for more government control over people and business, the opposite of the theory of Social Darwinism. The Gospel of
Wealth claimed that the wealthy should give back to the community, which again contrasts with the theory of Social
Darwinism.
Indicator 4.4
(Release item for this indicator)
Which American political party is best represented by the diagram?
A. Populist Party
B. Republican Party
C. Progressive Party
D. Know-Nothing Party
Key: A
Indicator 4.4
(Additional release item for this indicator)
Look at the graph below and answer the question that follows.
Child Labor, 1890-1930
What accounted for the trend shown in this graph?
A. a decrease in productivity after World War I
B. an increase in state minimum working ages
C. an increase in skilled laborers from immigration
D. a decrease in children's charitable organizations
Key: B
Indicator 4.5
(Release item for this indicator)
Following Reconstruction, Democrats returned to power in the
former Confederate states and renewed the social and political
oppression of southern African Americans.
What was one result of this situation?
A. African Americans became farm workers in the North.
B. Thousands of African American families migrated to the Midwest.
C. The Colonization movement settled African Americans in Liberia.
D. Southern African Americans refused to serve in the U.S. military.
Key: B
Indicator 4.5
(Additional release item for this indicator)
Why did immigrants support political machines?
A. to have more educational opportunities
B. to reform city governments
C. to get better public housing
D. to gain employment
Key: D
Indicator 4.6
(Additional release item for this indicator)
Look at the photograph below and answer the question that follows.
Why would these women participate in such a demonstration?
A. They believed food producers often sought profit over consumer safety.
B. They wanted to promote vegetarianism as a more healthful lifestyle.
C. They wanted to draw attention to the problems of homemakers.
D. They believed food-packing workers were unfairly paid.
Key: A
Indicator 5.1
(Release item for this indicator)
What event is the best example of the use of the Roosevelt Corollary
to the Monroe Doctrine?
A. the United States intervening in the Dominican Republic to collect debts
B. the United States forcing Japan to open trade with American merchants
C. the United States imposing tariffs on produce imported from Panama
D. the United States creating spheres of influence on mainland China
Key: A
Indicator 5.2
(Release item for this indicator)
How did the results of the Spanish American War affect the
expansion of the United States?
A. The war ended U.S. expansion because of the extraordinary costs
of the war.
B. The war allowed the United States to acquire the Texas territory.
C. The war led to increased U.S. expansion into South America.
D. The war gave the United States territories in the South Pacific.
Key: D
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
Indicator 5.3
(Release item for this indicator)
What tactic did President Theodore Roosevelt use to get the Panama
Canal built?
A. He supported a rebellion against the Colombian government.
B. He forced the Colombian government to sign the 1903
Hay-Herran treaty.
A. He leased the canal zone from an international company.
B. He seized Panama from Spain after the Spanish American War.
Key: A
Indicator 5.4
(Release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s Guide)
Key: B
Look at the political cartoon below and answer the question that follows. Which war is the cartoon
most likely referring to? (Wilson Political Cartoon…American ships sunk)
A. Spanish American War
B. World War I
C. World War II
D. Vietnam War
This item focuses on the causes of United States’ involvement in World War I. The item includes a
political cartoon, which students must interpret and connect to their historical knowledge of what led
the United States to become involved in the conflict. To answer this questions, students ideally would
recognize Woodrow Wilson as the central figure and identify “American ships sunk without warning”
and “April 2” on the documents and immediately connect them to events leading up to World War I.
The key is B. The final event that convinced President Wilson to seek a declaration of war against
Germany, bringing the United States into World War I, was Germany’s resumption of unrestricted
submarine warfare, which led to the sinking without warning of a number of U.S. merchant ships in
early 1917.
Options A, C, and D offer incorrect responses. The Spanish American War was not fought because of
the sinking of multiple American ships but rather (at least in part) because of an explosion that
occurred on one specific ship, the Maine. The U.S. declaration of war against Japan in World War II
occurred in December 1941, not in April. Also, it is unlikely that the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
would be described in the general way referred to in the cartoon. The United States never declared war
against North Vietnam. Also, the incident in the Gulf of Tonkin that President Johnson reported as a
justification for using force against North Vietnam did not involve the sinking of American ships or the
loss of American lives.
Indicator 6.1
(Release item for this indicator)
Look at the photograph below from the early 1900s and answer
the question that follows.
How did the manufacturing of automobiles by the method shown in the photograph
affect the U.S. economy?
A. It caused high levels of unemployment.
B. It reduced the number of new industries.
C. It created more products at lower prices.
D. It started the growth of urban development.
Key: C
Indicator 6.1
(Additional release item for this indicator)
Which contributed most to the Great Migration of
African Americans to the North?
A. decreasing numbers of agricultural jobs in the South
B. improved transportation systems in the North
C. overcrowded conditions in southern cities
D. labor shortages in northern cities
Key: D
Indicator 6.2
(Release item for this indicator)
What did women's suffrage and Prohibition have in common?
A. both were motivated by anti-communist sentiments
B. both were successful conservative Christian crusades
C. both were state laws in many parts of the country before becoming
constitutional amendments
D. both were enacted as laws by Congress and then struck down by
the Supreme Court as unconstitutional
Key: C
Indicator 6.3
(Release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s Guide)
Key: C
Which weakness in the American economy of the 1920s contributed to the Great Depression?
A. High taxation kept consumer spending at a low level.
B. The richest Americans speculated in the stock market.
C. Easy access to credit allowed many Americans to spend more than they earned.
D. Businesses were unable to find enough skilled workers to operate new production machinery.
This item focuses on the causes of the Great Depression. The item requires students to understand the
economic factors that weakened the American economy during the 1920s and led the way to the crash
of 1929.
The key is C. The nation’s wealth was concentrated in the hands of very few people, and the middle
class had limited purchasing power and turned to the practice of installment buying rather than saving.
Options A, B, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. The 1920s was a period of low taxation and
little regulation of the business practice of offering easy credit to consumers to encourage them to
purchase products. Borrowing money to speculate in the stock market was the practice of the less
wealthy investors who had limited amounts of available cash. Automated factories actually required
fewer skills from the workers who ran the machines.
Indicator 6.4
(Release item for this indicator)
Why did many urban industrial workers support the New Deal?
A. It nationalized city utilities.
B. It legalized collective bargaining.
C. It eased regulations on businesses.
D. It actively supported political machines.
Key: B
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
Indicator 7.1
(Release item for this indicator)
Why did President Franklin D. Roosevelt refrain from intervening in
Europe during the rise of totalitarian regimes in Germany and Italy?
A. A large portion of the American public did not support U.S.
involvement in Europe.
B. President Roosevelt did not believe the U.S. military could defeat
the German military.
C. The leaders of Britain and France did not want the United States
intervening in European affairs.
D. President Roosevelt was afraid a prolonged war would further
damage the weakened U.S. economy.
Key: A
Indicator 7.2
(Release item for this indicator)
Read the quotation below by Eleanor Roosevelt and answer the question
that follows.
I foresee some difficulty for some of the people who live at such great distances
and who have no car, no train, no airplane to ride, no way of using a car, of
reaching the centers where they can buy.
What effect of World War II on the U.S. home front was Mrs. Roosevelt
referring to?
A. limited access to public transportation
B. shutdown of car production
C. price controls on goods
D. rationing of necessities
Key: D
Indicator 7.3
(Release item for this indicator)
How did the United States' goal in World War II differ from its goal
in World War I?
A. The United States fought to end the war quickly.
B. The United States fought for unconditional surrender.
C. The United States fought to bring about a lasting peace.
D. The United States fought to preserve freedom and democracy.
Key: B
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
Indicator 7.4
(Release item for this indicator)
In the aftermath of the Holocaust, what new action did the United
States take to aid Jews?
A. It created shelter programs.
B. It recognized Israel as a state.
C. It helped locate lost relatives.
D. It provided monetary compensation.
Key: B
Indicator 7.5
(Release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s Guide)
Key: B
Read the headlines below and answer the question that follows.
● U.S. Enters Korean War without Congressional Declaration ● Gulf of Tonkin Resolution Approved
Which political trend in the United States in the post-World War II period is reflected in these
headlines?
A. the increase in judicial activism
B. the growing power of the presidency
C. the upsurge in the domestic anti-war movement
D. the rising threat of internal communist uprisings
This item focuses on the causes and effects of the Cold War as well as the administrations of Presidents
Johnson, and Nixon. To answer this question, students must be familiar with the Korean War and the
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, as well as understand the role of the president in each of these incidents.
Each event showed a progressive increase in the role of the president and the power of the executive
branch of government. Students must be able to connect each event to this idea.
The key is B. The progression of executive assertion of power is evidenced in these three events.
Options A, C, and D offer plausible yet incorrect responses. None of these events relate to activity by
the judicial branch or a rise in judicial activism. The anti-war movement was directed against the
Vietnam conflict, not Korea. Although some elected officials did see communist uprisings as a threat,
this did not play a major role in these particular events.
Indicator 7.6
(Release item for this indicator)
How did the status of American women change in the decade
following World War II?
A. They entered factory jobs created by new levels of consumer
demand.
B. They started to earn salaries equal to men's salaries equal
to men's.
C. They returned to the home as men returned from overseas.
D. They earned college degrees for the first time.
Key: C
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
(Additional release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s
Guide)
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Key: D
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How did the American workplace change as a result of scientific and technological
breakthroughs after World War II?
A. Wages for most workers increased, but wages for managers decreased.
B. Opportunities for minorities to move into managerial positions expanded.
C. The number of factory jobs expanded due to the development of the assembly line.
D. The number of white-collar jobs increased, but the number of blue-collar jobs
decreased.
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This item focuses on the lasting impact of the scientific and technological developments
in the United States following World War II. To answer this question, students must
be familiar with the ways these new developments affected the American economy,
namely the job market.
The key is D. There was an increase of jobs in the white-collar sector and a decrease of
blue-collar jobs. Many of the new jobs created from the growth of technology required
workers to possess higher education degrees.
Options A, B, and C offer plausible yet incorrect responses. Wages for workers did not
significantly increase nor did managers’ wages decrease in general. If anything, the
scientific developments during this time increased the economic disparity. Increased
minority opportunity resulted from civil rights legislation in the 1960s, rather than
from scientific and technological developments after World War II. The assembly line
had been introduced many years before. The number of factory jobs decreased due to
automation.
Indicator 8.1
(Release item for this indicator)
How did Martin Luther King Jr.'s strategy to achieve social justice
differ from that of Black Power advocates?
A. King worked with white leaders.
B. King opposed the war in Vietnam.
C. King organized marches and public demonstrations.
D. King supported voting rights for African Americans.
Key: A
Indicator 8.2 ???
Indicator 8.3
(Release item for this indicator)
What was a common criticism of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution?
A. It made the South Vietnamese more vulnerable to communist
aggression.
B. It encouraged the use of guerrilla warfare in Vietnam.
C. It allowed the U.S. executive branch too much power.
D. It reduced the freedom of the American press.
Key: C
Indicator 8.4 ???
Indicator 8.5
(Release item for this indicator)
Look at the graph below and answer the question that follows.
Which statement best explains the changes in economic inequality
from 1980 to 2000?
A. The number of active union members increased.
B. The number of two-income households increased.
C. The number of high-wage manufacturing jobs decreased.
D. The number part-time and temporary workers decreased.
Key: C
Indicator 8.6
What foreign policy under the administrations of has been a
consistent feature of U.S. President Harry Truman through President
George W. Bush?
A. support for the state of Israel
B. opposition to dictators in Iraq
C. friendly relations with mainland China
D. strained relations with France and Germany
Key: A
Released SCCSS Presentation ‘07
(Additional release item for this indicator from the Teacher’s
Guide)
• Key: D
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What was a military outcome of Operation Desert Storm in 1991?
A. The elimination of Kuwait’s oil resources in Iraq
B. The capture of Baghdad by United Nations forces
C. The occupation of Iraq and Kuwait by allied ground troops
D. The forced removal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait by coalition
forces
• This item focuses on the impact of the United States’ involvement
in the Persian Gulf and Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990s.
To answer this question, students must understand the course and
outcome of Operation Desert Storm.
• The key is D. Coalition troops forcibly removed Iraqi forces from
Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm.
• Options A, B, and C offer plausible yet incorrect responses.
Kuwait’s extensive oil reserves were not seriously damaged by Iraq.
Military forces did not capture Baghdad before the war ended. The
occupation of Iraq by allied ground troops was a result of the 2003
Iraq war.