Are You Smarter Than a 12th Grader?

It’s hard to believe how poorly we are educated about our nation.   ABC News and the Associated Press both report our lack of knowledge about our country.  It’s no surprise.  Recently both Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin recited incorrect information about America’s history.

Eighth Grade Sample Questions

1. Who was Thomas Jefferson and why was he important?

Refer to the passage below for questions 2 and 3:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government. —1776

2. The quotation is from the:

A) Articles of Confederation B) Constitution C) Declaration of Independence D) Missouri Compromise

3. The primary author of the document was:

A) George Washington B) John Marshall C) Robert E. Lee D) Thomas Jefferson

4. What were the three main countries that made up the Axis powers in World War II?

A) Germany, Russia and Japan B) Italy, Japan and Russia C) Germany, Japan and Italy D) Germany, Japan and Great Britain

12th Grade Sample Questions

1. A consequence of Prohibition was

A) the failure of the Republicans in the 1928 presidential election B) the growth of organized crime C) the turning of public attention to pressing international issues D) widespread popular support for further moral reform

2. North Korea was helped by this ally during the Korean War:

A) Japan B) The Philippines C) Hong Kong D) China

3. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s goal in supporting the Lend-Lease Act of 1941 was to

A) Encourage Japanese Americans to relocate voluntarily B) Use foreign investment as a way of stimulating the American economy C) Maintain an isolationist stance by providing only limited aid to both sides of the European conflict D) Assist Britain’s war effort without violating United States neutrality laws

4. Before the Vietnam War, the Vietnamese broke free from this colonizer:

A) Britain B) China C) France D) Russia

5. What main factors contributed to the growth of suburbs?

A) Increases in automobile ownership B) The building of a modern highway system C) Tax deductions for mortgage interest D) All of the above

6. In the 1970’s the United States economy was directly affected by

A) a sharp increase in the price of oil B) an increase in the cost of solar energy C) an overall decline in international trade D) a rapid decline in prices of consumer goods

7. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Warsaw Pact are best described as two

A) Organizations founded by the European Economic Community to promote trade between Europe and the United States B) Treaties negotiated between the allies and the Central Powers at Versailles after the First World War C)Bodies established by the United Nations to promote peace within multiethnic European countries such as Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia D) Military organizations made up, respectively, of the United States and its allies and the Soviet Union and its allies during the Cold War

Answer Key

8th Grader Questions:

1. Thomas Jefferson was the third U.S. president and was the main author of the Declaration of Independence.

2. C

3. D

4. C

12th Grader Questions:

1. B

2. D

3. D

4. C

5. D

6. A

7. D