The National Assessment Governing Board 

The National Assessment Governing Board was created by Congress 

to formulate policy for the National Assessment of Educational 

Progress (NAEP). Among the Board’s responsibilities are 

developing objectives and test specifications, and designing the 

assessment methodology for NAEP. 

Members 

Darvin M. Winick, Chair 

President

Winick & Associates

Dickinson, Texas 

Amanda P. Avallone, Vice 

Chair

Assistant Principal and

 Eighth-Grade Teacher

Summit Middle School 

Boulder, Colorado 

David J. Alukonis 

Former Chairman

Hudson School Board

Hudson, New Hampshire 

Gregory Cizek

Professor

Educational Measurement

University of North Carolina

Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Carol D’Amico

President and CEO

Conexus Indiana 

Indianapolis, Indiana

Honorable David P. Driscoll

Former Commissioner of 

 Education

Commonwealth of 

 Massachusetts

Melrose, Massachusetts

Louis Fabrizio

Director

Division of Accountability

 Services 

North Carolina Department of

 Public Instruction

Raleigh, North Carolina

Honorable Anitere Flores

Member

Florida House of 

 Representatives

Miami, Florida

Alan J. Friedman

Consultant

Museum Development and

 Science Communication

New York, NY

David W. Gordon 

Sacramento County 

Superintendent of Schools 

Sacramento County Office 

 of Education 

Sacramento, California

Robin C. Hall

Principal

Beecher Hills Elementary

 School

Atlanta, Georgia

Kathi M. King 

Twelfth-Grade Teacher

Messalonskee High School

Oakland, Maine

Kim Kozbial-Hess 

Fourth-Grade Teacher

Educational Technology Trainer

Toledo Public Schools

Toledo, Ohio

Henry Kranendonk

Mathematics Curriculum

 Specialist

Milwaukee Public Schools

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

James S. Lanich

President

California Business for 

 Education Excellence

Sacramento, California

Honorable Cynthia Nava

Education Committee

New Mexico State Senate

Las Cruces, New Mexico

Honorable Steven L. Paine

State Superintendent of Schools

West Virginia Department of

 Education

Charleston, West Virginia

Honorable Sonny Perdue

Governor of Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Susan Pimentel

Educational Consultant

Hanover, New Hampshire

Andrew C. Porter 

Dean

University of Pennsylvania

Graduate School of Education

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Warren T. Smith

Sr. Vice President

Washington State Board of 

 Education

Olympia, Washington

Mary Frances Taymans, SND 

Executive Director

Secondary Schools Department

National Catholic Education 

 Association

Washington, DC

Oscar A. Troncoso

Principal

Anthony High School

Anthony Independent School

 District 

Anthony, TX 79821

Eileen L. Weiser 

Civic Leader

Ann Arbor, Michigan

Ex-officio Member

John Q. Easton 

Director 

Institute of Education Sciences

U.S. Department of Education

Washington, DC
U.S. History Framework 

for the 2010 

National Assessment of 

Educational Progress 

 

Developed for the National Assessment Governing Board under 

contract number RN 91072001 by the Council of Chief State School 

Officers with the American Historical Association, the American 

Institutes for Research, the National Council for History Education, 

and the National Council for the Social Studies. 
National Assessment Governing Board 

Darvin Winick

Chair 

Amanda P. Avallone

Vice Chair 

Cornelia S. Orr

Executive Director 

Mary Crovo

Deputy Executive Director 

and Project Officer

U.S. History Assessment Framework for the National 

Assessment of Educational Progress 

Developed for the National Assessment Governing Board under 

contract number RN 91072001 by the Council of Chief State School 

Officers with the American Historical Association, American 

Institutes for Research, National Council for History Education, and 

National Council for the Social Studies. 

For further information, contact the National Assessment 

Governing Board: 800 North Capitol Street NW. 

Suite 825 

Washington, DC 20002 

www.nagb.org 
Table of Contents 

Executive Summary......................................................................... v

Introduction...................................................................................... 1

Chapter One: U.S. History in Elementary, Middle, and High 

Schools.......................................................................................... 3

Nature of U.S. History................................................................... 3

Chapter Two: The Framework for the 2010 NAEP U.S. 

History Assessment...................................................................... 7

Purpose of the Framework............................................................. 7

Elements of the Framework........................................................... 7

Content Matrix Outline.................................................................. 7

Themes of U.S. History................................................................. 8

Periods of U.S. History................................................................ 13

Ways of Knowing and Thinking About U.S. History ................. 31

Chapter Three: Desired Attributes of the Assessment and 

Its Exercises and Items.............................................................. 35

Achievement Levels in U.S. History........................................... 37

Appendix A: NAEP U.S. History Framework Project—

Staff, Committee Members, and Subcontractors................... 41

Appendix B: Released Items From the NAEP U.S. History 

Assessment.................................................................................. 47

Executive Summary 

n a democratic country such as the United States, the study of 

history is vital. All students need to know and understand the 

origins and evolution of their nation. They also need to 

understand the development of the nation’s democratic institutions 

and ideals so that they are prepared to take part knowledgeably, as 

citizens and voters, in shaping America’s future. 

The framework in U.S. history for the 1994–2010 National 

Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was developed by the 

National Assessment Governing Board under contract to the Council 

of Chief State School Officers in 1991–92. The original framework 

project committees included a broad range of historians, educators, 

policymakers, business representatives, and other interested citizens. 

In addition, comments were received from several hundred 

individuals, including state and local educators, public officials, and 

parents. 

In 2003, the Board revised and updated the framework for the 

2006 U.S. history assessment. The framework document was revised 

to make it more useful to the general public, to delete outdated and 

extraneous information, and to include released NAEP questions to 

illustrate more clearly the content and format of the assessment. 

These relatively minor revisions to the framework will ensure that 

NAEP can maintain the U.S. history trendline of student 

achievement for grades 4, 8, and 12 in 1994, 2001, 2006, and 2010. 

The revisions in 2003 were made by the Board’s Assessment 

Development Committee in consultation with an external panel of 

historians and teachers. The updated U.S. History Framework was 

then approved by the Board at its August 2003 meeting. 

The framework reflects the conviction of the National 

Assessment Governing Board that any broadly acceptable 

examination in U.S. History must be a careful balance of: 

• what is commonly taught and learned and what ought to be 

grasped by our students; 

• the common and diverse strands that formed one nation from 

many groups and gave life to its motto, E Pluribus Unum; 

I
• accomplishments and failings in achieving the nation’s goals 

and ideals; 

• specific names, dates, and facts that students need to know to 

master concepts, generalizations, and intellectual skills. 

This framework identifies the main ideas, major events, key 

individuals, and unifying themes of American history as a basis for 

preparing the 2010 assessment. The framework recognizes that U.S. 

history includes powerful ideas, common and diverse traditions, 

economic developments, technological and scientific innovations, 

philosophical debates, religious movements, and the interconnection 

of all these forces. 

The teaching of history should introduce students to the process of 

historical inquiry. This process requires critical examination of 

evidence, thoughtful consideration of conflicting claims, and careful 

weighing of facts and hypotheses. Historical inquiry provides 

experience in the kind of reasoned and informed decision making 

that should characterize each citizen’s participation in our American 

democracy. 

The framework organizes U.S. history into four central themes. 

Each theme is described briefly below and more fully in chapter 

two of the framework.

1. Change and Continuity in American Democracy: Ideas, 

Institutions, Events, Key Figures, and Controversies. The 

development of American political democracy from colonial 

times to the present. This includes basic principles and core 

civic ideas developed through the American Revolution, the 

U.S. Constitution, the Civil War, and the struggles over 

slavery and civil rights. 

2. The Gathering and Interactions of Peoples, Cultures, and 

Ideas. The gathering of people and cultures of many countries, 

races, and religious traditions that have contributed to the 

development of the American heritage and American society. 

3. Economic and Technological Changes and Their 

Relationship to Society, Ideas, and the Environment. The 

transformation of the American economy from rural frontier to 

industrial superpower and its impact on society, ideas, and the 
environment. This includes the influence of geography; the 

development of business and labor; and the impact of science 

and technology, a market economy, and urbanization. 

4. The Changing Role of America in the World. The movement 

from isolation to worldwide responsibility. The evolution of 

relationships between the United States and other nations, 

including American foreign policy and the nation’s 

participation in world and regional wars. Students will consider 

the influence of geography, economic interests, and democratic 

ideals in evaluating the role of the United States in foreign 

affairs. 

The framework divides U.S. history into eight chronological 

periods: 

• Beginnings to 1607 

• Colonization, Settlement, and Communities (1607–1763) 

• The Revolution and the New Nation (1763–1815) 

• Expansion and Reform (1801–1861) 

• Crisis of the Union: Civil War and Reconstruction 

(1850–1877)

• The Development of Modern America (1865–1920) 

• Modern America and the World Wars (1914–1945) 

• Contemporary America (1945 to the present) 

As schools teach U.S. history, we hope they will foster a sense of 

excitement and pride that students will gain a sense of who 

Americans are and of what the idea of America is. Indeed, this nation 

was founded on a core of ideals—liberty, equality of opportunity, 

freedom of religion, self-government under law, and respect for 

individual worth—that continues to draw millions to our shores. 

In order to understand these core democratic ideals, students should 

be familiar with the nation’s founding documents as well as major 

documents such as Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and Second 

Inaugural Address, Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms, and 

Martin Luther King’s speech at the Lincoln Memorial. These 

documents, and the ideals they express, serve as a force for unity and 

continue to stimulate reform. 
Introduction

ince 1969, the National Assessment of Educational Progress 

(NAEP) has been the sole, ongoing national indicator of what 

students in the United States know and can do in major 

academic subjects. Over the years, NAEP has measured students’ 

achievement in many subjects including reading, mathematics, 

science, writing, geography, civics, and the arts. NAEP is a 

congressionally authorized project administered by the U.S. 

Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics. 

The National Assessment Governing Board sets policy for NAEP. 

Among the Board’s congressionally mandated responsibilities are 

selecting subject areas to be assessed, developing assessment 

objectives and specifications, determining appropriate student 

achievement levels, and other duties. 

Under provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 

2001 (Public Law 107–110), Congress authorized the Board to 

continue its mandate for determining the content and format of 

NAEP assessments. While NCLB requires NAEP to assess reading 

and mathematics every 2 years in grades 4 and 8, the legislation 

permits the assessment of other subjects such as science, writing,

U.S. history, civics, geography, and other areas, to the extent time 

and resources allow.

The assessment will be conducted at the national level, in public 

and nonpublic schools, at grades 4, 8, and 12. 

The following table describes NAEP assessments in history and 

the social sciences since 1969. 

S
Table 1. Previous NAEP assessments in history and the social sciences 

Subjects Year(s) Notes 

Civics 

U.S. History 

Economics 

2006 Civics—national data for grades 4, 8, and 12; 

continues trendline from 1998. U.S. History—national 

data for grades 4, 8, and 12; continues trendline from 

1994 and 2001. Economics—national data for grade 

12 only; first economics assessment for NAEP 

U.S. History 

Geography 

2001 National data at grades 4, 8, and 12 

Civics 1998 National data at grades 4, 8, and 12; beginning of new 

trendline for civics assessment; special study on 

subsample of students at grades 4, 8, and 12 using 

questions from 1988 civics assessment 

U.S. History 

Geography 

1994 National data at grades 4, 8, and 12; beginning of new 

trendlines for these two assessments 

Geography 1988 Special assessment at grade 12 and age 17, conducted 

with support from the National Geographic Society 

Civics: U.S. 

Government 

and Politics 

1988 Grade 4 and age 9; grade 8 and age 13; and grade 12 

and age 17, with links back to parts of the 1976 and 

1982 citizenship assessments at ages 13 and 17 

U.S. History 1988 Grade 4 and age 9; grade 8 and age 13; and grade 12 

and age 17, with a special study linking results to 

those from 1986 

U.S. History 

Literature 

1986 Grade 11 and age 17; conducted with the Educational 

Excellence Network and with support from the 

National Endowment for the Humanities 

Citizenship 

Social Studies 

1981–82 Ages 9, 13, and 17 

Social Studies 1975–76 Ages 9, 13, and 17 

Citizenship 1975–76 Ages 9, 13, and 17 

Social Studies 1971–72 Ages 9, 13, and 17 

Publications related to previous NAEP assessments can be found at 

www.nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard. 
Chapter One: U.S. History in 

Elementary, Middle, and High Schools 

Nature of U.S. History 

s young people study U.S. history, they gain insight into the 

American experience over time and discover how the past 

influences the present. They encounter new (and sometimes 

conflicting) ideas, compelling stories of people and events, diverse 

traditions, economic booms and busts, technological and scientific 

innovations, philosophical and political debates, religious 

movements and influences, and the complex interactions among 

these various forces. Most of all, they study people—individually 

and in groups—in their complex settings and in their complex 

reactions to the world around them. 

The framework for the assessment of U.S. history in elementary, 

middle, and high schools is based on seven basic assumptions: 

• First, historical study must strive to connect people and events 

across time and to establish a context that includes the 

political, social, cultural, economic, technological, 

philosophical, and religious dimensions of human activities. 

• Second, the study of U.S. history must analyze change and 

continuity over time, explore the range of choices that have 

been available to people, and examine the events, people, and 

ideas that have been most significant in our nation’s 

development. The study of history introduces students to 

people from all walks of life and to key events, major turning 

points, and significant records that reveal the American 

people’s beliefs, hopes, and ideas. 

• Third, to illuminate the range and depth of the human 

experience, as well as differing perspectives, historical study 

must include famous people and ordinary individuals and 

events on the grand scale and in everyday life to convey the 

ideas and experiences that have shaped U.S. history. It must 

be informed by the humanities and social sciences, and it must 

draw upon many forms of documentation such as original 

A
documents, speeches, cartoons, artifacts, photos, art, music, 

architecture, literature, drama, dance, popular culture, 

biographies, journals, folklore, historic sites and places, and 

oral histories. 

• Fourth, history must include the analytical study of the 

nation’s political ideals of individual dignity, individual 

rights, civic virtue, democracy, the rule of law, equality of 

opportunity, liberty, popular sovereignty, justice, and the right 

to dissent. The study of U.S. history must show how and why 

these core civic ideas have influenced American society, 

while recognizing historical moments such as the Civil War, 

when these ideals were challenged or violated. The study of 

American history will (1) address the conflict between the 

founding proposition that “all men are created equal” in 

possession of certain rights and the reality that enormous 

inequalities in legal protection and in political and economic 

opportunity were common and accepted practice throughout 

the world at the outset of the American experiment, (2) show 

how individuals and groups have worked since the founding 

to make the nation’s civic ideals real for all people, and (3) 

identify the institutions and laws that establish equality under 

law for everyone. 

• Fifth, history has a spatial dimension—the places where 

human actions occur. The study of history must examine how 

events were influenced by geography, such as the locations of 

places and relationships within places. Aspects of the natural 

environment, such as climate and terrain, influence human 

behavior, and people affect the places they inhabit. 

• Sixth, it is necessary to identify enduring themes that link 

people and events across time and space. People and events in 

history are not isolated and discrete; they are linked in many 

ways. The linkages are not static but are continuously 

evolving, and later generations will certainly perceive new 

relationships that are not evident today. Among the many 

possible themes of U.S. history, four have been selected for 

emphasis in the assessment: 
1. Change and Continuity in American Democracy: 

Ideas, Institutions, Events, Key Figures, and 

Controversies 

2. The Gathering and Interactions of Peoples, Cultures, and 

Ideas 

3. Economic and Technological Changes and Their 

Relationship to Society, Ideas, and the Environment 

4. The Changing Role of America in the World 

• Seventh, students need historical reasoning skills to enable 

them to examine evidence, analyze cause and effect, and 

appreciate how complex and sometimes ambiguous the 

explanation of historical events can be. Historical study must 

encourage students to think and judge evidence responsibly, 

independently, imaginatively, and critically. In developing 

critical thinking skills, students should engage in debates and 

consider alternative viewpoints or possibilities of historical 

movements and their causes. 

In sum, students must know the specific facts of American history, 

be able to evaluate historical evidence, and understand change and 

continuity over time. For them, the nation’s past should be a body of 

knowledge as well as a source for understanding America’s promise, 

achievements, and shortcomings. They must be prepared to examine 

the influence of past upon present and to weigh evidence in order to 

reach generalizations and conclusions about how change and 

continuity have occurred. 

Chapter Two: The Framework for the 

2010 NAEP U.S. History Assessment 

Purpose of the Framework 

he National Assessment Governing Board develops an 

assessment framework for each the National Assessment of 

Educational Progress (NAEP) subject area. A framework 

defines the scope of the domain to be measured by delineating the 

knowledge and skills to be tested at each grade, the format of the 

NAEP assessment, and achievement level descriptions. The 

framework will provide information to the public and test developers 

on three key aspects of the assessment: 

• what should be measured at grades 4, 8, and 12 

• how the domain of content is most appropriately measured in 

a large-scale assessment 

• how much of the content domain, in terms of knowledge and 

skills, should students know and be able to do at the Basic, 

Proficient, and Advanced levels 

Elements of the Framework 

This assessment framework has three components: Themes in 

U.S. History, Periods of U.S. History, and Ways of Knowing and 

Thinking About U.S. History. The themes and periods that 

structure the assessment are illustrated in the content matrix (table 2) 

and explained in the section that follows the matrix. The final section 

of the chapter, Ways of Knowing and Thinking About U.S. History, 

defines the cognitive dimensions of the assessment. 

Content Matrix Outline 

The framework is defined by a content matrix outline. This 

matrix consists of the four major themes, as observed in each of 

the eight chronological periods of American history. The four 

themes form the horizontal axis of the content matrix, while the 

eight periods of U.S. history form its vertical axis. The periods 

are a useful way to divide history into manageable segments. The 

T
themes establish important emphases within periods and ensure 

continuity from one era to another. While the framework is based 

on one set of historical periods and issues, other perspectives, 

other issues, and other chronologies could easily have been 

identified. 

The general questions posed for each theme and the specific 

questions developed for each period define a conceptual approach to 

U.S. history. The questions provide a way to think about U.S. history 

in elementary and secondary school and to define content and 

interpretive approaches to be used in creating assessment exercises 

for grades 4, 8, and 12. Appendix B provides publicly released test 

questions from the 1994 and 2001 NAEP U.S. history assessments. 

Additional NAEP questions, performance results, scoring criteria, 

and sample student responses can be found on the NAEP Web site at 

www.nces.ed.gov/naep. 

Themes of U.S. History 

The four themes that will be the central focus of the assessment 

are defined through general questions. The theme questions establish 

the context for the people, events, ideas, movements, issues, and 

sources to be addressed in each historical period. Not all themes, 

however, will be examined in equal depth in all periods or all grade 

levels because the thematic emphasis in any given period will 

depend upon the major historical issues and developments of that 

period. 
Theme 1. Change and Continuity in American Democracy: 

Ideas, Institutions, Events, Key Figures, and 

Controversies 

Defining Questions 

• What political, legal, philosophical, and religious traditions did 

Americans draw upon for their conceptions of democracy? Who 

were the leaders, what were their contributions, and what 

political and legal institutions developed? In what significant 

ways have these institutions continued? In what ways have they 

changed? What individuals and groups have been important in 

maintaining, testing, and changing these institutions? 

Table 2. NAEP U.S. history content matrix outline

Note: Not all of the themes will be addressed equally in every period.

*These themes will not be tested at grade 4 for each designated period. 

• Which democratic institutions and procedures made change 

possible? How does the Constitution permit compromise, 

continuity, and change? What landmark documents reflect 

change and continuity? 
• What are the basic principles and critical assumptions of 

American constitutional government about the sources of 

political power and the rights of individuals? What core civic 

ideas (e.g., individual rights and popular sovereignty) have 

influenced American society? What individuals and groups have 

maintained, tested, and influenced the evolution of these ideas? 

What primary documents include these commonly held civic 

ideas (e.g., Mayflower Compact, Declaration of Independence, 

The Federalist Papers, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Seneca Falls 

Declaration of Sentiments, and “I Have a Dream” speech)? What 

landmark Supreme Court cases have had an important influence 

on our nation (e.g., Brown v. Board of Education, Plessy v. 

Ferguson, Marbury v. Madison)? Why has the Constitution 

survived, and why has it become a model political framework? 

How have Americans responded to inherent tensions and 

conflicts of constitutional democracy, such as reconciling the 

desire for liberty with the need for order, majority rule with 

minority rights, and liberty with equality? 

• How has the cultural diversity of American society shaped the 

nation’s civic culture, political institutions, and political 

practices? What individuals and groups played important roles in 

raising and responding to issues about diversity and unity in the 

American body politic? What major political controversies arose 

about the issues? Which controversies have been resolved? 

Which controversies have remained or reemerged under other 

circumstances? 

Theme 2. The Gathering and Interactions of Peoples, Cultures, 

and Ideas 

Defining Questions 

• What racial, ethnic, religious, and national groups formed this 

nation? Why did people immigrate to the land that became the 

United States and why has the country continued to attract so 

many immigrants? What have been the patterns and conditions 

of this migration (e.g., voluntarily in search of economic 

opportunity, religious freedom, and political refuge; 

involuntarily in bondage as slaves, or in a “nonfree” status such 

as indentured servants and contract laborers)? How has the 
racial, ethnic, and religious composition of the nation changed 

over time? What racial, ethnic, and religious tensions arose? 

What issues have been resolved? What issues remain? What 

were the patterns of settlement? How and why have these 

settlement patterns changed? 

• What common and diverse cultural traditions did Americans 

develop? How did racial, ethnic, religious, and national groups 

contribute to the creation of American culture? What individuals 

and defining events contributed to these developments? What 

primary documents and historical sources—such as original 

documents, speeches, cartoons, artifacts, photos, art, music, 

architecture, literature, drama, dance, popular culture, 

biographies, journals, folklore, historic sites and places, and oral 

histories—reflect the development of American culture? 

• What have been the roles of men and women in American 

society? How and why have gender roles changed over time? 

Theme 3. Economic and Technological Changes and Their 

Relationship to Society, Ideas, and the Environment 

Defining Questions 

• How did the United States develop from a rural, agricultural 

economy to an urban, industrialized superpower? What were the 

human and environmental benefits and costs of this 

development? How and why has the standard of living for most 

Americans changed over time? How have state and national 

governments responded to issues raised by economic 

developments and how have these governments participated in 

the economy? 

• What ideas, values, and practices (e.g., individual 

entrepreneurship, private ownership of property, laissez-faire 

economics, free enterprise, monopolies, and government 

regulation) contributed to the development of the American 

economic system? What types of labor systems developed and 

how did they influence society and the economy? How has the 

economic system, including its ideas and values, adapted to 

changing conditions and changing demands? What forms of 

prosperity and opportunity resulted? How have the work lives 
and economic opportunities of various groups differed (e.g., men 

and women, racial groups, and people in different regions)? 

• How have geography and economic and technological 

developments influenced society? How have these developments 

influenced how Americans make a living, where they live, their 

quality of life, and their natural environment? 

• What have been the major American achievements and 

developments in science and technology? Who played key roles? 

What caused these developments? How have these developments 

influenced the economy, the environment, and the rest of the 

world? What have been the most important economic, scientific, 

and technological issues? How have these scientific and 

technological developments affected other areas of American 

society? 

Theme 4. The Changing Role of America in the World 

Defining Questions 

• What were the causes and consequences of key events that 

marked American involvement in world affairs? SpanishAmerican War? World War I? World War II? Marshall Plan? 

The Cold War? Globalization? 

• How have the geographical location and resources of the United 

States, its ideals, its interests, and its power influenced its role in 

the world? How and why has that role changed? Who played 

significant roles in international affairs at critical moments in 

American history? What is the role of public opinion in shaping 

foreign policy in a democracy? What primary documents and 

historical sources record the key developments? 

• How have the interests, institutions, ideologies, individuals, 

power, and activities of other nations affected the United States? 

• How have the interests, institutions, ideologies, individuals, 

power, and activities of the United States affected other nations? 

• How has life inside the United States been affected by the 

nation’s role in the world? 

The distribution of the assessment exercise pool across historical 

themes for grades 4, 8, and 12 follows in table 3. 
Table 3. Distribution of the test questions across historical themes: grades 4, 8, 

and 12 

Grade Levels 

Themes

Change and 

Continuity in 

American 

Democracy: 

Ideas, 

Institutions, 

Events, Key 

Figures, and 

Controversies 

The 

Gathering 

and 

Interactions 

of Peoples, 

Cultures, and 

Ideas 

Economic and 

Technological 

Changes and 

Their 

Relationship 

to Society, 

Ideas, and the 

Environment 

The 

Changing 

Role of 

America in 

the World 

Grade 4 25% 35% 25% 15% 

Grade 8 30% 30% 20% 20% 

Grade 12 25% 25% 25% 25%

Periods of U.S. History 

Because history is concerned with the experiences of people over 

time, it is critical to establish a basic chronological structure to 

organize it. Eight periods structure the assessment. A series of 

questions directly related to the four historical themes establishes the 

content and interpretive emphasis for each period. The questions set 

the parameters of U.S. history for the assessment and will guide the 

development of assessment exercises. 

Period 1: Beginnings to 1607 

Theme 1 

• What were some of the political ideas, institutions, and 

practices of Native Americans, Western Europeans, and West 

Africans before 1607? How did these ideas influence colonial 

American settlements? 

Theme 2 

• What were the family patterns, religious practices, political 

institutions, and artistic traditions of Western Europeans that 

principally influenced and shaped colonial American 

settlements? How did Native American and West African 

traditions contribute to creating a new and uniquely American 

culture in the 17th and 18th centuries? 
• What was “the Columbian exchange”? How did it affect 

societies and cultures worldwide? 

• Why did Europeans explore and settle in the Western 

Hemisphere? Who were the explorers? What were their 

motivations? How did geographical factors influence their 

routes? 

• What historical sources provide insights into the exchange? 

Theme 3 

• How did Europeans, Native Americans, and West Africans live 

and make a living on the eve of Columbus’ voyage? 

• What were the economic and trading relationships among 

Europe, Asia, and Africa before Columbus’ voyage? How did 

these relationships change with the beginning of transatlantic 

trade? 

• How did European inventions and technological developments 

(particularly in navigation and armament) lead to exploration and 

early conquest? What role did education and literacy play in 

spreading these technological developments? What individuals 

and groups contributed to these developments? 

• What was the role of economic factors in exploration and the 

search for resources in the Western Hemisphere? What impact 

did exploration have on the economies of Europe, West Africa, 

and North America? 

• What labor systems emerged? Why did the practice of slavery 

develop in the Western Hemisphere? How did it compare to 

other forms of slavery that existed historically in Africa and 

other parts of the world? 

Theme 4 

• How did the quest for political and economic power among 

European nations cause rivalries in the Western Hemisphere? 

• How did Europeans’ efforts to gain control in the Western 

Hemisphere affect the people of West Africa and the North 

American continent? How did these people respond? 

Period 2: Colonization, Settlement, and Communities 

(1607–1763) 
Theme 1 

• How did various European colonists reshape their political, legal, 

and philosophical traditions to fit their circumstances in North 

America? What new political traditions evolved? In the English

colonies, what practices of self-government and law developed? 

• How did various Native American groups view and respond to 

European colonization? 

• How did ideas about individual rights, popular sovereignty, and 

law develop in different parts of the British, Spanish, Dutch, and 

French colonies? 

• What conceptions of law, government, literacy, education, and 

human nature did English colonists bring with them? What was 

the significance of the Mayflower Compact? 

Theme 2 

• Who were the colonists? What were the reasons they came? 

Where did they settle? What social and cultural organizations did 

they create? What were the conflicts and cooperative efforts 

between and within these groups? What was the impact on 

Native Americans? 

• What motives did the colonists’ financial backers have in settling 

North America? How did the English, French, Dutch, and 

Spanish colonies differ? 

• What was daily life like in colonial America for the yeoman 

farmers, merchants, artisans, planters, indentured servants, 

slaves, and Native Americans? How was life different and how 

was it similar in New England, the mid-Atlantic, the South, the 

West, the Spanish Southwest, and French Louisiana? 

• How did diverse religious beliefs and practices affect life in the 

English colonies and lead to denominationalism and religious 

freedom? 

Theme 3 

• What ideas, individuals, motives, practices, and values 

influenced economic development in the different regions of 

colonial North America and the West Indies? 

• What were the roles of private property, communal landholding, 
the fur trade, the “Protestant work ethic,” the plantation system, 

merchants, small farmers, indentured servants, and slaves in the 

economies that arose in the European colonies? 

• What roles did women play in colonial economies? 

• How did indentured servitude differ from chattel slavery? Why 

did slavery come to mean racial or black slavery? 

• In what ways did slavery in the Americas differ from slavery in 

Africa, ancient Greece and Rome, or in other places and times? 

Theme 4 

• Why did European nations contend for control of North 

America? What were the trade routes? What was the extent of 

each nation’s empire by 1763? 

• What kinds of relationships, alliances, and conflicts developed 

among Native American societies, European countries, and 

settlers? 

• What were the causes and results of the French and Indian War 

of 1754–63? What was its counterpart in Europe? 

• Why did English language, culture, ideas, and institutions 

become dominant in the colonies? 

Period 3: The Revolution and the New Nation (1763–1815) 

Theme 1 

• What ideas about the nature of liberty, power, and “natural 

rights” contributed to the colonists’ decision to declare their 

independence? What were the sources of these ideas? 

• What British policies led to the revolt? What was the American 

response to these events? What were the most important turning 

points in the Revolution? Why was the Revolution successful? 

• In what ways have the ideas embodied in the Declaration of 

Independence served as fundamental and enduring ideas of 

American political life? 

• What were the political debates regarding independence and the 

creation of new state governments and a national government? 

Who supported what positions? 

• Who were the leaders of the American Revolution? What was 

the role and what was the importance of George Washington, 
Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and others in the 

revolutionary generation? What ideas about government, sources 

of political power, rights of individuals, and political 

participation are specified in the Declaration of Independence, 

the Articles of Confederation, the Northwest Ordinance, the 

Constitution, and the Bill of Rights? How did the ideas in these 

documents contribute to a common civic culture? 

• What factors and events, such as problems of the Articles of 

Confederation and Shays’ Rebellion, led to the Constitutional 

Convention? Who were the participants? What key issues did 

they debate? What major compromises did they make to create 

the Constitution of 1787? 

• What are the most important features of the Constitution? How 

did it differ from the Articles of Confederation? How have its 

core civic ideas of individual rights, equal justice under law, and 

popular sovereignty become the basis for the nation’s common 

political culture? Why did it become recognized as a model 

political framework? How has it sustained aspirations for 

individual freedom and dignity, here and in other nations, for 

more than 200 years? 

• How does the ratification of the Bill of Rights illustrate the idea 

of compromise and change that has been a basic principle of 

American constitutional government? 

• What political and legal institutions were created by the 

Constitution? How was power distributed among the branches of 

the federal government and between federal and state 

governments? 

• How and why did issues such as slavery, the rights of 

individuals, the power of the states, and the nature of federalism 

and republicanism divide Americans? How did the Constitution 

provide avenues for addressing these issues? 

• Why did political parties arise (e.g., Federalists, Democrats, and 

Republicans)? How did the party system influence the 

development of democracy? What was the role and importance 

of George Washington? Why was the peaceful transfer of power 

following Jefferson’s election such a landmark event in history? 

• How did John Marshall establish as a principle of constitutional 

government the judicial review by the Supreme Court of acts of 

state and federal governments? What does this mean today? 
Theme 2 

• What were the various roles of Native Americans, African 

Americans, and men and women from different social and 

economic levels in the Revolution? What role did Loyalists play 

in the Revolution? 

• How did revolutionary rhetoric about equality and civic virtue 

produce rising expectations for women, slaves, free blacks, and 

nonproperty-owning men? 

• What ideas, beliefs, and values emerged to create a national 

culture? How did that culture compare and contrast to regional 

cultures in the United States and to the cultural traditions of the 

Spanish borderlands (Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, California, 

and Florida)? 

• What reforms and improvements were sought for women, 

African Americans, and Native Americans in the new nation in 

response to new concepts of liberty as they emerged during the 

American Revolution? How did their lack of political power 

influence the strategies and successes of reformers? 

Theme 3 

• How did colonial economic growth interact with the British 

mercantile and Native American economic systems? 

• What economic factors contributed to the colonists’ decision to 

declare their independence? 

• What were the effects of the Revolution on economic 

development and institutions? 

• What ideas, values, and practices caused the HamiltonianJeffersonian debate over the formation and direction of the 

nation’s economy? What were the results? 

Theme 4 

• What were the contributions of other nations to America’s 

victory in the Revolution? 

• In what ways did the American Revolution and the establishment 

of the United States influence people in other nations? How did 

these events reshape the image of America in other countries? 
What was the significance of George Washington’s farewell 

address? 

• How did the French Revolution affect American domestic and 

foreign policy? 

Period 4: Expansion and Reform (1801–1861) 

Theme 1 

• Why did the nation expand across the Appalachian Mountains to 

the Pacific Coast? What ideas about democracy emerged? Why 

did the nation decide to add states and give them equal standing 

instead of creating colonies? What controversies arose about 

organizing territories and adding states to the union? How and to 

what extent were these controversies resolved? 

• How did the American political culture develop? What 

procedures emerged for managing controversy and responding to 

changing political and social needs? Who played important roles 

in this process? 

• How did Jefferson and Jackson change the power and practices 

of the presidency? What caused the rise of interest-group 

politics? 

• How did the right to vote expand? 

• How did reform movements challenge assumptions about 

slavery, women’s rights, qualifications for citizenship and the 

right to vote, and the rights of Native Americans? 

• How did reform movements change political practices, the rights 

of individuals, and the meaning of American constitutional 

democracy?

• How did landmark Supreme Court decisions affect the 

development of the legal system and constitutional government 

(e.g., Marbury v. Madison and McCulloch v. Maryland)? 

• What were the positions of the political parties and their leaders 

on economic development, territorial expansion, political 

participation, individual rights, states’ rights, slavery, and social 

reforms? What was the significance of the Lincoln-Douglas 

debates? 
Theme 2 

• What was distinctive about the new American culture? Who 

were the principal artistic and intellectual figures (e.g., Ralph 

Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, 

Edgar Allan Poe)? What were their contributions? How did the 

new culture draw on, reject, and compare to European and 

British culture? 

• What ideas, traditions, and traits (such as individualism and the 

belief in the human capacity to solve problems) came to define 

the American character? 

• What were the characteristics of Native American and 

Southwest-Hispanic cultures? How did African Americans 

develop unique cultures in response to slavery? How did free 

African Americans, especially in the North, develop their own 

institutions and actively seek the abolition of slavery? How did 

the cultures of Native Americans, Hispanics, and African 

Americans adapt and survive? 

• What groups (such as the Germans and Irish) immigrated to the 

United States during this period? Why did they come? Where did 

they settle? What impact did they have on the national culture as 

they adapted to the American lifestyle? 

• How did religious revivalism and the idea of human 

perfectibility contribute to many reform movements? What was 

the role of women in revivalism and reform? 

• What ideas about education emerged, what institutions were 

created, and how did the increased emphasis on education 

influence society? 

Theme 3 

• How did geographical factors, technological innovations, 

individual inventors, and entrepreneurialism contribute to rapid 

economic growth and important economic developments such as 

the specialization and division of labor, the manufacturing 

system, the westward movement, “King Cotton,” and the 

expansion of slavery? What were the costs and benefits of these 

economic developments? 

• Why did many people experience growing prosperity? How did 

their prosperity influence society? 
• How did the growth of the factory system affect living 

conditions, working conditions, and where people lived? 

• How did government subsidies, the growth of a national 

transportation system, tariffs, immigrant labor, and foreign 

investments influence economic development? 

Theme 4 

• How and why did the United States expand its boundaries? What 

was the Monroe Doctrine? Who were the chief advocates of 

territorial expansion? What were the major events in territorial 

expansion? What was the idea of Manifest Destiny? Who were 

its supporters and opponents? 

• How did the United States influence revolutionary movements in 

the Caribbean and Latin America? How did those movements 

affect the United States? 

• How did the United States attempt to prevent European nations 

from regaining control of Latin America? Who were the leaders? 

Period 5: Crisis of the Union: Civil War and 

Reconstruction (1850–1877) 

Theme 1 

• What role did the process of compromise play in the disputes 

about slavery, the nature of the Union, individual rights, states’ 

rights, and the power of the federal government? What caused 

the outbreak of the Civil War? What were the roles of Webster, 

Clay, Calhoun, Douglas, Lincoln, and Seward? What were 

Abraham Lincoln’s positions on key issues during this period? 

• How did the major political parties and leaders deal with 

controversies about abolition of slavery, constitutional rights, 

and economic development? 

• What were the major events and turning points in the Civil War? 

What was the influence of civilian and military leaders (e.g., 

Lincoln, Davis, Grant, and Lee)? 

• What actions did African Americans take before, during, and 

after the war to secure their freedom and rights as citizens? 

• How did the Civil War and Reconstruction change conceptions 

of the Union and the power of the federal government? What 
were the influences of Lincoln’s presidency? 

• What primary sources exemplify the key ideas and issues of this 

period (e.g., Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, 

Lincoln’s second inaugural address, “Battle Hymn of the 

Republic,” “Bonnie Blue Flag,” and “Dixie”)? 

• How was the U.S. Constitution changed after the Civil War (e.g., 

13th, 14th, and 15th amendments)? How did the changes affect 

democratic ideas and practices and contribute to achieving 

democratic ideals? How did decisions by the Supreme Court 

undermine the effectiveness of these amendments? 

• What were the goals of radical and moderate reconstructionists? 

How and why did they succeed and fail? 

Theme 2 

• How did the social and cultural traditions of the prewar North 

and South differ? 

• What was the role of religion in the debate over slavery? 

• In what ways did the Civil War and Reconstruction challenge 

earlier ideas and alter relations between races, classes, and 

genders? 

• What individuals and groups played significant roles in the Civil 

War and Reconstruction? 

• How did postbellum black communities differ from slave and 

antebellum free black communities? 

Theme 3 

• How did slavery as an economic system affect the economy and 

the social and class systems in the North, the South, and the 

West? 

• How did the economic strengths and weaknesses of each side 

affect the outcome of the Civil War? 

• What scientific and technological developments affected the 

economy, the Civil War, and Reconstruction? 

• How did Reconstruction change the economic life of the 

South?
Theme 4 

• How did Union and Confederate diplomacy affect the Civil 

War? 

• In what ways did other nations influence the course and outcome 

of the Civil War? 

• How did the Civil War affect Europe, Latin America, and Native 

American nations? 

• How did the Civil War and Reconstruction influence the 

nation’s image in other countries?

Period 6: The Development of Modern America 

(1865–1920) 

Theme 1 

• How did the movements of Populism and Progressivism lead to 

changes in basic assumptions about the practice of democracy? 

What led to the 16th Amendment? 

• Who were the leaders in these reform efforts? How did they 

affect events? 

• What gains and losses in individual rights resulted (e.g., 

suffrage)? How did these changes relate to other reform efforts? 

Who was left out of these reform efforts? 

• How did the role of government change in relation to business 

and labor? What were the issues and how were they resolved? 

• What groups came to the United States (e.g., Italians, Jews, 

Russians, and Poles)? Why did they come? 

• What was the debate over American ownership of colonies after 

the Spanish-American War and what was the influence of this 

debate on the nature of American government? 

Theme 2 

• What was the concept of Social Darwinism? How was it used by 

both liberals and conservatives? 

• How did westward expansion and the 19th-century belief in 

progress affect American ideas and society? Who advocated 

westward expansion? Who advocated social change and what 

changes did they advocate? 
• What was the impact of westward expansion on Native 

American and Hispanic societies? How did these groups 

respond? 

• What was the influence of Mexican culture on the southwest? 

• What factors influenced immigration? How did the image of 

America as a land of opportunity develop? How did European 

immigration patterns change? What was the experience of newly 

arriving groups such as the Swedes, Norwegians, Jews, Poles, 

Russians, and Italians? What was the influence of European 

immigrants on the United States? 

• Why did Asians immigrate to the United States? What were their 

experiences after their arrival? 

• How did the forces of industrialization, immigration, technology, 

and urbanization change popular culture, the definitions of 

“What is American?,” and family life? 

• Why and how did public education develop and expand? 

• How did women respond to the opportunities and problems 

produced by urbanization and industrialization? 

Theme 3 

• What accounts for the surging growth of the American economy 

in this era? What were the main features of industrialization, and 

what were the benefits and costs of this economic development? 

• What basic assumptions define Socialism and Communism? 

What were their followers’ critiques of the industrial economy? 

What was the economic critique of these approaches to 

economic organization? What influence did these philosophies 

have on the American economy? 

• Who were the leaders of Industrialization? What were their 

roles? What was their impact on society? 

• How did American industrial achievements and developments 

influence the rest of the world? How did Industrialization in 

other countries affect the United States? 

• How did the American labor movement develop? Who were its 

leaders? What were its goals? 

• What were major conflicts between big business and labor? 

What was the role of the federal government in resolving such 

disputes? 
• What was the influence of increased regulation on business? 

• Who were the innovators? What major scientific and 

technological achievements and developments influenced 

industrialization? Discuss the importance of Thomas Alva 

Edison, the Wright brothers, and other inventors and pioneers of 

technology. 

• How were Americans’ work habits, living conditions, and 

attitudes shaped by industrialization and urbanization? 

• How did economic growth and industrialization affect the 

environment? What were the goals of the early 

environmentalists?

• How was agriculture affected by technological development? 

How did it contribute to industrialization and urbanization? 

Theme 4 

• Why did the United States expand its role in world affairs in the 

late 19th and early 20th centuries? 

• Who were the champions and critics of expansion? 

• In what ways did the United States expand its territory, its 

diplomatic importance, and its military power? 

• In what ways did other nations respond to the expanding 

American role in world affairs?

Period 7: Modern America and the World Wars (1914–

1945) 

Theme 1 

• Why did the United States decide to enter the First World War? 

What were the major turning points in this war? Who were the 

leaders (Woodrow Wilson, Kaiser Wilhelm II, etc.)? What 

happened in the First World War? 

• How did politics in the 1920s reflect both the advancement and 

the retreat of important democratic practices? 

• Why was the Constitution amended to ban the sale/consumption 

of alcohol? Who supported Prohibition? Why was the 

amendment repealed? 

• How did women’s suffrage become enacted as an amendment to 

the Constitution? Who were the leaders of the women’s suffrage 
movement (Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Carrie 

Chapman Catt)? Why did some people oppose women’s 

suffrage? 

• How did the Depression affect American politics? How did the 

Depression change assumptions about the nature of federalism 

and the role of government? 

• How did Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal legislation change the 

role of the federal government in relation to social welfare and 

individual rights? Which new agencies were created and which 

of them became a lasting part of American government? 

• What were the key events in the Second World War (e.g., Pearl 

Harbor, the rise of Nazism/Hitler, concentration camps/ 

Holocaust, the atomic bomb)? Who were the leaders (Hitler, 

Stalin, Tojo, Mussolini, Churchill, Roosevelt, MacArthur, 

Eisenhower)? Why did the United States get involved in the 

Second World War? 

• How did landmark Supreme Court decisions reflect changes in 

the nature of federalism, the rights of individuals, and the power 

and duties of government (e.g., Gitlow v. New York, Near v. 

Minnesota, and NLRB v. Jones and Laughlin)? Why did Franklin 

Roosevelt try to “pack” the Supreme Court? 

Theme 2 

• Who were the artistic and literary figures (e.g., Ernest 

Hemingway, Sinclair Lewis, John Steinbeck, Langston Hughes,

and F. Scott Fitzgerald) that contributed to national culture and 

to distinct ethnic and regional cultures? How did World War I, 

the Depression, the Dust Bowl, and World War II affect writers 

and artists? 

• Why were restrictive immigration policies enacted? What groups 

were restricted and what groups were allowed? Why did large 

numbers of people continue to seek opportunities to immigrate to 

the United States? 

• What were the social and cultural consequences of the 

immigration policies and internal migration? What developments 

defined the “Roaring Twenties,” the “Harlem Renaissance,” and 

the Depression era? 
• What was the controversy over scientific views of evolution? 

What was the Scopes trial? 

• What is the importance of the New Deal in American social 

reform? What were the key policies? Who developed the policies 

and who were the critics? 

• How did technological innovations such as the radio, movies, 

and automobiles affect the lives of ordinary Americans? 

• What was the immediate and long-range impact of World War II 

on the home front? 

Theme 3 

• What effect did wartime economies have on the composition of 

the American workforce and on the shift from a rural society to 

an urban society? 

• How did wartime economic innovation and technological 

developments change the American economy and American 

society? Who were the innovators? 

• What factors led to the growth of the American economy in the 

1920s? To what extent was growing prosperity a reality for 

Americans from various levels of society? 

• What caused the Depression? How did Herbert Hoover and 

Franklin Roosevelt respond? How did it alter ideas, values, and 

practices of the American economic system? What was its 

impact on the lives of ordinary Americans? 

• How did the Depression and the New Deal influence economic 

theory and practice and the role of the government in the 

economy? 

• How did workers and labor leaders shape the discussion of 

economic theory and employer policies and practices? 

Theme 4 

• How did events in Europe and Asia, such as the outbreak of the 

First World War, the Russian Revolution, the Nazis’ rise to 

power, the Axis alliance, the Nazi-Soviet pact, and Japanese 

territorial expansion, influence U.S. history? 

• How was life in the United States affected by expansion and 

participation in the First World War? 
• What was the role of American democratic ideals in the nation’s 

entry into the First World War?

• What was the role of American democratic ideals in the nation’s 

entry into the Second World War? What was the relationship 

between the United States and the U.S.S.R. during the war? Why 

did this relationship end after the war? 

• How did isolationism influence American foreign policy 

between 1914 and 1945? 

• What roles did national leaders (e.g., Kaiser Wilhelm II, 

Woodrow Wilson, Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Neville 

Chamberlin, Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Dwight 

Eisenhower, and Tojo) play in shaping military and foreign 

policy? 

• Why did some Americans oppose involvement in the First and 

Second World Wars? 

• How did U.S. policy and activities in the peacemaking process 

compare after each war? Why did the failure to solve problems 

after the First World War lay the groundwork for another war? 

How did U.S. policy after the Second World War differ from its 

policy after the First World War? 

• What international alliances and agreements resulted from the 

wars? What were the goals of the League of Nations and the 

United Nations? Why did the League of Nations fail? 

Period 8: Contemporary America (1945 to the present) 

Theme 1 

• How have the ideas of the founding period about the nature of 

the government, liberty, and sources of political power been 

maintained and changed? Why do the important core civic ideas 

of individual rights, equal rights under law, and popular 

sovereignty continue to be forces in American society? 

• How did the Second World War affect the movement for racial 

equality? 

• What political issues have been most significant in contemporary 

America (e.g., abortion; affirmative action; antiwar protests; civil 

liberties; civil rights for minorities, women, and the disabled; 

environmentalism; national security; reducing government 
regulation and taxes; and terrorism)? How have issues and 

controversies been resolved in the American democratic political 

system? 

• How did Harry Truman respond to Soviet military challenges in 

Europe and Greece? How did Dwight Eisenhower respond to 

McCarthyism and the Brown decision? How did John F. 

Kennedy respond to the Cuban missile crisis and to the civil 

rights movement? How did Lyndon B. Johnson attempt to 

balance the “Great Society” domestic reforms while expanding 

American involvement in the Vietnam War? How did Richard 

Nixon change the nation’s relations with China but lose his 

presidency because of Watergate? How did Ronald Reagan 

hasten the collapse of the Soviet Union? What caused George 

H.W. Bush to initiate Operation Desert Storm? What was the 

impact of welfare reform under the Clinton administration? What 

were the policies of George W. Bush following the September 

11, 2001, terrorist attacks? 

• How have landmark Supreme Court decisions affected 

constitutional rights, political controversies, and the relationships 

of individuals and groups (e.g., Brown v. Board of Education, 

Gideon v. Wainwright, Abington School District v. Schempp, 

Reynolds v. Sims, Miranda v. Arizona, and Roe v. Wade)? 

• What is the role of political leadership in contemporary politics? 

What individuals or groups have taken leadership roles? What 

strategies and political philosophies have they pursued to achieve 

power and resolve political issues? 

Theme 2 

• How has immigration policy changed in the contemporary 

United States? What groups are immigrating in large numbers

(Hispanics, Asians)? Why? 

• How has cultural diversity affected education, media, and 

popular culture? 

• How have the structures of families changed in contemporary 

American society? 

• What has been the role of the media in contemporary America?

• How have the civil rights movement and the women’s movement 

affected individuals and American society? 
• What is the influence of literary figures in contemporary 

America?

Theme 3 

• What caused the general economic boom and growing prosperity 

in the post-Second World War era? 

• What have been key technological innovations (e.g., transistors, 

television, computers, jet airplanes, penicillin, plastics, the 

hydrogen bomb, and space exploration)? Who were the 

innovators? How have these innovations influenced society? 

• How has the labor movement influenced the economy and 

society? 

• How has technological change influenced work habits, the 

composition of the workforce, and economic productivity? 

• How have mass production, the consumer economy, 

entrepreneurship, and changing economic conditions affected 

American society? 

Theme 4 

• How and why did the United States become the preeminent 

economic and military power in the world? How did U.S. 

participation in the First and Second World Wars influence the 

rest of the world? How and why did the Soviet Union collapse? 

• What combination of ideology, economics, historical 

circumstances, individual viewpoints, and other factors shaped 

the history of the Cold War? What factors led to its end? 

• What were the foreign policy objectives of the major world 

powers after the Second World War? What were the major 

events and conflicts (Hungarian Revolution of 1956, Berlin 

Airlift, Marshall Plan, Suez crisis, collapse of the U.S.S.R., etc.)? 

What led to these policies? What influence did domestic and 

foreign leaders have on these policies (e.g., Harry Truman, John 

Foster Dulles, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, Dwight Eisenhower, 

John Kennedy, Fidel Castro, Nikita Khrushchev, Richard Nixon, 

Jimmy Carter, Golda Meir, Anwar Sadat, Margaret Thatcher, 

Lyndon Johnson, Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, George 

H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Colin Powell, and George W. Bush)? 
• What were the main features of U.S. foreign policy during the 

Cold War era? Who advanced specific proposals? 

• How did policies toward nations in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin 

America, and the Middle East change during the Cold War era? 

What were the causes and results of the Korean War and the 

Vietnam War? In what ways did the Cold War strengthen or 

weaken American democracy, the American economy, and 

American military practices? 

• What role has public opinion and public protest played in 

shaping American foreign policy? 

• How have the end of the Cold War, the dissolution of the Soviet 

Union, the democratic revolution in certain countries of Eastern 

Europe, and conflicts in the Middle East reshaped American 

foreign policy? 

• What is the significance of the United Nations in the world 

today? 

The distribution of the test questions across historical periods for 

grades 4, 8, and 12 appears in table 4. 

Ways of Knowing and Thinking About U.S. History 

The study of United States history engages students’ minds with 

the facts and complexities that give insight into the development of 

the nation. Historical study requires specialized ways of knowing 

and thinking, habits of mind, and cognitive processes that typify 

historians’ approaches to the past. These habits of mind require 

almost simultaneous exercise of lower and higher order cognitive

skills such as recall, analysis, judgment, application, and evaluation. 

This assessment identifies and defines the cognitive processes of 

historical knowing and thinking as follows: 

• Historical Knowledge and Perspective—knowing and 

understanding people, events, concepts, themes, movements, 

contexts, and historical sources; sequencing events; recognizing 

multiple perspectives and seeing an era or movement through the 

eyes of different groups; and developing a general 

conceptualization of U.S. history. 

• Historical Analysis and Interpretation—explaining issues, 

identifying historical patterns, establishing cause-and-effect 
relationships, finding value statements, establishing significance, 

applying historical knowledge, weighing evidence to draw sound 

conclusions, making defensible generalizations, and rendering 

insightful accounts of the past. 

Table 4. Distribution of the exercise pool across historical periods: grades 4, 8, 

and 12 

Periods 

Grade Levels 

Beginnings–

1607 

1607–

1763 

1763–

1815 

1801–

1861

1850–

1877 

1865–

1920 

1914–

1945 

1945 to 

Present 

Grade 4 20% 15% 15% 15% 10% 5% 5% 15% 

Grade 8 5% 10% 20% 15% 20% 10% 10% 10% 

Grade 12 5% 10% 15% 10% 10% 15% 15% 20% 

Perspective 

The following diagram illustrates the interaction of these two 

domains in the process of knowing and thinking about history: 

The NAEP U.S. History Assessment will include a variety of 

items in both cognitive domains. Following is a description of the 

types of exercises developed to assess the cognitive domains. It is 

important to note that assessing higher order thinking processes will 

require students to demonstrate that they have a fund of knowledge 

and understanding of historical periods and themes. Such higher 

order questions will assess more than just skillful reading and fact 

finding. 
1. Exercises assessing Historical Knowledge and Perspective 

will examine students’ ability to identify and define specific 

factual information, themes, movements, and general principles 

operating in U.S. history; to deduce meaning; and to 

comprehend patterns. These exercises will test students’ ability 

to: 

• Name, recognize, list, identify, and give examples of people, 

places, events, concepts, and movements. 

• Place specifics in a chronological framework and construct 

and label historical periods. 

• Define historical themes and give examples of the ways 

themes relate to specific factual information.

• Describe the past from the perspectives of various men and 

women of the time. Explain the perspective of an author of a 

primary source document. Describe different perspectives 

related to a historical issue or event. 

• Summarize the contributions of individuals and groups to U.S. 

history; summarize the meaning of historical sources, such as 

original documents, speeches, cartoons, artifacts, photos, art, 

music, architecture, literature, drama, dance, popular culture, 

biographies, journals, folklore, historic sites and places, and 

oral history narratives; and link these people and sources to 

general themes. 

2. Exercises assessing Historical Analysis and Interpretation 

will examine students’ ability to distinguish value judgments in 

historical information, weigh evidence, synthesize information, 

apply knowledge, make judgments, formulate generalizations, 

and draw conclusions. Therefore, these exercises should ensure 

that the assessment tasks will address the whole range of 

historical thinking. These exercises will probe students’ ability 

to: 

• Specify and explain cause-and-effect relationships and 

connect contemporary events to their origins in the past. 

• Categorize information and develop strategies for organizing a 

large body of facts. 

• Examine multiple causes of historical developments. 

• Explain points of view, biases, and value statements in 

historical sources. 
• Determine the significance of people, events, and historical 

sources. 

• Weigh and judge different views of the past as advanced by 

historical figures themselves, historians, and present-day 

commentators and public figures. 

• Demonstrate that the interpretation and meaning of the past 

are open to change as new information and perspectives 

emerge. 

• Develop sound generalizations and defend these 

generalizations with persuasive arguments. 

• Make comparisons and recognize the limitations of 

generalizations.

• Apply knowledge, draw conclusions, and support those 

conclusions with convincing evidence. 

The distribution of the assessment exercise pool across the 

cognitive domains for grades 4, 8, and 12 appears in table 5. 

Table 5. Distribution of the exercise pool across cognitive domains: grades 

4, 8, and 12 

Grade Levels 

Cognitive 

Domains

Historical 

Knowledge and 

Perspective

Historical 

Analysis and 

Interpretation

Grade 4 40% 60% 

Grade 8 35% 65% 

Grade 12 30% 70% 
Chapter Three: Desired Attributes 

of the Assessment and Its Exercises 

and Items 

oo often history has been perceived as dull memorization of 

an endless series of facts, events, and people long-since dead. 

By including thoughtful and profound questions, the 

committees hope to bring an aura of intellectual excitement to the 

assessment process. The assessment is intended to present a variety 

of questions that provide opportunities for students to demonstrate 

their grasp of specific detail, while showing a deep understanding of 

the context of events and an ability to employ logical historical 

thought processes. The development of assessment items will take 

into account issues of fairness and the need to avoid cultural and 

socioeconomic biases. 

• New assessment options are available for use in the 

assessment. The National Assessment of Educational Progress 

(NAEP) assessments in the 1980s were confined largely to 

multiple-choice exercises, but more recent assessments have 

introduced open-ended and performance exercises. Therefore, 

the U.S. history assessment should include both the traditional 

multiple-choice and the newer open-ended questions. In 

addition, special studies should examine various types of 

innovative assessment approaches, including portfolios and 

cooperative learning activities. 

• Multiple-choice questions should constitute no more than 50 

percent of the assessment. Such questions are desirable 

because they take up a relatively brief amount of assessment 

time, are easy to score, and allow for broad content coverage. 

The multiple-choice items on the assessment should include 

not only recall and comprehension questions but also a large 

proportion of questions that require higher level thinking 

skills. 

• Open-ended questions, the other portion of the test, should 

concentrate on measuring students’ depth of learning in U.S. 

T
history. Both short-answer and extended-response exercises 

should require students to marshal a body of facts and 

organize and express their thoughts. Recognizing that many 

students do not perform well on test items requiring long 

written responses, the item development committee should 

strive to construct the questions so that students can 

demonstrate performance on some items without writing 

extensively. 

• The study of history requires the use of a variety of resources. 

To reflect the richness of history and historical sources, the 

assessment should use a variety of stimulus materials 

appropriate to U.S. history. In both the multiple-choice and 

open-ended exercises, the stimulus materials should include 

copies of primary documents, graphs, political cartoons, 

charts, photographs, pictures, maps, and timelines. The types 

and complexity of materials should be appropriate for students 

at each grade level, but a variety of types should be used in 

varying grades. Stimulus materials and documents must be 

chosen with the understanding that many resources are not 

equally available to all schools in all areas. 

Students will be asked to respond to stimulus materials in a 

variety of ways: 

• Short answers—Responses to short-answer items may require 

lists, phrases, or sentences. 

• Extended responses—Extended responses call upon students 

to generate more developed arguments, analyses, or 

explanations and may require the creation of nontextual 

components such as charts, maps, graphs, and timelines. 

Open-ended exercises should be scored according to rubrics that 

allow students to receive partial credit. Rubrics used to score 

extended-response exercises should be constructed to evaluate 

students’ historical knowledge and historical understanding, as well 

as analytical skills. Careful reading and clever thinking alone will not 

be sufficient to answer the extended-response questions. The item 

development panel should develop the scoring criteria prior to the 

pilot test of the assessment. Extensive training of skilled raters will 

be essential to ensure that the criteria are applied consistently and do 
not confound students’ historical knowledge and thinking with the 

ways in which they express themselves. 

In constructing the assessment exercises, the item developers 

must ensure that the items are congruent with the framework and 

correspond to the NAEP achievement levels described below. 

Achievement Levels in U.S. History 

The assessment should be constructed to measure and report 

student performance according to three levels of achievement—

Basic, Proficient, and Advanced—as required by NAEP policy. 

The following are the Board-approved achievement levels for 

students participating in the 1994, 2001, 2006, and 2010 NAEP U.S. 

history assessment in grades 4, 8, and 12. Within each grade, it is 

assumed that every higher achievement level incorporates and builds 

upon the preceding levels. Note that the levels suggested for fourth 

grade are based on the assumption that most students will not have 

had a formal course in U.S. history. Note: Depending on the nature 

of the framework changes, we will review the descriptions of the 

achievement levels. However, the specific changes to the framework 

should not affect the more general descriptions of achievement 

levels. 

Grade 4 

Basic—Fourth-grade students performing at the Basic level should 

be able to identify and describe a few of the most familiar people, 

places, events, ideas, and documents in American history. They 

should be able to explain the reasons for celebrating most national 

holidays, have some familiarity with the geography of their own 

state and the United States, and be able to express in writing a few 

ideas about a familiar theme in American history. 

Proficient—Fourth-grade students performing at the Proficient level 

should be able to identify, describe, and comment on the significance 

of many historical people, places, ideas, events, and documents. 

They should be able to interpret information from a variety of 

sources, including texts, maps, pictures, and timelines. They should 

be able to construct a simple timeline from data. These students 

should recognize the role of invention and technological change in 
history. They should also recognize the ways in which geographic 

and environmental factors have influenced life and work. 

Advanced—Fourth-grade students performing at the Advanced 

level should have a beginning understanding of the relationships 

between people, places, ideas, events, and documents. They should 

know where to look for information, including reference books, 

maps, local museums, interviews with family and neighbors, and 

other sources. They should be able to use historical themes to 

organize and interpret historical topics and to incorporate insights 

from beyond the classroom into their understanding of history. 

These students should understand and be able to explain the role of 

invention and technological change in history. They should also 

understand and be able to explain the ways in which geographic and 

environmental factors have influenced life and work. 

Grade 8 

Basic—Eighth-grade students performing at the Basic level should 

be able to identify and place in context a range of historical people, 

places, events, ideas, and documents. They should be able to 

distinguish between primary and secondary sources. They should 

have a beginning understanding of the diversity of the American 

people and the ways in which people from a wide variety of national 

and cultural heritages have become part of a single nation. Eighthgrade students at the Basic level should also have a beginning 

understanding of the fundamental political ideas and institutions of 

American life and their historical origins. They should be able to 

explain the significance of some major historical events. 

Proficient—Eighth-grade students performing at the Proficient level 

should be able to explain the significance of people, places, events, 

ideas, and documents, and to recognize the connection between 

people and events within historical contexts. They should understand 

and be able to explain the opportunities, perspectives, and challenges 

associated with a diverse cultural population. They should 

incorporate geographic, technological, and other considerations in 

their understanding of events and should have knowledge of 

significant political ideas and institutions. They should be able to 

communicate ideas about historical themes while citing evidence 

from primary and secondary sources to support their conclusions. 
Advanced—Eighth-grade students performing at the Advanced level 

should recognize significant themes and movements in history and 

begin to understand particular events in light of these themes and 

movements. They should have an awareness of continuity and 

change over time and be able to draw relevant analogies between 

past events and present-day situations. They should be able to frame 

questions about historical topics and use multiple sources to develop 

historical generalizations and interpretations. They should be able to 

explain the importance of historical themes, including some 

awareness of their political, social, and economic dimensions. 

Grade 12 

Basic—Twelfth-grade students performing at the Basic level should 

be able to identify the significance of many people, places, events, 

dates, ideas, and documents in U.S. history. They should also 

recognize the importance of unity and diversity in the social and 

cultural history of the United States and have an awareness of 

America’s changing relationships with the rest of the world. They 

should have a sense of continuity and change in history and be able 

to relate relevant experience from the past to their understanding of 

contemporary issues. They should recognize that history is subject to 

interpretation and should understand the role of evidence in making a 

historical argument. 

Proficient—Twelfth-grade students performing at the Proficient 

level should understand particular people, places, events, ideas, and 

documents in historical context, with some awareness of the 

political, economic, geographic, social, religious, technological, and 

ideological factors that shape historical settings. They should be 

able to communicate reasoned interpretations of past events, using 

historical evidence effectively to support their positions. Their 

written arguments should reflect some indepth grasp of issues and 

should refer to both primary and secondary sources. 

Advanced—Twelfth-grade students achieving at the Advanced level 

should demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of events and 

sources of U.S. history. Recognizing that history is subject to 

interpretation, they should be able to evaluate historical claims 

critically in light of the evidence. They should understand that 

important issues and themes have been addressed differently at 
different times and that America’s political, social, and cultural 

traditions have changed over time. They should be able to write wellreasoned arguments on complex historical topics and draw upon a 

wide range of sources to inform their conclusions. 
Appendix A 

NAEP U.S. History Framework Project—Staff,

Committee Members, and Subcontractors

Staff 

Ramsay Selden, Director 

Student Education Assessment 

Center

Council of Chief State School 

Officers (CCSSO) 

Thomas Gregory Ward 

Consensus Coordinator 

CCSSO 

Bonnie L. Verrico 

Administrative Assistant 

CCSSO 

Steering Committee 

Members 

Marjorie Bingham 

Teacher of U.S. History 

St. Louis Park Senior High 

School 

Minnetonka, Minnesota 

Austin Creel 

Professor of Religion 

University of Florida 

Department of Religion 

Gainesville, Florida 

Thomas S. Dickinson 

Editor 

Middle School Journal

National Middle School 

Association 

Columbus, Ohio 

Tom Dunthorn 

Social Studies Consultant

Florida Department of 

Education 

Tallahassee, Florida 

Gerald M. Eads II 

Division Chief 

Department of Assessment and 

Testing 

Virginia State Department of 

Education 

Richmond, Virginia 

William Everdell 

Dean of Humanities and 

Teacher of Grades 4–12 

Saint Ann’s School 

Brooklyn Heights, New York 

Elizabeth Fox-Genovese 

Elenore Raoul Professor of the 

Humanities 

Institute for Women’s Studies

Emory University 

Atlanta, Georgia 

Sandra French 

Parent 

National PTA 

Ellicott City, Maryland 

Art Gosling 

Superintendent 

Arlington County Schools 

Arlington, Virginia 

Byron Hollinshead 

Chairman 

Americana Magazine, Inc. 

New York, New York 

Bill Honig 

Superintendent 

California State Department of 

Education 

Sacramento, California 
Arnita A. Jones 

Executive Secretary

Organization of American 

Historians 

Bloomington, Indiana 

Leon Litwack 

Professor of History 

University of California

Berkeley, California 

Ruth Wattenberg 

Coordinator, AFT Education for 

Democracy Project 

American Federation of 

Teachers 

Washington, D.C. 

Robert D. Reynolds, Jr. 

Archivist 

The George Meany Memorial 

Archives 

Silver Spring, Maryland 

Armstead L. Robinson 

Associate Professor of History

Director of the Carter 

Woodson Institute University of 

Virginia 

Charlottesville, Virginia 

Everett V. Samuelson 

Professor of Educational 

Administration 

College of Education 

University of Idaho

Moscow, Idaho 

Diane Stallings 

Supervisory Park Ranger

Colonial National Historical 

Park 

Newport News, Virginia 

August Steinhilber 

General Counsel 

National School Boards 

Association 

Alexandria, Virginia 

Kathleen Hunter 

National Trust for Historic 

Preservation 

Washington, D.C. 

Carolyn Yoder 

Editor in Chief 

Cobblestone Magazine

Peterborough, New Hampshire 

Sandra Harp 

Member 

Minneapolis Board of Education

Minneapolis, Minnesota 

Karol Wolgemuth 

Fourth-Grade Teacher 

Greenview Knolls Elementary 

School 

Great Mills, Maryland 

James B. Gardner (Ex Officio) 

Deputy Executive Director

American Historical Association

Washington, D.C. 

Frances Haley (Ex Officio) 

Executive Director 

National Council for the Social 

Studies 

Washington, D.C. 

Elaine Reed (Ex Officio*) 

Executive Secretary 

National Council for History 

Education 

Westlake, Ohio 

(*Replaced Paul Gagnon on 12/2/91) 
Planning Committee 

Members 

Carol Berkin 

Professor of History 

Baruch College 

Department of History 

New York, New York 

William Branch 

Teacher of U.S. History and 

Political Science 

Evanston Township High 

School #202 

Bellwood, Illinois 

Stewart Caffey 

Teacher of U.S. History

Jefferies Junior High 

Comanche Independent School 

District 

Comanche, Texas 

Pedro Castillo 

Associate Professor of History

University of California, Santa 

Cruz 

Oakes College 

Santa Cruz, California 

Charlotte Crabtree* 

Director, National Center for 

History in the Schools

University of California, Los 

Angeles 

Los Angeles, California 

(*Served on Planning Committee from September 

1991–March 1992. Appointed to National 

Assessment Governing Board on 3/5/92.) 

Alberta Sebolt George 

Executive Vice President and 

Chief Operating Officer 

Sturbridge Village 

Sturbridge, Massachusetts 

George M. Gregory 

Supervisor of Educational 

Programs 

New York State Education 

Department 

Albany, New York 

Claudia Hoone 

Fourth-Grade Teacher 

Elementary School #58

Indianapolis, Indiana 

Jean Jamgochian 

Teacher of Upper Elementary 

Grades 

Haycock Gifted and Talented 

Center 

Falls Church, Virginia 

Richard Kirkendall 

Bullitt Professor of History

University of Washington 

History Department 

Seattle, Washington 

Linda Levstik 

Professor of Education

University of Kentucky

Lexington, Kentucky 

Tedd Levy 

Teacher of U.S. History 

Nathan Hale Middle School

Norwalk, Connecticut 

Earl Lewis 

Associate Professor of History 

and Afro-American Studies

Center for Afro-American and 

African Studies 

University of Michigan 

Ann Arbor, Michigan
Glenabah Martinez 

Eighth-Grade Teacher of U.S. 

History 

Rio Grande High School

Albuquerque, New Mexico 

John Patrick 

Director of the Social Studies

Development Center 

Indiana University

Bloomington, Indiana 

Joyce Stevos 

Director of Program and Staff 

Development 

Providence School Department

Providence, Rhode Island 

Robert Summerville 

Curriculum Consultant for 

Social Studies 

Alabama State Department of 

Education 

Secondary Instructional 

Services 

Montgomery, Alabama 

Stephan Thernstrom 

Winthrop Professor of History

Harvard University 

Cambridge, Massachusetts 

Lawana Trout 

Professor of English Emeritus

Central State University

Chicago, Illinois 

Reed Ueda 

Associate Professor of History

Tufts University 

Medford, Massachusetts 

Jon Wakelyn 

Professor of History 

Catholic University

Washington, D.C. 

Ronald G. Walters 

Professor of History 

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, Maryland 

Subcontractors

American Institutes for 

Research 

Judy Mitchell 

Associate Research Scientist

Palo Alto, California 

American Historical 

Association 

Noralee Frankel (Task Force 

Chair) 

Assistant Director for Women’s 

and Minority Interests 

Washington, D.C. 

National Council for History 

Education 

Theodore Rabb (Task Force 

Chair) 

Professor of History 

Princeton University 

Princeton, New Jersey 

National Council for the 

Social Studies 

Fay Metcalf (Task Force Chair)

Consultant for Social Studies 

Education 

Mesa, Arizona 
Appendix B 

Released Items From the NAEP U.S. History 

Assessment 

Note: Scoring guides and other information can be found at 

www.nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard under NAEP Questions. In 

the sample items below, the correct answer to the multiplechoice question is indicated by a “●” symbol. 

Grade 4 

1. Suppose that you are traveling with ONE of the explorers 

whose route is shown on the map. 

Write the name of the explorer that you are traveling with. 

What is the area you are exploring? 

Explain why your explorations were important. 

[Percent essential: 11% Partial: 39%] 
Questions 2–3

2. What are the people in the picture protesting against? 

refer to the picture below. 

a. French fur trade with American Indians 

b. Colonial treatment of American Indians 

c. British control of colonial shipping companies 

● British taxation of the colonists 

[Percent correct: 21%] 

3. The event shown in the picture helped lead directly to the 

a. adoption of the Bill of Rights 

● American Revolution 

c. Great Compromise 

d. French and Indian War 

[Percent correct: 35%] 

4. The document that contains the basic rules used to run the 

United States government is 

a. the Declaration of Independence 

b. Magna Carta 

c. the Mayflower Compact 

● the Constitution 

[Percent correct: 27%] 
Questions 5–6

Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd 

refer to the part of the song below. 

Follow the drinkin’ gourd; 

Follow the drinkin’ gourd, 

For the old man is awaitin’ for to carry you to freedom 

If you follow the drinkin’ gourd. 

The river bank will make a mighty good road, 

The dead trees will show you the way, 

Left foot, peg foot travellin’ on; 

Follow the drinkin’ gourd.

5. In the song, “following the drinkin’ gourd” means to 

● use a group of stars (the Big Dipper) as a guide 

b. never go out at night 

c. never travel long distances alone 

d. share your food and drink with others 

[Percent correct: 47%] 

6. Why did African Americans originally sing this song? 

a. It helped teach children to read and write. 

b. It celebrated American independence. 

● It gave directions about how to escape from slavery. 

d. It was written by slaves in Africa. 

[Percent correct: 42%] 
These pictures show three common forms of transportation in the 

United States 100 years ago. 

7. Name one form of transportation that is common now in the 

United States, and explain how it is different from the forms of 

transportation shown below. 

[Percent essential: 24% Partial: 9%] 

8. What is the purpose of the Bill of Rights? 

a. To say how much Americans should pay in taxes 

● To protect freedoms like freedom of speech 

c. To describe the jobs of the President and Congress 

d. To make Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States

[Percent correct: 45%] 

9. “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for 

mankind.” This statement was first made when 

a. Columbus arrived in the Americas 

b. Thomas Edison invented the light bulb 

c. Lewis and Clark saw the Pacific 

● Neil Armstrong first stepped on the moon 

[Percent correct: 61%] 

10. You are writing a history report about an old town. What kinds of 

historical things could you learn about the old town from its 

cemetery? 

Name two historical things you could learn. 

[Percent partial: 16% Inappropriate: 28%] 
11. Imagine you could use a time machine to visit the past. You 

have landed in Philadelphia in the summer of 1776. 

Describe an important event that is happening. 

[Percent partial: 28% Inappropriate: 46%] 

Questions 12–13

“The house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this 

government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do 

not expect the Union to be dissolved—I do not expect the house to 

fall—but I do expect it will cease to be divided.” 

refer to the statement below. 

12. The statement was made by 

a. George Washington 

b. Thomas Jefferson 

● Abraham Lincoln 

d. Theodore Roosevelt 

[Percent correct: 39%] 

13. What war broke out soon after the statement was made? 

a. American Revolution 

b. War of 1812 

c. Mexican-American War 

● Civil War 

[Percent correct: 54%] 
14. What best describes this monument? 

a. For many Americans, it has been a symbol of the power of 

the President. 

b. For many people moving west in covered wagons, it has 

been a symbol of bravery. 

c. For many soldiers, it has been a symbol of the United States 

Army. 

● For many immigrants, it has been a symbol of the 

freedom they hoped to find in the United States. 

[Percent correct: 68%] 

15. Give TWO reasons why the people we call “pioneers” 

moved west across the United States. 

[Percent partial: 29% Inappropriate: 48%] 
Grade 8 

1. Over the years, many people have immigrated to the United 

States. Give two reasons why people have come. Name a 

group of immigrants who came for each reason you have 

given. 

[Partial: 54% Inappropriate percent: 17%] 

2. The graph above traces “peaks” and “valleys” in immigration to 

the United States from 1890 to 1970. Choose two valleys on the 

graph. Using your knowledge of United States history, explain 

one major reason for each of the valleys you selected. 

[Percent essential: 21% Partial: 26%] 

3. One major consequence of the Seven Years’ War (French and 

Indian War) was that the 

a. colonists’ decision to side with France led Britain to 

retaliate against them 

● expense of fighting the war led Britain to tax the colonies 

directly for the first time 

c. loyalty of the colonists to the British side led Britain to grant 

them a high degree of self-government 
d. elimination of the French threat in North America led Britain 

to concentrate on conquering all of the remaining Spanish 

colonies 

[Percent correct: 47%] 

4. Many people opposed ratification of the Constitution without a 

bill of rights because they 

a. were afraid that states would be too powerful without a bill 

of rights 

b. thought that a bill of rights would strengthen the President’s 

power 

c. did not want the national government to have an army 

● feared that the new national government would deny 

people their rights 

[Percent correct: 54%] 

5. What was the most significant factor that led the American 

colonists to form the First Continental Congress in 1774? 

a. Religious conflict inside the colonies 

b. The desire of the colonists to write a Constitution to replace 

the Articles of Confederation 

● Colonial frustration with laws passed by the British 

Parliament 

d. The desire of the colonists to stop the war between Britain 

and the colonies 

[Percent correct: 39%] 

6. List two issues that were important in causing the Civil War. On 

the chart below, list the Northern and Southern positions on each 

of these issues. 

MANY NORTHERNERS MANY SOUTHERNERS

BELIEVED BELIEVED 

1. 1.

2. 2.

[Percent partial: 48% Inappropriate: 28%] 
7. The phonograph was invented by 

a. Samuel Morse 

b. Benjamin Franklin 

● Thomas Edison 

d. Cyrus McCormick 

[Percent correct: 48%] 

8. What goal was most important in shaping United States 

foreign policy between 1945 and 1990? 

● Preventing the spread of communism to new areas and 

weakening it where it already existed 

b. Encouraging trained scientists and other skilled workers who 

lived in foreign countries to immigrate to the United States 

c. Strengthening the United States industrial and agricultural 

sectors to help them compete against the British and the 

French 

d. Providing foreign aid to all poor countries to help them 

develop economically and technologically 

[Percent correct: 26%] 

9. The Lend-Lease Act, the Yalta Conference, and the dropping of 

the atomic bomb on Hiroshima are all associated with the 

a. First World War 

● Second World War 

c. Korean War 

d. Vietnam War 

[Percent correct: 41%] 
Questions 10–12

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created 

equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain 

unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit 

of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted 

among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the 

governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes 

destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to 

abolish it, and to institute a new government.” 

refer to the passage below. 

—1776 

10. The quotation is from the 

a. Articles of confederation 

b. Constitution 

● Declaration of Independence 

d. Missouri Compromise 

[Percent correct: 62%] 

11. The primary author of the document was 

a. George Washington 

b. John Marshall 

c. Robert E. Lee 

● Thomas Jefferson 

[Percent correct: 71%] 

12. Explain why the framers of the Constitution established a 

system of checks and balances among the three branches 

of government. 

[Percent partial: 22% Inappropriate: 39%] 

13. You are writing a history report about an old town. What 

kinds of historical things could you learn about the old town 

from its cemetery? 

Name two historical things you could learn. 

[Percent partial: 36% Inappropriate: 13%] 
Questions 14–15 refer to the cartoon below. 

14. Circle the decade in which you believe this cartoon was drawn. 

1920s 1940s ●1960s 1980s 

Citing specific historical evidence, explain why you chose the 

decade you did. 

[Percent partial: 10% Inappropriate: 73%] 

15. What is the main message of this cartoon? 

[Partial: 10% Inappropriate: 82%] 

16. The Monroe Doctrine was intended to 

a. promote United States trade with China 

b. help keep the peace in Europe 

● discourage European involvement in the Americas 

d. protect United States business in Japan and Korea 

[Percent correct: 30%] 
Grade 12 

1. Which of the following best describes the British colonial 

policy called mercantilism? 

a. Encouraging colonists to sell manufactured goods to 

European countries 

b. Sending raw materials from Britain to the colonies 

● Exercising British control over economic activities in the 

colonies 

d. Attempting to make the colonies economically selfsufficient 

[Percent correct: 40%] 

“In spite of the obvious advantages held by the North, the South 

was able to fight for four years and to achieve some real military 

successes. So while the North held most of the cards, the South had 

one or two aces up its sleeves.” 

2. Identify two of the “aces” (significant advantages) that the 

South had in the Civil War. Explain how these advantages 

helped the South. 

[Percent essential: 26% Partial: 7%] 

3. In which book did Upton Sinclair describe the terrible 

working and food-production conditions in the meatpacking industry? 

a. The Grapes of Wrath 

b. Pit 

c. The Octopus 

● The Jungle 

[Percent correct: 41%] 
Questions 4–5 refer to the cartoon below. 

4. When the cartoon was created, the artist was probably 

thinking of which foreign policy slogan? 

a. The arsenal of democracy 

b. Peace with honor 

c. We have nothing to fear but fear itself 

● Speak softly and carry a big stick 

[Percent correct: 45%] 

5. Describe the type of foreign policy that the policeman in the 

cartoon represents. Give one specific example of this type of 

foreign policy from the period that the cartoon shows. 

[Percentage partial: 14% Inappropriate: 63%]
“We will answer [the] demand for a gold standard by saying . . . 

you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of 

thorns, you shall not crucify mankind on a cross of gold. ”

—William Jennings Bryan, 1896 

6. What was Bryan arguing in his “Cross of Gold” speech? 

a. Free coinage of silver would cause a depression. 

b. The gold standard was needed to preserve economic 

stability. 

● The gold standard harmed some groups in society. 

d. The government should stop buying silver immediately. 

[Percent correct: 52%] 

7. Many writers of the “lost generation,” such as F. Scott 

Fitzgerald, wrote books in which they 

● criticized what they regarded as the shallow materialism 

of the United States during the 1920s 

b. sought to capture the freedom experienced by people 

living on the western frontier 

c. praised the quick pace and unique opportunities found in 

large cities in the United States 

d. expressed deep yearning for what they regarded as the 

simple lives led by rural Americans 

[Percent correct: 42%] 

8. Churches and other religious institutions have been 

important in reform movements in the United States. 

Identify one reform movement in which religious 

institutions have been involved since 1945. 

Why did these institutions get involved in this movement, 

and what actions did they take? 

[Percent partial: 5% Inappropriate: 28%] 
9. Article I, Section 2, United States Constitution 

“[The population of states] shall be determined by adding to the 

whole number of free persons . . . three-fifths of all other 

persons.” 

An important debate led to the writing of this section of the 

Constitution. Identify the issue being debated. 

Describe the northern position in this debate and explain why 

many northerners took it. 

Describe the southern position in this debate and explain 

why many southerners took it. 

[Percent essential: 9% Partial: 20%] 

10. The Progressive movement of 1890–1920 is best described as 

● a broad-based reform movement that tried to reduce the 

abuses that had come with modernization and

industrialization 

b. a loose coalition of groups primarily dedicated to passing a 

constitutional amendment prohibiting the consumption of 

alcohol 

c. an anti-tariff movement led by a federation of business 

owners and manufacturers who wanted to promote trade 

abroad 

d. a grass-roots movement that attempted to gather support for 

the establishment of an international organization such as the 

League of Nations

[Percent correct: 36%] 
“Imagine a six-foot-deep ditch weaving from Washington, D.C., 

to Detroit, Michigan. Men’s heads could not be seen over the top 

edges. Dugouts would be tunneled for sleeping and eating 

quarters.” 

11. The passage above describes battle conditions first 

experienced by United States soldiers fighting in the 

● First World War 

b. Second World War 

c. Korean War 

d. Vietnam War 

[Percent correct: 51%] 

Questions 12–13

“It must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples 

who are resisting . . . armed minorities or . . . outside pressures.” 

refer to the quotation below. 

—Harry S. Truman, 1947 

12. The policy described was part of a larger policy of the 

Truman administration that was referred to as 

a. nativism 

b. massive retaliation 

c. isolationism 

● containment 

[Percent correct: 26%] 

13. How did Truman’s assertion change traditional United 

States foreign policy? 

Give two specific examples of United States actions that 

illustrate the new foreign policy. 

[Percent partial: 13% Inappropriate: 48%] 
Questions 14–15

SOVIETS LAUNCH FIRST MAN-MADE SATELLITE INTO ORBIT 

refer to the headline and newspaper cartoon 

below. 

14. What did the United States government do in response to the 

event referred to in the cartoon and headline? 

a. The government decided to seek peace immediately and to 

end the Cold War. 

b. The government banned civilian contact between United 

States and Soviet citizens. 

● The government decided to spend more on both scientific 

education and the military. 

d. The government requested that the United Nations prohibit 

Soviet space exploration. 

[Percent correct: 74%] 

15. Give two reasons why many people in the United States were 

upset by the events shown in the cartoon and the headline. 

[Percent partial: 46% Inappropriate: 18%]