Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wiebes and Sklars historical interpretations

​AP U.S. History: Short Answer Questions (SAQ)

Short Description: ​

The ​Short-answer questions will directly address one or more of the thematic learning objectives for the course. At least two of the four questions will have elements of internal choice, providing opportunities for you to demonstrate what you know best. All of the short-answer questions will require you to use historical thinking skills to respond to a primary source, a historian’s argument, nontextual sources such as data or maps, or general propositions about U.S. history. Each question will ask you to identify and analyze examples of historical evidence relevant to the source or question; these examples can be drawn from the concept outline or from other examples explored in depth during classroom instruction.

Breakdown of Section: ​

• The SAQ section is the second section of the exam and follows the Multiple Choice Section.
•  You have 50 minutes to answer all four questions. 5 minutes to plan and 45 minutes to write.
• There will be four questions. You are expected to answer all of them.
• Each questions has 3 parts (a), (b), and (c).
• At least two of the questions will give you a choice, so that you can demonstrate what you know best.
• Some questions will ask you to address a primary or secondary source of any kind—public record, personal document, visual, contemporary historian’s interpretation, etc.

Scoring of the SAQ Section

• This sections makes up 20% of your total exam score.
• ​Since there are four SAQ questions each with three tasks, you may earn up to 12 points for the whole SAQ section. 
• You may earn up to 3 points for each question. That means 1 point for each of the three tasks you are asked to do in the question. Of course, if you do not fulfill one of the tasks, you will not earn a point for that task. 

Tips/Suggestions: ​

• Answer each question in one paragraph of six to eight complete sentences.
• You must fit your answer in a box that contains lines on which you may write.
• Be coherent and concise in your response and ensure that you properly address all parts of the question.
• Write what you know. If you do not know a detail, be vague (but accurate) or leave it out.
• You may answer the four questions in whatever order you like. Skip and come back if you need to.

Mistakes to Avoid:

​Do Not:

• Write a short, essay, a paragraph, or a thesis statement.
• Write in bullet points or sentence fragments.
• Skip lines or write outside the box.
• Number or letter or leave a blank line between the tasks to show the reader that you are addressing all three tasks. The reader will decide for himself or herself.
• ​Quote from the excerpt provided.
• Include yourself in the answer (I believe that Andrew Jackson was the best president because...).
• Attempt to answer the SAQ questions after time has been called.

Sample Questions:

1. Answer a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain ONE example of how contact between Native Americans and Europeans brought changes to Native American societies in the period 1492 to 1700.

b) Briefly explain a SECOND example of how contact between Native Americans and Europeans brought changes to Native American societies in the same period.

c) Briefly explain ONE example of how Native American societies resisted change brought by contact with Europeans in the same period.

2. a) Briefly explain why ONE of the following options most clearly marks the beginning of the sectional crisis that led to the outbreak of the Civil War.

• Northwest Ordinance (1787)
• Missouri Compromise (1820)
• Acquisition of Mexican territory (1848)

b) Provide an example of an event or development to support your explanation.

c) Briefly explain why one of the other options is not as useful to mark the beginning of the sectional crisis. ​

3. Using the 1883 image above, answer a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain the point of view about the economy expressed by the artist.

b) Briefly explain ONE development in the period 1865 to 1910 that could be used to support the point of view expressed by the artist.

​c) Briefly explain ONE development in the period 1865 to 1910 that could be used to challenge the point of view expressed by the artist.

“Most [Progressive Era reformers] lived and worked in the midst of modern society and accepting its major thrust drew both their inspiration and their programs from its specific traits. . . . They prized their organizations . . . as sources of everyday strength, and generally they also accepted the organizations that were multiplying about them. . . . The heart of progressivism was the ambition of the new middle class to fulfill its destiny through bureaucratic means.”
- Robert H. Wiebe, historian, The Search for Order, 1877 – 1920, published in 1967

“Women’s collective action in the Progressive era certainly expressed a maternalist ideology [a set of ideas that women’s roles as mothers gave them a responsibility to care for society as well]. . . . But it was also sparked by a moral vision of a more equitable distribution of the benefits of industrialization. . . . Within the political culture of middleclass women, gender consciousness combined with an awareness of class-based injustices, and talented leaders combined with grass-roots activism to produce an impressive force for social, political, and economic change.”
- Kathryn Kish Sklar, historian, “The Historical Foundations of Women’s Power in the Creation of the American Welfare State,” Mothers of a New World, 1993

​4. Using the excerpts, answer a, b, and c.

a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wiebe’s and Sklar’s historical interpretations.

b) Briefly explain how ONE example from the period 1880 to 1920 not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wiebe’s argument.

​c) Briefly explain how ONE example from the period 1880 to 1920 not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Sklar’s argument.