Released Items

Student Name:

NC Final Exam
American History II

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2017–2018
Public Schools of North Carolina
State Board of Education
Department of Public Instruction
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-6314

Copyright ã 2017 by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. All rights reserved.
 AMERICAN HISTORY II — RELEASED ITEMS
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1 We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do
the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because
that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills,
because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to
postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

President John F. Kennedy, September 12, 1962

Why did President Kennedy decide to focus U.S. resources on going to the moon?

A The United States wanted to gain the British as allies by proving it could
defeat the Soviets in space exploration.

B The United States wanted to seize the opportunity to land on the moon

D
because the Soviet Union was in decline.

D
SE
The United States wanted to win the race to the moon in the aftermath of
the Soviet success with the Sputnik satellite.

The United States wanted to colonize the moon in order to establish missile
defense bases against the Soviets.
EA

2 Movement has been its dominant fact, and, unless this training has no effect
upon a people, the American energy will continually demand a wider field for its
EL

exercise. But never again will such gifts of free land offer themselves. . . .
And now, four centuries from the discovery of America, at the end of a hundred
years of life under the Constitution, the frontier has gone, and with its going has
closed the first period of American history.
R

“The Significance of the Frontier in American History”

by Frederick Jackson Turner, 1893

Which kind of foreign policy does Turner′s thesis suggest as a result of the closing
of the American frontier?

A imperialism

B isolationism

C defense alliances

D disengagement

1 Go to the next page.

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3 In the 1890s, the number of African Americans moving to the Northeast and the
Midwest was double that of the previous decade. In 1910, it doubled again, then
again in 1920. In the 1920s, more than 750,000 African Americans left the South,
a greater movement of people than had occurred in the Irish potato famine of the
1840s.

Immigration. . .: “African: Moving North, Heading West”

Library of Congress

How did the Great Migration during the World War I era shape cities and society?

A Quota laws were passed to restrict immigrants who were attracted to ethnic
neighborhoods in cities.

D
B The International Workers of the World (IWW) used migrants to stage
prosocialist strikes that damaged urban factories.

D
SE
The Irish were subjected to segregation by law in housing and to
discrimination in educational opportunities.

African-American citizens were subjected to practiced segregation in

EA
housing and job discrimination in the North.

4 Following the end of Reconstruction, African-American people living in the South

EL

became increasingly disillusioned as they faced new Jim Crow laws, poor economic
opportunities, and outright violence. Increasingly, African Americans moved to the
North and West. In the 1920s alone, over 750,000 African Americans moved out
of the South.
R

How did their migration change the politics of the United States?

A African Americans no longer faced racism.

B African Americans voted in increasing numbers.

C African Americans dominated the Democratic Party.

D African Americans were not discriminated against politically.

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5 Although I have grave doubts as to the wisdom of certain provisions contained
in H.R. 1063 [Public Law 280], I have today signed it because its basic purpose
represents still another step in granting complete political equality to all Indians
in our nation. The bill confers jurisdiction on the States of California, Minnesota,
Nebraska, Oregon and Wisconsin, with respect to criminal offenses and civil causes
of action committed or arising on Indian reservations within such states. The bill
has resulted from a process of exhaustive study of the innumerable laws and
regulations applying to our several Indian groupments and was arrived at in
the states affected after long negotiation in full consultation with the Indians
themselves. The Indian tribes regard this as a long step forward in removing them
from the status of “second class” citizens. Indeed, in the five states where state
jurisdiction will soon be paramount, the Indians have enthusiastically endorsed
this bill. The bill preserves the basic safeguards against loss of property rights

D
accorded the Indians by Federal treaties, agreements and statutes, and further
safeguards the tribal customs and ordinances of the tribes affected when not

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inconsistent with the general laws of the respective states.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, August 15, 1953

Based on the excerpt, which statement summarizes the goal of H.R. 1063
EA
[Public Law 280]?

A to provide American Indian people grants for farming and small business

B to provide American Indian tribes complete independence from the federal

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government

C to give certain state courts the ability to decide on cases that occur on
reservations
R

D to give the federal government control of American Indian relations with

states

3 Go to the next page.

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6 We now stand 10 years past the midpoint of a century that has witnessed four
major wars among great nations. . . . Despite these holocausts, America is today
the strongest, the most influential, and most productive nation in the world. . . .
we yet realize that America′s leadership and prestige depend not merely upon our
unmatched material progress, riches, and military strength but on how we use our
power in the interests of world peace and human betterment. . . .

A vital element in keeping the peace is our Military Establishment. Our arms must
be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be
tempted to risk his own destruction. . . .

now we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense; we have

been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions.

D
Added to this, 3 1 million men and women are directly engaged in the Defense
2
Establishment. We annually spend on military security more than the net income
of all United States corporations.
SE
This conjunction of an immense Military Establishment and a large arms industry is
new in the American experience.
EA

Farewell Address to the American People, Dwight D. Eisenhower, January 17, 1961

According to Eisenhower′s speech, how did U.S. involvements in war affect the
EL

national economy?

A Corporations took control of the nation′s economy away from the

government.
R

B The Communist Party threatened to overthrow capitalism during this period.

C Other nations surpassed the United States in terms of economic prestige.

D The defense industry became a major aspect of the American economy.

4 Go to the next page.

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7 How did the outbreak of war in Europe in the late 1930s affect politics within the
United States?

A It decreased arms production.

B It increased military recruitment.

C It increased support for isolationist policies.

D It decreased international trade with European countries.

8 In 1920, after decades of activism for women′s suffrage, women gained the right

D
to vote with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment. To what extent did this
event affect the future of women′s rights in the United States?

B
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No impact—the movement for full women′s rights came to a conclusion with
the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment.

Minimally—most women quit pursuing full rights since they were content
EA
with the vote.

C Moderately—a minority of activists continued working for full rights after

ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment.
EL

D Greatly—women have since pursued full rights in the workplace, home, and
community.
R

9 How did World War II affect the workforce in the United States?

A Prisoners were released early to support the war industries.

B Unemployment rates rose to unprecedented levels in U.S. history.

C Workers′ wages and salaries were reduced to help fund essentials for the
military.

D Women filled vacancies in the workforce created by the transition of men to

military service.

5 Go to the next page.

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10 The Servicemen′s Readjustment Act (commonly known as the G.I. Bill) was signed
and implemented in 1944 in the final years of World War II. An important aspect
of the act was the extension of education to military veterans:

Any person who served in the active military or naval forces on or after
September 16, 1940, and prior to the termination of hostilities in the present war,
shall be entitled to vocational rehabilitation . . . or to education or training.

Servicemen′s Readjustment Act of 1944

Which describes the large-scale impact of the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act after
WWII?

A It increased the incentive to enlist in the military and increased the

D
likelihood of engaging in war.

C
education of the workforce.
SE
It increased the number of veterans entering universities and improved the

It created financial problems for universities as student-veterans did not pay

for their educations.
EA
D It decreased the power of the anti-war movement as the benefits of war
were publicized.
EL

11 In 1906, Upton Sinclair wrote the novel The Jungle, which was based on the living
and working conditions of immigrants. Sinclair focused on workers’ low wages
as well as the unsanitary meatpacking conditions present in many of America′s
factories. In 1906, partly due to The Jungle, Congress passed the Meat Inspection
R

Act.

How did Upton Sinclair’s novel, The Jungle, influence the role of the federal
government?

A The federal government outlawed unsafe working conditions in factories.

B The federal government lost its power to regulate interstate affairs.

C The federal government began regulating the food industry.

D The federal government established labor unions.

6 Go to the next page.

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12 Economic depression cannot be cured by legislative action or executive
pronouncement. Economic wounds must be healed by the action of the cells
of the economic body—the producers and consumers themselves.

Annual Message to the Congress on the State of the Union

Herbert Hoover, December 2, 1930

How did President Herbert Hoover propose to resolve economic depression in the
United States?

A by citizens and businesses working together

B by government providing for the welfare of people

D
C by government assuming responsibility for employment

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D

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by industry and government collaborating

Even the poorest can be made to see this, and to agree that great sums gathered
EA
by some of their fellow-citizens and spent for public purposes, from which the
masses reap the principal benefit, are more valuable to them than if scattered
among them through the course of many years in trifling amounts.

“The Gospel of Wealth” by Andrew Carnegie, 1889

EL

Which principle summarizes Carnegie’s philosophy as expressed in the excerpt?

A Investment income should be used to support charities.

R

B Wealth should be reinvested into expansive public works.

C Venture capital should be provided to entrepreneurs.

D Business profits should be taxed at higher rates.

7 Go to the next page.

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14 Platt Amendment

I. That the government of Cuba shall never enter into any treaty or other compact
with any foreign power or powers which will impair or tend to impair the
independence of Cuba . . .

II. That said government shall not assume or contract any public debt . . .

III. That the government of Cuba consents that the United States may exercise
the right to intervene for the preservation of Cuban independence, the
maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property, and
individual liberty . . .

Excerpts from the Platt Amendment, 1903

D
Courtesy of the Internet History Sourcebooks Project

A SE
How did the Platt Amendment reflect American imperialistic goals?

America aided Cuba in achieving independence from Spain, then turned

Cuba into a U.S. protectorate.
EA
B America aided Cuban revolutionaries in their quest for unification of the
island under a dictator.

C America added Cuba as a territory to extract its valuable natural resources.

EL

D America established Cuba as a colony, heavily taxing its people to pay for
the debt of the Spanish-American War.
R

8 Go to the next page.

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15 The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each
State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have
one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for
electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.

Excerpt from the Seventeenth Amendment, 1913

How was the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment a success for Progressive
reformers who tried to reduce political corruption?

A The right to vote was now extended to young men at the age of eighteen.

B Congress created a system for removing powerful political bosses from

power.

D
C The power to elect both houses of Congress was now in the hands of the

D
people.

SE
State governors now had the power to appoint Senators to office in
Congress.
EA
EL
R

9 Go to the next page.

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16 Two centuries ago our Nation’s birth was a milestone in the long quest for
freedom, but the bold and brilliant dream which excited the founders of this Nation
still awaits its [fulfillment]. I have no new dream to set forth today, but rather
urge a fresh faith in the old dream.

Excerpt from President Jimmy Carter′s Inaugural Address, 1977

Courtesy of The Avalon Project at Yale Law School

How did the Camp David Accords, the Panama Canal Treaty, and the boycott of
the 1980 Olympic Games demonstrate President Carter′s quest for freedom in
foreign policy?

A President Carter frequently showed a willingness to use military force to

D
enforce U.S. diplomatic efforts.

B President Carter emphasized human rights and respect for international

C
sovereignty.
SE
President Carter supported “dollar diplomacy” and economic imperialism in
Latin America.
EA
D President Carter′s strong stand against communism made the Cold War the
central concern of his administration.
EL
R

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American History II
RELEASED Items1
2017–2018
Answer Key

Question Number Question Type Correct Answer Percent Correct2 Objective

1 MC C 82% AH2.H.2.1

2 MC A 52% AH2.H.3.1

3 MC D 63% AH2.H.3.2

D
4 MC B 42% AH2.H.3.3

6
MC

MC
SE C

D
27%

67%
AH2.H.5.1

AH2.H.7.2
EA
7 MC C 34% AH2.H.7.1

8 MC D 80% AH2.H.2.2
EL

9 MC D 76% AH2.H.7.2

10 MC B 72% AH2.H.7.3
R

11 MC C 66% AH2.H.4.1

12 MC A 68% AH2.H.4.2

13 MC B 64% AH2.H.5.1

14 MC A 64% AH2.H.3.1

15 MC C 61% AH2.H.4.1

16 MC B 60% AH2.H.6.1

1
 AMERICAN HISTORY II — RELEASED ITEMS
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1
These released items were administered to students during a previous test administration. This
sample set of released items may not reflect the breadth of the standards assessed and/or the
range of item difficulty found on the NC Final Exam. Additional information about the NC Final
Exam is available in the Assessment Specifications for each exam located at
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/common-exams/specifications/.
2
Percent correct is the percentage of students who answered the item correctly during a previous
administration.

D
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EA
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R

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 AMERICAN HISTORY II — RELEASED ITEMS
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Standard Descriptions
Only clarifying objective descriptions addressed by the released items in this document are
listed below. A complete list of North Carolina Essential Standards for Social Studies may be
reviewed at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum/socialstudies/scos/.

AH2.H.2.1
Analyze key political, economic, and social turning points since the end of Reconstruction in
terms of causes and effects (e.g., conflicts, legislation, elections, innovations, leadership,
movements, Supreme Court decisions, etc.).
AH2.H.2.2
Evaluate key turning points since the end of Reconstruction in terms of their lasting impact
(e.g., conflicts, legislation, elections, innovations, leadership, movements, Supreme Court

D
decisions, etc.).
AH2.H.3.1
Analyze how economic, political, social, military and religious factors influenced United States

SE
imperialism (e.g., passing of the western frontier, new markets, Spanish American War, Open
Door Policy, Monroe Doctrine, Roosevelt Corollary, canal routes, etc.).
AH2.H.3.2
Explain how environmental, cultural and economic factors influenced the patterns of migration
EA
and settlement within the United States since the end of Reconstruction (e.g., gold rush,
destruction of the buffalo, reservations, ethnic neighborhoods, etc.).
AH2.H.3.3
Explain the roles of various racial and ethnic groups in settlement and expansion since
Reconstruction and the consequences for those groups (e.g., American Indians, African
EL

Americans, Chinese, Irish, Hispanics and Latino Americans, Asian Americans, etc.).
AH2.H.4.1
Analyze the political issues and conflicts that impacted the United States since Reconstruction
and the compromises that resulted (e.g., Populism, Progressivism, working conditions and labor
R

unrest, New Deal, Wilmington Race Riots, Eugenics, Civil Rights Movement, Anti-War protests,
Watergate, etc.).
AH2.H.4.2
Analyze the economic issues and conflicts that impacted the United States since Reconstruction
and the compromises that resulted (e.g., currency policy, industrialization, urbanization,
laissez-faire, labor unrest, New Deal, Great Society, supply-side economics, etc.).
AH2.H.5.1
Summarize how the philosophical, ideological and/or religious views on freedom and equality
contributed to the development of American political and economic systems since Reconstruction
(e.g., "separate but equal", Social Darwinism, social gospel, civil service system, suffrage,
Harlem Renaissance, the Warren Court, Great Society programs, American Indian Movement,
etc.).

3
 AMERICAN HISTORY II — RELEASED ITEMS
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AH2.H.6.1
Explain how national economic and political interests helped set the direction of United States
foreign policy since Reconstruction (e.g., new markets, isolationism, neutrality, containment,
homeland security, etc.).
AH2.H.7.1
Explain the impact of wars on American politics since Reconstruction (e.g., spheres of influence,
isolationist practices, containment policies, first and second Red Scare movements, patriotism,
terrorist policies, etc.).
AH2.H.7.2
Explain the impact of wars on the American economy since Reconstruction (e.g., mobilizing for
war, war industries, rationing, women in the workforce, lend-lease policy, WWII farming gains,
GI Bill, etc.).

D
AH2.H.7.3
Explain the impact of wars on American society and culture since Reconstruction (e.g., relocation
of Japanese Americans, American propaganda, first and second Red Scare movement,

SE
McCarthyism, baby boom, Civil Rights Movement, protest movements, ethnic, patriotism, etc.).
EA
EL
R