Like Connections to the Philippine-American War, this assessment gauges students' knowledge of the past. Rather than measure whether students can simply recall decontextualized facts, this assessment requires students to make connections across time and construct an argument about how events are connected. Students with a strong sense of the past will be able to explain that James Madison's proclamation of war on Britain was in part due to trade restrictions enforced by the British during the Napoleonic Wars between France and Britain. Strong students will also explain that Britain's support for Native American tribes resisting US expansion into the Northwest Territory contributed to the declaration of war on Britain.
