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Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the five fundamental geographic themes (i.e., location, place, human-environment interaction, movement, and region).
- Apply the six essential elements of geography (i.e., the world in spatial terms, places and regions, physical systems, human systems, environment and society, and the uses of geography).
- Apply basic geographic terms and concepts such as habitat, ecology, interdependence, assimilation, demographic cycle, and cultural diffusion.
- Recognize basic characteristics of maps and globes and the advantages and disadvantages of standard map projections.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the characteristics and uses of various geographic reference sources, tools, and technologies.
- Interpret geographic information presented in various visual formats.
- Apply skills and procedures used in geographic research, including formulating appropriate research questions, identifying main ideas, analyzing cause-and-effect relationships, and drawing conclusions.
Sample Item:
Which of the following statements best illustrates the geographic theme of movement?
- Mexico City lies in a basin, surrounded by mountains, at an altitude of over 7,000 feet.
- New York City is the financial center of the United States; Tokyo is the financial center of Japan.
- Turkey is an important source of labor for business and industry in Germany.
- Christianity is the dominant religion practiced in both Venezuela and the Republic of Ireland.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
C. This question requires the examinee to apply the five fundamental
geographic themes. The migration of Turkish workers to Germany is an illustration of
the geographic theme of movement.
Descriptive Statements:
- Recognize major landmasses, significant landforms, and important bodies of water in the United States and in other parts of the world.
- Recognize various types of physical features such as gulfs, deltas, capes, isthmuses, peninsulas, and archipelagoes.
- Recognize the principal elements of climate and major global and regional climatic patterns.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the ways physical processes shape the physical features of the earth.
- Recognize the location, distribution, and uses of natural resources in the United States and throughout the world, and the influence of natural resources on human populations.
- Analyze ways human societies modify the physical environment and adapt to environmental change, including the role of technological innovation and development in the creation and solution of environmental problems.
- Analyze the effects of physical factors such as climate and topography on the development and characteristics of human societies.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the causes and effects of current environmental problems such as global warming and tropical deforestation.
- Examine how geographic factors have influenced historical events and developments.
Sample Item:
Which of the following patterns of global resource distribution had the greatest
influence on international relations during the twentieth century?
- the distribution of forest resources in Asia and Latin America
- the distribution of petroleum resources in Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East
- the distribution of iron ore resources in North America and Central Europe
- the distribution of gold and diamond resources in Africa, Asia, Australia,
and North America
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
B. This question requires the examinee to recognize the location,
distribution, and uses of natural resources in the United States and the world and
the influence of natural resources on human populations. Establishing and maintaining
access to vital resources has long been a major goal of many nations' foreign policy.
During the twentieth century, widespread reliance on petroleum to meet energy needs
made it more important than any other resource to the operation of the global economy
and the stability of international relations.
Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the linguistic, social, religious, economic, and political features of contemporary cultural groups in major world regions.
- Analyze the diffusion of ideas, beliefs, and cultural traits from one culture to another.
- Examine historical and contemporary patterns of human settlement and how human settlements have changed over time.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the distribution of the world's human population, the reasons for population growth and decline, the causes and consequences of human migrations, and contemporary trends in world population.
- Demonstrate knowledge of how social institutions function within societies, including their roles in promoting socialization and maintaining social control.
- Analyze how cooperation and conflict shape cultural interactions, create political divisions, and influence control of the earth's resources.
Sample Item:
In 1800, most of the world's population lived in rural areas. By 2000, the overwhelming
majority of people in developed countries lived in towns and cities. This change was
primarily a consequence of the:
- consolidation of nation-states.
- modernization of transportation networks.
- industrialization of national economies.
- globalization of trade.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
C. This question requires the examinee to examine world population
patterns and trends. The vast majority of the people who moved from rural areas to
urban centers during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries did so to take advantage
of the employment and other economic opportunities created by industrialization.
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