Why does the U.S. Go to War?

• Introduction
• Learners
• Standards
• Process
• Resources


• Student Page

by Chad Clarke, Fort Collins High School

In this WebQuest 11th grade Advanced Placement U.S. History students will be playing the part of an advisor to the Secretary of Defense and will be comparing and contrasting the violent conflicts and wars that the United States has been involved in over the past century.

Teacher Introduction

This WebQuest is a wonderful way to get students to interact and ask questions about the world they live in and to engage in a high level of thinking and analysis they might otherwise never realize was possible.

The Quest begins with an intriguing story in which they become a part of the Whitehouse staff as an advisor to the United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in the wake of the attacks of September 11, 2009.  They are plunged into the action when they are asked by the President of the United States to come up with research that is aimed to help them make policy decisions about what course of action should be taken against supposed enemies of the state.  Your students mission is to look at two different armed conflicts that the United States became involved in during the past century and to determine what sort of reasons were used in the past to engage in armed conflict.