American History Regents Review

U.S. Regents Framework

By Ms. Calabro

U.S. History/Government Part 1+2

Part 1: 28-Stimulus Based Multiple Choice Questions

• ​1-point each question

Part 2: ​Stimulus Based Short-Essay Questions (Set 1 and 2)

• Set ​1: Students describe the historical context surrounding two documents and identify and explain the relationship between the events and/or ideas found in those documents (Cause/Effect or Similarity/Difference or Turning Point)

• One short-essay question based on a 5-point rubric

Multiple Choice

Part 2: Set 1 How do you identify/explain the relationship between events/ideas in the documents?

• Cause/Effect

• Similarities/ Differences

• Turning Point

• All of the Above

U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 1 Documents:

​Historical Content: Cold War is happening U.S. is scared of the spread of communism. ​

Cause-and-Effect: connects President Eisenhower’s domino theory- convinced Americans of the importance of defending Indochina to the 1964 congressional resolution supporting any measure President Johnson needed to take to prevent further North Vietnamese aggression against United States Armed Forces

Similarity: President Eisenhower’s domino theory and the Tonkin Gulf Resolution both supported presidential action against North Vietnam and were used by war hawks to justify United States involvement in a long, costly, and divisive war)

Turning Point: explains how the domino theory and Gulf of Tonkin Resolution became the basis for United States intervention in Vietnam which greatly impacted American society and Southeast Asia

U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 1 Docs/Outside Info:

​Doc-1: should recognize the "domino theory" US scared if one nation is going to fall to communism it will start a chain reaction

Doc 2: helping Vietnam gain freedom from communist rule does not want anything in return. Wants to stop attacks by communist forces on the US

Outside Info: ​we know US joined the Korean War 1950-1953 and the Vietnam War 1950-1975 to stop the spread of communism

We also know people were not happy with the fact the US got involved in the war and held protests ​

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U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 1 Example Response:

​5/5 on the rubric:

• develops both aspects ​of the task

• ​Has historical context (NATO,SEATO, Communism, Red Scare

• talks about Cause-Effect- domino theory/fear of communism causes involvement in war

• Outsid​e Information: WW1, People's Republic of China, North Korea Lyndon B. Johnson

• ​Support with relevant facts: fallen dominoes, North/South Vietnam

U.S. History/Government Part 2 Continued ​

​Part 2: ​Stimulus Based Short-Essay Questions (Set 1 and 2) (continued)

• ​Set 2: Students describe the historical context surrounding two documents and (for one identified document) analyze and explain how audience, or purpose, or bias, or point of view affects the document’s use as a reliable source of evidence​

• One short-essay question based on a 5-point rubric

Multiple Choice

Part 2: Set 2 What impacts the reliability of a document?

• audience, purpose, bias and point of view

• opinion, fact, bias, point of view

• audience, purpose, opinion, point of view

• none of the above

U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 2 Documents:

​Historical Context: discusses how the Republican Party’s 1860 platform pledged to end the expansion of slavery and Abraham Lincoln’s victory without a single electoral vote from the South prompted the secession of South Carolina

​Audience: connects how President Lincoln’s conciliatory inaugural address aimed at both a Northern and a Southern audience promising no interference with existing slavery or no initiation of civil war against the South was reliable because it was consistent with his position before and during the 1860 campaign

​Point of View: connects Lincoln’s strong belief that secession is not a legitimate option to his pledge to preserve, protect, and defend the Union, making his inaugural address a reliable document of the president’s core beliefs

U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 2 Docs/Outside Info:

​Doc 1: Federal government is now the enemy. South Carolina will break away from all the other states.​

Doc 2: Lincoln will protect the Union. There will only be civil war unless the South starts it.​

​Outside Info: Dread Scott (1857), States succeeded from the union by March (1861) could also mention the outcome of Civil War (13,14,15th amendments)

​Doc 2 Reliable-Audience: Lincoln's Speech saying the federal government would not start war. This is true because South Carolina attacked Fort Summer

Doc 2 Bias: ​

​-Lincoln's speech gives his core beliefs about the importance of saving the union

-​his strong opposition to slavery influenced policy to stop slavery to expand

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U.S. History/Government Part 2 Set 2 Example Response:

​​5/5 on the rubric:

• ​develops both aspects ​of the task

• ​has Historical Context (North-industrialized with no slaves vs South- plantations that rely on slave labor)

• Point of View: ​reliable because they want to preserve the Union

• Outside Info: compromise of 1850, stop spread of slavery, Civil War, etc.

• Support relevant facts: South Carolina secession, oath to reserve the Union, etc.

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