Test-Taking Tips

Part I: Strategies for Multiple-Choice Questions

North Carolinas End-of-Course Test for U.S. History contains 100
multiple-choice questions. Each multiple-choice question consists of a
single stem. The stem asks a question relating to United States history. Four
answer options appear below the stem. The answer options will provide
possible answers to the question. However, only one option is the correct
answer. The other options, called distracters, are incorrect.
1

LEARN
1 Read the directions to

understand how to respond

to the questions.
2 Read the stem carefully.

Determine what the

question is asking.
3 Look for key words and

facts in the stem. They may

help you determine the
correct answer.
4 If two answer options

disagree with each other,

one of them is likely to be
the correct answer.
5 Eliminate answer options

that you know are incorrect.

6 Watch for words such as all,

always, and never. Answer

options that include these
words usually are incorrect.
These words indicate that
the correct answer must
be an undisputed fact. In
social studies, few facts are
undisputed.

DIRECTIONS Read each question and circle the

letter of the best response.
1. What was the main function of the Alien and
Sedition Acts?
A to protect Native American lands
B to enforce debt payment
C to take back lands from the French
D to protect America from foreign enemies
2. What was Lewis and Clarks primary mission?
A to make treaties with Native Americans in the
3
West
B to spy on Spanish settlements
C to open up the port of New Orleans
D to locate the most direct waterway across the
continent

3. How did the Emancipation Proclamation affect

slaves in Kentucky?
A They had to join the Union army.
B They remained slaves until the state rejoined
the Union.
C They remained slaves.
4
D They were freed.
4. Which group of western settlers faced
discriminatory laws regarding land ownership?
A white settlers
5
B Chinese immigrants
C African Americans
D Scandinavians
5. Which of the following statements about the
National Labor Union is true?
A It pushed for an eight-hour workday.
B It called for higher wages.
6
C It worked closely with industry leaders.
D It achieved all its goals.

Practice Answers: 1. C; 2. D;
3. C; 4. A; 5. B; 6. B; 7. A; 8. C; 9.
A; 10. A
Strategies Answers: 1. D; 2. D;
3. C; 4. B; 5. A

Original content Copyright by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.

World History

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EOC Test Prep Workbook

Test-Taking Tips
Part I: Practice
DIRECTIONS

Read each question and circle the letter of the best response.

1. What was the purpose of the Virginia and

Kentucky Resolutions?
A to state that the Supreme Court could
nullify federal laws
B to affirm the right of the states to lobby
the federal government
C to serve as a written response to the Alien
and Sedition Acts
D to urge the states to jointly declare war
against Great Britain

6. Napoleon sold the Louisiana Territory to

the United States for which of the following
reasons?
A The soil was poor.
B He could not control a North American
empire.
C France needed the money.
D He wanted to focus on governing Haiti.
7. Which of the following was a result of the
Embargo Act?
A Many American businesses failed.
B The southern economy thrived.
C Tensions over foreign trade eased.
D Trade with Great Britain increased.

2. Which of the following took place for the

first time after the election of 1800?
A Taxes were raised.
B New powers were allotted to the federal
government.
C Riots broke out.
D Power passed peacefully from one
political party to the other.

8. Why was control of Louisiana and the city of

New Orleans important to the United States?
A It was needed to preserve the balance
between proslavery states and antislavery
states.
B More land was needed to appease Native
Americans.
C Access to the Mississippi River was vital
to American commerce.
D Access to Louisiana was vital to peace
with the British.

3. Which of the following was the Bill of

Rights designed to protect?
A the judicial branch of government
B the executive branch of government
C individuals and states
D the framers of the Constitution
4. Which statement is true of most Lowell
girls?
A They worked 12- to 16- hour days.
B They were treated more fairly than other
factory workers.
C They were not paid a wage.
D They were not allowed to marry.

9. What did the scarcity of farmland in the East

help bring about?
A the Indian Removal Act
B the Industrial Revolution
C urbanization
D the American System

5. Which of the Indian nations used force to

resist the Indian Removal Act?
A the Cherokee
B the Seminole
C the Chickasaw
D the Creek

10. Which of the following was most important

to the economy of the North?
A urbanization and new technology
B traditional craftsmanship
C farming
D hunting and fishing

Original content Copyright by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.

World History

EOC Test Prep Workbook

Test-Taking Tips
Part II: Strategies for Working with Historic Texts and
Graphic Organizers
Some of the multiple-choice questions on North Carolinas End-of-Course Test
for U.S. History require you to interpret a brief excerpt from a historic text. Other
questions on the test require you to work with information in a graphic organizer.
Study the information on this page to learn strategies for successfully answering
these types of questions.
1

LEARN
1 Read the directions to

understand how to respond

to the questions.
2 For historic texts, be sure

to read the source line first.

Knowing the author of the
selection will help you to
understand what you are
reading
3 Then read the entire text

selection carefully. Reread

the selection if any of it was
unclear to you.
4 For graphic organizers,

analyze the information

being presented by carefully
examining all the text and
its organization.
5 Then apply the strategies

you learned in the previous

section for answering
multiple-choice questions.
Remember to start by
reading the stem.

DIRECTIONS Read each question and circle the

letter of the best response.
3
1. A mans house is his castle; and while he is
quiet, he is as well guarded as a prince in his
castle . . . Officers may enter our houses when
they please; we are commanded to permit their
entry. Their menial servants may entermay
break locks, bars, everything in their way . . .
James Otis, speech before Superior Court of
2
Massachusetts, 1761
What legislation was James Otis referring to in
his speech?
A Quartering Act
5 B Townshed Acts
C writs of assisstance
D Committees of Correspondence
2. Frustration with
the Articles of
Confederation
grows.
Effect:

A group of army
officers plan to
overthrow the
government.

Which of the following best completes the

graphic organizer?
A Daniel Shays leads an armed rebellion to
close a courthouse.
5
B Congress calls for the Constitutional
Convention.
C Unrest grows throughout the states.
D Congress gives states additional funds to
strengthen their state militias.

Practice Answers: 1. A; 2. C;
3. B; 4. A
Strategies Answers: 1. A; 2. B

Original content Copyright by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.

World History

xi

EOC Test Prep Workbook

Test-Taking Tips
Part II: Practice
DIRECTIONS

Read each question and circle the letter of the best response.

1. With all these blessings, what more

is necessary to make us a happy
and a prosperous people? Still one
thing more, fellow-citizensa wise
and frugal government, which shall
restrain men from injuring one
another, shall leave them otherwise
free to regulate their own pursuits of
industry and improvement, and shall
not take from the mouth of labor the
bread it has earned.
Thomas Jefferson, Inaugural Address,
March 4, 1801
Which of the following beliefs about
government is expressed in the quote
by Thomas Jefferson?
A limited national government
B strong federal government
C separation of church and state
D popular sovereignty

3.

Changing Cities
Strong steel frames
are developed.

Safety elevators
are invented.

Which statement most accurately

completes the graphic organizer?
A Cities develop mass transportation
systems.
B Construction of skyscrapers
becomes practical.
C Construction worker deaths
decrease.
D Settlement houses are established
in many cities.

2. When my eyes shall be turned to

behold for the last time the sun in
heaven, may I not see him shining
on the broken and dishonored
fragments of a once glorious Union;
on States dissevered, discordant
[in disagreement], belligerent; on a
land rent [torn] with civil feuds, or
drenched . . . in fraternal blood.
Daniel Webster, second speech on
Footes Resolution, 1830
Which of the following positions did Daniel
Webster take?
A Webster strongly supported the idea
of states rights.
B Webster strongly supported the idea
of nullification.
C Webster strongly opposed the idea
of nullification.
D Webster strongly opposed the
Missouri Compromise.

4.

Federal Regulation
Elkins
Act
Elkins
Act

Increased regulation
of railroads.

Which statement most accurately

completes the graphic organizer?
A the Hepburn Act
B the Clayton Antitrust Act
C the Newlands Reclamation Act
D the Pure Food and Drug Act

Original content Copyright by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.

World History

xii

EOC Test Prep Workbook