Geography · 9th Grade

Active learning ideas

Terrorism and Non-State Actors

Active learning helps students move beyond abstract definitions by engaging directly with real-world data and contested ideas. For a topic where power projection, geographic control, and state boundaries are fluid, hands-on mapping, case analysis, and structured debate let students see how non-state actors reshape political geography in tangible ways.

• Common Core State Standards
• C3: D2.Geo.11.9-12
• C3: D2.Civ.14.9-12

• 25–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Socratic Seminar
• 40 min · Pairs

Mapping Analysis: The Geographic Spread of Terrorism

Students receive maps showing terrorism incident data across three time periods , pre-2001, 2001 to 2015, and 2015 to present , with data on attack locations, organizational affiliations, and casualty counts. They identify geographic shifts in concentration, the emergence of new regional hubs, and correlations between state fragility and terrorist activity, constructing evidence-based arguments rather than relying on media impressions.

Analyze how the geography of terrorism has changed in the age of social media.

Facilitation Tip

For the Mapping Analysis, circulate while students work to clarify the difference between 'hot spots' and 'communication corridors' in terrorist activity data.

What to look for

Present students with a map showing areas of significant non-state actor activity. Ask: 'How does the presence of these groups challenge the idea of a state's absolute control over its territory? What geographic factors might explain why these groups are active in these specific locations?'

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Case Study Analysis
• 45 min · Small Groups

Case Study Analysis: The Geographic Arc of ISIS

Groups trace ISIS territory from 2013 to 2019 using a sequence of maps, analyzing what geographic factors enabled rapid territorial expansion, why holding territory proved so difficult for a non-state actor, and what changed after territorial defeat. Groups must explain specifically why 'defeating' ISIS geographically did not eliminate its capacity for violence or influence.

Explain how non-state actors challenge the traditional Westphalian state system.

Facilitation Tip

During the ISIS case study, pause after the timeline to ask students to predict which geographic factors might predict future insurgent activity.

What to look for

Provide students with a short news excerpt about a non-state actor's action. Ask them to identify: 1. The non-state actor involved. 2. How their actions challenge the Westphalian system. 3. One potential geographic consequence of their actions.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

Activity 03

• Think-Pair-Share
• 25 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Westphalian System Challenge

Students read a short explanation of the Westphalian system, then a brief case study of a non-state actor that challenges its assumptions , options include Hezbollah, the Houthis, or transnational criminal networks. Pairs identify specifically how the actor violates Westphalian assumptions and what that means for how states can respond legally and militarily under traditional international law frameworks.

Predict the geographic consequences of the 'War on Terror'.

Facilitation Tip

In the Westphalian System Challenge, assign roles in advance so students prepare contrasting arguments rather than inventing them on the spot.

What to look for

On an index card, have students define 'sovereignty' in their own words and then list two ways a non-state actor can undermine a state's sovereignty without controlling territory.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Structured Academic Controversy
• 50 min · Pairs

Structured Academic Controversy: Drone Warfare Effectiveness

Assign pairs one position: drone strikes are an effective tool for neutralizing non-state actor threats at lower cost and risk, or drone strikes create more radicalization than they eliminate by producing civilian casualties and resentment. Using provided geographic and casualty data, pairs argue their position and then switch sides before synthesizing a shared conclusion grounded in evidence.

Analyze how the geography of terrorism has changed in the age of social media.

Facilitation Tip

Set a timer for the drone warfare debate to keep the Structured Academic Controversy focused and civil.

What to look for

Present students with a map showing areas of significant non-state actor activity. Ask: 'How does the presence of these groups challenge the idea of a state's absolute control over its territory? What geographic factors might explain why these groups are active in these specific locations?'

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Experienced teachers approach this topic by anchoring abstract concepts in concrete data and contested policy choices. Avoid presenting non-state actors solely as threats; instead contrast their adaptability with state rigidities. Research shows that students grasp sovereignty best when they see how it is undermined by networks rather than only by bombs, so emphasize geographic mobility and digital recruitment as power multipliers.

By the end of these activities, students will explain how non-state actors gain influence without formal territory and evaluate the limits of state sovereignty. They will use geographic evidence to challenge misconceptions and participate in respectful, evidence-based discussion about controversial policy choices.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Mapping Analysis, watch for students who assume terrorism is clustered only in the Middle East or Muslim-majority countries. Redirect them to compare the Global Terrorism Database’s world map with global population density maps to highlight underreported zones like the Sahel or the Philippines.

  During Mapping Analysis, provide a blank world map and ask students to mark only attacks listed in the Global Terrorism Database, then overlay UN Human Development Index to show how poverty, state fragility, and insurgent recruitment often coincide.

• During Case Study Analysis: The Geographic Arc of ISIS, watch for the idea that territory loss equals organizational defeat. Redirect by asking students to trace how ISIS’s online media presence and sleeper cells persisted after 2019.

  During Case Study Analysis, have students annotate a second timeline that maps ISIS’s shift from territorial control to insurgent and inspirational networks, using examples from Raqqa’s fall, the 2020 Baghuz battle, and subsequent attacks in Europe and Africa.

• During Think-Pair-Share: Westphalian System Challenge, watch for students who assume all non-state actors are militarily weaker than states. Redirect by asking them to compare Hezbollah’s budget, recruitment, and regional influence with that of small EU states.

  During Think-Pair-Share, give each pair a table: one column lists state characteristics (fixed borders, international law, public budgets), the other lists non-state adaptations (global networks, flexible financing, asymmetric tactics). Ask them to find one way non-state actors neutralize state advantages.

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Methods used in this brief

• Socratic Seminar
• Case Study Analysis
• Think-Pair-Share
• Structured Academic Controversy