2018
AP United States
History
Sample Student Responses
and Scoring Commentary
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Inside:
Long Essay Question 3
R Scoring Guideline
R Student Samples
R Scoring Commentary
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Question 3Long Essay Question
Evaluate the extent to which the Civil War fostered change in the United States economy in the period from
1861 to 1900.
Maximum Possible Points: 6
Points
Rubric
Notes
A: Thesis/Claim
(01)
Thesis/Claim: Responds to the prompt
with a historically defensible
thesis/claim that establishes a line of
reasoning. (1 point)
T
o earn this point, the thesis must make
a claim that responds to the prompt
rather than restating or rephrasing the
prompt. The thesis must consist of one or
more sentences located in one place,
either in the introduction or the
conclusion.
The thesis must make a historically defensible claim
that establishes a line of reasoning about how the Civil
War fostered change in the United States economy in
the period from 1861 to 1900.
E
xamples that earn this point include:
“The Civil War fostered economic change in the fact
that the Southern labor force was forever changed,
but it fostered less economic change, due to th
e
N
orth’s and South’s role in the economy staying the
same.”
Due to the Civil War from 1861, America’s
economy massively changed due to
Industrialization, the creation of railroads, and the
stopping of slavery in entirety.”
B: Contextualization
(01)
Contextualization: Describes a broader
historical context relevant to the
prompt. (1 point)
T
o earn this point, the response must
relate the topic of the prompt to broader
historical events, developments, or
processes that occur before, during, or
continue after the time frame of the
question. This point is not awarded for
merely a phrase or a reference.
To earn this point, the response must accurately
describe a context relevant to the ways in which the
Civil War fostered change in the United States economy
in the period from 1861 to 1900.
Ex
amples of context might include the following, with
appropriate elaboration.
Industrial expansion, particularly in the North
Government support for economic development
Adoption of standardized parts and industrial
manufacturing
Corporate consolidation and monopolies
Boom and bust business cycle
Market Revolution
Internal improvements: roads, canals, etc.
Sectional tension: Missouri Compromise through
C
ompromise of 1850
Institution of slavery
Political aspects of Reconstruction
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
C: Evidence (02)
Evidence: Provides specific examples
of evidence relevant to the topic of the
prompt. (1 point)
To earn the first point, the response must
identify specific historical examples of
evidence relevant to the topic of the
prompt.
OR
Supports an Argument: Supports an
argument in response to the prompt
using specific and relevant examples of
evidence. (2 points)
To earn the second point, the response
must use specific historical evidence to
support an argument in response to the
prompt.
Examples of evidence used might include:
Sherman’s “March to the Sea”
Union blockade of the South
Southern war debt/bonds
Emancipation Proclamation (1863)
King Cotton
Greenbacks
Free Silver/William Jennings Bryan
Homestead Act (1862)
Transcontinental railroad; Union/Central
Pacific Railroads
Freedmen’s Bureau
Black codes/Jim Crow/Ku Klux Klan
Robber barons/captains of industry: Cornelius
Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, John D.
Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan
Labor unions/strikes (general or specific)
Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth Amendments
Sharecropping/tenant farming/crop-lien system
Economic aspects of Reconstruction
Morrill Tariff (1862)
Carpetbaggers/scalawags
Grant’s scandals/Jay Gould/James Fisk
Panic of 1873
Redeemers/Redemption
Trusts/monopolies/corporations
Alexander Graham Bell/AT&T
Thomas Edison
George Westinghouse
General Electric
Pacific Railway Acts (1862 and 1864)
Vertical/horizontal integration
Gospel of Wealth/Social Darwinism
Jane Addams/Hull House
Child labor
Samuel Gompers/American Federation of Labor
(AFL)
Eugene V. Debs
Assembly line/Taylorism
Second Industrial Revolution
Immigrant labor/nativism
New South/Henry Grady
Textile mills
Booker T. Washington/W. E. B. DuBois
Migration for jobs
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Exodusters
Gilded Age
Urbanization
Interstate Commerce Act (1887)/Interstate
Commerce Commission
Grange/FarmersAlliance
Economic imperialism
D: Analysis and Reasoning (02)
Historical Reasoning: Uses historical
reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation,
continuity and change over time) to
frame or structure an argument that
addresses the prompt. (1 point)
To earn the first point, the response must
demonstrate the use of historical
reasoning to frame or structure an
argument, although the reasoning might
be uneven or imbalanced.
OR
Complexity: Demonstrates a complex
understanding of the historical
development that is the focus of the
prompt, using evidence to corroborate,
qualify, or modify an argument that
addresses the question. (2 points)
To earn the second point, the response
must demonstrate a complex
understanding. This can be accomplished
in a variety of ways, such as:
Explaining a nuance of an issue by
analyzing multiple variables
Explaining both similarity and
difference, or explaining both
continuity and change, or explaining
multiple causes, or explaining both
causes and effects
Explaining relevant and insightful
connections within and across
periods
Confirming the validity of an
argument by corroborating multiple
perspectives across themes
Examples of using historical reasoning to frame or
structure an argument might include:
Explaining how innovations that began during the
Civil War, such as the abolition of slavery or a
standardized system of currency, contributed to
economic changes over time
Explanations of how some broader elements of the
economy, such as regional divisions between a more
agricultural South and more industrial North or the
growing role of big business and particular industries
such as railroads, demonstrated continuity over time
in spite of the Civil War
OR
Demonstrating a complex understanding might include:
Explaining a nuance of an issue by analyzing multiple
variables, such as effects of transportation changes
on westward expansion and imperialism and their ties
to the economy
Explaining both continuity and change, such as
continuities in the United States economy in addition
to changes
Explaining relevant and insightful connections within
and across periods by linking the economic impact of
the Civil War with the economic impact of other wars
Confirming the validity of an argument by
corroborating multiple perspectives, such as
considering the place of poor white Southerners in the
economy in addition to African Americans and
plantation owners
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Qualifying or modifying an argument
by considering diverse or alternative
views or evidence
This understanding must be part of the
argument, not merely a phrase or
reference.
Qualifying or modifying an argument by considering
diverse or alternative views or evidence, such as
arguing that the South experienced economic
devastation during the war but then recovered after the
war through renewed industrialization in certain areas,
renewed cotton cultivation through systems such as
sharecropping, and establishment of new systems of
labor control
If response is completely blank, enter - - for all four score categories: A, B, C, and D.
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Scoring Notes
Introductory notes:
Except where otherwise noted, each point of these rubrics is earned independently, e.g., a student
could earn a point for evidence without earning a point for thesis/claim.
Accuracy: The components of these rubrics require that students demonstrate historically defensible
content knowledge. Given the timed nature of the exam, essays may contain errors that do not detract
from their overall quality, as long as the historical content used to advance the argument is accurate.
Clarity: Exam essays should be considered first drafts and thus may contain grammatical errors.
Those errors will not be counted against a student unless they obscure the successful demonstration of
the content knowledge, skills, and practices described below.
N
ote: Student samples are quoted verbatim and may contain grammatical errors.
A
.
T
hesis/Claim (01 point
)
Responses earn 1 point by responding to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis that establishes a line
of reasoning about the topic. To earn this point, the thesis must make a claim that responds to the prompt
rather than simply restating or rephrasing the prompt. The thesis must suggest at least one main line of
argument development or establish the analytic categories of the argument.
T
he thesis must consist of one or more sentences located in one place, either in the introduction or the
conclusion.
Ex
amples of acceptable theses:
The Civil War fostered economic change in the fact that the Southern labor force was foreve
r
c
hanged, but it fostered less economic change, due to the North’s and South’s role in the economy
staying the same.” (The response suggests a line of reasoning with both change and continuity.)
Due to the Civil War from 1861, America’s economy massively changed due to Industrialization, the
creation of railroads, and the stopping of slavery in entirety.” (The response establishes the analytic
categories for the argument.)
Examples of unacceptable theses:
After the war, much damage was done to the South, including their major cities and plantations. Their
economy struggled greatly during and in the years after the war.(The example is primarily descriptive
and provides no basis for an analytical claim.)
The Civil War totally flipped the US economy upside-down from 1961-1900. At the end of wartime, the
US has some strengths and weaknesses that it had to address. The economy was rejuvenated and
new. While also being archaic and unable to keep up with current laws.(This attempts to suggest
a
l
ine of reasoning about how the Civil War changed the economy but is too vague.)
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
B. Contextualization (01 point)
R
esponses earn 1 point by describing a broader historical context relevant to the topic of the prompt. To earn
this point the response must accurately and explicitly connect the context of the prompt to broader historical
events, developments, or processes that occurred before, during, or continued after the time frame of the
question. This point is not awarded for merely a phrase or reference.
T
o earn this point, the response must accurately describe a context relevant to the ways in which the Civil War
fostered change in the United States economy in the period from 1861 to 1900.
E
xamples might include the following, with appropriate elaboration:
Small producers before the war
Industrial expansion, particularly in the North
Southern reliance on cotton production
Government support for economic development
Adoption of standardized parts and industrial manufacturing
Corporate consolidation and monopolies
Boom and bust business cycle
Example of acceptable contextualization:
“Throughout the first half of America’s 19
th
century, the country was going through the market
revolution. The nation was developing a national economy as internal improvements sprung up
,
connecting the country with canals and roads. Amidst this economic change however, sectional
tensions between the North and South developed and grew.” (This example describes one broad
er
historical context relevant to the topic of the prompt.)
Ex
ample of unacceptable contextualization:
Factories continue even beyond 1900 for the same purpose, which is making materials necessary in
war & civilian life. . . . Factories provided a huge shift and boom for American wealth to both workers
although not as much as the employers who make a lot of money which helped sti[m]ulate the
A
merican economy and made it prosperous for a good while until the depression.” (This example
in
itself would not earn credit for contextualization because occasional references to the 20
th
century are
vague and not clearly relevant to the prompt.)
C
. E
vidence (02 points)
E
vidence
Responses earn 1 point by providing at least two specific examples of evidence relevant to the topic of the
prompt. Responses can earn this point without earning the point for a thesis statement.
T
hese examples of evidence must be different from the information used to earn the point for contextualization.
Typically, statements credited as contextualization will be more general statements that place an argument or
a significant portion of it in a broader context. Statements credited as evidence will typically be more specific
information.
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Examples of evidence used might include:
Sherman’s “March to the Sea”
Union blockade of the South
Southern war debt/bonds
Emancipation Proclamation
King Cotton
Greenbacks
Free Silver/William Jennings Bryan
Homestead Act (1862)
Transcontinental railroad; Union/Central Pacific Railroads
Freedmen’s Bureau
Black codes/Jim Crow/Ku Klux Klan
Robber barons/captains of industry: Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, J. P.
Morgan
Labor unions/strikes (general or specific)
Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth Amendments
Sharecropping/tenant farming/crop-lien system
Economic aspects of Reconstruction
Morrill Tariff (1862)
Carpetbaggers/scalawags
Grant’s scandals/Jay Gould/James Fisk
Panic of 1873
Redeemers/Redemption
Trusts/monopolies/corporations
Alexander Graham Bell/AT&T
Thomas Edison
George Westinghouse
General Electric
Pacific Railway Acts (1862 and 1864)
Vertical/horizontal integration
Gospel of Wealth/Social Darwinism
Jane Addams/Hull House
Child labor
Samuel Gompers/American Federation of Labor (AFL)
Eugene V. Debs
Assembly line/Taylorism
Second Industrial Revolution
Immigrant labor/nativism
New South/Henry Grady
Textile mills
Booker T. Washington/W. E. B. DuBois
Migration for jobs
Exodusters
Gilded Age
Urbanization
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Question 3 Long Essay Question (continued)
Interstate Commerce Act (1887)/Interstate Commerce Commission
Grange/Farmer’s Alliance
Economic imperialism
Example of acceptably providing evidence relevant to the topic of the prompt:
Business moguls like John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie made trusts out of oil and steel,
respectively.” (This example cites evidence relevant to the topic, so it earned the first evidence point, but it
does not use that evidence to support an argument about changes in the United States economy, so it did
not earn the second point.)
Example of unacceptably providing evidence relevant to the topic of the prompt:
After being freed, many Africans Americans in the South traveled North in the Great Migration.” (This
response did not earn credit for evidence because the term is outside of the time period.)
OR
Supports an Argument
Responses earn 2 points if they support an argument in response to the prompt using specific and relevant
examples of evidence.
Example of acceptable use of evidence to support an argument:
The Southern half of the US stayed rooted in its agricultural traditions following the Civil War. The
agricultural economy had relied on slave labor which was no longer available, Southern farmers turned
to slavery-like practices such as sharecropping to keep African Americans bound to work for very little
pay.” (This example connects a specific piece of evidence the development of sharecroppingto ways
in which the South remained largely agricultural despite changes from the Civil War.)
Example of unacceptable use of evidence to support an argument:
In addition to African Americans, immigrants from Asia, Poland, Ireland, and many other countries
traveled to the North.” (This example cites evidence relevant to the topic, so it would count for the first
evidence point, but it does not use that evidence to support an argument about changes in the United States
economy due to the Civil War or another relevant argument, so it did not earn the second point.)
D. Analysis and Reasoning (02 points)
Historical Reasoning
Responses earn 1 point by using historical reasoning to frame or structure an argument that addresses the
prompt. To earn this point, the response must demonstrate the use of historical reasoning to frame or structure
an argument, although the reasoning might be uneven or imbalanced.
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Examples of using historical reasoning might include:
Explaining how innovations that began during the Civil War, such as the abolition of slavery or a
standardized system of currency, contributed to economic changes over time
Explanations of how some broader elements of the economy, such as regional divisions between a
more agricultural South and more industrial North or the growing role of big business and particular
industries such as railroads, demonstrated continuity over time in spite of the Civil War
Example of acceptable use of historical reasoning:
“The Civil War boosted industry in the North and destroyed agriculture in the South. The Northern
economy thrived due to an increase in industry production for Union troops and extended trade with
other countries such as Egypt. The Southern Economy was left in ruins due to need for confederate
soldiers, trade blockade by the North, destruction of land, and the abolition of slavery.” (This example
earned the point for historical reasoning because it compares/contrasts the war-caused economic growth in
the North with war-caused economic devastation in the South.)
Example of unacceptable use of historical reasoning:
The Civil War also fostered another Great change in the economy, but in a negative way in the
South.(This sentence did not earn the point for historical reasoning because the attempt at a comparison
is only stated on one side and undeveloped due to “change” and “negative” being too vague.)
OR
Complexity
Responses earn 2 points for demonstrating a complex understanding of the topic, using evidence to
corroborate, qualify, or modify that argument.
Demonstrating complex understanding might include:
Explaining a nuance of an issue by analyzing multiple variables, such as effects of transportation
changes on westward expansion and imperialism and their ties to the economy
Explaining both continuity and change, such as continuities in the United States economy in addition
to changes
Explaining relevant and insightful connections within and across periods by linking the economic
impact of the Civil War with the economic impact of other wars
Confirming the validity of an argument by corroborating multiple perspectives across themes, such as
considering the place of poor white Southerners in the economy in addition to African Americans and
plantation owners
Qualifying or modifying an argument by considering diverse or alternative views or evidence, such as
arguing that the South experienced economic devastation during the war but then recovered after the
war through renewed industrialization in certain areas, renewed cotton cultivation through systems
such as sharecropping, and establishment of new systems of labor control
Qualifying or modifying an argument by considering diverse or alternative views or evidence, such as
arguing that the Southern economy did not change much as a result of the Civil War
This understanding must be part of the argument, not merely a phrase or reference.
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Question 3Long Essay Question (continued)
Example of acceptable demonstration of a complex understanding:
The following thesis sets up a more complex and nuanced approach to the prompt than typically seen. T
he
res
ponse continues to develop this line of argument throughout the essay, arguing that the “economy &
industry of the Northern states” saw “minimal” shift, the transition from slavery to sharecropping was
“purely nominal” and railroad expansion during the war acted as a catalyst for acceleration, not change”
that was “inadvertent.” This framework allows for discussion of continuity and change as well as
comparison of the North to the South. This response earned both points for analysis. “The economic
situation of the country, while being accelerated on its original course, was not changed in any drastic
f
ashion. The North remained an Industrial & Manufacturing economy. The South remained an agrarian
economy (with sharecroppers instead of slaves), and the railroads built during the Civil War to
f
acilitate troop movements only solidified the Northern Economic dominance prevalent before the war.”
Ex
ample of unacceptable demonstration of a complex understanding:
The following response provides a framework for analysis through discussion of transportatio
n
i
mprovements, agriculture, and big business. However, it does not expand its analysis to generate a more
complex argument. Therefore, this response earned the first point but did not receive the second point f
or
anal
ysis and reasoning. “The construction of the railway opened many new markets through the easier
transportation of goods. . . . The 13
th
amendment freeing slaves saw the South changing it’s farming
policy to sharecropping. . . . The government took a hands-off approach to the economy.”
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Question 3Long Essay Question
Overview
T
his question asked students to evaluate the extent to which the Civil War fostered change in the United
States economy from 1861 to 1900. In general, students began with events during the Civil War and
Reconstruction. Some extended their time frame to include the Gilded Age. A few mentioned imperialism,
Populism, and the Progressive movement.
This question focused on the skill of Continuity and Change Over Time, as well as Contextualization and
Argument Development.
The Learning Objective assessed in this question focused on Work, Exchange, and Technology.
This question mainly addressed Key Concepts 5.3 and 6.1.
Sample: 3A
Score: 6
A
. Thesis/Claim (01 points): 1
T
he last two sentences of the first paragraph argue for a continued acceleration of the growth of the economies
of North and South rather than drastic changes because of the Civil War and provide relevant categories of
analysis (Northern industrialization and railroad construction and persisting Southern agrarianism). This
constitutes an adequate line of reasoning. The response earned the thesis point.
B. Contextualization (01 points): 1
T
he discussion in the opening paragraph about prewar conditions and subsequent change in the “social &
political climate” with specific examples earned the point for contextualization.
C. Evidence (0–2 points): 2
This response does not sprinkle a large number of specific examples of evidence. The points on Reconstruction,
sharecropping, and railroads earned the first point. The discussion of this evidence is well-done and strongly
supports the thesis. For example, the response supports its argument that the “North remained an Industrial &
Manufacturing economy” by offering examples such as efforts by manufacturers to convert to manufacturing
guns, as well as clothing manufacturers changing their products only slightly to supply the army with uniforms.
This linkage of evidence and argument earned the second point, thus the response earned 2 points for use of
evidence.
D.
Analysis and Reasoning (02 points): 2
The response is supported throughout by statements that railroad construction accelerated, but did not change
drastically, because of war. This earned the first point for analysis. Further, the response argues that there was
continuity in both the course of economic development in the North and in the economy of the South because the
region remained agrarian, though it changed in specific ways. This nuance earned the second point in the
category. Thus the response earned 2 points for analysis and reasoning.
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Question 3 Long Essay Question (continued)
Sample: 3B
Score: 4
A. Thesis/Claim (0–1 points): 1
This response clearly states a historically defensible claim establishing three categories of analysis
industrialization, railroads, and the banning of slaveryas a line of reasoning in response to the prompt. The
response earned 1 point for thesis.
B. Contextualization (01 points): 1
Historical context is effectively demonstrated in the first paragraph of this response. It includes a description of
the events and developments that preceded the Civil Warthe Kansas–Nebraska Act, the Wilmot Proviso,
and the underlying conflict over slavery’s expansion. It earned 1 point for contextualization.
C. Evidence (0–2 points): 1
The response cites multiple pieces of relevant evidencethe New South, railroads, and the Emancipation
Proclamation. This earned 1 point for evidence. However, the response does not effectively apply the specific
examples to support an argument. The response claims, for example, that freeing of slaves “shook the South as
now the African Americans were workers, not slaves, and had to be treated as such,” but it fails to adequately
extend the argument from this piece of evidence. Therefore, the response did not earn the second evidence point.
D. Analysis and Reasoning (02 points): 1
The response uses change over time to structure its argument that “America’s economy massively changed.” It
does not, however, demonstrate a more nuanced or complex understanding of this historical development,
presenting a somewhat limited analysis of these forces of long-term change. For example, the response states,
“Industrialization helped boost the economy as the North could manufacture shippable goods and sell them
abroad.” The response earned only 1 point for analysis and reasoning.
Sample: 3C
Score: 2
A. Thesis/Claim (01 points): 1
The entire first paragraph is considered the thesis. It establishes a line of reasoning about Northern economic
growth and Southern economic decline during and after the war. The response earned 1 point for thesis.
B. Contextualization (01 points): 0
A brief reference to slavery before the war in the second paragraph is not sufficient to have earned the point for
contextualization.
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Question 3 Long Essay Question (continued)
C. Evidence (0–2 points): 0
The discussion of cotton is generic but provides one piece of evidence. However, the lack of a second piece of
evidence means the response earned no points for evidence.
D. Analysis and Reasoning (02 points): 1
The last paragraph is a restatement of the thesis and the prompt. However, the next-to-last paragraph provides a
discussion of change over time, if unfocused, that is sufficient to have earned 1 point for analysis and reasoning.