AP US History Reading and Writing Workshop
This workshop completes the scaffold writing process by providing 6 documents for the DBQ along with an SAQ Stimulus. Group work provides differentiation and peer support.
Unit 9 — Globalization and Redefining U.S. Politics (1980–Present)
Structure
Session 1 – SAQ Practice
SAQ 1 (No Document)
Answer all parts using your knowledge of U.S. history from 1980–Present.
a) Identify and explain ONE conservative political or economic policy from the Reagan administration.
b) Identify and explain ONE way globalization has shaped the U.S. economy since 1980.
c) Identify and explain ONE political or social movement that reshaped American society after 1980.
SAQ 2 (Stimulus-Based)
Stimulus:
George W. Bush, Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People (September 20, 2001)
“On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of war against our country. Americans have known wars—but for the past 136 years, they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one Sunday in 1941. America has no truer friends than Great Britain. Once again, we are joined together in a great cause—so honored the British Prime Minister has crossed an ocean to show his unity of purpose with America.”
🔗 https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html
Prompt:
a) Identify and explain ONE way this speech reflects U.S. foreign policy goals in the post-9/11 era.
b) Identify and explain ONE domestic consequence of the events described in this speech.
c) Identify and explain ONE criticism of U.S. actions during the War on Terror.
Session 2 – LEQ Practice
Prompt:
Evaluate the extent to which globalization and political realignments transformed the United States from 1980 to the present.
Rubric Alignment (6 pts):
Session 3 – DBQ Practice
Prompt:
Evaluate the extent to which the United States addressed domestic and international challenges from 1980 to the present.
Documents Provided (6)
Document 1 — Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address (January 20, 1981)
“Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. From time to time we’ve been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule… The crisis we are facing requires our best effort, and our faith. We are a nation that has a government—not the other way around.”
🔗 https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/reagan1.asp
Document 2 — North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Preamble (1994)
“Resolve to: eliminate barriers to trade and facilitate the cross-border movement of goods and services; promote conditions of fair competition in the free trade area; increase substantially investment opportunities in their territories.”
🔗 https://www.naftanow.org/agreement/default_en.asp
Document 3 — Chart: U.S. Federal Debt as a Percentage of GDP, 1980–2015
🔗 https://www.cbo.gov/publication/50250
Document 4 — George W. Bush, Address to the Nation on 9/11 (September 11, 2001)
“Today, our fellow citizens, our way of life, our very freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts… Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America.”
🔗 https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010911-16.html
Document 5 — Barack Obama, Remarks on the Affordable Care Act (March 23, 2010)
“We are not a nation that accepts nearly 50 million uninsured men, women and children. We are not a nation that lets hardworking families go bankrupt because they get sick… Today we are affirming that essential truth—that we are all in this together.”
🔗 https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-signing-affordable-care-act
Document 6 — Photograph: Women’s March on Washington (January 21, 2017)
🔗 https://www.loc.gov/item/2017651777/
DBQ Rubric Alignment (7 pts)
Group Roles
Structure
- Session 1: SAQ Practice (two prompts; one with stimulus)
- Session 2: LEQ Practice (rubric aligned)
- Session 3: DBQ Practice (rubric aligned, six documents provided)
- Group Roles: Content Expert, Connector, Writer, Reviewer
Session 1 – SAQ Practice
SAQ 1 (No Document)
Answer all parts using your knowledge of U.S. history from 1980–Present.
a) Identify and explain ONE conservative political or economic policy from the Reagan administration.
b) Identify and explain ONE way globalization has shaped the U.S. economy since 1980.
c) Identify and explain ONE political or social movement that reshaped American society after 1980.
SAQ 2 (Stimulus-Based)
Stimulus:
George W. Bush, Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People (September 20, 2001)
“On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of war against our country. Americans have known wars—but for the past 136 years, they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one Sunday in 1941. America has no truer friends than Great Britain. Once again, we are joined together in a great cause—so honored the British Prime Minister has crossed an ocean to show his unity of purpose with America.”
🔗 https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html
Prompt:
a) Identify and explain ONE way this speech reflects U.S. foreign policy goals in the post-9/11 era.
b) Identify and explain ONE domestic consequence of the events described in this speech.
c) Identify and explain ONE criticism of U.S. actions during the War on Terror.
Session 2 – LEQ Practice
Prompt:
Evaluate the extent to which globalization and political realignments transformed the United States from 1980 to the present.
Rubric Alignment (6 pts):
- Thesis/Claim (1)
- Contextualization (1)
- Evidence (2)
- Analysis & Reasoning (2)
- Contextualization: Place the 1980s–Present within context of Cold War’s end, rise of conservatism, economic globalization, and new social movements.
- Thesis: Defensible claim with “extent” phrasing (e.g., “To a great extent, globalization and political realignments reshaped the U.S. economy, politics, and society, though persistent divisions limited consensus.”).
- Evidence: Reaganomics, NAFTA, 9/11 and War on Terror, Affordable Care Act, technology revolution, social justice movements.
- Analysis: Balance innovation and integration (economic growth, new tech, expanded rights) with limitations (income inequality, partisanship, cultural conflict).
Session 3 – DBQ Practice
Prompt:
Evaluate the extent to which the United States addressed domestic and international challenges from 1980 to the present.
Documents Provided (6)
Document 1 — Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address (January 20, 1981)
“Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. From time to time we’ve been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule… The crisis we are facing requires our best effort, and our faith. We are a nation that has a government—not the other way around.”
🔗 https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/reagan1.asp
Document 2 — North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Preamble (1994)
“Resolve to: eliminate barriers to trade and facilitate the cross-border movement of goods and services; promote conditions of fair competition in the free trade area; increase substantially investment opportunities in their territories.”
🔗 https://www.naftanow.org/agreement/default_en.asp
Document 3 — Chart: U.S. Federal Debt as a Percentage of GDP, 1980–2015
🔗 https://www.cbo.gov/publication/50250
Document 4 — George W. Bush, Address to the Nation on 9/11 (September 11, 2001)
“Today, our fellow citizens, our way of life, our very freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts… Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America.”
🔗 https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010911-16.html
Document 5 — Barack Obama, Remarks on the Affordable Care Act (March 23, 2010)
“We are not a nation that accepts nearly 50 million uninsured men, women and children. We are not a nation that lets hardworking families go bankrupt because they get sick… Today we are affirming that essential truth—that we are all in this together.”
🔗 https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-signing-affordable-care-act
Document 6 — Photograph: Women’s March on Washington (January 21, 2017)
🔗 https://www.loc.gov/item/2017651777/
DBQ Rubric Alignment (7 pts)
- Thesis/Claim (1): Defensible argument on U.S. responses to domestic/international challenges since 1980.
- Contextualization (1): Situate in post-Cold War globalization, conservatism, tech revolution, social movements.
- Evidence from Documents (2): Use all 6 docs.
- Evidence beyond Documents (1): Add outside evidence (War on Terror, Great Recession, climate change politics, Black Lives Matter, digital revolution).
- Sourcing (1): Analyze POV, purpose, audience, or context for at least 2 docs (Reagan’s anti-big-government stance, Bush’s wartime reassurance, Obama’s health care framing).
- Complexity (1): Consider contradictions—global leadership vs. domestic inequality, innovation vs. polarization.
- Assign each student one document for sourcing and analysis.
- Group documents thematically: Conservatism (Reagan), Globalization (NAFTA, debt chart), War on Terror (Bush), Social Policy (Obama, Women’s March).
- Write thesis and outline incorporating outside evidence.
- Show complexity: economic growth + tech vs. inequality, expanded rights vs. deepened polarization.
Group Roles
- Content Expert: Provides historical facts (Reaganomics, Iraq War, Great Recession, social movements).
- Connector: Links evidence to APUSH themes (WOR, POL, WXT, CUL).
- Writer: Drafts thesis and outline.
- Reviewer: Ensures rubric alignment and historical reasoning.