Preparation Manual

Domain I—History

Competency 001—Understand historical concepts, terms, sources, perspectives, and research skills.

1. Which of the following sources would a historian most likely use to obtain information about the social and occupational structure of Atlanta, Georgia, during the late nineteenth century?

1. mayoral addresses
2. census data
3. newspaper editorials
4. city directories

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to evaluate the uses and limitations of various historical source materials. Census data provide information on population characteristics, employment, the composition of the labor force, business enterprises, and other matters pertaining to the social and occupational structure of communities.

Competency 002—Understand major developments in world history from the beginnings of human society to 1350 CE.

2. Which of the following geographic factors had the greatest influence on economic life in ancient Egyptian culture?

1. the aquatic resources of the Mediterranean Sea
2. the annual flooding of the Nile River
3. the mineral resources of the Eastern Desert and the Sinai Peninsula
4. the natural harbors along the Red Sea

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of major geographic, social, political, economic, and cultural features of early civilization in Egypt. The crops grown in areas adjacent to the Nile following the annual flooding of the river provided most of the food consumed in ancient Egypt.

Competency 003—Understand major developments in world history from 1350 to 1850.

3. Which of the following accurately lists four major historical events between 1600 and 1825 in the order in which they occurred?

1. 1.   the emergence of the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan
   2.   Peter the Great's reign as tsar of Russia
   3.   England's defeat of France in the Seven Years' War
   4.   the liberation of Mexico from Spanish rule
   
2. 1.   England's defeat of France in the Seven Years' War
   2.   the emergence of the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan
   3.   the liberation of Mexico from Spanish rule
   4.   Peter the Great's reign as tsar of Russia
   
3. 1.   Peter the Great's reign as tsar of Russia
   2.   the liberation of Mexico from Spanish rule
   3.   England's defeat of France in the Seven Years' War
   4.   the emergence of the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan
   
4. 1.   the liberation of Mexico from Spanish rule
   2.   Peter the Great's reign as tsar of Russia
   3.   the emergence of the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan
   4.   England's defeat of France in the Seven Years' War
   

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize chronological relationships between major global events and developments. The Tokugawa shogunate was established in 1600, Peter the Great ruled Russia from 1682 to 1725, the Seven Years' War ended in 1763, and Mexico secured its independence from Spanish rule in 1821.

Competency 004—Understand major developments in world history from 1850 to the present.

4. World War II2 most influenced the movement for African independence by:

1. creating severe economic hardship for European colonies in Africa.
2. provoking demands for an Africa-wide confederation of colonial states.
3. weakening European nations with colonial holdings in Africa.
4. providing African nationalists with access to modern military weapons and tactics.

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine major political, social, and economic developments in Africa since 1945. World War II2 had a severe effect on the economies of Great Britain, France, Italy, and other nations with colonial holdings in Africa, both from the enormous sums required to fight the war and from the physical devastation that the conflict left in its wake. What resources were left were devoted to domestic reconstruction, leaving little for European governments to spend to reassert their authority over colonial possessions in Africa.

Competency 005—Understand major developments in early U.S. history from the precontact period to 1789.

5. Which of the following best describes a major effect of the American Revolution on U.S. society?

1. It removed most barriers to White male participation in the political process.
2. It advanced efforts to abolish slavery in the northern states.
3. It enabled White women to secure the same legal rights as White men.
4. It reinforced the South's commitment to plantation agriculture.

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Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine the major causes, events, developments, and consequences of the Revolutionary War. By focusing attention on the contradiction of human bondage in a nation committed to individual freedom, the American Revolution ended the climate of opinion that had allowed slavery to exist unchallenged and led to the abolition of slavery in the North soon after independence had been achieved.

Competency 006—Understand major developments in U.S. history from 1789 to 1877.

6. During the first half of the nineteenth century, reformers such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton most often based their demands for women's rights on the:

1. political ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence.
2. constitutional principles stated in the Federalist Papers.
3. guarantee of republican government affirmed in the U.S. Constitution.
4. legal protections contained in the Bill of Rights.

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Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine the origins and objectives of major antebellum reform movements and the activities and achievements of key reformers. The influence of the political ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence on antebellum women's rights activists can best be seen in the Seneca Falls Declaration of Rights. This key document, composed by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1848, affirmed "that all men and women are created equal," and went on to detail the oppressions men had imposed upon women, much as the original Declaration had listed the colonists' grievances against King George of England.

Competency 007—Understand major developments in U.S. history from 1877 to 1929.

7. Which of the following late nineteenth-century developments most influenced the emergence of a national market for the exchange of goods and services in the United States?

1. the arrival of millions of European immigrants
2. the growth of the electrical industry
3. the increasing urbanization of U.S. society
4. the expansion of the railroad system

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze the growth of the industrial economy in the United States. The expansion of the railroad system during the late nineteenth century broke down the isolation of rural areas and small cities, enabling them to transport and receive goods far less expensively than before and integrating them into an emerging national market.

Competency 008—Understand major developments in U.S. history from 1929 to the present.

8. Which of the following best describes a major reason for the unprecedented economic affluence of U.S. society in the two decades after World War II2?

1. the absence of major competitors in global markets
2. the removal of wartime price and wage controls
3. the federal government's commitment to balancing the budget
4. the shift in population from the Northeast to the Southwest

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of major economic developments in the United States since 1945. Of the principal combatants in World War II2, the United States was the only country to come out of the conflict with its economy intact and its industrial base undamaged. As a result, U.S. producers faced little competition from foreign manufacturers in domestic or world markets for some years after the war.

Domain II—Geography and Culture

Competency 009—Understand geographic terms, concepts, sources, and research skills.

9. Which of the following statements best illustrates the geographic theme of movement?

1. Mexico City lies in a basin, surrounded by mountains, at an altitude of over 7,000 feet.
2. New York City is the financial center of the United States; Tokyo is the financial center of Japan.
3. Turkey is an important source of labor for business and industry in Germany.
4. Christianity is the dominant religion practiced in both Venezuela and the Republic of Ireland.

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to apply the five fundamental geographic themes. The migration of Turkish workers to Germany is an illustration of the geographic theme of movement.

Competency 010—Understand physical features, physical systems, and the interaction between the environment and human societies.

10. Which of the following patterns of global resource distribution had the greatest influence on international relations during the twentieth century?

1. the distribution of forest resources in Asia and Latin America
2. the distribution of petroleum resources in Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East
3. the distribution of iron ore resources in North America and Central Europe
4. the distribution of gold and diamond resources in Africa, Asia, Australia, and North America

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize the location, distribution, and uses of natural resources in the United States and the world and the influence of natural resources on human populations. Establishing and maintaining access to vital resources has long been a major goal of many nations' foreign policy. During the twentieth century, widespread reliance on petroleum to meet energy needs made it more important than any other resource to the operation of the global economy and the stability of international relations.

Competency 011—Understand human systems.

11. In 1800, most of the world's population lived in rural areas. By 2000, the overwhelming majority of people in developed countries lived in towns and cities. This change was primarily a consequence of the:

1. consolidation of nation-states.
2. modernization of transportation networks.
3. industrialization of national economies.
4. globalization of trade.

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine world population patterns and trends. The vast majority of the people who moved from rural areas to urban centers during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries did so to take advantage of the employment and other economic opportunities created by industrialization.

Domain III—Government

Competency 012—Understand political science concepts, terms, perspectives, and research skills.

12. The term gerrymandering refers to which of the following practices in the U.S. political system?

1. using negative advertisements to attack political opponents
2. returning a bill to committee to prevent its enactment
3. funding political campaigns with money from special interest groups
4. redrawing congressional districts for political advantage

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Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of basic political science terms and concepts. Gerrymandering is the practice of modifying the boundaries of electoral districts to benefit one party or group at the expense of others.

Competency 013—Understand the foundations of U.S. government, the U.S. political process, and the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship.

13. The ten amendments contained in the Bill of Rights can best be used to illustrate the meaning of which of the following principles of the U.S. Constitution?

1. checks and balances
2. judicial review
3. constitutional supremacy
4. limited government

AnswerEnter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded

Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the fundamental principles, key articles, and significant amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The Bill of Rights, which was designed to protect U.S. citizens from the unwarranted exercise of government power, forbids the national government from passing laws restricting certain individual freedoms and reserves to the states and to the people all powers not expressly granted to the national government.

Competency 014—Understand the structure, organization, and operation of different levels of government in the United States.

14. Which of the following best illustrates how the principle of separation of powers operates in the U.S. system of government?

1. The Senate proposes amendments to a bill that originated in the House of Representatives.
2. The president dismisses a cabinet member.
3. Members of the Senate conduct a filibuster to prevent the chamber from voting on a bill.
4. The U.S. Supreme Court declares a law unconstitutional.

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Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze the separation of powers in the federal government. Separation of powers is the principle that power should be divided among the three branches of government. A law passed by Congress cannot continue in effect if the Supreme Court—a separate branch of government—exercises its power by declaring the law unconstitutional.

Domain IV—Economics

Competency 015—Understand basic economic concepts, microeconomics, and consumer economics and personal finance.

15. A young woman is trying to decide whether she should return to college full time and complete her bachelor's degree or accept an entry-level management position at a local company. Which of the following economic concepts applies most directly to the decision this person is trying to make?

1. opportunity cost
2. scarcity
3. economic incentives
4. productivity

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Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize basic economic concepts. Opportunity cost refers to the value lost by making one use of resources rather than another, and involves the trade-offs required when choosing between two desirable but mutually exclusive options. In this case, the opportunity costs that the young woman has to consider are the cost of completing her education instead of taking a job, and the cost of taking a job instead of completing her education.

Competency 016—Understand macroeconomics and international economics.

16. Which of the following best describes an important role of the Federal Reserve in the U.S. economy?

1. ensuring the safety of checking and savings accounts in the U.S. banks
2. regulating the operation of U.S. security and commodity exchanges
3. managing the nation's money supply
4. maintaining consumer demand

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Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze factors influencing monetary policy, including the structure and functions of the Federal Reserve System. An important role of the Federal Reserve is to manage the nation's money supply through its regulation of the reserve requirements of banks, the purchase and sale of government securities, and alterations in the discount rate that it charges banks for loans.