To answer this question correctly, students must determine that Document A is from 1868 and that Document B is from 1898. Students must also contextualize the documents by drawing on relevant historical knowledge, such as:
- Lee’s surrender at Appomattox signaled the end of the Civil War. The Reconstruction era that followed saw the expansion of civil rights to African Americans, including the enfranchisement of African American men and election of Black lawmakers in the South.
- The Compromise of 1877 marked the end of Reconstruction and ushered in the so-called nadir of American race relations, a period of extreme white supremacist violence and the disenfranchisement of African Americans in the South.
Level: Proficient
In proficient responses, the student:
- Selects the correct year for each document.
- Explains that Document A is from 1868 because it afforded civil rights to African Americans, an indication that this document was produced during Reconstruction.
- And explains that Document B is from 1898 because the Louisiana state constitution disenfranchised African Americans; the state was able to ratify this constitution only after Reconstruction ended, meaning the federal government would not intervene at the state level to protect civil rights.
In proficient responses, students might incorporate other specific historical information, like that Black and white Republicans were violently attacked by the Louisiana White League; or that other Southern states also passed laws and ratified constitutions that instituted literacy tests, property requirements, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses that disenfranchised African Americans.
Level: Emergent
Student selects the correct year for each document but only provides a partially correct explanation. For example, the student may correctly contextualize one document but not both or may provide partially incorrect reasoning about both.
Level: Beginning
Student misidentifies the year for each document or correctly identifies the years but provides mostly or entirely incorrect explanations for both documents.
