Government, Civic Participation & Economics — Final exam

Parent / teacher answer key

A course-authored government and economics assessment. Use two 60-minute blocks for the midterm, three for the final, and one for the optional sample. Marking and revision have a separate parent-plan session.

40 questions · 120 points · suggested 180 minutes

Student instructions

Use the supplied evidence; notes, a glossary, and a calculator are permitted. Show units, steps, and assumptions for numerical answers.
Give short reasoned answers; distinguish observations from interpretations.
Keep worked keys closed until after attempting the paper.
Equivalent supported explanations and accessible response formats are accepted.

Civic and economic inquiry methods

Task	Method
Context	Identify the institution, decision, period, and relevant conditions.
Source	Identify maker, date, purpose, form, and limits.
Causation	Explain a mechanism; chronology alone is not causation.
Comparison	Use stated criteria, comparable units, and explicit assumptions.

Coverage and marks

Chapter	Questions	Points
Foundations of Government & Public Reasoning	1, 2, 3, 4, 5	15
Constitution, Branches & Federalism	6, 7, 8, 9, 10	15
Rights, Justice & Public Institutions	11, 12, 13, 14, 15	15
Civic Participation & Public Policy	16, 17, 18, 19, 20	15
Economic Foundations & Market Decisions	21, 22, 23, 24, 25	15
Measuring the Economy & Public Policy	26, 27, 28, 29, 30	15
Household Finance & Major Decisions	31, 32, 33, 34, 35	15
Global Connections, Risk & Economic Inquiry	36, 37, 38, 39, 40	15

Name: ____________________ Date: ____________________

Question 1 · 3 points

Invented case: a mayor announces a bridge fee; the town charter requires council approval; the council has not voted; drivers have begun paying after an enforcement notice. Explain what the packet establishes about power, authority, and legitimacy.

Question 2 · 3 points

Invented assembly: 60 eligible landowners support a speech restriction and 40 oppose it; residents without property cannot vote; a proposed charter protects expression. Explain what the vote proves and what questions remain.

Question 3 · 3 points

Invented election: Candidate A receives 45 votes, B 35, and C 20; all 100 votes are valid; the stated rule is plurality. A commentary calls A’s result a majority endorsement of every campaign proposal. Correct the commentary and qualify what can be inferred.

Question 4 · 3 points

System A separately elects a president and assembly; System B selects an executive who must retain assembly confidence. Both have local councils and written rights provisions. No enforcement records are supplied. Identify what can and cannot be concluded.

Question 5 · 3 points

Invented packet: reported crashes fell from 20 to 12 after new signs; the road was also rebuilt; vehicle trips fell; one publicity post calls the signs the sole cause. Evaluate the claim using the supplied evidence.

Question 6 · 3 points

Invented legislative case: a bill passes Congress, the president vetoes it, and both chambers later reach the constitutional two-thirds override threshold. Explain which branch decisions interact and why this is not unilateral executive lawmaking.

Question 7 · 3 points

Invented record: a House committee approves Bill A; the full House has not voted; the Senate considers Bill B with a different funding amount; a headline says Congress has enacted the program. Correct the headline and identify the next evidence needed.

Question 8 · 3 points

Invented program: a statute authorizes grants for qualifying rural towns; an executive speech promises every town a grant; funding covers 30 awards; 50 towns meet the criteria. Explain the differences among the promise, authority, and practical coverage.

Question 9 · 3 points

Invented case: a reviewing court finds an applicant received no required notice and orders a new hearing; it expressly leaves eligibility undecided. A headline says the applicant has won the requested grant. Correct the headline using the disposition.

Question 10 · 3 points

Invented historical packet: a constitutional protection exists at Date A; a state practice conflicts with it; a later court decision supplies a remedy at Date B. No actual lawsuit is represented. Explain why Date A and Date B answer different questions.

Question 11 · 3 points

Fictional public-course rules: Rule A requires an accurate explanation of a religious tradition; Rule B requires a signed personal affirmation of its truth. A commentary says both are the same assessment of knowledge. Explain the difference without judging the religion.

Question 12 · 3 points

Fictional packet: a criminal court acquits a defendant because the prosecution did not meet its proof standard; a separate civil damages claim has not been heard. A commentator announces that no civil claim can remain. Evaluate the inference.

Question 13 · 3 points

Teaching summaries: the Fifteenth Amendment prohibits racial denial of voting; local registration barriers persist; the Voting Rights Act of 1965 provides stronger enforcement tools. Explain why a later law was needed despite the amendment and identify records that could show changed access.

Question 14 · 3 points

Invented town budget: $100,000 available, of which $30,000 is restricted to road work; a library proposal costs $80,000 initially and requires later maintenance. No other funds are supplied. Explain whether the total establishes the proposal can be fully financed.

Question 15 · 3 points

Invented school program: participation rises from 100 of 500 eligible pupils to 240 of 600; average attendance among participants rises, but no comparable nonparticipant record is supplied. Calculate coverage and explain why the attendance claim needs additional evidence.

Question 16 · 3 points

Invented election: 1,000 eligible people, 800 registered people, and 600 valid voters. A report calls turnout 75 percent without identifying the base. Calculate both relevant rates and explain the ambiguity.

Question 17 · 3 points

Invented federal-category teaching packet: Candidate A’s campaign reports $10,000 in receipts; Organization B reports $5,000 in separate advertising; coordination has not been investigated. A headline says A received $15,000. Evaluate the headline and its limits.

Question 18 · 3 points

Invented poll: 100 invited people; 20 responses; 15 support and five oppose; no information about nonrespondents or representativeness. Calculate support and response rates, then qualify the population claim.

Question 19 · 3 points

Supplied chronology: Judiciary Committee articles in July 1974; Supreme Court evidence decision that month; resignation effective August 9. A draft says the Senate convicted Nixon and removed him. Correct the draft using the sequence and distinguish the relevant processes.

Question 20 · 3 points

Invented annual packet: A $60,000/300 residents; B $40,000/160; existing service $20,000/80; budget $60,000. B includes 60 people without other transport; comparable figures are missing for the other options. Draft a qualified recommendation using ratios and an explicit criterion.

Question 21 · 3 points

Invented model: eight hours; two booklets or four posters per hour; constant productivity. A plan promises 12 booklets and 16 posters in those eight hours. Test feasibility and calculate the booklet opportunity cost.

Question 22 · 3 points

Invented weekly schedule: prices $1–$5; original demand 80,60,40,20,0; supply 0,20,40,60,80. Demand then rises by 40 at every price. Identify both equilibria and a shortage at the original $3 after the shift.

Question 23 · 3 points

Invented period: 100 units sold at $5; accounting costs $420; owner’s forgone alternative income $60 is not included in those costs. Calculate revenue, accounting profit, and economic profit.

Question 24 · 3 points

Invented bakery: 80 loaves in 20 hours before a change; 100 in 20 hours afterward; wage records and other causal evidence are absent. Calculate productivity growth and qualify a wage claim.

Question 25 · 3 points

Invented model: private cost $10 per unit and separately measured external harm $4 per unit; proposed charge $4. No demand curve or enforcement data are supplied. Calculate modeled social cost and explain the proposal’s limits.

Question 26 · 3 points

Invented period: C=100, I=40, G=30, exports=20, imports=10, population=90; all components use one consistent monetary unit. Calculate GDP and per-person GDP, then explain a limitation.

Question 27 · 3 points

Invented starting entry: a bank issues a $1,000 loan and credits a matching deposit; fees and later transactions are excluded. Identify assets and liabilities for bank and borrower.

Question 28 · 3 points

Invented simplified public budget: initial debt 100 units; first-year deficit 20; second-year deficit 10; no other stock adjustments or repayments. Calculate ending debt and evaluate “debt fell because the deficit halved.”

Question 29 · 3 points

Invented population: 90 employed, ten unemployed under the stated classification, 40 outside the labor force. Price index moves from 120 to 126 over one year. Calculate unemployment and inflation, and state one limitation.

Question 30 · 3 points

Invented annual incomes in one unit: 10,10,10,10,60. No asset or debt records are supplied. Calculate mean and median and evaluate a claim that everyone is equally wealthy.

Question 31 · 3 points

Fictional month: take-home income $1,200; spending $900; saving $100. Separately, cash before an early bill is $50 and that bill is $80, before the next receipt. Calculate the unallocated margin and early cash gap.

Question 32 · 3 points

Both supply $1,000 with no extra fees: A is 12×$90; B is 24×$50. Rates and other schedules are not supplied. Calculate total repayments and charges; explain a limit.

Question 33 · 3 points

Invented model: $1,000 starting amount; five percent annual compounding for two years; no fees, tax, additions, withdrawals, or loss. Calculate the balance and distinguish it from a forecast.

Question 34 · 3 points

Teaching-only brackets: first $10,000 at ten percent; next $10,000 at twenty percent; taxable income $15,000. No other provisions apply. Calculate tax, average rate, and marginal rate.

Question 35 · 3 points

Invented annual education cost $6,000, grant $2,000, loan $3,000; no other resources or charges are supplied. Calculate net price, immediate uncovered amount, and loan obligation.

Question 36 · 3 points

Invented hours per unit: A cloth two, grain one; B cloth six, grain two. Divisible output, constant rates, no trade costs. Identify advantages and test one cloth for 2.5 grain.

Question 37 · 3 points

Invented rates change from $1.00 per euro to $1.20; item price stays €100; fees are excluded. Calculate dollar prices and identify the currencies’ changes.

Question 38 · 3 points

Invented periods: energy 1,000 then 1,080 units; real output 100 then 120 units. Calculate both changes and evaluate “efficiency improvement means total use fell.”

Question 39 · 3 points

Invented entity: assets $100, debt $80; assets then fall to $90; debt is unchanged; fees and further transactions excluded. Calculate equity before and after, and percentage changes.

Question 40 · 3 points

Invented packet: A cost $6,000/grant $3,000/monthly income $800/spending $650; B cost $3,500/grant $1,000/income $1,000/spending $850; twelve fixed months; zero starting savings. Calculate net prices, savings, and gaps, then state a timing limitation.

Revisit the covered chapters

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