The following are some key areas to focus on for each chapter. I hope this helps in your overall review of material reviewed this summer session.
(Painting from Norman Rockwells "Four Freedoms" series: Freedom from Fear)
1 Citizenship
- What are examples of your civic life vs. your private life?
- Can you name some newer opportunities for citizen participation that states have provided?
- Have Americans become one class, or do major divides still exist between us? What are some of these differences?
- What's the most common reason given by 18-25 year olds for not voting?
- What is meant by the principle of "consent of the governed", and what is a good example of how we regularly demonstrate our consent or dissent?
- What were the basic elements of the "Great Compromise" in 1787?
- What are the 3 basic principles embodied in the Constitution that control how each branch relates to each other, and how the national government relates to the states?
- Why didn't the framers select a unitary model for how the government would function?
- What effect did the 1857 Dred Scott decision (before the Civil War) by the Supreme Court have on federal and state relations?
- Did states or the national government gain power during the bulk of Franklin D. Roosevelt's Administration?
- Do most of the Bill of Rights apply to actions by the states as well as the national government?
- What are the two (2) basic clauses of the First Amendment pertaining to religion?
- What are the three (3) basic elements of the Miller Test, and what happens when an activity or object does not meet all the criteria in the test?
- The North won the Civil War. But, why did Jim Crow laws take hold in the South, and what form did they take?
- Chief Justice Earl Warren and the unanimous court spoke clearly through their words and vote re: the need to eliminate the post Civil War approach of "separate but equal" in the Brown v Board of Education decision (s). What was the essence of these decisions?
- What were the main implications of the Bakke v Regents of California Supreme Court case?
6 Public Opinion
- What are the "agents of political socialization"?
- What are some differences between men and women in political opinions?
- The word "salience" in political opinion refers to what personal aspect of various issues and topics?
7 Political Participation
- "What's the "rational actor" theory?
- To participate in the political process, what three (3) conditions must be met for you to do so?
- What are some of the factors affecting voter "turnout"?
- The practice of influencing public decisions for largely private purposes is referred to as _______?
- People often do not make a "rational" choice re: being involved with an interest group vs. being "free rider". What is meant by this?
- Does the White house lobby Congress, or vice versa, or do both lobby each other?
9 Parties and Political Campaigns
- What is the process of identifying potential political supporters and designing a customized messages and mobilizing them to come out for an election is called:
- Why do we only have two main parties in the United States?
- Splinter, single issue and ideological parties: examples of each
10 Media
- Characteristic of young persons and the "news"
- Limits placed on television and radio is managed by what agency?
- Two (2) lessons learned by the first presidential debate in 1960 that are still significant today
11 Congress
- Inherent advantages incumbents in Congress have in getting reelected
- How often does reapportionment occur? Why?
- What's the difference between the "delegate", "trustee" and "politico" role of a Congressperson? Can they be performing with all 3 pf these hats?
12 The Presidency
- When do parties select their candidates for the Presidential election?
- What is the significance of the "unit"rule in the Electoral College?
- When can the President exercise the "line item veto" in signing legislation presented to him/her for signing?
13 Bureaucracy
- Key differences between public and private bureaucracies
- What's the main role bureaucrats play in the policy making process?
- What's a "proxy administration?
14 The Courts
- Do judges in our system have some discretion in following precedents in the law?
- What is the principle of "standing" in being heard by a court?
- Basic principles for nominating a Supreme Court justice
15 Public Policy
- Basic stages in policy making and different parties involved
- Characteristics of the uninsured
- National debt vs. the federal deficit: which is greater? How much greater?
16 Foreign and Defense Policy
- Realism, liberalism, idealism and neo-conservatism: how do these apply to foreign policy?
- Key "producers" of foreign policy?
- Why have we maintained cordial relations with China recently, even though we have major issues with this country?
- If you were goig to take a "premptive" action agaist someone, what type of initiative would you take in relation to the other person?
