Recommendation for individuals using a screenreader: please set your punctuation settings to "most."
Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of basic historical terms and concepts such as nation-state, theocracy, dynastic cycle, collectivization, globalization, modernization, chronology, and periodization.
- Apply knowledge of basic reference sources used in historical research, including information technology, bibliographies, periodical guides, encyclopedias, and biographical dictionaries.
- Distinguish between primary and secondary sources of historical information.
- Evaluate the uses and limitations of various historical source materials, including oral histories, newspapers, diaries, artifacts, probate data, tax lists, personal correspondence, census data, videos, audio recordings, and materials accessed through information technologies.
- Analyze important historical interpretations and how historical interpretations change over time.
- Analyze the purpose and perspective of diverse sources of historical information, including potential bias and the assumptions on which historical arguments are based.
Sample Item:
Read the excerpt from Senator Margaret Chase Smith's 1950 speech "Declaration of Conscience" below; then answer the questions that follow.
I think that it is high time for the United States Senate and its members to do some soul-searching—for us
to weigh our consciences—on the manner in which we are performing our duty to the people of America—on the
manner in which we are using or abusing our individual powers and privileges. . . .
Those of us who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character assassinations are all too
frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore some of the basic principles of Americanism:
The right to criticize;
The right to hold unpopular beliefs;
The right to protest;
The right of independent thought.
The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his reputation or his right to a
livelihood nor should he be in danger of losing his reputation or livelihood merely because he happens to
know someone who holds unpopular beliefs. Who of us doesn't? Otherwise none of us could call our souls
our own. Otherwise thought control would have set in. . . .
The American people are sick and tired of seeing innocent people smeared and guilty people whitewashed.
But there have been enough proved cases, such as the Amerasia case, the Hiss case, the Coplon case, the
Gold case, to cause the nationwide distrust and strong suspicion that there may be something to the
unproved, sensational accusations.
A historian of the post–World War II2 anticommunist crusade in the United States would most likely use the excerpt from Senator Margaret Chase Smith's speech to help answer which of the following questions?
- What impact did the anticommunist crusade have on everyday life in the United States?
- How did influential figures react to the major developments of the anticommunist crusade?
- Which constitutional rights were commonly violated during the anticommunist crusade?
- What were the fundamental values of U.S. society that were threatened by the anticommunist crusade?
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
D. This question requires the examinee to analyze important historical interpretations. Views expressed in the excerpt focus attention on the threat that abuses of power by Senator Joseph McCarthy and other anticommunist crusaders posed to basic American principles.
Descriptive Statements:
- Analyze cause-and-effect relationships between historical events and developments.
- Recognize central theses, main ideas, and supporting evidence in various sources of historical information.
- Distinguish between fact and opinion in historical narratives and interpretations.
- Draw inferences and conclusions from historical texts and interpretations.
- Interpret historical issues represented in graphic formats, including charts, diagrams, maps, political cartoons, and graphs.
Sample Item:
Read the excerpt from Senator Margaret Chase Smith's 1950 speech "Declaration of Conscience" below; then answer the questions that follow.
I think that it is high time for the United States Senate and its members to do some soul-searching—for us to weigh our consciences—on the manner in which we are performing our duty to the people of America—on the manner in which we are using or abusing our individual powers and privileges. . . .
Those of us who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character assassinations are all too
frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore some of the basic principles of Americanism:
The right to criticize;
The right to hold unpopular beliefs;
The right to protest;
The right of independent thought.
The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his reputation or his right to a livelihood nor should he be in danger of losing his reputation or livelihood merely because he happens to know someone who holds unpopular beliefs. Who of us doesn't? Otherwise none of us could call our souls our own. Otherwise thought control would have set in. . . .
The American people are sick and tired of seeing innocent people smeared and guilty people whitewashed. But there have been enough proved cases, such as the Amerasia case, the Hiss case, the Coplon case, the Gold case, to cause the nationwide distrust and strong suspicion that there may be something to the unproved, sensational accusations.
Which of the following best describes the main argument of the excerpt from Margaret Chase Smith's speech?
- Many U.S. citizens hold or know someone who holds unpopular beliefs.
- Unfounded accusations have undermined the constitutional principles of the United States.
- Extraordinary events justify the suspension of some civil liberties in the United States.
- The U.S. Senate must change the manner in which it conducts its everyday responsibilities.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
B. This question requires the examinee to recognize the central theses, main ideas, and supporting evidence in various sources of historical information. In this excerpt, Smith argues that labeling people "un-American" for holding or expressing unpopular beliefs is directly contrary to the rights of free expression guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
View Cart