School Improvement in Maryland

Public Release Item: Public Release items have appeared on HSA forms and then are released for public viewing and use. Releasing items is one step to ensuring that schools, districts, and other stakeholders understand how the core learning goals are assessed on the HSA.

Goal 3 Geography

Expectation 3.1 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the relationship of cultural and physical geographic factors in the development of government policy.

Indicator 3.1.3 The student will analyze the roles and relationships of regions on the formation and implementation of government policy.

Assessment Limits:

  • International, national, state, and/or regional interests that may shape government policy.
  • Patterns, trends and projections of population growth in regions and how these may affect the environment, society and government policy.
  • Examples of the criteria used to define a region include economic development, natural resources, population, religion and climate. Regional means different areas within Maryland (e.g. Eastern Shore, mining region, Piedmont Plateau), the United States (e.g., Northeast, sunbelt, mid-Atlantic regions) and the world.

Selected Response Item - Released in 2001

Which region of Maryland would benefit most from research on Chesapeake Bay's infectious water diseases?

  1. Eastern Shore
  2. Central Maryland
  3. Western Maryland
  4. Baltimore–Washington area
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2001_313_gov07.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2001

Read the scenario below.

In Congress, representatives
from the Northwest are asking
for funds to clean up the Pacific
Ocean after an oil spill, while
representatives from the
Southeast are asking for money
to rebuild after a devastating
hurricane.

What problem does this present to Congress?

  1. balancing the needs of different regions
  2. choosing representatives to serve on committees
  3. developing the ability to predict natural disasters
  4. deciding the role of the local governments in natural disasters
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2001_313_gov44.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2003

Due to large financial losses in the American automobile industry, the United States once set limits on the number of cars it imported. This response is most likely an example of government policy being shaped by

  1. national interests
  2. international interests
  3. state interests
  4. regional interests
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2003_313_gov47.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2003

The Chesapeake Bay has recently suffered a decline in the oyster population. At the urging of citizens, Virginia and Maryland have cooperated in passing legislation to restore the oyster population.

The above is an example of

  1. states working together to protect resources
  2. states in conflict over disappearing resources
  3. government developing a resource policy without public support
  4. government introducing new resource taxes
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2003_313_gov48.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2005

Read the news article excerpt below. Then answer the following:

Which of these is most likely a result of the action described in the news article?

  1. Travelers will save time on the road.
  2. Maryland will use more employees to take tolls.
  3. The number of people using highways will decrease.
  4. Other states will charge less for out-of-state travelers.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2005_313_gov24.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2005

Read the news article excerpt below. Then answer the following:

Which of these does the news article describe?

  1. rising costs in the travel industry
  2. regional cooperation among states
  3. involvement of the federal government in state concerns
  4. private industry taking over government responsibilities
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2005_313_gov25.xml

Correct Answer:
B

Selected Response Item - Released in 2004

Arizona, California, and Colorado all claim the right to use the water from the Colorado River for their water needs.

The most effective way to resolve the water rights dispute would be for

  1. the three states to sign a treaty with Mexico
  2. the three states to create a regional agreement
  3. each state to build dams on its portion of the river
  4. each state to take as much water from the river as possible
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2004_313_gov01.xml

Correct Answer:
B

Selected Response Item - Released in 2004

Which of these actions is least likely to involve cooperation between neighboring state governments?

  1. planning railroad routes
  2. controlling agricultural pests
  3. decreasing pollution of major rivers
  4. reducing class size in primary schools
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2004_313_gov47.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Brief Constructed Response (BCR) Item - Released in 2003

Traffic congestion is a problem in the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan region.

  • Propose possible actions the government could take to solve this problem.
  • Explain why some people would oppose these actions.
  • Include details and examples to support your solutions and the oppositions to your solutions.
Write your answer in the box below.

/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2003_313_gov52.xml

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Selected Response Item - Released in 2002

On January 1, 1999, the euro became the common currency for eleven European countries.

The adoption of the euro created a region based on a common

  1. political ideology
  2. defense strategy
  3. economic interest
  4. cultural characteristic
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2002_313_gov24.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item - Released in 2002

Which of these would most likely require interstate cooperation?

  1. the maintenance of historic monuments in Baltimore City
  2. the construction of a civic center in Wicomico County
  3. the establishment of guided tours of Annapolis
  4. the conservation of oysters in the Chesapeake Bay
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2002_313_gov37.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

The Susquehanna River flows through New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland.

Which of these is the most effective way to resolve disputes over the use and protection of the river?

  1. turn over control of the river to one state
  2. hire a private company to manage actions related to the river
  3. encourage each state to develop and enforce its own policies
  4. create a regional organization to develop policies regarding the river
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2006_313_gov23.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

The states of Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware joined together during the 1980s and 1990s in an effort to reduce pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. This is an example of a government policy being shaped by

  1. regional interests
  2. national interests
  3. community interests
  4. international interests
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2006_313_gov48.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Read the news article excerpt below.

The government action in the news article is an example of

  1. state government cooperation in regional issues
  2. federal intervention in states’ rights issues
  3. the government’s role in a free market economy
  4. the improved condition of polluted waterways
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2007_313_gov42.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Brief Constructed Response (BCR) Item - Released in 2007

Read the information below and use it to answer the BRIEF CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE that follows.

The Baltimore Metropolitan Council represents the governments of five neighboring counties. The Council oversees air and water quality programs and helps operate a regional rideshare program.

  • Describe the advantages and disadvantages of this type of regional cooperation.
  • Do the advantages 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.

/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2007_313_gov45.xml

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Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Which of these actions best describes regional cooperation?

  1. A state park expands its treeplanting program.
  2. Maryland increases pay for state employees.
  3. The state capitol and other public buildings are opened to visitors.
  4. State governors meet to plan interstate highways.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2007_313_gov53.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

Which of these would not require regional cooperation by local governments?

  1. raising the property tax in Baltimore City
  2. maintaining the water quality in the Chesapeake Bay
  3. building a transportation system from Baltimore to Annapolis
  4. solving traffic congestion problems in metropolitan Washington, D.C.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2008_313_gov24.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

The Baltimore Metropolitan Council and the Maryland Department of Transportation administer a grant program that helps area businesses establish ways that employees can work from home.

Which of these is most likely the purpose of this program?

  1. to improve public roads
  2. to decrease urban sprawl
  3. to reduce traffic congestion
  4. to provide computer training
/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2008_313_gov34.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Brief Constructed Response (BCR) Item - Released in 2008

Study the maps below and use them to answer the BRIEF CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE that follows.

Question Image

  • Explain how the problems faced by local governments in the metropolitan areas of Maryland differ from those in other regions of the state.
  • Which problem is most critical? Explain why.
  • Include details and examples to support your answer.

Write your answer on the lines in your Answer Book.

/share/clg/xml/public_release/government/2008_313_gov49.xml

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