Praxis: Social Studies Practice Test

Which of the following nations first colonized most of the western United States?

Spain

Which of the following contributed directly to the Pax Romana?

a standing Roman army

Which of the following best describes the impact of the Intolerable Acts?

They spurred the creation of the First Continental Congress.

Which of the following pieces of legislation led to the Trail of Tears?

the Indian Removal Act of 1830

Theodore Roosevelt's Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine justified American use of military power to protect which of the following regions from European intervention?

Latin America

Which of the following technical innovations did not help contribute to the development of American industry during the early 19th century?

Ford's assembly line

Which of the following features of modern American politics most closely traces its origin to Ancient Rome?

the institution of the Senate as a check on executive power* - Rome was the first republic

Which of the following Native American tribes was located in the southeastern United States and is believed to have had no centralized government?

Cherokee

River systems provided all of the following to ancient civilizations except:

easily-defended homesteads.

Which of the following is NOT an established effect of modern large-scale industrial fishing practices?

increased development of new coral reefs

Which of the following led to the Compromise of 1850?

Desire to diffuse ongoing tensions between slave and free states

The decision to open a new automobile manufacturing plant in a Midwestern state is likely to lead to all of the following EXCEPT:

Increase in affordable housing options

Fulton's steamboat had the greatest impact on which two industries?

transportation and trade

The Gulf Stream, which brings warm water from the equatorial region into the Atlantic Ocean, is least likely to affect which region's weather patterns?

California's coast

Which of the following inventions reduced the cost of agricultural production in the late 19th century?

Eli Whitney's cotton gin?

Which of the following rights or freedoms is guaranteed by the First Amendment?

freedom of speech

Which of the following could be an unintended effect of eliminating tariffs on a particular good?

Domestic markets cannot compete with foreign markets.*

Which of the following changes came to European society as a result of the spread of capitalism in the 19th century?

Migration to cities increased as more people sought work in skilled trades.*

Which of the following bodies of water was most crucial for British trade during the colonial period?

Boston Harbor

The Dust Bowl of the 1930s was caused by a combination of prolonged drought followed by high winds, which resulted in loss of vegetation, as much of the topsoil was picked up by the winds and transported out to sea. As a result, millions of farmers left the midwest and moved west. The Dust Bowl was an example of:

natural forces impacting migration

Which of the following best describes a major legacy of World War I in the United States?

Expansive government powers became a regular part of American society.

The gender imbalance in the United States leveled off after the war.

Someone studying the geography of south and east Asia would focus on the impact and importance of all of the following, except:

Fertile Cresent

In which of the following economic systems are the means of production directly and privately owned by people and operated to make a profit?

capitalism

Rain does not pass north of the Himalayas due to the rain-shadow effect. To the north of the mountains, what type of climate is likely to occur?

arid

Which of the following environmental conditions might cause a farmer utilize drip irrigation systems?

drought

Which of the following led directly to the relocation of large numbers of Africans to the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries?

slavery

During the colonial period in America, which colony adopted the first written constitution in the new world?

Connecticut

The United States Supreme Court Decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) overturned a precedent set by which previous case?

Plessy v. Ferguson

Which of the following factors was most important in allowing the Romans to expand their military power?

trade

Which of the following is consistent with the thoughts of James Madison regarding the development of a centralized government and the writing of the Constitution?

Because of the Constitution, the central government was now strong enough to properly function, but it was still limited enough to prevent tyranny.

Which of the following is NOT considered a regular responsibility of citizens of the United States?

military service

Which of the following is an example of a law that might be passed by the federal government?

a law banning the sale of ivory products in the United States

Which of the following best summarizes the Progressive movement's response to the working conditions of child laborers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

They sought passage of legislation regulating conditions under which children could work and mandating minimum levels of schooling.

After the end of World War II, the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, which ended the war in the Pacific, contained which of the following provisions?

The right of the Japanese Emperor to rule became subject to the authority of the Allied Commander.

In 1919, what United States constitutional amendment was passed, banning the consumption, production, or sale of alcohol in the United States?

Eighteenth Amendment

Thomas Paine wrote which of the following Revolution-era texts?

Common Sense

Which of the following is NOT true of emancipated former slaves after the Civil War?

There was a large, immediate migration of former slaves to northern states.

Which of the following clauses of the US Constitution adopted in 1787 addressed how slaves would be accounted for in regards to electoral representation and government taxation?

the Three-Fifths Compromise

The rapid population growth seen in the area around Washington D.C. (which grew from small farms to a bustling megalopolis) has made which of the following impacts on the surrounding environment, specifically the Chesapeake Bay?

modification of the chemicals in the water due to the use of fertilizers in intensive farming

Which of the following was most influential in drawing large numbers of European immigrants to the United States in the mid-19th century?

readily available land open to settlement

Chinese immigrants' modification of the recipes they serve to Americans in their restaurants is an example of:

acculturation.

Which of the following amendments addresses the federalist structure of the American government?

Tenth Amendment

In the Articles of Confederation, which of the following powers was reserved to the states?

raising revenue through taxation

Growing isolationism in the United States during World War I led to which of the following?

the US Senate choosing to reject the Treaty of Versailles

Which of the following scenarios best describes gender-based discrimination?

A female lawyer is regularly not given high-profile or difficult cases by the partners in her firm because of their concern about her ability to remain emotionally objective.

The Emancipation Proclamation is notable for accomplishing which of the following?

freeing the slaves

Which of the following is NOT a right guaranteed to American citizens?

The right to employment

Which pairing best describes the purpose for the establishment of that colony?

New Amsterdam - to become a major area of business and trade

Herbert Hoover's focus on strengthening businesses in response to the Stock Market Crash of 1929 led to which of the following?

A perception that the depression was not as bad as it really was

Economic scarcity can best be defined as:

the limited availability of a commodity which is in demand.*

The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments, passed during Reconstruction, extended civil and legal protections to which of the following groups?

Former slaves

Ancient Egyptians mass-produced which of the following goods for use in the wider Mediterranean world?

paper

Which of the following types of maps shows a detailed and accurate graphic representation of natural features of the ground?

topographic

The majority of American colonial settlers were members of which religious tradition?

Protestant Christianity*

Human settlement requires all of the following except:

access to entertainment.

Which of the following is known for inventing the process to mass produce steel?

Bessemer

Dwight D. Eisenhower is most associated with which of the following?

the development of the interstate highway system