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1. Goals and Objectives:
To have students understand the role U.S. foreign intelligence, in particular the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) played in the formation and implementation of American policy.

2. Procedures:
Dewey suggested a four part division for “educational technology”: Inquiry, Communication, Construction, Expression.

Following this format, I would break the class in 4 parts:
1. Inquiry: The students would exam the question: “What role has U.S. foreign Intelligence played in Afghanistan to the present.
2. Communication: Using a series of documents, the students would exam this question. Breaking the students into groups, I would distribute a different document for each group. The students would discuss within the group, the significance of each document. Documents could include Zbigniew Brzezinski admission of successful U.S. covert operations in Afghanistan designed to draw the Soviets into the country, CIA reports showing cooperation with Afghanistan Opium Warlords who received weapons to fight the Soviets, DEA documents complaining that the CIA interfered or halted over 40 major investigations into heroin networks, Post 9/11 Special Operations demonstrating the dangers in operating in the nation. If possible, students could use computers to communicate with another class who were undertaking a similar assignment.
3. Construction: Students would be asked to create two opposite narratives, one from the perspective of the CIA, the other from the critics of their policies. I would expect them to use internet resources (with full citations) and to communicate between student groups.
4. Expression: At the end of the exercise, we would meet as a whole and discuss what the implications, problems, successes of U.S. foreign intelligence in Afghanistan.

Alternative Game Plan:

Role-playing…break students up into groups of different players (DEA, CIA, Soviets, Taliban etc). Students would get materials and internet access. Keeping each group’s designs secret, the students would need to guess the identities and motives of the other groups.

3. Evaluation: I would assume Dewey would find success in how the exercise best socialized the children and their level of participation. I would have a follow-up exercise where each group turns in a short collaborative paper.

Materials: Declassified Documents, internet access, game materials for role playing