MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills (01) Practice Test

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Communication and Literacy Skills (01) Practice Test: ReadingRead the passage below, written in the style of a college history textbook.Then answer the five questions that follow.A Bill of Rights1 As members of the ConstitutionalConvention completed their work inPhiladelphia during the fall of 1787, they hadgood reason to be proud of what they hadaccomplished. Despite serious divisions overquestions of representation and related issues,they had managed to fashion a new form ofgovernment—one that would enable theUnited States to become the great nationthey believed it to be. This achievementnotwithstanding, they knew they could notbecome complacent, for one task stillremained. The new government had to beratified by at least nine of the thirteen states,and not everyone outside the Philadelphiaconvention hall shared the founders' positiveview of their creation.2 The main opponents of the newgovernment formed a group known as theAnti-Federalists. Unlike proponents of theConstitution, most of whom hailed from urbancenters and prosperous rural areas, the bulkof Anti-Federalist support came from smallfarmers who had a deep fear of centralizedpower. As they saw it, the new governmentrepresented a betrayal of revolutionary idealsand posed as grave a threat to Americanliberty as the British monarchy once had. Inmaking their case against the Constitution,Anti-Federalist orators drew numerousparallels between the Loyalists who hadbacked Great Britain in 1776 and the politicalleaders now calling for a stronger federalgovernment. In each case, they claimed, onecould detect the plots and intrigues of selfinterestedindividuals who had no qualmsabout submerging "every worthy principlebeneath the shrine of ambition."3 Apart from these general objections, theAnti-Federalists found several features of theConstitution particularly troubling. One wasthe power of Congress to raise standing armiesduring peacetime. This, they feared, wouldresult in the formation of a mercenary armywhose only loyalty was to the powerfulofficials who had created it. Another set ofobjections centered on the taxing power of thenew government. Given the broad grant ofauthority made to Congress, they asked, whyshould it act any differently in this regard thanParliament had? As Patrick Henry observed,nothing in the Constitution preventedgovernment officials from exploiting thetaxpaying public. The Virginia orator thenwent on to sketch a frightening picture ofan all-powerful president "supported inextravagant magnificence" by corruptlegislators capable of "laying what taxesthey please, giving themselves what salariesthey please, and suspending our laws at theirpleasure."4 The Anti-Federalists were also concernedabout the place of the states in the new systemof government. According to traditionalpolitical theory, sovereignty was indivisible.This meant that lesser governmental bodiescould not effectively share power with acentral authority. Anti-Federalists feared thatindividual states would have insufficientpower to order their own affairs under the newframe of government. They further noted thatthe Constitution did not contain a bill of rights.This, they believed, was no oversight on thepart of the framers, but reflected their generaldisdain for the liberties of American citizens.10
Communication and Literacy Skills (01) Practice Test: Reading5 This was a powerful critique. To meetthese attacks and secure ratification of theConstitution, its supporters had to do muchmore than simply demonstrate that the newgovernment corrected the deficiencies of thegovernment it was replacing. They also had toshow that it could meet the nation's needswithout threatening the liberties of Americancitizens. Doing so proved more difficult thanexpected, largely because so many peoplewere troubled by the new government's lack ofa bill of rights. It was not until June 1788 thatthe Constitution became the law of the land.That the first Congress elected under the newcharter wasted little time adding a bill of rightsto the Constitution was a tribute to the force ofthe Anti-Federalists' arguments. 6. Which of the following statements bestexpresses the main idea of the selection?A. Memories of the recent struggleagainst Great Britain heightenedAnti-Federalist concerns aboutgovernmental corruption andexcessive taxation.B. Being for the most part smallfarmers, the Anti-Federalists werefearful of the formation of a mercenarystanding army that wouldhave no loyalty to the people.C. The framers of the Constitutionwere surprised that so many peopleagreed with the Anti-Federalistcritique of the new governmentcreated by the document.D. Although Anti-Federalist oppositionto the Constitution did notprevent ratification, it did force theConstitution's framers to addresspotential threats to individualliberties.7. The author's main purpose in this selectionis to:A. describe Anti-Federalist objectionsto the Constitution.B. narrate the process by which theConstitution was drafted andratified.C. evaluate the advantages anddisadvantages of the Constitution.D. analyze the motives of the framersof the Constitution.8. According to information presented in theselection, a major difference between theAnti-Federalists and supporters of theConstitution was that the Anti-Federalists:A. were more concerned about thethreat of governmental tyranny.B. did not believe government servedany useful purpose.C. were more concerned about futuredevelopments than past events.D. believed Great Britain stillthreatened American liberties.11
Page 1 and 2: Massachusetts Tests for Educator Li
Page 3 and 4: Communication and Literacy Skills (
Page 11: Communication and Literacy Skills (

MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills (01) Practice Test

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?