USH 8-6


Oklahoma Academic Standard 8. The student will analyze the impact foreign and domestic policies from 1977 to 2001.

Objective 8.6  Evaluate the rise of terrorism and its impact on the United States including the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building, the first attack on the World Trade Center Towers in 1993, the attacks on September 11, 2001, the USA PATRIOT Act, and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.

In a Nutshell
In the 1990’s, America experienced the effects of both foreign and domestic terrorism. Students should understand the lasting significance of the nation’s actions to ensure a terrorist attack of that magnitude would not happen again, such as the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.  Students should also understand why and how the USA PATRIOT ACT impacts the privacy of personal information and communication for the cause of national security.

Teacher Action 

Student Action 

  • Provide opportunities for students to develop self-generated theses or claims related to independent research and investigations using credible and relevant sources to analyze the rise of foreign and domestic terrorism of the late 20th century.

  • Analyze how various governmental powers, responsibilities, and limitations are enacted and changed over time, such as the passage of the PATRIOT Act and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.  

Key Concepts 

Misconceptions 

  • Timothy McVeigh; militia movements; community and national response to the Oklahoma City bombing; the "Oklahoma Standard" 

  • Taliban; al-Qaeda

  • justification for invasion of Iraq; Weapons of Mass Destruction

  • strategies to monitor terrorist activities, communications, and threats 

  • Some students may have limited prior knowledge of the Constitutional issues related to the public's call for security and protection from future terrorist assaults, including the potential exchange of personal freedoms and privacy in exchange for increased vigilance. 

Instructional Resources

Access suggested instructional resources correlated to standard and objectives.