This page shows a list of test questions in the American Government public release collection at MSDE. American Government
Standard "1.0 Civics," Indicator "1.1.2"
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This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
The United States Constitution is called a "living document" because it
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A police officer stopped a citizen for speeding. Without probable cause, the officer opened the trunk of the citizen's car to look for drugs.
The citizen can challenge the actions of the police officer on the grounds that a citizen has
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Read the scenario below.
The Maryland government is expanding a major highway to reduce traffic congestion. The state will take the private property it needs and compensate the owners for their land.
Which of these allows the government action described above?
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Read the excerpts below.
Article 1
"That all government of right originates from the people; . . . they have . . . the right to alter, reform, or abolish their form of Government. . . . "
Article 24
"That no man ought to be taken or imprisoned . . . but by the judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land."
Maryland Declaration of Rights
Which of these constitutional principles is described in Article 1 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
"No freeman [person] shall be taken or imprisoned, . . . or outlawed, or banished, or in any way destroyed, unless by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. . . . "
Magna Carta, 1215
Which of these principles found in the Bill of Rights is based on the Magna Carta?
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Which of these is a similarity between the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence?
This is a test question that allows you to enter extended text in your response.
The exclusionary rule states that prosecutors may not use illegally obtained evidence in court.
- Explain the privacy protections in the Bill of Rights that support this rule.
- Do the advantages of the rule outweigh the disadvantages? Explain why or why not.
- Include details and examples to support your answer.
Write your answer on the lines in your Answer Book.
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Read the paragraph below.
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution thereof, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people thereof."
Article 3, Declaration of Rights, Constitution of Maryland
What principle of government is best reflected in the article above?
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In 2001 the Supreme Court ruled that a public school in New York violated the constitutional right to free speech when it prevented a Christian children's club from meeting on school grounds.
What was most likely an effect of this ruling?
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One of the main purposes of the Bill of Rights is to
This is a test question that allows you to enter extended text in your response.
Use your knowledge about government to answer the BRIEF CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE.
- Describe ways the government can limit freedom of the press in newspapers and magazines.
- Do you agree or disagree with these limits? Explain why.
- Include details and examples to support your answer.
Write your answer on the lines in your Answer Book.
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
“After [dividing] the several classes of power, as they may in their nature be legislative, executive, or judiciary, the next and most difficult task is to provide some practical security for each, against the invasion of the others.”
The Federalist, No. 48
Which of these principles of government is described in the excerpt?
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Read the excerpt below.
"No freeman [person] shall be taken or imprisoned, . . . or outlawed, or banished, or in any way destroyed, unless by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. . . . "
Magna Carta, 1215
Which of these constitutional protections is described in the excerpt?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution… are reserved to the States… or to the people. . . . "
Article 3, Maryland Declaration of Rights
Which of these principles of government is described in the excerpt?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
"No freeman shall be taken or imprisoned… unless by the lawful judgement of his peers, or by the law of the land."
Magna Carta, 1215
Which of these constitutional protections is based on the principle described in the excerpt above?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Which of these excerpts from the United States Constitution best reflects the principle of checks and balances?
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Read the excerpt below.
“In [creating] a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: You must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, [make it ] control itself.”
The Federalist No. 51
Which of these principles is best reflected in the excerpt?
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Which of these excerpts from the Constitution describes federalism?
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The U.S. Constitution corrected a weakness of the Articles of Confederation by
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
“That all Government of right originates from the People . . . and they have, at all times, the inalienable right to alter, reform or abolish their Form of Government. . . . ”
Article 1, Declaration of Rights, Constitution of Maryland
Which of these principles of government is stated in the excerpt?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Which of these excerpts from the Constitution describes federalism?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
"No freeman shall be taken or imprisoned . . . unless by the lawful judgement of his peers, or by the law of the land."
—Magna Carta, 1215
Which of these constitutional protections is based on the principle described in the excerpt above?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Read the excerpt below.
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution . . . are reserved to the States . . . or to the people. . . . "
—Article 3, Maryland Declaration of Rights
Which of these principles of government is described in the excerpt?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select only one option.
Which of these excerpts from the United States Constitution best reflects the principle of checks and balances?
This is a multiple choice question that allows you to select several options.
Read the excerpt.
"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 new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
—Declaration of Independence, 1776
Which two phrases best exemplify the principle of popular sovereignty?
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Read the excerpt.
"The Senate of the United States shall be . . . elected by the people. . . . "
—Amendment 17, U.S. Constitution
Which of these excerpts from the Declaration of Independence is most reflected in the Seventeenth Amendment?
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Which situation is a violation of the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?
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An individual accused of stealing identities on the Internet was held without formal charges.
Which excerpt from the U.S. Constitution best applies to this situation?
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Which specific action is protected by the U.S. Bill of Rights?