CLEP Social Sciences & History

What are the three statements of the scientific method according to political sciences? --1. Observational/evidential: describes the characteristics of what has been studied. 2. Observational Law: hypotheses based on what has been observed. 3. Theories: analyze data that has been collected to provide plausible generalizations according to the data observed. What are some of the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation? --1. Lack of chief executive 2. Inability to regulate domestic and foreign trade. 3. No rules for a national court system. 4. Amendments must pass by a unanimous decision. Shay's Rebellion --Rebellion led by Daniel Shay (war vet), uprising farmers and agrarians against the Articles of Confederation. Constitutional Convention --Meeting held in Philadelphia by the Founding Fathers in result of the instability of the Articles of Confederation. Founding Fathers --James Madison, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris. Declaration of Independence --Written in 1776, written by Thomas Jefferson. Incorporated the ideology of Hobbes and Locke. Specifically the concept of social contract. Name and describe 3 influential British documents in the shaping of the Constitution. --1. Magna Carta (1215) 2. Petition of Right (1628) 3. Bill of Rights (1689) All 3 promote the principle of limited government. Describe the Federalist Papers --A collection of essays written by James Madison and John Jay expressing the political philosophy of the Founding Fathers. Instrumental in the ratification of the Constitution. Federalism --A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments. Separation of Powers --Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive applying and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law. Tenth Amendment --The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people. Checks and Balances --A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power. Republic --A form of government in which power is in the hands of representatives and leaders are elected by citizens who have the right to vote. Describe the ways each governmental branch keeps the others in "check". --... Popular Sovereignty --The idea that government derives its power from the people. Preamble --A passage or speech which introduces another longer passage or speech: "We the People" Rule of Law --The enforcement of government within limits. Bicameral --Two-house. Virginia Plan --"Large state" proposal for the new constitution, calling for proportional representation in both houses of a bicameral Congress. The plan favored larger states and thus prompted smaller states to come back with their own plan for apportioning representation. New Jersey Plan --A framework for the Constitution proposed by a group of small states; its key points were a one-house legislature with one vote for each state, the establishment of the acts of Congress as the "supreme law" of the land, and a supreme judiciary with limited power. Great Compromise --At the Constitutional Convention, larger states wanted to follow the Virginia Plan, which based each state's representation in Congress on state population. Smaller states wanted to follow the New Jersey Plan, which gave every state the same number of representatives. The convention compromised by creating the House and the Senate, and using both of the two separate plans as the method for electing members of each. Senate --100 members, 2 members for each state. Members are elected every 6 years. The Vice President is the head of this body. House of Representatives --435 Members, based on population of the state Speaker of the House --An office mandated by the Constitution. The Speaker is chosen in practice by the majority party, has both formal and informal powers, and is second in line to succeed to the presidency should that office become vacant.