Sem II Final Exam-- prep

American History Final Exam

Preparation Guide

2007

BACKGROUND:

Contemporary scholars agree that the US Civil War was the single most significant event in US history. The impact of the war may be lodged in our country’s historical memory permanently. In fact, as Professor Joan Waugh of UCLA has said, “The US Civil War created a new nation.” (May 2002, UCLA Lecture) The war began as a call to separate nations (southern states seceding from the “union”) and preserve the economic system of the south. It ended tragically with a horrific loss of life and property. Indeed, it seemed impossible to raise a new nation from the ashes.

PROMPT:

The period of time immediately following the US Civil War is called “Reconstruction” (1865-1877) because after the war the North came up with several plans to help rebuild the South and aid its re-entry into the “Union”. However, the plan that was finally enacted has been termed a failure by historians. Taking that into consideration, write a response to the following:

What was the main reason for the failure of Reconstruction?

Make an argument using at least three examples of historical evidence to support your thesis in a multi-paragraph essay (min=5 paragraphs). Make sure you explain how each example supports your thesis (argument). You may use the notes I gave you in class, your textbook (chapter 18), and any other reputable source you find on your own (only use .edu sources or Wikipedia). You MUST properly cite your sources in MLA style. Bring the guidelines if you think you will forget how to do this. A reference list is not needed, but proper quoting with end parenthesis will be most significant. Attach any source that you found on your own (so make photocopies) to your essay when you turn it in.

Final Exam Checklist

You may do everything up to writing the actual essay. You may prepare notes, brainstorm, outline, select quotes, etc. In order to have enough time to write the essay you should have already created your thesis and found the supporting evidence. Bring all items that will help you on Tuesday. The only thing you may *not* have is a draft of the essay. You will have 90 minutes to write the complete essay.

____ Read essay background and prompt

____ Ask clarifying questions

____ Brainstorm ideas

____ Skim materials for more ideas

____ Create thesis

____ Find supporting evidence (three historical examples)

____ Write out quotes you plan to use (with citation info)

____ Work on paraphrases (using proper citation info)

____ Make an outline of what you plan to say

____ Email any questions to me when necessary.

____ Bring all items to exam (including paper and pens)

bkelley@mayfieldjs.org

GOOD LUCK!