U.S. History: 1877–Present (Grades 10–11) Midterm — Units 5–6

Part 1: Multiple Choice

1. What was the goal of the U.S. Cold War policy of containment?
   1. A. Withdrawing from all foreign alliances
   2. B. Stopping the spread of communism to new countries
   3. C. Destroying the Soviet Union through invasion
   4. D. Sharing nuclear weapons with the Soviet Union
2. What event sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955?
   1. A. Rosa Parks's arrest for refusing to give up her bus seat
   2. B. The integration of Central High School in Little Rock
   3. C. The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
   4. D. The passage of the Voting Rights Act
3. What did the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964) give President Lyndon Johnson?
   1. A. Power to end the military draft
   2. B. A formal declaration of war against North Vietnam
   3. C. Funding for the Great Society programs
   4. D. Broad authority to use military force in Vietnam without a declaration of war
4. What did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 do?
   1. A. Granted citizenship to formerly enslaved people
   2. B. Outlawed segregation in public places and banned job discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin
   3. C. Created the Department of Education
   4. D. Ended poll taxes in all elections
5. How did the United States respond to the Soviet blockade of West Berlin in 1948?
   1. A. It agreed to give West Berlin to the Soviets
   2. B. It built the Berlin Wall
   3. C. It invaded East Germany with ground troops
   4. D. It flew food and supplies into the city in the Berlin Airlift
6. What did the Supreme Court rule in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)?
   1. A. Racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional
   2. B. Separate but equal facilities are constitutional
   3. C. States may require literacy tests for voting
   4. D. Busing students to integrate schools is illegal
7. What did the Voting Rights Act of 1965 do?
   1. A. Lowered the voting age to eighteen
   2. B. Suspended literacy tests and allowed federal oversight of voter registration in areas with a history of discrimination
   3. C. Required all states to use paper ballots
   4. D. Gave women the right to vote
8. What was the Marshall Plan?
   1. A. A program to send astronauts to the moon
   2. B. A military alliance between the U.S. and Western Europe
   3. C. U.S. economic aid to rebuild Western Europe after World War II
   4. D. A plan to divide Germany into four zones
9. How was the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 resolved?
   1. A. The Soviets removed their missiles, and the U.S. pledged not to invade Cuba
   2. B. The Soviet Union and U.S. went to war in Europe
   3. C. Cuba joined NATO
   4. D. The U.S. invaded Cuba and removed the missiles by force
10. The term "McCarthyism" refers to
    1. A. accusing people of communist disloyalty without solid evidence
    2. B. a plan to rebuild Japan after the war
    3. C. a program to integrate public schools
    4. D. a policy of cutting taxes on businesses
11. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, where did the United States first launch a military campaign?
    1. A. Iraq
    2. B. Kuwait
    3. C. Iran
    4. D. Afghanistan
12. What did the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which took effect in 1994, do?
    1. A. Closed the U.S.–Mexico border to trade
    2. B. Reduced trade barriers among the U.S., Canada, and Mexico
    3. C. Created a single currency for North America
    4. D. Formed a military alliance against the Soviet Union
13. What did the Camp David Accords of 1978 achieve?
    1. A. The release of American hostages in Iran
    2. B. A nuclear arms treaty with the Soviet Union
    3. C. An end to the Vietnam War
    4. D. A peace framework between Egypt and Israel, brokered by President Carter
14. What was the most significant result of the Watergate scandal?
    1. A. President Nixon was removed from office by the Senate
    2. B. The Twenty-Second Amendment was passed
    3. C. Congress abolished the CIA
    4. D. President Nixon resigned in 1974
15. Supply-side economics, central to President Reagan's policies, held that
    1. A. raising taxes would encourage businesses to hire
    2. B. tariffs should be raised on all imports
    3. C. government should own major industries
    4. D. cutting taxes would encourage investment and economic growth
16. What helped trigger the financial crisis of 2008?
    1. A. A sudden oil embargo by OPEC
    2. B. The end of the gold standard
    3. C. A collapse in housing prices tied to risky mortgage lending
    4. D. A war between the U.S. and China
17. What was the main goal of the 1991 Persian Gulf War?
    1. A. Ending the Iran hostage crisis
    2. B. Forcing Iraqi troops out of Kuwait
    3. C. Removing the Taliban from Afghanistan
    4. D. Defending Israel from Egypt
18. Which pair of events marked the end of the Cold War?
    1. A. The Berlin Airlift and the formation of NATO
    2. B. The Watergate scandal and the end of the Vietnam War
    3. C. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991
    4. D. The Korean War and the Cuban Missile Crisis
19. What happened in the Iran hostage crisis (1979–1981)?
    1. A. Iran cut off all oil sales to Europe
    2. B. Iranian militants held 52 Americans captive for 444 days
    3. C. U.S. troops invaded Iran
    4. D. Iran captured a U.S. aircraft carrier
20. What effect did the 1973 OPEC oil embargo have on the United States?
    1. A. Gasoline shortages and sharply higher fuel prices
    2. B. The end of U.S. oil imports forever
    3. C. A rapid boom in car sales
    4. D. A sharp drop in the price of gasoline

Part 2: Written Response

21. Choose one event from 1970 to 2015 that you believe most changed the United States. Explain what happened and why its effects were significant.