Struggling US History I Clep...Help

[kprior303]

KayV

My DD has read a complete History book covering the time frame of 1708 to 1991. She just can't seem to get a passing grade on the REA tests even tho she is scoring well on the IC flash cards. We want to know if the Clep is passable with the IC scores alone, or if the REA exams are a better score indicator.TIA

I am also a homeschooled high school student. I passed both US History exams in the last month. Very little of what I learned from Mystery of History 4 helped on the exam. I worked on the IC flashcards until I got 95% 3-days in a row on the entire set. Each day, I did the entire set and then went back through and did a second pass on the ones I missed. I read the REA books and took the online REA tests. I never scored higher than 65% on the REA tests. I don't recall any questions on the tests that the REA books helped me with but they did give me a good refresher on the timeline of events. I also read the entire Barron's AP US History book and took the chapter quizzes. It was more helpful than REA.

The two most helpful study tools were a set of flashcards on Cram.com and watching the History Channel President's DVD series. At least 10 questions were in the Presidents series that I did not come across anywhere else.

Best advice I can give you is to have the Constitutional amendments and presidents memorized in order. Knowing the key election dates and how many terms each president served helped me place the events in order on the test.

I'm sad to report that my vast knowledge of the Hamilton lyrics only helped me on one question on the entire US History 1 exam.

[boalex207]

As a supplement, spend some time with the CrashCourse U.S. History videos on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...3eG7ObzO7s

[Ars457123]

I'm a 15 year old Sophomore. I'm studying US History right now and want to take the US History I Clep. I have been using Instant Cert flashcards and have been getting an average 80-90% on them, yet when I take full-length practice tests (On Rea website, and clep book) I score around 30-40%. Does anyone have any idea what I'm doing wrong?? All advice appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Hi! If you're having trouble, post #192 in the Specific Exam Feedback Thread for US History has a study guide.

[lilclark0707]

Ok, thanks for your answers. Let me help you (and your mom if possible) break this down the way I would do it if I were in your shoes.

I pulled up the outline for your textbook http://www.themysteryofhistory.com/wp-co...er_TOC.pdf and the thing I noticed immediately is that it is a full year of American History across 28 weeks. That's too light in my opinion. The exam you're prepping for only goes through the Civil War/Reconstruction, so in your text, that is weeks 1-12. To compare, a 16 week college class will cover a lot more than a 12 week high school class. You can, of course, review those first 12 weeks again- but I don't think that will help. You're likely missing large chunks of content, which is the issue. When your foundation is a little stronger, you can memorize facts and then intuit how they are part of the big picture. In my opinion, that is the missing link. You have facts that aren't connected floating around in your brain. You need that connection between them to help you.

REA and InstantCert are excellent, but if I were guessing, I'd say it probably feels like you're studying for a game of Trivial Pursuit instead of revisiting things you already learned in class. That's an indication that your class didn't fit the bill perfectly...but no worries, you can absolutely fill in those gaps.

My suggestion is to spend the next 2-3 weeks adding to your foundation. I don't know what your school schedule looks like right now, but if you have the time, you might want to watch this free video series that is VERY GOOD by Annenberg Media. I use this in my home as well as the study groups I've done in the past.
You may even want to take notes: Resource: A Biography of America

Second, you may benefit from reading a little longer content than what is in the REA guide. The REA is the absolute minimum/concise summary- but as you go through, it doesn't give enough back story, it's more targeted at helping you learn key points. My suggestion is to do a bit more reading from a free source I like called Sparks Notes. They have amazing US History summaries and quizzes to help you fact check as you go. Remember, don't go newer than the Civil War/Reconstruction for this exam! This link opens to a LOT of text. You don't need to read it all- but make sure you really pay attention to things that relate to the economic and political developments. Also, pay attention to BOOKS written in each time period- when a name like Harriet Beecher Stowe comes up, ask yourself why that book/author is significant? Remember, there was no such thing as the internet, so for something to "go viral" it must have really REALLY been a big deal. *this is where your gaps are in the social developments.

Finally, I have a site bookmarked that is so good. It's full of US History quizzes written by an Advanced Placement history teacher. Again, it's a full year of content, so don't go newer than Civil War/Reconstruction. USQuizMainPAge

If you spend more time going deeper (not wider) in the material, I think you'll see your scores improve. Don't do any more REA tests (save them for later!) until you've studied more. When the time comes, take your last REA and see how you do. If you're still struggling, there are other brands of practice tests you can try, but I really do believe you need more time in the subject before you do any more CLEP prep.

Keep me posted! I'm rooting for you.

EDIT to add: layers are really the key. Layering curriculum with videos and helper books, and then topping off with test prep and practice exams. This video I did a long time ago explains what I mean- it's for your mom- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijP7dm5fXeQ&t=9s

Thank You so much! We really appreciate the advice you gave and it really has been helpful! :-) I've been watching the Annenberg videos and they have been really helpful with connecting the dots for me. Thank you!

[lilclark0707]

Kayprior303

Thank you for the helpful insight!! I think you and Jennifer are right, Mystery of History is just to light for this test, and we need to go deeper into the subject elsewhere. Can I ask how long it took you to do all you did for reading and studying in preperation for both of the tests?

Kuddos to you on passing both of these btw, we are hoping to do the same soon. Will look into that book you mentioned as well.

All the best,
Mom of original poster

[kprior303]

Kayprior303

Thank you for the helpful insight!! I think you and Jennifer are right, Mystery of History is just to light for this test, and we need to go deeper into the subject elsewhere. Can I ask how long it took you to do all you did for reading and studying in preperation for both of the tests?

Kuddos to you on passing both of these btw, we are hoping to do the same soon. Will look into that book you mentioned as well.

All the best,
Mom of original poster

The reading did not take me very long, maybe a three weeks. What took a long time was watching 3 entire series of History Channel videos. I watched Freedom: A History of US, Presidents, and America. A More Perfect Union was helpful. As I was watching all of these episodes I was working on the IC flashcards.

[lilclark0707]

Well...she took the Clep on Monday and got a 47. She was sooooo dissapointed!

I asked her to write down what she could remember of questions she didn't know the answer to, here is the list (in case anybody else finds this helpful): Quotes, slavery, treaties, authors, immigration, germans and trading.

Any tips on re-testing strategies? We spent 4 months on this clep and now have to move on. My worry is that she will lose some of what she has learned waiting for the 3 months to pass.

[clep3705]

I thought U.S. History 2 was easier. I remembered some of the events. Other events I knew about from listening to older people recount the events.