Learning About US Foreign Policy

 Britt Ezra

Greg Altmeier

Josh Bevan

Carmen Pavone

Introduction:

Each generation has an event that is symbolic of time and memory.  The bombing of Pearl Harbor, The assassination of President John F. Kennedy, landing on the Moon, fall of the Berlin Wall, etc.  September 11, 2001 represents the most recent of these events. 

The Task:

Your goal as a group is to complete a WebQuest that will provide you with information regarding the changes to foreign policy/ relations between the United States and other countries after 9/11.  The WebQuest will introduce you to background information on foreign policy and it will also allow you to formulate your own ideas about how what Foreign Policy is and how it functions.

The Process:

Introduction to the lesson:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oyhoAM5snY

• This link shows a video about President Obama's foreign policy plans.

(Teachers: Show this to the students as an introduction to this lesson. This video should aid in the students understanding of foreign policy, why it is important,  and why it affects them.)

1. First you'll be assigned to a team of four students.
2. Students will be split into 5 groups: N.Korea, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, China. 
3. Once a country is selected, the students will then go online to research their topic using sites provided by the teacher.
4. Each individual student will start their own Google doc to put their research in.
5. In each Google doc you will make your own journals that you have placed essays you have written and pictures you have gathered about the topic.
6.After each individual journal is completed, you will get together with your group and talk about what you have discovered.
7. You will then make a collaborative journal in Google docs about what each student has found.
8. You will use this journal to make a presentation that each group will present in front of the entire class.

Questions To Answer:

1) North Korea
A) Who is the major leader of North Korea?
B) What is the U.S. foreign policy with North Korea?
C) How did U.S. foreign policy change since the attacks on 9/11?
D) What is Communism and how is it used in North Korea?


Quick Facts About N. Korea

1) They have been testing a missile called the Taepodong 2 which has the capability to carry nuclear weapons.
2) There were reports that North Korea was going to launch a missile at Hawaii on Independence Day 2009.
3) North Korean Government is called the Democratic People's Republic of Korea or the DPRK for short.
4) North Korea is a Communist country.
5)President Bush categorized N. Korea in a group known as "The Axis of Evil"

2) China
A) Who is the major leader of this country?
B) What is the U.S. foreign policy of this country?
C) How did the U.S. foreign policy change since the attacks on 9/11?

D) What has contributed to China's economic rise recently?

Quick Facts About China
1) China is located between Vietnam and North Korea.
2) There are 1,338,612,968 people living in China.
3) China is a communist country.

3) Iran
A) Who is this country's leader?

B) What type of Government exists?

C) Who has the right to vote?

D) How are leaders chosen?

Iran group: Watch this video for information. (If specific sections of the video relate it may be shown to the class as a whole to provide the students with more insight.)

Iran: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5314.htm
-BBC Timeline of US/Iran foreign relations http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3362443.stm
http://fora.tv/2008/01/07/U_S__-_Iran_Relations_Past_Present_and_Future

4)Iraq A) Who is this country's leader? B) What type of Government exists?

C) Who has the right to vote?

D) Discuss Hezbollah's ties with Iraq.

5) Afghanistan  A) Who is this country's leader? B) What type of Government exists?

C) What is Al-Qaeda?

D) Discuss Operation Enduring Freedom.

Students need to know:    CIA World Fact Book & U.S Dept. of State Websites
    -The location of their country in the Middle East as well as 3 neighboring countries.
    -Who is this country's leader? 
    -What type of Government exists?
    -How are leaders chosen? 
    -Who has the right to vote?
    -Describe the U.S.'s foreign policy with the country
    

Resources to help you find answers to your questions:

Middle East: Go to CNN.com and type the country you are assigned into the search bar at the top of the page.  If there are any stories that involve the United States and Your Country write down the headline and the date in your journal.  Title this section "Recent Headline News"

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html-  CIA World Factbook Website

http://www.state.gov/-  U.S. Dept. of State

http://www.usaid.gov/

http://foreignpolicyblogs.com/

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/educators/uspolicy/lesson1.html

Student's should use the U.S. Dept. of State website links to gather basic/background information on countries
Further research concerning specific examples of U.S. Foreign policy can be found through the the CIA World FactBook Website, and

Evaluation:

Conclusion:

Each individual student will have made a journal online using Google.docs that they will later share with their group.  Their group will then pick and choose the best of the best from each individual journal into one Journal, which will then be presented to the class.  This Journal will be a collaboration of essays and pictures that the students have written and gathered (in Google docs).

By the end of the task the students will have a significant understanding of how the U.S.'s foreign policy changed since the attacks on 9/11.

The students will have learned how foreign relationships used to be before 9/11. How countries were more willing to trade with other countries and share their resources. They will now be able to understand how much it has changed since the events of 9/11. Because of that horrible day foreign policy has be greatly affected and countries are hesitant to work with others like they used to. They will also gain new knowledge of how their chosen country uses and treats foreign relationships.  Knowing all of this will hopefully broaden the students knowledge and they might synthesize their own ideas about improving foreign policy.

Standards:

 A. Identify and evaluate the political and cultural contributions of individuals and groups to United States history from 1890 to Present..
 - Political Leaders
 - Military Leaders

B.   Identify and evaluate primary documents, material artifacts and historic sites important in United States history from 1890 to Present.

- Documents

 - Historic Places

C.    Evaluate how continuity and change has influenced United States history from 1890 to Present.
-  Belief Systems and Religions   
- Commerce and Industry          
-  Innovations
-  Politics
-  Settlement Patterns
-  Social Organization               
-  Transportation and Trade        
 - Women’s Movement

Example of Questions and Answers for "The Process"

This should be done in the students' Google Doc. At the end of the unit, the students will pick the best and most detailed answers to include on their collaborative Google Doc, to then present to the class as their group journal.

Iran Answers:

The location of their country in the Middle East as well as 3 neighboring countries.

• Iran is located in the Asian subcontinent known as the Middle

East.  Iran is bordered by Turkmenistan to the north, Afghanistan to the east, and Iraq to the west.  The Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman form the country's southern border and the Caspian Sea forms a central northern border in between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.

Who is this country's leader? 
    
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution: Ayatollah Ali Hosseini-Khamenei
President: Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad
First Vice President:Mohammad Reza Rahimi
Foreign Minister:Manouchehr Mottaki
Ambassador to the United Nations:Mohammad Khazaee
   


-What type of Government exists?
Iran is an Islamic Republic with thirty provinces, or regions. 
  
 -Who has the right to vote?
    Everyone 18 years or older has the right to vote; universal suffrage.
   
-How are leaders chosen? 
    "The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran is elected by universal suffrage to a 4-year term. The president supervises the affairs of the executive branch, appointing and supervising the Council of Ministers (members of the cabinet), coordinating government decisions, and selecting government policies to be placed before the Majles."(http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5314.htm)    
    "The Majles, or National Assembly, consists of 290 members elected to 4-year terms. Elections are held by secret ballot from amongst the candidates approved by the Council of Guardians."(http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5314.htm)
   
-Describe the U.S.'s foreign policy with the country
The United States main concern with Iran is nuclear proliferation.  The International Atomic Energy Agency has been working to clearly determine what Iran's nuclear ambitions are.  The issue was subject to increasing attention after the 9/11 disaster.  The United States has a strict trade policy with Iran.  Due to Iran's refusal to follow the IAEA's atomic energy standards and human rights violations the United States has banned most types of trade with Iran.  U.S. sanctions are targeted at the Iranian government, not the Iranian people directly.  Some trade is allowed, including, licensed agricultural exports and medical products, donations intended to relieve human suffering.  The U.S. also imports goods such as  carpets (aka "Persian Rugs"), food such as dried fruit.

Students must include the links/websites where they find their information.  ( no formal citation is needed)