HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES II: 1865 to the PRESENT
SELF-PACED COURSE
1. ABOUT THIS COURSE
It reviews all of the substantive material that is usually taught in the second semester of the two-semester course in the United States history. It covers the period of United States history from the end of the Civil War to the present, with the majority of the questions being
"We will study Reconstruction, the West, Industrialism, Urbanization, The Gilded Age, Progressivism, Imperialism, WWI, the 1920's, the Depression, the New Deal, World War II, the Cold War, the 1960's, the Triumph of Conservatism, and the Challenges of our New Century," explains Dr. Stephen Sullivan, professor at Columbia University.
The CLEP exam contains approximately 120 questions to be answered in 90 minutes.
Our “History of the United States II: 1865 to the Present” course is completely self-paced. There are no prerequisites to take this course, and it is entirely free. Any student who wants to save time and money while completing freshman year in college can take it.
2. ABOUT DR. STEPHEN SULLIVAN
Dr. Stephen Sullivan is a historian of the United States. A protege of noted Columbia historians Eric Foner and Kenneth Jackson, Sullivan's research interests include women's history, labor
Current projects include revising his dissertation into a book manuscript for Catholic University of America Press (Social & Spatial History of Irish-Americans in The City of Homes from the Great Hunger through the Great War), a journal article examining the development of nineteenth century labor cooperatives in New York City; and a coauthored children's book (Table Talk: How Family Dinners Can Help Stop Unhealthy Eating Patterns) for the APA's Magination Press about the positive impact of tweens sharing family meals. Dr. Sullivan has taught at several universities, most notably his alma mater, Columbia University (The History of the City of New York).
He has also taught at Barnard College (Immigrant Women in the Empire City), Adelphi University (The History of the City of New York; American Civilization to 1877; Civil War & Reconstruction), CUNY-Hunter College (United States History I & II) and Nassau Community College (Introduction to American Government). The veteran educator has taught Advanced Placement American History and Behavioral Science Research at Lawrence High School in Cedarhurst, NY for three decades.
A long list of organizations have honored Dr. Sullivan for instructional or mentoring excellence - the Organization of American Historians, the American Historical Society, the Association for Psychological Science, the American Association of Geographers, the American Psychological Association, the Walt Disney American Teachers Awards Committee, the National Teachers Hall of Fame, the New York State Union of Teachers, the Long Island Council of Social Studies and the U.S. Department of Education. "A social history of the
However, Dr. Sullivan is most proud of his work mentoring over one hundred award-winning and/or published undergraduate and precollegiate research projects in history, psychology, economics,
3. REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
The CLEP exam requires you to demonstrate one or more of the following abilities:
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Identify and describe historical phenomena.
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Analyze and interpret historical phenomena.
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Compare and contrast historical phenomena.
These are the topics and their percentage
Topical Specifications
35% Political institutions and public policy
25% Social developments
10% Economic developments
15% Cultural and intellectual developments
15% Diplomacy and international relations
Chronological Specifications
30% 1865–1914
70% 1915–present
These specific topics, among others, will be tested:
• The impact of the Civil War and Reconstruction upon the South
• The motivations and character of American expansionism
• The content of constitutional amendments and their interpretations by the Supreme Court
• The changing nature of agricultural life
• The development of American political parties
• The emergence of regulatory and welfare-state legislation
• The intellectual and political expressions of liberalism, conservatism, and other such movements
• Long-term demographic trends
• The process of economic growth and development
• The changing occupational structure, nature of work, and labor organization Immigration and the history of racial and ethnic minorities
• Urbanization and industrialization
• The causes and impacts of major wars in American history
• Major movements and individual figures in the history of American arts and letters
• Trends in the history of women and the family
4. COURSE MODULES
Following are the main topics and percentages of the exam’s questions, mostly based on the College Board's description of the course:
Module 1: Reconstruction and the West
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 1865-1877
1.1.1 Wartime Reconstruction
1.1.2 Presidential Reconstruction
1.1.3 Radical Reconstruction
1.1.4 The Grant Administration
1.1.5 Black Lives in the Postbellum South
1.1.6 Retreat from Reconstruction
1.2 “Go West, Young Man!”: 1865-1900
1.2.1 Native American Cultures and Policies
1.2.2 The “Wild West”?
1.2.3 How the West Was
1.2.4 The Legend(s) of the West
Module 2: Industrialization and Urbanization
2.0 Introduction
2.1 The Industrial Age, 1877-1920
2.1.1 Dreamers
2.1.2 Workers
2.1.3 Corporations
2.1.4 Government
2.1.5 Emergence of Labor Unions
2.2 Immigration and Urban Life, 1880-1920
2.2.1 The Modern City
2.2.2 Urban Sprawl
2.2.3 From New Immigration to Immigration Restriction
2.2.4 Housing and Housing Reform
2.2.5 Quality of Life
2.2.6 “Bosses of Courses”
2.2.7 Newspapers and Other Media
Module 3: The Gilded Age and the Progressive Movement
3.0 Introduction
3.1 The Gilded Age
3.1.1 Who’s Who in the Cast?
3.1.2 Civil Service Reform
3.1.3 Railroad Regulation
3.1.4 Tariff Policy
3.1.5 Monetary Policy
3.1.6 Forgettable Presidents
3.1.7 “Black Lives (Don’t) Matter…”
3.1.8 The Farmers Crusade: Radical or Reactionary?
3.2 The Progressive Movement
3.2.1 Upper-Class Reformers
3.2.2 Working Class Reform
3.2.3 Government Reform
3.2.4 Theodore Roosevelt’s Bully Pulpit
3.2.5 High Point for Conservation
3.2.6 Was Taft a True Progressive?
3.2.7 Wilson’s New Freedom
Module 4: American Imperialism and World War I
4.0 Introduction
4.1 The Age of Empire
4.1.1 The New Imperialism
4.1.2 The Lure of Empire
4.1.3 "A Splendid Little War"
4.1.4 U.S. Imperial Expansion, 1857-1917
4.1.5 The Philippines
4.1.6 Imperialists vs. Anti-Imperialists
4.1.7 Open Door and Big Stick
4.2 Americans in the Great War
4.2.1 "Over There"
4.2.2 "The Yanks Are Coming”
4.2.3 Winning the War at Home
4.2.4 Winning at What Cost?
4.2.5 Blacks in the Military
4.2.6 Women & the War
4.2.7 Winning the Great War
4.2.8 Losing the Peace
Module 5: From "Jazz Age" to Depression: The Tragedy of the 1920's
5.0 Introduction
5.1 "The Age of Wonderful Nonsense"
5.1.1 "The Business of America Is Business"
5.1.2 A Return to Normalcy
5.1.3 Silent Cal
5.1.4 Consumer Age
5.1.5 Demographic Trends
5.1.6 Age of Wonderful Nonsense
5.1.7 America in Transition
5.1.8 Age of Intolerance
5.1.9 From Lost Generation to Harlem Renaissance
5.2 "Brother Can You Spare a Dime?"
5.2.1 The Election of 1928
5.2.2 The Great Crash
5.2.3 From Hero to Goat
5.2.4 The Depression in a Nutshell
Module 6: "Happy Days Are Here Again": FDR and the New Deal
6.0 Introduction
6.1 FDR and the New Deal
6.2 A New Deal
6.3 The First New Deal
6.4 The Second New Deal
6.5 Controversies and Critics
6.6 The New Deal's Legacy
Module 7: Winning the War & Fighting the Peace: WWII and the Cold War
7.0 Introduction
7.1 Mobilizing for War
7.1.1 The Road to War
7.1.2 Overall Strategy
7.1.3 The Home Front
7.1.4 Women and the War
7.1.5 Everyday Life at Home
7.1.6 The Constitution and the War
7.1.7 Life (and Death) in the Military
7.1.8 The European Theater
7.1.9 The Pacific Theater
7.2 "A Troubled Feast”
7.2.1 Justice and Peace for All
7.2.2 Two Superpowers
7.2.3 Containment and Conflict
7.2.4 Germany: The New Powderkeg?
7.2.5 Cold War in Asia
7.2.6 The Korean War
7.2.7 The General Is Now President
7.2.8 Covert Operations
7.2.9 The Space Race
7.2.10 The "Friendship Race": A Struggle for Third World Allies
7.3 America at Midcentury, 1945-1960
7.3.1 From Wartime to Peacetime Economy
7.3.2 Social Change in Postwar America
7.3.3 Domestic Anticommunism: From Concern to Hysteria
7.3.4 "We Like Ike"
7.3.5 Civil Rights Movement
7.3.6 "Roll over, Beethoven": Music & Literature
7.3.7 "Gimme Shelter"
Module 8: From Camelot to Obama
8.0 Introduction
8.1 The Triumphs and Turmoil of the 1960’s
8.1.1 JFK and Civil Rights
8.1.2 Nonviolent Radicals and Violent Conservatives
8.1.3 New Frontiers & Old Rivals
8.1.4 Reaching for the Stars
8.1.5 "President Kennedy Has Been Shot”
8.1.6 The Great Society
8.1.7 The Longest War
8.1.8 The Culture of Protest
8.2
8.2.1 The Fight for Justice Expands
8.2.2 Farewell, Vietnam
8.2.3 Richard Nixon and the World
8.2.4 Nixon & the Nation
8.2.5 Watergate
8.2.6 An Unelected President
8.2.7 "Call Me Jimmy"
8.3 Conservatism Revived, 1980-1992
8.3.1 Ronald Reagan's America
8.3.2 "The Reagan Doctrine”
8.3.3 Bush's "New World Order"
8.4 New Millennium, 1992-Present
8.4.1 A New Democrat
8.4.2 The Election of 2000
8.4.3 September 11 and the War on Terror
8.4.4 The Winds of Change
5. HOW THE CLEP WORKS
Developed by the College Board, CLEP (College-Level Examination Program®) is the most widely accepted credit-by-examination program.
CLEP’s credits are accepted by 2,900 colleges and universities, according to the College Board. These tests assess college-level knowledge in 33 subject areas.
Modern States Education Alliance is the non-profit organization behind these edX-style courses. Its project is called “Freshman Year for Free” and its mission is to make college more accessible and affordable through free, high-quality online education.
• CLEP® History of the United States II: 1865 to the Present: at a Glance
• 'Passing the CLEP and Learning with Modern States' orientation course