Study Guide

Field 050: Social Studies—Government and Citizenship
Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

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Objective 0001
Political Science Concepts and Skills (Standard 9)

1. A political scientist would most likely employ the concept of political socialization in a study examining:

  1. how members of a political organization interact with one another.
  2. the nature and meaning of citizenship.
  3. how people come to embrace certain political beliefs, values, and actions.
  4. methods for making reasoned decisions about policy issues.
Answer
Correct Response: C.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of basic political science terms and concepts. Political socialization is the process through which individuals develop ideas about government and politics. Political scientists would be most likely to employ this concept in a study of how people come to embrace certain political beliefs, values, and actions.
Objective 0002
Purposes, Forms, and Characteristics of Government (Standard 7)

2. The writings of both John Locke and Thomas Hobbes played a major role in the development of which of the following political ideas?

  1. The main function of government is to protect the natural rights of citizens.
  2. Government is based on a social contract between rulers and ruled.
  3. People have the right to overthrow governments that unjustly oppress them.
  4. Strong rulers are necessary to prevent social disorder and political chaos.
Answer
Correct Response: B.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of key documents related to the development of political thought. Although Thomas Hobbes did not share John Locke's concern about natural rights, both writers believed government should be based on a social contract—or agreement—between ruler and ruled defining the rights and obligations of each.
Objective 0002
Purposes, Forms, and Characteristics of Government (Standard 7)

3. Which of the following features of Great Britain's parliamentary democracy is most different from the presidential democracy of the United States?

  1. the powers of the legislative branch of government
  2. the relationship between the executive and legislative branches of government
  3. the powers of the executive branch of government
  4. the relationship between the legislative and judicial branches of government
Answer
Correct Response: B.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of different forms of democratic systems (e.g., presidential vs. parliamentary) and similarities and differences between the political system of the United States and other historical and contemporary governments. Whereas the legislative and executive branches of government are separate in the presidential democracy of the United States, the prime minister and the people in his or her cabinet are all members of the legislative branch in Great Britain's parliamentary system.
Objective 0003
Foundations of U.S. Government (Standard 1)

4. When political scientists use the term implied powers, they are referring to the constitutional provision giving:

  1. the federal judiciary the authority to hear cases "between a state and citizens of another state;–between citizens of different states;–. . . and between a state, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects."
  2. the president the authority to "require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and . . . grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment."
  3. Congress the authority "[t]o make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution" all "powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof."
  4. the president the authority to "appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law."
Answer
Correct Response: C.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the fundamental principles upon which the U.S. Constitution is based. Because the authors of the Constitution recognized the impossibility of listing all the powers required to make government work, they added a provision to Article I, section 8 granting Congress the authority to make all laws necessary to carrying out the government's constitutional responsibilities. This "necessary and proper clause" gives Congress implied powers not stated word for word elsewhere in the Constitution.
Objective 0003
Foundations of U.S. Government (Standard 1)

5. After the Bill of Rights, the main purpose of the majority of amendments to the U.S. Constitution has been to:

  1. adjust relations between the three branches of the federal government.
  2. expand the due process rights of citizens.
  3. clarify the relationship between the federal government and state governments.
  4. broaden the electorate and modify the electoral process.
Answer
Correct Response: D.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the principal articles and significant amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The main purpose of the twelfth, fifteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-second, twenty-third, twenty-fourth, and twenty-sixth amendments is either to broaden the electorate—by granting the vote to former slaves, to women, to citizens between the ages of 18 and 21—or to modify the electoral process—by establishing the direct election of senators, for example, or by limiting the number of presidential terms.
Objective 0004
The Federal Government (Standard 2)

6. Which of the following potential obstacles to passage does a bill face in the U.S. Senate that it would not encounter in the House of Representatives?

  1. Senators opposed to the bill can prevent it from reaching the Senate floor by placing a hold on the measure.
  2. Senate floor leaders can refuse to schedule the bill for debate.
  3. The chairperson of the committee to which the bill has been assigned can refuse to schedule a hearing on the measure.
  4. The Senate Appropriations Committee can withhold funding for the bill.
Answer
Correct Response: A.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of processes for enacting laws and amending the U.S. Constitution. The hold is a parliamentary procedure that allows U.S. Senators to prevent a motion from reaching the Senate floor by making known their intention to exercise the privilege. No similar privilege exists in the House of Representatives.
Objective 0005
State and Local Government (Standard 3)

7. Which of the following responses provides the best example of the collaborative interaction between federal, state, and local governments that political scientists call "cooperative federalism"?

  1. the construction of the national highway system
  2. the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  3. the establishment of programs to protect the environment
  4. the enactment of consumer safety legislation
Answer
Correct Response: A.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the concept of federalism and the relationship between federal, state, and local governments. Cooperative federalism is a form of federal-state relations in which the national government and state governments work together to carry out policy responsibilities in areas such as health, urban renewal, vocational education, and infrastructure development. A good example of this type of "cooperative federalism" was the construction of the national highway system.
Objective 0006
International Relations and U.S. Foreign Policy (Standard 8)

8. Which of the following responses best matches a component of the United Nations with a major function of that component?

  1. Economic and Social Council: assisting central banks in their efforts to maintain global economic stability
  2. Secretariat: monitoring relations between member nations of the UN
  3. Security Council: determining the course of action that the UN should adopt in settling international conflicts
  4. General Assembly: hearing and deciding legal disputes between member nations
Answer
Correct Response: C.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the structure, functions, goals, and operation of the United Nations and other major international and nongovernmental organizations. As the component of the United Nations most responsible for maintaining international peace and security, the fifteen-member Security Council has the power to decide what action the UN should take when seeking to settle international disputes.
Objective 0006
International Relations and U.S. Foreign Policy (Standard 8)

9. The Korean War's influence on the development of U.S. foreign policy can best be understood by examining the conflict's effect on:

  1. popular attitudes concerning U.S. involvement in foreign wars.
  2. the relationship between the State Department and the Defense Department.
  3. congressional views of the Soviet Union.
  4. the proportion of federal spending devoted to national defense.
Answer
Correct Response: D.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of economic, geopolitical, cultural, and ideological factors that have shaped U.S. foreign policy and the process of globalization. U.S. intervention in the Korean War marked the beginning of a significant expansion of the nation's overseas commitments and a major increase in defense spending. Between 1949 and 1953, military expenditures more than tripled from $14 to $44 billion; they would remain in the $35 to $44 billion range throughout the 1950s before rising even further in the following decade.
Objective 0007
The U.S. Political System (Standard 4)

10. Changes in the U.S. political system have caused the most significant erosion of which of the following traditional functions of the two major political parties?

  1. organizing the government following elections
  2. financing political campaigns
  3. monitoring the activities of the opposing party
  4. organizing the nomination process
Answer
Correct Response: B.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the evolution of political parties in the United States and their current structure, functions, and operation. Although political parties continue to channel funds to candidates, they play a much more limited role in campaign financing than they once did. Candidates in major races today generally rely on financial contributions from a diverse range of sources to pay the professional pollsters, media consultants, and advertising specialists who have increasingly taken over the direction of political campaigns.
Objective 0007
The U.S. Political System (Standard 4)

11. A political scientist studying why some people exercise their right to vote more than others would most likely employ which of the following concepts?

  1. political equality
  2. party identification
  3. identity politics
  4. political efficacy
Answer
Correct Response: D.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of factors influencing voter turnout and decision making at the local, state, and national levels. Political efficacy refers to the personal impact individuals feel their participation in the political process is likely to have on public affairs. The lower one's sense of political efficacy, the less likely that person is to vote.
Objective 0008
The U.S. Legal System (Standard 5)

12. Which of the following features of a jury trial in a civil suit most clearly sets such proceedings apart from criminal trials?

  1. the plaintiff's burden of proof
  2. the appeal process
  3. the forms of discovery used by attorneys
  4. the jury selection process
Answer
Correct Response: A.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of civil litigation and alternative dispute resolution procedures. In civil suits, plaintiffs must show only that a "preponderance of evidence" supports their case to win a favorable decision. In criminal trials, by contrast, the government must demonstrate that the accused is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt."
Objective 0008
The U.S. Legal System (Standard 5)

13. In McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), a case involving a Maryland law that imposed a heavy tax on the Baltimore branch of the Second Bank of the United States, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled "that the States have no power, by taxation or otherwise, to retard, impede, burden, or in any manner control, the operations of the constitutional laws enacted by Congress to carry into execution the powers vested in the general government." The Court's decision most reflected which of the following constitutional principles?

  1. popular sovereignty and due process of law
  2. checks and balances and equal protection of the law
  3. federalism and constitutional supremacy
  4. separation of powers and limited government
Answer
Correct Response: C.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions concerning such topics as federalism, due process, civil liberties, and civil rights. In ruling on the respective powers of the federal government and a state government, the Court's decision in McCulloch v. Maryland reflected the constitutional principle of federalism. In its assertion that states have no authority to obstruct "the operations of the constitutional laws enacted by Congress to carry into execution the powers vested in the general government," the Court also affirmed the principle of constitutional supremacy—that the laws and treaties of the United States are the highest law in the land.
Objective 0009
Citizenship (Standard 6)

14. The decisions of the Warren Court (1953–1969) most influenced the development of U.S. civil liberties by:

  1. applying the protections of the Bill of Rights to the states.
  2. adopting an expansive view of the First Amendment's free exercise of religion clause.
  3. extending criminal trial procedure to civil cases.
  4. clarifying the differences between political, public, and symbolic speech.
Answer
Correct Response: A.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of events and developments in U.S. history that have increased or diminished individual rights and popular participation in the political process. In major decisions such as NAACP v. Alabama (1958), Mapp v. Ohio (1961), Robinson v. California (1962), Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), and Pointer v. Texas (1965), the Warren Court expanded the civil liberties of U.S. citizens through its exercise of the incorporation doctrine—i.e., applying the protections contained in the Bill of Rights to the states.
Objective 0010
Government and Citizenship Instruction and Assessment (Standard 10)

15. A social studies teacher who is seeking materials to help develop students' critical-thinking skills for a unit on landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions would likely find which of the following types of instructional materials most useful?

  1. printouts of Internet articles on the main points addressed in major Court decisions
  2. excerpts from the majority and minority opinions on major Court decisions
  3. instructional transparencies that link major Court decisions to important historical developments
  4. biographical profiles of justices who strongly influenced major Court decisions
Answer
Correct Response: B.
This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of instructional strategies for promoting student learning and fostering the development of critical-thinking, problem-solving, and performance skills in the social studies. There are few better ways to develop one's own critical-thinking skills than by examining the critical thinking of others. Having students read excerpts from the majority and minority opinions on major Supreme Court decisions would provide them with an opportunity to compare and assess the reasoning and use of evidence employed to justify judicial rulings.