This course is designed for eleventh and twelfth graders taking American Studies at Jamestown High School

This course is designed for eleventh and twelfth graders taking American Studies at Jamestown High School. This is a co-taught course with English instruction taking place on Mondays and Thursdays while Social Studies is taught Tuesdays Wednesdays, and Fridays. This course is intended to be taught in twelve 90 minute blocks where the 13^th class period the students would receive their course examination. The key global objective for this course of US History is to produce critical thinkers while the educational objectives are to enhance their knowledge of United States History and to introduce them to the ideas of citizenry. The ILOs do this in a variety of different ways by having students’ analysis and interpret political cartoons, ads and primary sources that requires them to think critical about these resources. The educational goal of this class is to become familiar with American history so that students can competently enter American society with knowledge of what has happened in hopes of creating a brighter future. Armed with the knowledge of US History and with the skill to critical think about their situations they will be better prepared to enter the world after graduation.

This test will be a part of the World War II unit. This test will cover World War II, the Holocaust, and the social, economic and political changes that result from World War II. The Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) are based on the Virginia SOL 11 and 12. These cover happenings in World War II including the events leading up to American intervention following Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, strategy of the Allied and Axis Powers in both the European and Pacific Theater, the major battles and turning point of World War II, the change of the economic, political and social landscape in America, the Holocaust, the Geneva Convention, the changing role of women and minorities in American society, as well as the atomic bomb debate. I chose to emphasis these learning outcomes so that students will be able to understand not only the major events of World War II, but see its complete impact on the world stage. Many changes that happened during World War II were long lasting changes that we still see today (i.e. women and minorities in the work force, the push for equality for the races (culminating in the 1960s), and human rights for prisoners of war). This is an opportunity for my students to understand how these normal things everyday occurrences began to take shape.

All of my ILOs are assessed by my test; however, 4 content areas are not assessed at all cognitive levels. I will assess two of these by having my student analyze a timeline of events that lead to US intervention in World War II and write a paragraph synthesizing how these events are all interconnected and one of their weekly quizzes will be focused on the role of minority units during World War II. The other two will be assessed by the English side of the class by having the students write diary entries from the perspective of Japanese Americans going through Internment in the United States and examining the Geneva Convention treatise for content and grammar.

This unit will be taught to one block of Advanced American Studies and two blocks of regular inclusion American Studies. One thing I have found odd about Jamestown High School is the lack of diversity. There is an overwhelmingly white majority at the high school. In all three blocks I have a total of 3 ELL students, all of whose English does not impede their academic progress. The one diverse attribute of Jamestown is the disparity of wealth. Jamestown pulls students from two country club areas as well as The Grove, which is a poverty stricken area in Williamsburg. However, this does not tremendously affect my instruction as they are all high achieving students. Jamestown High School by VDOE standards is extremely high achieving. In my two inclusion classes, however, I do have 10-15 students with IEPs or 504 plans in each block. Right now, I am unsure if this will affect how I assess these students. I may have to include a word bank for the fill in the blank section of my assessment for those students, but will learn more throughout student teaching.

The purpose of this test is to measure what the students learned during my unit. This assessment will gage what they learned because it was created using a table of specifications (attached at the end) which my lesson plans are designed from. I hope that from this test I can see what my students learn and see what ways I can improve my instruction in case I am ever teaching the same course again. By comparing test results I would like to see how reliable and valid my test is, but I will discuss this in length later in this write-up.

1. 
   Students will be able to sequence and make connections between each event (i.e. Hitler’s invasion of Poland, Battle of Britain, Lend-Lease Act, Pearl Harbor and Germany declaration of war on the United States) that drove the United States to direct involvement in World War II by creating a timeline.
   
2. 
   Students will be able to compare and contrast Allied and Axis strategy.
   
3. 
   Students will be able describe the role of women and minorities during World War II
   
4. 
   Students will be able to summarize the significance of the Geneva Convention and its effects on the treatment of prisoners of war today.
   
5. 
   Students will be able to breakdown the Holocaust and its impact on the world stage.
   
6. 
   Students will be able to identify wartime changes that in American economics, political and social life.
   
7. 
   Students will be able to debate the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki with the aid of primary sources.
   

VUS.11 The student will demonstrate knowledge of World War II by:

1. 
   Analyzing the causes and events that led to American involvement in the war, including military assistance to the United Kingdom and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor;
   
2. 
   Describing and locating the major battles and turning points of the war in North Africa, Europe, and the Pacific, including Midway, Stalingrad, the Normandy landing (D-Day), and Truman’s decision to use the atomic bomb to force the surrender of Japan; Bloom’s
   
3. 
   Describing the role of all-minority military units, including the Tuskegee Airmen and Nisei regiments;
   
4. 
   Examining the Geneva Convention and the treatment of prisoners of war during World War II;
   
5. 
   Analyzing the Holocaust (Hitler’s “final solution”), its impact on Jews and other groups, and the postwar trials of war criminals.
   

VUS.12 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the effects of World War II on the home front by

1. 
   explaining how the United States mobilized its economic, human, and military resources;
   
2. 
   Describing the contributions of women and minorities to the war effort;
   
3. 
   Explaining the internment of Japanese Americans during the war;
   
4. 
   Describing the role of media and communications in the war effort.
   

In this unit I will be teaching my students about World War II and its outcomes. I believe that this test has high construct validity because it will be assessing World War II and its major events. This will not be a concern because I have taken the time to try to assess each content area my unit is focused on in some aspect of my test. The content validity is also fairly high because my test items will be assessing each of my ILOs in their corresponding cognitive levels. The content of the unit is definitely covered by this assessment; however, I am slightly concerned that several ILOs only have one test item at each specific cognitive level. While I do not think that this will be a problem for my students it will make it difficult to make inferences about each student’s individual test because they do not have other opportunities to show that they do understand that ILO at that specific cognitive level more than once. You can see this by looking at my table of specifications where 10 of 19 ILOs are covered by only one test item. The construct validity of the assessment will not be a problem because the test assesses what I am covering in my unit and the content validity should be high as well because the test items cover the ILOs listed on my table of specifications. However, it will be difficult to understand why a student missed a certain item on the test because most ILOs are only covered by one test item, leaving the question of whether or not the student learned the content at the respective cognitive level or if they got the answer wrong due to random error.

I decided to divide my assessment into three different parts: multiply choice, short answer, and an essay. I did this so I could cover each ILO at their respective cognitive level. Most multiply choice questions cover the ILOs with the cognitive levels below Application and the short answers deal with analysis and synthesis cognitive levels. The essay deals with the evaluation cognitive level. I had twenty multiply choice items, five short answer items, and one essay which they were given two prompts to write from. This way, I included both select-response and supply-response test items. By using these types of questions I was able to effectively cover the content and cognitive level targeted by my ILOs and SOLs. I created all of the short answer items and essay items myself. The only other resource I used to create my test was looking at some of my CT’s old tests that she had used in the past. From her old tests I synthesized the following multiply choice test items: 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 17 and 20.

It will be difficult to gage the reliability of this test. I believe that the items are constructed in a way that they are free from any bias. Test administration should be the same in each block that I teach because of my classroom rules. My classroom rules include how tests should be taken (i.e. in silence, with phones off, and pre-test talks about integrity) so the tests should be administered in the same way. However, I teach two blocks of regular inclusion American Studies with roughly 10-15 students in each block with and IEP or 504 plans and one block of Advanced American Studies students with no students with IEP or 504 plans. I am unsure if my CT will allow me to administer the same test to all three blocks and I know that item analysis will be impossible between all three blocks. Using item analysis by comparing the two regular blocks to one another will be a better indicator of the test’s reliability. Although I will be able to compare the two regular blocks to one another, yet again I would caution that action because no class is the same regardless of IEPs and 504 plans. Other steps I have taken to increase reliability are to have a peer review my test as well as follow the steps of item-construction while creating the test items themselves. There are no trick questions or anything that would prevent my students from getting the correct answer as long as they have studied the material I have presented during class. It’s important to remember that test items should be created to be easy enough where students who have studied adequately can get the right answer, but hard enough so that the students who did not study get them wrong. Through proper item creation I think that I have accomplished that goal. I believe my test has relatively high reliability, but item analysis will be difficult because I do not have the time to administer a test with enough questions to relate to each specific ILO to prevent chance error for occurring. If they get one item wrong because of chance error I will be unable to know whether it is chance error or if they just do not understand the material because for the majority of my ILOs and their respective cognitive level there is only one test item.

Ideally, how well my students do on this test will be a strong indicator of how well they do on the SOL. However, I don’t think this will have any predictive validity because the grading scale that I will be using. The Multiply Choice and essay portion of the exam will both be worth 40% of the total grade with the short answer being 20%. The essay tests higher order thinking skills which the SOLs do not cater too. The SOLs are primarily concerned with knowledge and comprehension of basic concepts while my test assesses students in a variety of different cognitive levels. Due to the fact that 40% of their grade will be assessing their content knowledge at higher level of thinking it will be hard to predict how well they do on the SOLs. However, if I just look at the multiply choice responses and calculate what their grade would be without the essay, which would probably be a better indication of how they would do on the SOLs because it deals with lower order thinking. The SOL also assesses a lot more material than just World War II. If I were to calculate the grades of my students throughout the year on the multiply choice responses that would also be a better indication of how they could potentially do on the SOL. My test could be predictive of how well my students do on the World War II part of their SOL, but I would caution anyone to do so because of the essay portion of my exam and the lack of high order thinking items on the SOL.

The multiply choice responses will be worth one point each for a total of twenty points. There will be no partial credit for multiply choice responses. The short responses will be worth two points each. For full credit on short answer responses each response must contain the proper content and complete sentences. The students are told to answers these questions in complete sentences and following directions will be crucial. Complete sentences are important for this class because it is a co-taught American Studies course that emphasizes English two days a week. Students will receive 1 point for correct content knowledge, but incomplete sentences, but will also receive one point for partial content knowledge in complete sentences. I do want to give partial credit when the students do understand the content, but students must be able to follow directions to do well. Finally, the essay will be worth twenty points. The criteria for the essay are listed in the rubric below. Students will have to have a strong background knowledge to support their answers that is factual and presented in an organized and clean manner to do well. This class is an English class as well so it is important that students take my essays as seriously as they would an English essay. All of these points are based on the content and the ILOs listed in my table of specifications so is no potential bias to worry about in the grading procedures. Students will be given these rubrics the day before to know what I expect for them and given adequate time to prepare for all sections of the test. I created the essay to be 40% of the test because as juniors my students need to start thinking like historians and be able to synthesize historical events into an argumentative essay. Multiply choice is 40% because that is how the SOL will be tested them and also is an easy way to check for their background knowledge to see if I need to review anything before the SOL. Short answer is only 20% because it assesses similar cognitive levels to multiply choice responses, but I just wanted to give them a different opportunity to show what they had learned. This assessment is the summative part of unit; however, they will also have weekly quizzes as well as many formative assessments to help prepare them for this test.

Short Answer:

2 Points- Correct content knowledge and complete sentences

1 Point- Correct content knowledge in incomplete sentences

1 Point- Partial content knowledge in complete sentences

Name: _______________________

Date: _______________________

World War II Unit Test

Part I. Multiply Choice (1 Point Each)

Directions: Please circle the best answer for the following multiply choice questions.

1. 
   What ethnicity or race was targeted by the Nazi for extermination during the Holocaust
   
   1. 
      Jews
      
   2. 
      African Americans
      
   3. 
      Homosexuals
      
   4. 
      All the above.
      

2. 
   “Arnold is a British soldier during World War II. While in combat he is captured by the Axis forces. Although he has been captured he must be treated humanely.”
   

1. 
   The Geneva Convention
   
2. 
   The Treaty of Paris
   
3. 
   The Lend-Lease Act
   
4. 
   Neutrality Acts
   

3. 
   Name the events in order that lead the US to intervention in World War II.
   
   1. 
      Lend-Lease Act, Neutrality Acts, Pearl Harbor
      
   2. 
      Pearl Harbor, The sinking of the Lusitania, Lend-Lease Act
      
   3. 
      Neutrality Acts, Lend-Lease Act, Pearl Harbor
      
   4. 
      Neutrality Acts, Lend-Lease Act, The sinking of the Lusitania
      

4. 
   What was the decision in the Korematsu v. United States court case?
   
   1. 
      The Supreme Court found that the United States lawfully instituted Japanese Internment
      
   2. 
      The Supreme Court found that the United States unlawfully instituted Japanese Internment
      
   3. 
      The Supreme court found Korematsu guilty and sent him to prison
      
   4. 
      The Supreme Court found Korematsu not guilty and released him.
      

5. 
   What battle did not take place in the European Theater?
   
   1. 
      The Battle of Stalingrad
      
   2. 
      The Battle of Britain
      
   3. 
      The Battle of Midway
      
   4. 
      The Battle of Normandy
      

6. 
   What event leads directly to US intervention in World War II?
   
   1. 
      The Lend-Lease Act
      
   2. 
      The sinking of American ships by German U-boats
      
   3. 
      German Declaration of War on the United States
      
   4. 
      Pearl Harbor
      

7. 
   What is considered the turning point in the European Theater?
   
   1. 
      Hitler’s invasion of Poland
      
   2. 
      The Battle of Stalingrad
      
   3. 
      The Battle of the Bulge
      
   4. 
      The Battle of Normandy
      

8. 
   How was media and communications used during World War II?
   
   1. 
      The US government maintained strict censorship of reporting the war
      
   2. 
      Public Moral and Ad campaigns kept Americans focused on the war effort.
      
   3. 
      The Entertainment industry boosted morale by portraying the war effort as patriotic and the enemy in stereotypical ways.
      
   4. 
      All the above.
      

9. 
   What was Hitler’s final solution?
   
   1. 
      Germany’s decision to start World War II
      
   2. 
      Germany’s decision to join Japan in the war effort against the United States
      
   3. 
      Germany’s decision to exterminate all Jews
      
   4. 
      Germany’s decision to invade Poland in 1939
      

10. 
    The Geneva Convention was in response to what event?
    
    1. 
       The Bataan Death March
       
    2. 
       Nazi Concentration Camps
       
    3. 
       Japanese Internment
       
    4. 
       Pearl Harbor
       

11. 
    President Roosevelt’s speech that contained the phrase “a day that will live in infamy” relates to which event that helped draw the United States into World War II?
    
    1. 
       Hitler’s invasion of Poland
       
    2. 
       The dropping of the Atomic Bomb
       
    3. 
       Sinking of the Lusitania
       
    4. 
       Pearl Harbor
       

12. 
    What was the Allies strategy on the European Front?
    
    1. 
       Isolationism
       
    2. 
       Island Hopping
       
    3. 
       Defeat Hitler First
       
    4. 
       Blitzkrieg
       

13. 
    What was the name of the African American unit that fought in Italy?
    
    1. 
       Nisei
       
    2. 
       Tuskegee
       
    3. 
       64^th Infantry
       
    4. 
       American Expeditionary Force
       

14. 
    The systematic and purposeful destruction of a racial, political, religious, or cultural group is called ___________.
    
    1. 
       Genocide
       
    2. 
       Stereotyping
       
    3. 
       Discrimination
       
    4. 
       Prejudice
       

15. 
    Which was not a way the United States mobilized resources on the home 1front?
    
    1. 
       Institution of the Draft
       
    2. 
       Women and minorities stepping into men’s roles in the work force
       
    3. 
       Encouraging the purchase of war bonds
       
    4. 
       Cancelling of schools
       

16. 
    What was the primary reason behind Japanese Internment?
    
    1. 
       Fear
       
    2. 
       Japanese spies infiltrating America
       
    3. 
       Military Necessity
       
    4. 
       Strong Anti-Japanese Prejudice
       

17. 
    The Manhattan Project was responsible for
    
    1. 
       Japanese Internment
       
    2. 
       The development of the atomic bomb
       
    3. 
       Instituting the draft
       
    4. 
       Supervising the industries in the US
       

18. 
    Which is not a reason for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
    
    1. 
       The belief it would bring a swift end to the war
       
    2. 
       America wants to show off its military power
       
    3. 
       Japan’s refusal to surrender unconditionally
       
    4. 
       American hatred for the Japanese
       

19. 
    What future president led the invasion of Normandy?
    
    1. 
       Lyndon B. Johnson
       
    2. 
       Dwight D. Eisenhower
       
    3. 
       Jimmy Carter
       
    4. 
       Richard Nixon
       

20. 
    What was a major outcome of the Nuremberg Trials
    
    1. 
       Leaders are responsible for actions
       
    2. 
       The German government was responsible for actions
       
    3. 
       No one is responsible for action
       
    4. 
       Individuals are responsible for actions.
       

Direction: Answer the following questions in 1-2 complete sentences on a separate sheet of paper.

21. 
    How did the demographic of the American workforce change following US intervention into World War II?
    
22. 
    Summarize the significance of the Geneva Convention. What were the short and long term its short and longer term effects?
    
23. 
    How did the events of the Holocaust affect the modern world?
    
24. 
    How did each event leading to American intervention in World War II push them further away from this isolationist stance?
    
25. 
    How did women during the 1940s lay the groundwork for the modern woman?
    

Directions: Respond to ONE of the two prompts below. Write 3 paragraphs with a topic sentence that contains your thesis with at least 4-6 sentences per paragraph. Each paragraph should contain one argument to support your thesis. Your thesis should be your first sentence. Thoughtfulness and correct content is more important than grammar and sentence structure.

26. 
    Option 1
    

OR

27. 
    Option 2
    

Name: _______________________

Date: _______________________

World War II Unit Test Answer Key (Answers in Bold)

Part I. Multiply Choice

Directions: Please circle the best answer for the following multiply choice questions.

1. 
   What ethnicity or race was targeted by the Nazi for extermination during the Holocaust
   
   1. 
      Jews
      
   2. 
      African Americans
      
   3. 
      Homosexuals
      
   4. 
      All the above.
      

2. 
   “Arnold is a British soldier during World War II. While in combat he is captured by the Axis forces. Although he has been captured he must be treated humanely.”
   

1. 
   The Geneva Convention
   
2. 
   The Treaty of Paris
   
3. 
   The Lend-Lease Act
   
4. 
   Neutrality Acts
   

3. 
   Name the events in order that lead the US to intervention in World War II.
   
   1. 
      Lend-Lease Act, Neutrality Acts, Pearl Harbor
      
   2. 
      Pearl Harbor, The sinking of the Lusitania, Lend-Lease Act
      
   3. 
      Neutrality Acts, Lend-Lease Act, Pearl Harbor
      
   4. 
      Neutrality Acts, Lend-Lease Act, The sinking of the Lusitania
      

4. 
   What was the decision in the Korematsu v. United States court case?
   
   1. 
      The Supreme Court found that the United States lawfully instituted Japanese Internment
      
   2. 
      The Supreme Court found that the United States unlawfully instituted Japanese Internment
      
   3. 
      The Supreme court found Korematsu guilty and sent him to prison
      
   4. 
      The Supreme Court found Korematsu not guilty and released him.
      

5. 
   What battle did not take place in the European Theater?
   
   1. 
      The Battle of Stalingrad
      
   2. 
      The Battle of Britain
      
   3. 
      The Battle of Midway
      
   4. 
      The Battle of Normandy
      

6. 
   What event leads directly to US intervention in World War II?
   
   1. 
      The Lend-Lease Act
      
   2. 
      The sinking of American ships by German U-boats
      
   3. 
      German Declaration of War on the United States
      
   4. 
      Pearl Harbor
      

7. 
   What is considered the turning point in the European Theater?
   
   1. 
      Hitler’s invasion of Poland
      
   2. 
      The Battle of Stalingrad
      
   3. 
      The Battle of the Bulge
      
   4. 
      The Battle of Normandy
      

8. 
   How was media and communications used during World War II?
   
   1. 
      The US government maintained strict censorship of reporting the war
      
   2. 
      Public Moral and Ad campaigns kept Americans focused on the war effort.
      
   3. 
      The Entertainment industry boosted morale by portraying the war effort as patriotic and the enemy in stereotypical ways.
      
   4. 
      All the above.
      

9. 
   What was Hitler’s final solution?
   
   1. 
      Germany’s decision to start World War II
      
   2. 
      Germany’s decision to join Japan in the war effort against the United States
      
   3. 
      Germany’s decision to exterminate all Jews
      
   4. 
      Germany’s decision to invade Poland in 1939
      

10. 
    The Geneva Convention was in response to what event?
    
    1. 
       The Bataan Death March
       
    2. 
       Nazi Concentration Camps
       
    3. 
       Japanese Internment
       
    4. 
       Pearl Harbor
       

11. 
    President Roosevelt’s speech that contained the phrase “a day that will live in infamy” relates to which event that helped draw the United States into World War II?
    
    1. 
       Hitler’s invasion of Poland
       
    2. 
       The dropping of the Atomic Bomb
       
    3. 
       Sinking of the Lusitania
       
    4. 
       Pearl Harbor
       

12. 
    What was the Allies strategy on the European Front?
    
    1. 
       Isolationism
       
    2. 
       Island Hopping
       
    3. 
       Defeat Hitler First
       
    4. 
       Blitzkrieg
       

13. 
    What was the name of the African American unit that fought in Italy?
    
    1. 
       Nisei
       
    2. 
       Tuskegee
       
    3. 
       64^th Infantry
       
    4. 
       American Expeditionary Force
       

14. 
    The systematic and purposeful destruction of a racial, political, religious, or cultural group is called ___________.
    
    1. 
       Genocide
       
    2. 
       Stereotyping
       
    3. 
       Discrimination
       
    4. 
       Prejudice
       

15. 
    Which was not a way the United States mobilized resources on the home front?
    
    1. 
       Institution of the Draft
       
    2. 
       Women and minorities stepping into men’s roles in the work force
       
    3. 
       Encouraging the purchase of war bonds
       
    4. 
       Cancelling of schools
       

16. 
    What was the primary reason behind Japanese Internment?
    
    1. 
       Fear
       
    2. 
       Japanese spies infiltrating America
       
    3. 
       Military Necessity
       
    4. 
       Strong Anti-Japanese Prejudice
       

17. 
    The Manhattan Project was responsible for
    
    1. 
       Japanese Internment
       
    2. 
       The development of the atomic bomb
       
    3. 
       Instituting the draft
       
    4. 
       Supervising the industries in the US
       

18. 
    Which is not a reason for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
    
    1. 
       The belief it would bring a swift end to the war
       
    2. 
       America wants to show off its military power
       
    3. 
       Japan’s refusal to surrender unconditionally
       
    4. 
       American hatred for the Japanese
       

19. 
    What future president led the invasion of Normandy?
    
    1. 
       Lyndon B. Johnson
       
    2. 
       Dwight D. Eisenhower
       
    3. 
       Jimmy Carter
       
    4. 
       Richard Nixon
       

20. 
    What was a major outcome of the Nuremberg Trials
    
    1. 
       Leaders are responsible for actions
       
    2. 
       The German government was responsible for actions
       
    3. 
       No one is responsible for action
       
    4. 
       Individuals are responsible for actions.
       

Direction: Answer the following questions in 1-2 complete sentences.

21. 
    How did the demographic of the American workforce change following US intervention into World War II?
    
22. 
    Summarize the significance of the Geneva Convention. What were the short and long term its short and longer term effects?
    
23. 
    How did the events of the Holocaust affect the modern world?
    
24. 
    How did each event leading to American intervention in World War II push them further away from this isolationist stance?
    
25. 
    How did women during the 1940s lay the groundwork for the modern woman?
    

Directions: Respond to ONE of the two prompts below. Write 3 paragraphs with a topic sentence that contains your thesis with at least 4-6 sentences per paragraph. Each paragraph should contain one argument to support your thesis. Your thesis should be your first sentence. Thoughtfulness and correct content is more important than grammar and sentence structure.

26. 
    Option 1
    

OR

27. 
    Option 2