OSAT History (OK117) case studies
OSAT History (OK117) · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The OSAT History (OK117) is a subject-area assessment used in Oklahoma's teacher certification process for candidates who want to teach history. It is aimed at people preparing to enter secondary social studies classrooms, and it is typically taken by undergraduates finishing a history or education program, career changers with a history background, and alternatively certified teachers adding an endorsement. The OSAT History (OK117) case studies are 5 cases and about 2,680 words.
1The Revolution Freed the North?
A district curriculum team is reviewing a draft lesson titled 'The Revolution Freed the North.' The draft cites three items: Pennsylvania's 1780 gradual emancipation act, which freed no one immediately and bound children born to enslaved mothers to service until age 28; a 1783 Massachusetts jury verdict in a freedom suit; and a 1790 census return showing 3,737 enslaved people still in Pennsylvania. The lesson's central claim is that 'by 1790 slavery was effectively gone in the North.' One committee member objects that the sources contradict the claim, while another argues the claim is acceptable because it captures the trend.
556 words, about 3 min2Did the New Deal End the Depression?
A student is scripting a podcast episode that claims 'the New Deal ended the Great Depression by 1937.' The script cites unemployment falling from 24.9 percent in 1933 to 14.3 percent in 1937, and real GNP recovering. The teacher points out that unemployment rose to 19.0 percent in 1938 after federal spending was cut, and that it did not fall below 10 percent until 1941, after defense spending began.
519 words, about 3 min3Which Crusade Account Is True?
A world history teacher is preparing a lesson on the First Crusade using two excerpts. The first is from the Gesta Francorum, a Latin account written by a participant's circle, describing the 1099 capture of Jerusalem and claiming that the crusaders rode through blood up to their knees.
554 words, about 3 min4Manchester Factories and the Limits of Two Sources
A student's essay argues that 'factory work in Manchester was worse than agricultural labor' and cites two sources: Edwin Chadwick's 1842 sanitary report describing overcrowding and disease, and a pamphlet by a mill owner praising high wages and moral improvement. The teacher notes that Manchester's population grew from about 142,000 in 1801 to over 400,000 in 1851, and that the census lists thousands of factory workers alongside agricultural laborers.
525 words, about 3 min5Documenting an Underground Railroad Site
A local historical society wants to install a marker calling a farm 'a documented Underground Railroad station.' The evidence consists of three items: an 1852 county map marking a 'colored school' near the farm; a family oral tradition, passed down since the 1850s, that the farm's owner hid freedom seekers; and a 1930s Works Progress Administration interview with a descendant repeating the story. No diary, letter, or court record has been found.
526 words, about 3 min