Princeton Review - 550 AP U.S. Government & Politics Practice Questions

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All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Random House LLC, New York, a Penguin Random House Company, and in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto, Penguin Random House Companies.

eBook ISBN: 978-0-8041-2442-3
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The Princeton Review would like to give special thanks to the following individuals for their hard work on and contributions to this book: Mike Hernandez, Peter Hanink, Eliz Markowitz, Bryan Cunningham, Jennifer Amerkhanov, Kevin Kelly, David Stradley, Chris Stobart, and David Stoll.

Your route to a high score on the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam depends a lot on how you plan to use this book. Start thinking about your plan by responding to the following questions.

1. Rate your level of confidence about your knowledge of the content tested by the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam.
   1. Very confidentI know it all.
   2. Im pretty confident, but there are topics for which I could use help.
   3. Not confidentI need quite a bit of support.
   4. Im not sure.
2. If you have a goal score in mind, identify your goal score for the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam.
   
3. What do you expect to learn from this book? Circle all that apply to you.
   1. A general overview of the test and what to expect
   2. Strategies for how to approach the test
   3. To identify the content topics for which I need the most practice
   4. Im not sure yet.

This book is organized to provide as muchor as littlesupport as you need, so you can use this book in whatever way will be most helpful for improving your score on the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam.

• The remainder of will provide

• guidance on how to use this book.
• a diagnostic practice test, with answers and explanations, to help you determine your strengths and weaknesses.

• of this book will

• provide information about the structure, scoring, and content of the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam.
• help you to make a study plan.
• point you toward additional resources.

• of this book will explore various strategies:

• how to attack multiple choice questions
• how to write a high scoring free-response answer

• of this book contains drills organized according to the topics tested on the exam.
• of this book contains a second practice test, with answers and explanations.

You may choose to use some parts of this book over others, or you may work through the entire book. This will depend on your needs and how much time you have. Lets now look how to make this determination.

1. Take a Test
   Before you can decide how to use this book, you need to take a practice test. Doing so will give you insight into your strengths and weaknesses, and the test will also help you make an effective study plan. If youre feeling test-phobic, remind yourself that a practice test is a tool for diagnosing yourselfits not how well you do that matters but how you use information gleaned from your performance to guide your preparation.
   So before you read further, take the full-length Diagnostic Test starting at of this book. Be sure to do so in one sitting, following the instructions that appear before the test.
2. Check Your Answers
   Using the answer key on , count how many multiple-choice questions you got right and how many you missed. Dont worry about the explanations for now, and dont worry about why you missed questions. Well get to that soon.
3. Reflect on the Test
   After you take your first test, respond to the following questions:
   • How much time did you spend on the multiple-choice questions?
   • How much time did you spend on each free-response question?
   • How many multiple-choice questions did you miss?
   • Do you feel you had the knowledge to address the subject matter of the essays?
   • Do you feel you wrote well-organized, thoughtful essays?
   • Circle the content areas that were most challenging for you and draw a line through the ones in which you felt confident/did well.
     • Constitutional Underpinnings: Principles of democratic government, framers, federalism, checks and balances, separation of powers, etc.
     • Political Beliefs and Behaviors: Ideological beliefs about government, political socialization, voting, mass movements, etc.
     • Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Mass Media: Organization and communication of citizens interests and concerns, elections, PACs, etc.
     • Institutions of National Government: Organization and powers of major political institutions, ties between branches of government, etc.
     • Public Policy: Formation, enactment, implementation, and interpretation of policy; impact of federalism, interest groups, parties, elections, etc.
     • Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: U.S. Supreme Court decisions, judicial interpretations, impact of the Fourteenth Amendment, etc.
4. Read and Complete the Self-Evaluation
   As discussed in the Guide section above, will provide information on how the test is structured and scored. It will also explain the areas of content that are tested.
   As you read , you will revisit and refine the questions you answer above. You will then be able to make a study plan, based on your needs and time available, that will allow you to use this book most effectively.
5. Engage with as Needed
   Notice the word engage. Youll get more out of this book if you use it intentionally than if you read it passively, hoping for an improved score through osmosis.