35 questions every college graduate should know the answer to

[insanity]

So I've been reading a lot about the civic literacy test this week (both Tancredo's rants and the massive failure of college seniors to pass one), so I wanted to do a study at my university asking people 35 questions of varying difficulty about the US system and see how it compares to the national average. I quite disliked the ISIs test as they seemed a bit canonical and did not focus on substantive issues. I created my own test, to which I submit to the quite intelligent DU community for feedback before I try and get ISB approval. No multiple choice, just general knowledge/fill in the blanks.

Current Government:
1. Give the name, political party, and listed residence of the President of the United States

2. Name the Vice President of the United States

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court


Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:

8. There are ___ Amendments, the first ___ of which are called the Bill of _____

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?

10. The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.

11. What are the three branches of government?

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of?

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations

16. World War I was ignited by what event?

17. ______ 11 was commanded by Neil ____________ and was the first manned mission on the _______

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution?



Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman
2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America?
3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?
4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?
5. What Constitutional roles does the Vice President play?

[Kalyke]

1. Having found economics dry as dust in school, I couldn't answer

many of those economic questions... but then, I took economics, not theory and my government classes didn't really do more than touch upon this issue.

I do know the answers in the other categories, though.

[insanity]

6. Econ is boring as hell

That said here are the answers:
19. Income tax is: direct/progressive

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor? The Wealth of Nations

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of Labor unions during his New Deal policies in response to the Great Depression

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they? Supply and Demand

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets? Debt Securities. Bonds would be acceptable too.

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime? IMF

[Eric J in MN]

10. Number 23 could be changed to

"23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what?"

With the word "assets," the test-takers may think you're looking for multiple items.

[nickinSTL]

36. hate economics, but..

I got all but a couple right.

(never studied economics in school, either - had one class on politics that briefly touched on it)

- Didn't get all of the question on FDR - I got labor unions, then got lost on what was being asked
- Didn't get the Bretton Woods question

[virgogal]

2. You might want to correct #1-----"The President" is not plural.

[LARED]

3. Question 19 is poorly worded- nt

[insanity]

4. how would you reword it?

I had a hard time writing an income tax question.

[Eric J in MN]

8. something like

"The US income tax is a flat tax. True or False?"

[ProgressiveProfessor]

5. You missed any number of critical areas like math, science, and law

for questions with marginal value including all or parts of 3 through 9, 12, 20, 24, 25 26, 28-30. Serious rewording for many of the rest is required.

When going down such a path, you need to start with what is important to know that the question is trying to determine. For example, why is it important who Truman beat in the national election other than a famous photo (#28).

[insanity]

14. good points

The logic of the Dewey question was about identifying shared cultural iconography. I tried to ask a couple basic questions about law like establishing Marbury as the basis for judicial review and Brown as the end of segregation. I could definitely include more science.

[nickinSTL]

37. agree on adding science

Some of these questions are not things I even knew, and I consider myself pretty well-educated.

I don't know a lot of economics and judicial case law - heard of lots of cases, know a lot are important, but can't bring to mind one vs. another.

Science, though, is something our country is sorely lacking in understanding, IMO. (I know, that was poorly stated, think I got the point across, though)

There'd be a lot less stupidity and gullibility if more people understood basic scientific method.

[timeforpeace]

39. Just asking about stuff you are studying is myopic. And you forgot "what is your favorite color?".

As well as the ever popular "what am I holding in my left hand?" Just kidding, it was fun to see how many I knew. None.

[Eric J in MN]

7. Re-phrase #19.

"19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair"

I'm not sure how many answers they're supposed to choose, and whether the income tax is "fair" is opinion.

[enlightenment]

9. Okay . . .

I like most of them (although I suspect a large portion of the electorate would fail miserably). A few issues with the following:

#13 - presumes someone knows what judicial review is - wouldn't that be the better question?
#15 is trivia - kind of like asking if the arrow that brought down King Harold entered his left eye or his right eye . . .
#18 is not a correct statement - no single event 'sparked' the American Revolution (and the use of U.S. is incorrect in that regard, also).
#19 - which income tax? The U.S. income tax? Federal, state, local? Not enough information to answer that question.
#20 - one section of Smith's multi-volume work dealt with the division of labor - it might be better to rephrase that question to something like, "Adam's Smith's multi-volume treatise 'An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations' is often cited as supporting what modern-day economic system?"

[insanity]

18. good suggestions

I'll think about changing 13, but I wanted people to have succinct answers and I think recalling Marbury is important

I think 15 is not trivia. Knowing that Grant and Lee negotiated a settlement at Appomattox should be common knowledge.

You're right about 18, both in the wording and substance. How would you ask a question about the events leading up to the Revolutionary War?

19 seems to be a problem for everyone, so I should rewrite it.

20 You're totally right there. If you don't mind I'd love to borrow that question.

[enlightenment]

24. I agree, Marbury is important - I'm just not certain

that being able to identify the case indicates sufficient understanding of the concept. A toughie, when you're trying for short answers.

As for #15 - again, I just don't see it as important a moment in regard to an overall understanding of the Civil War. Wars begin, usually in fits and starts, and wars end, usually around a conference table in a smoke-filled room. This one, to me, asks 'who, what, where, when' but doesn't ask the fundamentally important question of 'why'. Still, it's one question out of many, so I'll hush up about it. :)

I think, for the the Revolutionary War question, I'd lean toward trying to elicit a response showing that they grasp the level of frustration the colonists' were feeling with Parliament and the King. The Boston Massacre was a single event that was useful (and used) in ratcheting up that frustration, but if I had to choose something as the straw that broke the camel's back, I'd go with the implementation of the 'Intolerable Acts'. Again, that's a tough question to answer in a single sentence - more of an short essay, really (I still recall my undergrad history prof giving us one page to answer "Explain the outbreak of World War I" - and he wasn't talking about the Archduke's assassination!)

You're welcome to the #20 question - I'm chuffed you like it!

[muriel_volestrangler]

49. What answer do you expect to that revised #20?

"Adam's Smith's multi-volume treatise 'An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations' is often cited as supporting what modern-day economic system?"

Capitalism? Free market economics? Globalisation? Neoliberalism? Keynesianism? The Chicago school?

The list is endless. All kinds of systems claim The Weath of Nations supports them.

[nadinbrzezinski]

11. High School, not college

[insanity]

22. I actually agree 100%

According to the ISI, however, most college seniors fail their civics test in a random survey. My methodology is to write a test that deals with the same issues but asks the questions differently. I've taken all of the ISIs tests (never scored below a 90% either!) and I'm inclined to believe 2 things: 1. that the ISIs test are biased towards a pro-American worldview and asks too many loaded questions 2. That most college seniors could answer to the substance of the questions, but not necessarily pin down rather or not a phrase was in the Gettysburg Address or the Deceleration, for example

[inna]

KR, and could you please post answers in 24 hours?

:D

[insanity]

21. Sure:

Current Government:
1. Name the President of the United States, their political party, and the state they reside in.
Barack Obama, Democrat, Illinois

2. Name the Vice President of the United States
Joe Biden

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?
California, Speaker of the House

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?
Nevada, Senate Majority Leader

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?
John G. Roberts Jr.
6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court
Thomas, Scalia, Beryer, Alito, Sotomayor, Kennedy, Stevens, Gisnburg

Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:
1787. It was adopted in 1789

8. There are ___ Amendments, the first ___ of which are called the Bill of _____
27, 10, Rights

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?
7

10. The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.
Checks and Balances

11. What are the three branches of government?
Executive, Legislative, Judicial

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of?
The scope and power of the federal government

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?
Marbury v. Madison

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?
Yellow Journalism

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations
Grant and Lee, Union and Confederate, Appomattox

16. World War I was ignited by what event?
The assassination of Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand of Austria

17. ______ 11 was commanded by Neil ____________ and was the first manned mission on the _______
Apollo, Armstrong, Moon

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution?
Boston Massacre


Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair
Direct/progressive

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?
The Wealth of Nations

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________
Labor, New Deal, Great Depression

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?
Supply and Demand

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?
Securities and bonds

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?
IMF

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?
The influence of groups on politics

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?
Madison

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?
Brown v. Board, that separate was inherently unequal beginning the end of segregation

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?
Dewey

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?
Entangling alliances with Europe

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?
Washington, Lincoln, TJ, TR

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman
Bernanke

2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America?
Tocqueville

3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?
Congress shall make no law

4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?
14th

5. What role does the Vice President play?
As President of the Senate, he casts the deciding vote

[Liberal_in_LA]

12. Bonus: Who won 'American Idol' each year?

[Fumesucker]

29. Double extra bonus.. Who won the Super Bowl and the World Series each year? n/t

[Eric J in MN]

13. Do you really believe that every college graduate should know the answer to every question there?

So what if someone doesn't know..

25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?

[insanity]

15. Those were bonus knowledge

But yes, I do think that every graduated person from college should know that Federalist 10 deals with the influence of groups and was written by Alexander Hamilton.

[Eric J in MN]

17. I didn't know that, and I've been discussing politics at DU for years. NT

NT

[enlightenment]

26. psst . . . *Madison*

;)

[insanity]

27. haha

I'm an idiot apparently. You're totally right it was Madison. My degree is worthless know :(

For the record, I may have a BS in poli sci (in 3 weeks it will be official) gotten into grad school to study European Politics, but I am not immune to brain-farts.

[enlightenment]

33. I teach college history . . . and I'm not immune, either.

No one is. Congrats on your degree and good luck with grad school!

[JackRiddler]

50. They should know that the faces are carved on the holy hills of the Sioux...

And represent the conqueror taking possession.

As for your question, it depends on the meaning of "should" but basically...

if they didn't absorb it by osmosis by the time they were through with college, I'd have doubts about their knowledge generally.

[Eric J in MN]

16. Regarding Bonus number 4.

"4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?"

I guess you're looking for 14th amendment.

But the Constitution always applied to the states in some ways.

Some of the Bill of Rights was applied to the states in the 20th century, but not all of it.

A fairer question would be "The First Amendment applies to a) the federal government b) state governments c) both the federal government and state governments."

[insanity]

19. I am looking for the 14th

is there a better question to ask that gets to the substance of the most important amendment?

[Eric J in MN]

42. How about...

Which amendment mandates that the states shall not "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

a) First Amdendment
b) Fifth Amendment
c) Fourteenth Amendment

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

20. Honest anscers.

Current Government:
1. Give the name, political party, and listed residence of the President of the United States

Obama, Democrat, listed residence? You mean the WH?

2. Name the Vice President of the United States

Joe Biden.

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?

Don't remember, don't care, totally irrelevant.

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?

See above.

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

One of the conservatard Bush appointees. Either the one that fell down the stairs because he's fucked in the head, or the other.

6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court

Does associate mean their not chief? Thomas and Sotomayor.

Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:

Ink. English. At some point before it was adopted in 1787.

8. There are ___ Amendments, the first ___ of which are called the Bill of _____

About seventeen or eighteen important. 10. Rights.

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?

Half a dozen or so.

10. The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.

balances and checks.

11. What are the three branches of government?

Executive, judicial, legislative.

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of?

Federalism.

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?

Marbury v. Madison

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?

Bad journalism.

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations

Lee and Grant, South and North. Appomatox.

16. World War I was ignited by what event?

Supposedly the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand.

17. ______ 11 was commanded by Neil ____________ and was the first manned mission on the _______

Apollo. Young. Nash.

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution?

Supposedly the Boston Massacre.


Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair

direct/progressive

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?

Shouldn't this be in the history section? Wealth of Nations.

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________

labor, new deal, great depression

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?

Supply, demand, location, location, location.

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?

Monetary.

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?

Dunno.

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?

Huh?

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?

Thomas Jefferson, usually.

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?

Brown v. BoE, segregation, specifically separate but equal bullshit.

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?

Dewey

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?

Termites.

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?

Washington. Lincoln. Jefferson. TR.

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman

Bernanke

2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America?

Dunno, don't care.

3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?

Paul is dead something something

4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?

One of the unimportant ones. I mean, it's pretty obvious. Did it really need its own amendment? No.

5. What Constitutional roles does the Vice President play?

The president's understudy in case he croaks. President of the Senate in a tie.

[insanity]

23. Re: Bonus #4

Actually it did need its own Amendment. The 1st section of the 14th Amendment says, "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.

Until 14th Amendment jurisprudence, States had the right to limit things like free speech. Over the last 140 years, the 14th Amendment has been one of the most cited sources of Constitutional claims largely because of this clause.

[Earl Grey]

25. Pretty good basic knowledge quiz

But, some of the questions seemed more trivia than system related. That being said, it is very sad that so many college grads know so little about the basic functioning of their government.

My answers:

Current Government:
1. Give the name, political party, and listed residence of the President of the United States

Barack Obama, Democrat, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington D.C.

2. Name the Vice President of the United States

Joe Biden

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?

California, Speaker of the House

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?

Nevada, Majority Leader of the Senate

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

John Roberts

6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court

Thomas, Ginsberg


Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:

1787

8. There are ___ Amendments, the first ___ of which are called the Bill of _____

27, 10, Rights

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?

7

10. The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.

Checks, balances

11. What are the three branches of government?

Executive, legislative, judicial

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of?

Federal government

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?

Marbury v. Madison

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?

yellow

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations

Grant, Lee, Union, confederate, Appomattox

16. World War I was ignited by what event?

Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand

17. ______ 11 was commanded by Neil ____________ and was the first manned mission on the _______

Apollo, Armstrong, moon

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution?

Boston massacre



Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair

Direct/progressive at the federal level

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?

Wealth of nations

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________

Labor, New Deal, Great Depression

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?

Supply/Demand

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?

Bonds or securities

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?

IMF?

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?

Influence of groups on government

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?

James Madison

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?

Brown v. Board of Education

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?

Thomas Dewey

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?

factions

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?

Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson, T. Roosevelt

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman

Bernake

2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America?

?, I should know this one!

3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?

Congress shall pass no law…

4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?

14th

5. What Constitutional roles does the Vice President play?

President of the Senate

[insanity]

28. Re:29

I was looking for entangling alliances in Europe actually, but you're right about factions too.

[Fumesucker]

30. Is this an open internet test?

I could get over a 70 without but I could ace it with.. and do it pretty quickly too..

[Peace Patriot]

31. Having been a teacher and having written a lot of tests (and reviewed and graded a lot of

student answers), I would make one general criticism, to wit: Beware of questions that may stump bright students who actually know a lot about a subject but may have forgotten some specific detail, for instance, "What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?". A student who could answer, say, "What rights does the First Amendment grant to all U.S. citizens?" might not remember the actual wording of the First Amendment. By being so specific, you exclude adequate and even great answers as to understanding the First Amendment.

Too many of your questions make this mistake. I do understand what you are saying about the Dewey question, for instance, but I would be much more careful about selecting items that should be common knowledge. I think the Dewey answer could well have escaped the attention of a 20 year old who otherwise had learned a lot about history and about U.S. elections. I think there is a bit of ageism in the Dewey answer, too. Most of us who were educated in the 1950s through maybe the 1970s would likely know that answer, because it was still rather fresh and meaningful to us (that the New Deal was extended by that surprising turn of events). Those born and educated later would not likely have the "meaning" part, only the part about the wrong headline, and they might not remember the headline (Dewey's name). That event will likely become even more obscure as time goes on. I would expect educated people to continue to know that Truman won a surprising victory--that he was predicted to lose, that polls and newspaper editors were wrong--but not necessarily the name of his opponent. A fairer question across age lines might be: To what event does the famous wrong headline "Dewey Wins!" refer? They should be able to answer, "Truman won," and if they state the year, the circumstances and the meaning of that event, all the better. This wording of the questions allows the knowledgeable student to display his/her knowledge even if they don't remember Dewey's name.

Edit:

Just wanted to add one more example. I cannot tell you, off hand, how many articles there are in the Constitution. But I took Constitutional Law in college and can give you a detailed description of the major parts of the Constitution, what they pertain to, what they do, what the Founders had in mind, specific powers of the "balance of power" entities, and so on. Remembering the number of articles is trivia. Remembering how our founding document is structured and what it does, and who it empowers, and in what ways, is the important thing. Similarly, remembering the date it was "written" is not nearly as important as remembering that it was enacted after the Revolutionary War was over, and in the context of the need for a stronger founding document than the Articles of Confederation. And why do you ask when it was "written" as opposed to "enacted," 1787, or "ratified," 1789? Written is vague. It was written over a period of time, and James Madison, its principle author, more than likely had been writing it for a considerable period of time. What is important is that it superseded the Articles of Confederation soon after the Revolutionary War. The dates--of writing, passage and ratification--are good to know, but not essential to an understanding of the event--and the date you ask for (when it was "written") is not nearly as important as when it was ratified. The latter--ratification by the states--made it the law of the land.

The least you could do for your poor victims (or to defeat wags) is word the question correctly. "The Constitution was written in ____," invites the answer "ink," or "somewhere in the not-yet United States" or "Philadelphia" or "James Madison's mistress' drawing room." The question should be (if you are going to insist on this question): "In what YEAR was the U.S. Constitution ratified?" And knowing the answer to that (which I had to Google for) does not mean that you understand the document or the events surrounding it.

[insanity]

35. Thank you!

These are great points, and I thank you for your view. This has become harder than I thought, but I will most assuredly take your points to heart when I redraft this. Quite honestly, I'm glad I got as much criticism as I did because it means these questions could do a better job of getting to the substance of what I'm trying to research. In my 5 year academic career, I've only conducted one other formal survey, and it was not attempting to quantify someones knowledge. This is a huge learning experience for me, so the opinion of educators like yourself is invaluable.

[Progressivism]

32. Here's a fifteen year old HS Freshman's attempt.All ?s are guesses/partial guesses.

Current Government:
1. Give the name, political party, and listed residence of the President of the United States:Barack Obama,Democratic Party,The White House


2. Name the Vice President of the United States
Joseph Biden

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?California,Speaker of the House.

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?Nevada,Senate Majority Leader.

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?John G. Roberts ?

6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court:Sonia Sotomayor,Antonin Scalia


Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:1776 ?

8. There are 27 Amendments, the first 10 of which are called the Bill of Rights (I guessed 27 at first,then a check at Wikipedia proved me right.

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?I don't know.

10. The Constitution creates a system of checks and balances in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.

11. What are the three branches of government?Executive,Legislative,Judicial

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of? Government ?

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?I don't know ?

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism? Yellow Journalism ?

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations: Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant,Army of Virginia(A guess.), Army of The Potomac.I forgot the location.

16. World War I was ignited by what event? The assassination of Franz Ferdinand.

17. Apollo 11 was commanded by Neil Armstrong and was the first manned mission on the Moon.

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution? The Boston Massacre ?



Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair: Direct/Progressive ?

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?The Wealth of Nations

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of Labor unions during his New Deal policies in response to the Great Depression.

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?Supply and Demand

23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?I don't know. Financial ?

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime? I don't know/I forgot.

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem? I don't know.

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?Thomas Jefferson ?

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?I forgot;Slavery ?

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?Thomas Dewey.

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?The existence of Political Parties ?

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore? Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln ,George Washington, Thomas Jefferson.

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman: Ben Bernanke
2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America? Howard Zinn ?
3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?I don't know.
4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?The tenth amendment ?
5. What Constitutional roles does the Vice President play?President of the Senate, I can't knowingly name other roles,but I have the gist of his/her job.

[Peace Patriot]

34. I'm kind of shocked by how many people don't know that James Madison was the principle author

of the U.S. Constitution. Jefferson wrote the "Declaration of Independence," not the U.S. Constitution.

This student is otherwise better schooled than what I would guess is the case for most high school freshman. It's interesting that the name Howard Zinn is on his/her mind. Is that because Zinn just died, or because this young high schooler has read him or heard him interviewed? That would make the HS student even more unusual.

--------------------------

Note to "insanity": I did not remember the title of Alexis de Tocqueville's book--maybe because the title is such a bland one ("Democracy in America"). But if you had asked the question, "What did Alexis de Tocqueville write about?", I would have been able to answer "American democracy, American life and travels in America in the post-Revolutionary period." The name Alexis de Tocqueville is unusual and a bit difficult to spell, but it is also a memorable name. If you had asked, "What Frenchman wrote about American democracy, American life and travels in America in the post-Revolutionary period?", I would have been able to answer de Tocqueville, but probably would have spelled his name wrong. (I looked it up.) To your question, "Who Wrote 'Democracy in America'?", my mind pulled a complete blank. And I have read his book!

In considering the question, my mind quickly scanned two hundred-plus years of American history and more of governmental theory and experiment--and the many books I've read about these subjects, and I could not pin down what you were getting at. Because the book title is such a bland one, I think you should put Alex de Tocqueville's name into the question, as I suggested above ("What did Alexis de Tocqueville write about?", or "Who was Alexis de Tocqueville?"). That is a better trigger for what you are getting at, which is, in truth, what is Alex de Tocqueville famous for, in American history?

Once again, I READ Alex de Tocqueville's book--and I could not remember the title when I saw it. You were too vague about the period of history in which the book was written. I might have gotten it if you had asked something like, "What foreign visitor in early America wrote 'Democracy in America'?" As it is, I consider it a trick question--that is, teacher trumping student, on a minor detail, and ignoring substance. When you formulate your questions, ask yourself, what are you trying to determine that the student knows or doesn't know? The bland title of a book--a title that I'd guess that half the people who have read it don't remember--or the importance of Alex de Tocqueville's writing on early America?

[GiveMeFreedom]

38. I could not resist, A conservative response to the questions.

:sarcasm:

Current Government:
1. Give the name, political party, and listed residence of the President of the United States
Rush Limbaugh, Nazi, too many to list.

2. Name the Vice President of the United States
Use to be Dick Cheney, Another Nazi Fascist, Probably still is.

3. Nancy Pelosi is from which state and serves what role in the Congress?
Who Cares, She’s not a Nazi

4. Harry Reid is from which state and holds what position in the Congress?
Who cares, He’s not a Nazi

5. Who is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?
5 Nazi appointed Judges.

6. Name 2 Associate Justices of the Supreme Court
What? Thought they were just judges.


Constitution:
7. The Constitution was written in:
1980 by Ronald Reagan, a great Nazi

8. There are ___ Amendments, the first ___ of which are called the Bill of _____
2, Freedom of Speech and the right to bear arms, the others don’t count.

9. How many Articles are in the Constitution?
I don’t read magazines.

10. The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government.
Nazi’s , Death Panels

11. What are the three branches of government?
The Nazi’s, the Rich, the poor

12. Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of?
I don’t read magazines.

History:
13. In what case was the principle of judicial review established?
Whatever Rush says.

14. The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?
Whatever Rush says.

15. Name the two generals who negotiated the end of the Civil War, the armies they respectively served in, and the location of the negotiations
Whatever Rush says.

16. World War I was ignited by what event?
Whatever Rush says.


17. ______ 11 was commanded by Neil ____________ and was the first manned mission on the _______
Whatever Rush says.

18. The killing of 5 people in what event sparked the US Revolution?
Whatever Rush says.


Economics:
19. Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair
Unfair/too much

20. Adam Smith wrote which book that dealt with the division of labor?
I don’t read books.

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________
Fucking Unions, Sleep, Rich Nazi’s

22. There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?
How much can you finance, How much can we steal from you.


23. The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?
Hookers and wine

24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?
I would have to research this and I don’t read books, so I don’t care.

Grab Bag:
25. Federalist 10 deals with what problem?
I don’t read magazines

26. Who is credited with writing the Constitution?
Ronald Reagan

27. What case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and what issue did it resolve?
I would have to research this and I don’t read books, so I don’t care.

28. The election of Harry Truman was a surprise, who did he beat?
No one.

29. What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?
The liberals are coming.

30. What Presidents have their faces on Mount Rushmore?
Bush, Limbaugh, Palin, Reagan

Bonus:
1. Name the current Federal Reserve Chairman
Dick Cheney

2. Who wrote the book Democracy in America?
I don’t read books.

3. What are the first 5 words of the First Amendment?
I don’t read magazines.

4. What Amendment applied the Constitution to the States?
I don’t read magazines.


5. What Constitutional roles does the Vice President play?
Runs the government behind closed doors. Controls the CIA and Death Squads. A true Nazi.

[muriel_volestrangler]

40. To point out some alternative answers you might need to allow for:

7. "The Constitution was written in": Philadelphia; a Constitutional Convention

10. "The Constitution creates a system of _______ and _______ in order to regulate against the power of any one branch of government" - You appear to be looking for a cliche here ('checks and balances'). Is that an offical phrase anywhere, or just what everyone says without thinking?

12. "Federalists and anti-Federalists disagreed about the scope of" ; the federation

14. "The Spanish American War is famous for what kind of journalism?" War reporting

16. "World War I was ignited by what event?" Better to drop this; careers have been built on discussing it. "An arms race between European powers"; "the invasion of Serbia by Austria"; "the mobilisation of forces on borders" are some decent answers.

19. "Income tax is: direct/flat, indirect/progressive, direct/progressive, indirect/fair" - as several have said, the intention and format of the question is unclear. 'Fair' is a word to avoid - I may well call several forms of tax 'fair'.

21. "FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________"
A mushy question. Many people would just say "FDR greatly expanded the power of unions" without using a qualifier; as well as "New Deal" one could say "economic recovery", "first term" ; as well as "Great Depression" you could say "high unemployment", "intransigent Republicans" etc.

22. "There are two major market forces that determine price, what are they?" 'Supply and demand' may the simple and basic economists' view, but there may be many ways of completing the phrase if you want to get technical. I've never studied economic theory, but explanations seem to drag up 'marginal' a lot, for instance.

23. "The U.S. Treasury buys and sells what kind of assets?" Troubled ones. Seriously, I suspect this is another question that at the moment could get many answers.

24. "The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?"
I wouldn't call the IMF a 'regime'; BW also set up the World Bank (aka International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ); a better answer to 'regime' would be "one of stable exchange rates".

26. "Who is credited with writing the Constitution?" If you want just the name of one person as the answer, say so, with 'mainly' or a similar qualifier. Or they will more correctly say "the Constitutional Convention".

28. As others have mentioned, the "Dewey best Truman" is a bit trivial compared to the other stuff here.

29. "What did George Washington warn against in his farewell address?" Without looking it up, are you sure this is the only thing he warned against?

Bonus 5. "What role does the Vice President play?" I think you should qualify this as 'legislative' or similar; being "next in line to the presidency" is still a role. And you can argue "being in the Cabinet", or whatever political job he's doing at the moment, as a correct answer, eg go-between between White House and Iraq.

[Jim__]

41. I really dislike some of the questions.

Particularly:

21. FDR greatly expanded the power of __________ unions during his ____ _____ policies in response to the _______ ________

This type of question is always very clear tot he person who writes it down. But, not becessarily to the test-taker, and I don't believe it's testing their knowledge of FDR's term.

And:


24. The Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of what international economic regime?

From wikipedia:

Formal regimes
The Bretton Woods Conference led to the establishment of the IMF and the IBRD (now the World Bank), which still remain powerful forces in the world economy.

As mentioned, a major point of common ground at the Conference was the goal to avoid a recurrence of the closed markets and economic warfare that had characterized the 1930s. Thus, negotiators at Bretton Woods also agreed that there was a need for an institutional forum for international cooperation on monetary matters. Already in 1944 the British economist John Maynard Keynes emphasized "the importance of rule-based regimes to stabilize business expectations"—something he accepted in the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates. Currency troubles in the interwar years, it was felt, had been greatly exacerbated by the absence of any established procedure or machinery for intergovernmental consultation.

As a result of the establishment of agreed upon structures and rules of international economic interaction, conflict over economic issues was minimized, and the significance of the economic aspect of international relations seemed to recede.

I don't think the question is testing their knowledge of Bretton Woods; but rather of grasping what the tester is asking.

[ddeclue]

43. Thirty-five questions every college graduate to which should know the answer.

Signed The Grammar Police...

Never end a sentence with a preposition.

:P

[ddeclue]

44. The Constitution was written in INK..

:P

:rofl:

[ddeclue]

45. Actually #18 is inaccurate- this was just one more milestone on the way to revolution.

The starting point is most accurately defined as the "French and Indian War" - this war established the idea of a Colonial militia, brought the colonies together in self defense to think of themselves as a common people instead of 13 separate colonies and led to the expenditure of huge sums of money by the British Crown on the defense of the colonies against the French and their Indian allies. This in turn led to attempts to re-coup that money through taxation from the colonists.

In addition the colonists began to resent the concept of colonialism on its own with restrictions on manufacturing and taxes designed to favor the mother country combined with a lack of representation in Parliament.

The Boston Massacre came in 1770 well after the Stamp Act Congress in 1765 and the formation of the Sons of Liberty. It was a symptom - not a cause.

[ddeclue]

46. This test is highly incomplete and ignores math and science entirely.

It also ignores music, the arts, and literature.

:P

[nolabear]

47. FAIL. It's "to which every college graduate should know the answer."

:fistbump:

[ddeclue]

48. FAIL FAIL.. I already said that several posts before you did..

:P

Signed The Grammar Police.