The Compromise of 1850 affected which of the following? (A) California (B) California and the Utah and New Mexico Territories (C) Kansas and Nebraska Territories (D) Minnesota Territory (E) Oregon and Washington Territories Test-Taking Strategy Knowing at least the area of the Louisiana Territory would have helped you elimi- nate at least two choices in this question if you needed to make an educated guess. The correct answer is choice (B). The Compromise of 1850 affected all the territory received from Mexico at the end of the Mexican War. Choice (A) is only partially correct. Choice (C) and much of choice (D) were part of the Louisiana Territory. Washington Territory was created from part of the Oregon Territory, choice (E), after the Treaty of 1846 fixed the border with Canada. OREGON TERRITORY MINNESOTA TERRITORY IOWA MO. ILL WIS. INDIAN TERRITORY WASHINGTON TERRITORY CALIFORNIA UTAH TERRITORY NEW MEXICO TERRITORY TEXAS L.A. ARK. MISSOURI COMPROMISE LINE-1820 MISS. NEBRASKA TERRITORY KANSAS TERRITORY STRATEGIES FOR MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS 55 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. History www.petersons.com ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION Visuals can also be the basis of questions that ask you to analyze and interpret data. The visuals may be cartoons, maps, charts, graphs, or photographs. The following question asks you to analyze data and then recall information in order to answer it. Sales of U.S. Passenger Cars, 1915 and 1955 (in millions) 1915 10 1920 18 1925 38 1930 27 1935 32 1940 38 1945 1 1950 60 1955 78 Based on the data in this table, one might conclude that the number of cars sold in 1930 was a consequence of (A) the mobilization of the automobile industry to fight World War II (B) a decrease in the price of steel (C) the dumping of Japanese cars in the U.S. market (D) the worsening economic depression in the United States (E) a federally regulated effort to help the auto industry The correct answer is choice (D). First, you need to read the data and decide what it shows—a downturn in car sales. Then you need to look for an answer choice that gives a negative cause. If you did not immediately connect 1930 with the depression, choice (D), you could try educated guessing and eliminate choices. Choice (E) could be eliminated, because it never happened and because it would have, or should have, had a positive effect on car sales by lowering the cost. The same two reasons eliminate choice (B). Choices (A) and (C) are negative causes, but the United States did not enter World War II until 1941 and dumping is a later twentieth century international market phenomenon. Thinking about time period would have helped you eliminate both of these answer choices. Some questions may ask you not only to analyze information but also to make inferences about it. Questions based on quotations are often used to test this kind of ability. CHAPTER 1 56 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. Historywww.petersons.com “The autumn of 1854 witnessed the erection of the first log-huts byafewfamilies of New England settlers. During the year 1855 its population increased rapidly, chiefly by the arrival of emigrants from the Northern States. Its log-hut existence gave way to a more advanced stage, . . . and the growing prosperity early began to excite the jealousy of the abettors of slavery. Viewed as the stronghold of the Free-state party, it was made the point of attack ” The description above was most probably written about (A) the settling of Missouri (B) the settling on the frontier of Irish laborers who had left New England mill towns (C) the fight over the admission of Kansas as free or slave state (D) a settlement of New Englanders in the South (E) a settlement of Republicans in the South Test-Taking Strategy Be sure to highlight the key words in the questions in some way—underline, circle, bracket. Be sure you under- stand what the question is asking you. This question from the Diagnostic Test is a good example of how you can use key words as guides in analyzing and interpreting material. There are several clues in the reading to help you determine that the correct answer is (C) if you did not know the answer immediately: the years 1854 and 1855, New England, emigrants from Northern States, abettors of slavery, and Free-state party. They all point to Kansas and the fight between the proslavery and antislavery forces who moved into Kansas to settle it before the territory was ready to request statehood. RELATING IDEAS TO GIVEN DATA According to the College Board, these questions ask you to relate “hypotheses, concepts, principles, or generalizations to given data.” You may be given a specific piece of information and asked for the concept or principle it describes or vice versa. For example, you might be asked the following: STRATEGIES FOR MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS 57 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. History www.petersons.com Which of the following was Theodore Roosevelt’s most significant use of his “big stick” policy? (A) The United States established a protectorate in Cuba after the Spanish-American War. (B) The United States sent marines to occupy Veracruz and prevent President Huerta from receiving weapons from Germany. (C) Roosevelt legitimized the “big stick” policy by issuing the Good Neighbor Policy toward Latin America. (D) The United States supported Panamanian rebels in their revolt against Colombia. (E) The United States intervened in the internal affairs of the Dominican Republic when that nation could not repay its foreign debts. The question stem provides the concept, Roosevelt’s “big stick” policy, and the answer choices provide what may be examples for you to choose an answer from. Choices (A), (D), and (E) state correct information about Roosevelt and his foreign policy, but choice (D) is the best answer. Choice (A) refers to the Platt Amendment, choice (D) to the establishment of Panama, and choice (E) to a situation that caused Roosevelt to use the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine for the first time. Of the three, the most significant effect in the long-term history of the United States and the world was the assigning to the United States of the right to build a canal across the isthmus of Panama, so choice (D) is the best answer. Choice (B) is an action of the President Wilson. Choice (C) is only partially correct. Theodore Roosevelt legitimized the “big stick” policy through the Roosevelt Corollary, while it was Franklin Roosevelt who adopted the Good Neighbor Policy toward Latin America. The question could be reversed so that the specific is presented in the question stem and the answer choices provide concepts, principles, or generalizations. Theodore Roosevelt’s support of the Panamanian rebels in their revolt against Colombia is an example of his use of (A) the Good Neighbor Policy (B) the Roosevelt Corollary (C) Alliance for Progress (D) his policy of the “big stick” (E) Pan-Americanism You already know that the correct answer is choice (D). Choice (A) is a policy of Franklin Roosevelt; choice (B) is the way Theodore CHAPTER 1 58 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. Historywww.petersons.com Roosevelt legitimized his “big stick” foreign policy; choice (C) refers to Latin American policy under John F. Kennedy; and Pan-American- ism was a policy of Secretary of State James G. Blaine under President Benjamin Henry Harrison that resulted in the first Inter-American Conference in 1889. EVALUATION OF DATA There are not many of this type of question on the test. The question presents data and asks you to evaluate their validity for a specific purpose. The answer choices ask you to use either internal evidence, such as accuracy and logical consistency, to assess the information or external criteria, such as accepted historical scholarship. In doing research for a book about working conditions in the textile mills in Lowell, Massachusetts, which of the following would be most useful? (A) A diary of a Lowell factory “girl” (B) Newspaper accounts of the activities of the Lowell Female Labor Reform Movement (C) U.S. Census data from 1830 and 1840 for Lowell (D) Account books from the Lowell textile mills (E) A tour of one of the reconstructed mills This question asks you to think like a historian and decide what kinds of primary and secondary resource material you would need for your research. Primary research is always preferable to secondary sources, so although a tour of the mill would be interesting, it would not tell you in the words of a Lowell “girl” what it was like to work there. Choice (A) would give you the words of only one worker, while choice (B) would give you the response of many women to the poor working conditions. Choice (B) is the best answer. Choice (C) would not address working conditions nor would choice (D). A question that requires you to consider the consistency of information might read like the following: STRATEGIES FOR MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS 59 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. History www.petersons.com Any discussion of the events that led to the Civil War would have to include the (A) Wilmot Proviso, the Missouri Compromise, and the Tariff of Abominations (B) Wilmot Proviso, the Compromise of 1850, and the National Road (C) Compromise of 1850, the Missouri Compromise, and Fort Laramie Treaty (D) Missouri Compromise, the Virginia Resolves, and the Ordinance of Nullification (E) Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, the Tariff of Abominations, and the Ordinance of Nullification Test-Taking Strategy All parts of an answer must be correct. If part of an an- swer is incorrect, the whole answer is incorrect—and a quarter-point deduction. All the elements in choice (A) are events that added to the growing animosity between North and South and led to the Civil War. In choice (B), while the controversy over the National Road was an example of sectional conflict, it was not a causal factor of the Civil War. In choice (C), the Fort Laramie Treaty, which promised the Native Americans $50,000 a year for 50 years in exchange for safe passage for settlers, is incorrect. In choice (D), the Virginia Resolves were passed before the Revolutionary War to protest Great Britain’s policy of taxation without representation. In choice (E), the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions are incorrect; they were passed to protest the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798. In the end, knowing the type of question you are being asked is less important than paying attention to what the question is asking you. Circle, underline, or bracket the key words in the question. Use them to guide you to the correct answer. ATTACKING THE QUESTIONS: PRACTICAL ADVICE When you take the SAT II: U.S. History Test, you will want to have every advantage possible. Of course, the ideal is to know the correct answer as soon as you read the question and the answer choices, but that does not always happen. Here are some methods to help you score well. 1. Read the question carefully. Circle, underline, or bracket key words and phrases. You will find words in the question prompts such as: significant; direct result of, consequence of; true, correct; most characteristic of, best known for, best describes; primarily, primary reason, primary purpose; most influential; most accurately characterizes. These are qualifiers or descriptors that clue you to what you should be looking for in the answer choices. A word like significant means you should be looking for why something is important in the larger context of U.S. history. Words like best describes or most characteristic of are asking CHAPTER 1 60 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. Historywww.petersons.com you to analyze the information and come up with an opinion based on facts. In both instances, one or more of the answer choices may be correct; you need to look for the one that is most inclusive, giving the broadest view of the subject. 2. Knowing that the questions are in chronological order can help you to eliminate answers that do not make sense for the period. For example, identifying the Wilmot Proviso as having happened in the first half of the nineteenth century can help you eliminate any answers that refer to any other period. 3. Most of the questions are straightforward, but you may find some that use qualifiers such as not/except, inconsistent, or incorrect. For these questions, read each answer and ask yourself if it is true about the subject of the question. If it is, cross it out, and go to the next answer. You are looking for the choice that is not true. 4. Be sure to use educated guessing if you know something about the content of the question and can eliminate one or more answer choices. PRACTICING Study Strategy Check the Practice Plan for Studying for the SAT II: U.S. History Test, pp. 8–10. Study Strategy Read all the explanations. The reasoning involved and the additional historical information may help you with questions on the real test. Read and answer Practice Set 1 on the next page. Jot down your answers to the questions in the margin or on a separate sheet of paper. If you do not understand a question, you may check the explanation immediately. You may refer to the answers question by question, or you may wish to score the entire set at one time. Either is acceptable. Follow the same procedure with Practice Sets 2 and 3. You might want to complete Practice Set 2 and correct the answers before you try Practice Set 3. That way, you will have another chance to work on any specific areas of weakness. STRATEGIES FOR MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS 61 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. History www.petersons.com Practice Set 1 1. The significance of the Massachusetts Bay Company was its (A) charter as a joint-stock company (B) establishment of a flourishing colony (C) transformation from a trading company into a commonwealth (D) limitation on the number of men who could serve in the General Court (E) merger with Plymouth Colony in 1691 2. The Virginia Resolves are significant because (A) they were passed to protest the Stamp Act (B) they were based on the argument that the colonies could not be taxed by Parliament because they had no repre- sentation in Parliament (C) they laid the groundwork for Virginia’s claim to western lands (D) in passing them, the Virginia legislature seceded from the Union (E) in passing them, Virginia agreed to Congressional Reconstruction 3. Elizabeth Cady Stanton is most closely associated with which area of social reform in the nineteenth century? (A) abolition (B) the temperance movement (C) universal education (D) women’s rights (E) prison reform 4. The direct cause of Congress’s vote to impeach Andrew Johnson was (A) his opposition to Congressional Recon- struction (B) his opposition to the Fifteenth Amend- ment (C) corruption during his administration (D) his violation of the Tenure of Office Act (E) his veto of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 5. “I had opportunity to observe closely the operation of two powerful forces that were at work on the Negro’s status—the exodus and the war. Negroes migrating to the North in great numbers, and I observed the anomaly of a premium being put on this element of the population that had generally been regarded as a burden and a handicap to the South.” The above was most probably written about (A) contraband going behind the Union lines in the Civil War (B) movement of blacks to Northern cities during the Vietnam War (C) exodusters (D) migration of African Americans in the 1890s (E) Great Migration of 1915–1930 62 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. Historywww.petersons.com Explanation of Answers for Practice Set 1 QUICK-SCORE ANSWERS 1. C 4. D 2. B 5. E 3. D 1. The correct answer is (C). The key word here is significance. When you see this word, ask yourself what the significance is of this event or person to the development of U.S. history. Massachusetts is not particularly significant in terms of choices (A) and (B) because the Virginia Company was also a joint-stock company, and for the most part, all the English colonies flourished except for Plymouth, which did merge with Massachusetts Bay, choice (E). But keep look- ing because although important, choice (E) is not particularly signifi- cant in a larger sense. That leaves choices (C) and (D). Considering the development of the colonies, would limiting participation in government be significant, or its opposite, insignificant? The trans- formation of Massachusetts Bay from a trading company into a com- monwealth made it the first self-governing political unit in what would be the United States. 2. The correct answer is (B). The key word here is significant. Choice (A) is true, but the meaning of the Virginia Resolves in the larger context of U.S. history is choice (B). They established the argument of “no taxation without representation” that became a rallying cry for the Revolution. Choices (C), (D), and (E) are incor- rect. You could have eliminated choices (D) and (E) by checking for the time frame of the question. It comes after a question about exploration and before one on the mid-nineteenth century. Test-Taking Strategy Read the question stem carefully. Circle the key words so you know clearly what you are looking for. 3. The correct answer is (D). The key words here are most closely. Stanton was involved in the abolition movement, choice (A), but she is best known for organizing the Seneca Falls women’s rights conference in 1848 and her work for women’s suffrage. The woman most closely associated with temperance, choice (B), is Frances Willard, who served from 1879 to 1898 as the president of the Women’s Christian Temperance Association. Horace Mann is considered a pioneer in the fight for universal education, choice (C). Dorothea Dix is known for her work on prison and asylum reform, choice (E). 63 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. History www.petersons.com 4. The correct answer is (D). The key words are direct cause. His enemies in Congress hated Johnson for choices (A) and (E), but his impeachment hearings directly resulted from choice (D), his firing of Edwin Stanton, his secretary of state. Choice (B) is incorrect because it was the Fourteenth Amendment that he opposed; the Fifteenth Amendment was not ratified until after his administration. Choice (C) was not an issue in his administration, but in that of his successor, Ullysses S. Grant. 5. The correct answer is (E). The word war is one clue, as is the phrase “the anomaly of a premium.” The word war will help you eliminate choice (D). Although the United States did fight the Spanish-American War in the 1890s, the war lasted only three months, not long enough to create an economy that would need additional workers. The time frame of the questions in this group will help you eliminate choice (A). Question 4 is about Andrew Johnson’s impeachment, so an answer about the Civil War for question 5 cannot be correct. (Contraband was the name given to slaves who escaped behind the Union lines.) You might think exodusters, choice (C), is correct, because the quotation uses the word exodus, but the exodusters moved west, not north, shortly after the Civil War. The phrase about a premium on African Americans indicates that they were in demand; this would equate with the need for workers in the North as the nation geared up for World War I, choice (E). No similar movement occurred during the Vietnam War because so many African Americans already lived in the North, choice (B). Don’t be confused by the Great Migration that brought some 20,000 Puritans to Massachu- setts Bay. EXPLANATION OF ANSWERS FOR PRACTICE SET 1 64 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S. Historywww.petersons.com [...]... veto 19 12 19 20 19 28 19 32 19 36 (A) (B) (C) (D) (E) Questions 3–5 refer to the following map WA +20.6 OR +25.2 MT +12 .9 ID +32.3 WY + 41 . 1 MN +6.9 SD +3.3 NE +5 .4 NV +63.8 CA +17 .6 VT +15 .0 ND +5.6 UT +37.7 AZ +53.2 CO +30 .4 NM +27 .4 KS +4. 6 OK +17 .3 TX +26.6 WI +6.3 MI +4. 0 PA +0.2 IL IN OH +2.2 +5 .1 +1. 1 WV +10 .7 VA MO KY + 14 .4 +4. 9 +13 .1 NC TN +15 .0 +15 .8 AR SC +18 .8 +18 .5 MS AL GA +13 .3 +12 .4 +17 .8... Caribbean 14 97 14 98 da Gama Portugal Sails around Africa to India 14 97 15 01( ?) Cabot England Explores Newfoundland and Nova Scotia 14 99 Vespucci Spain Explores coast of South America 15 00 Cabral Portugal Explores Brazil 15 08 15 09 15 13 Ponce de Leon Spain Explores Puerto Rico Explores Florida 15 16 15 20 de Soto Spain Explores Central America 15 19 Magellan Spain Circumnavigates the globe 15 19 Cortés Spain... Mexico; conquers the Aztecs 15 24 Verrazano France Explores northeastern coast of North America 15 31 Pizarro Spain Explores Peru; conquers the Incas 15 34 15 42 Cartier France Explores St Lawrence River 15 39 15 42 de Soto Spain Explores lower Mississippi River 15 40 15 42 Coronado Spain Explores southwestern U.S 15 42 15 43 Cabrillo Spain Explores western coast of North America 16 03 16 15 Champlain France Explores... ME +13 .1 NH + 24. 6 MA RI +0.7 -4. 0 NY -4. 0 IA +5 .1 LA +15 .2 New England Mid-Atlantic Midwest Southeast Southwest 5 Which of the following states experienced the greatest percentage increase in population between 19 70 and 19 80? 2 The “Solid South” came apart in the election of (A) (B) (C) (D) (E) 4 Which region of the 48 contiguous states had the greatest percentage increase in population between 19 70... in exploration (1) The Crusades of the eleventh and twelfth centuries had interested Europeans in trade with Asia for luxury goods, such as spices, www.petersons.com 72 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S History REVIEWING THE COLONIAL PERIOD TO 17 89 KEY EXPLORERS AND THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS DATE EXPLORER COUNTRY ACHIEVEMENT 14 87 14 88 Diaz Portugal Sails around southern tip of Africa 14 92 15 04 Columbus Spain... between 19 70 and 19 80? CT NJ +2 .1 +2 .4 DE +8.5 MD +7.0 FL + 41 . 1 3 According to the map, which two Northeast states were the only states to lose population between 19 70 and 19 80? (A) (B) (C) (D) (E) New York and Pennsylvania Massachusetts and Rhode Island New York and Rhode Island Pennsylvania and Rhode Island Massachusetts and Pennsylvania www.petersons.com 68 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S History Explanation... western coast of North America 16 03 16 15 Champlain France Explores St Lawrence River valley Founds Quebec 16 09 Hudson Netherlands Explores east coast of North America, including Hudson River 16 10 16 11 Hudson England Explores Hudson Bay 16 73 Marquette/Joliet France Explores Mississippi River 16 79 16 82 La Salle France Explores Great Lakes region; reaches mouth of the Mississippi River sugar, and silk... nation highlights key events and people According to the College Board, approximately 20 percent of the SAT II: U.S History Test is drawn from this period SECTION 1 DISCOVERY, SETTLEMENT, AND EXPANSION TO 17 54 Review Strategy See page 80 for the origins of slavery in the Americas The study of U.S history is the study of the intertwining of many different strands of historical development A point at... Americans probably came across a land bridge now covered by the Bering Strait some 15 ,000 to 30,000 years ago • Some 12 ,000 years ago, as the Ice Age animals began to disappear, people turned to hunting smaller game, fishing, and gathering www.petersons.com 70 Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S History REVIEWING THE COLONIAL PERIOD TO 17 89 NATIVE AMERICANS OF THE UNITED STATES CULTURE REGION GENERAL GEOGRAPHICAL... economic activity; it was the prevailing economic condition of the 19 70s Choice (E) is the definition of cost-of-living adjustment, which is also found in some government programs, such as Social Security Choice (A) is a definition of the policy known as protectionism Peterson’s n SAT II Success: U.S History 67 www.petersons.com Practice Set 3 1 The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions rest on the argument . +8.5 MD +7.0 TX +26.6 OK +17 .3 KS +4. 6 NE +5 .4 SD +3.3 MT +12 .9 WY + 41 . 1 CO +30 .4 UT +37.7 ID +32.3 AZ +53.2 NV +63.8 WA +20.6 CA +17 .6 OR +25.2 KY +13 .1 ME +13 .1 NY -4. 0 PA +0.2 MI +4. 0 VT +15 .0 NH + 24. 6 MA +0.7 RI -4. 0 CT +2 .1 VA + 14 .4 WV +10 .7 IN +5 .1 IL +2.2 NC +15 .0 TN +15 .8 SC +18 .5 AL +12 .4 MS +13 .3 AR +18 .8 LA . Passenger Cars, 19 15 and 19 55 (in millions) 19 15 10 19 20 18 19 25 38 19 30 27 19 35 32 19 40 38 19 45 1 1950 60 19 55 78 Based on the data in this table, one might conclude that the number of cars sold in 19 30. between 19 70 and 19 80? (A) New Hampshire (B) Florida (C) Nevada (D) Arizona (E) Texas FL + 41 . 1 NM +27 .4 DE +8.5 MD +7.0 TX +26.6 OK +17 .3 KS +4. 6 NE +5 .4 SD +3.3 MT +12 .9 WY + 41 . 1 CO +30 .4 UT +37.7 ID +32.3 AZ +53.2 NV +63.8 WA +20.6 CA +17 .6 OR +25.2 KY +13 .1 ME +13 .1 NY -4. 0 PA +0.2 MI +4. 0 VT +15 .0 NH + 24. 6 MA +0.7 RI -4. 0 CT