Role play simulations have been extensively established in the literature for several decades (Woodworth and Gump, 1982; Walcott, 1976; Gould, 1979). In recent years, classroom role-play simulations have been used for Cabinet and budget processes in courses on Canadian Politics at University of Toronto, for determining foreign policy at Dalhousie University, for determination of future Canadian policy in Afghanistan by the Senlis Council, and in single class simulations in Comparative Politics at University of Delaware. The goal of this article is to propose a classroom exercise for an upper year university course in the Comparative Politics of industrialized states: the role-play simulation of a national election in a liberal democratic state. A simulation like this is extremely effective in teaching students about the domestic politics of foreign countries.
The theory and practice of comparative politics is often covered by a combination of lectures delivery and long form written work – essays, examinations, etc. A simulation exercise, on the other hand, presents all the advantages of active pedagogy, as well as covering some of the basic themes typically present in upper year courses in Comparative Politics. This article describes the simulation itself, outlines the content and concepts covered, explains how the simulation can be integrated into a twelve- or fourteen-week course, and specifies requirements to maximize student learning.
Example 1: Comparative Politics
General Requirements
In the format proposed, the instructor can select countries to be studied, or students can choose based on certain geographical restrictions. Most industrialized countries have ample news and scholarly coverage, especially since the explosion of electronic resources. While the students do not need to speak the language of the country chosen, information about the politics of that country needs to be available in a language that students understand.
To establish a threshold of basic knowledge, at the start of the simulation, students should be able to write a take home test covering the basics such as the main parties, their main platforms, the structure of the electoral system, and current and recurring political issues in the country. It is useful to have a professional librarian conduct a research workshop tailored to the assignment or test about two weeks before the deadline.
Teams of students are formed at random or on their own choices to represent the parties which hold seats in the legislature of the country, with individual students role-playing different party officials, including candidate, campaign manager, director of communications/media relations, director of finance/fundraiser, research cell member (including development of attacks on other parties, as well as tracking of attacks by other parties), and speechwriter.
During the simulation, students are encouraged to be as realistic as possible. If the class is large enough, it is possible to have students appointed as journalists, whose job is to write news reports using the tone and editorial bias of a media outlet of their choice for each class. Media or other role-players cannot invent incidents. The mock journalists would also be expected to produce other material as required from other students.
Simulation Details
The students are required to prepare for, and conduct, the major events of an election campaign such as has occurred or is occurring in the country under study, with each student playing the role of a different actor in the process: leader of a party, campaign manager, fundraiser, speechwriter, etc. The simulation includes the following tasks, which can be covered in eight classes over four weeks, assuming 1.5 hour classes:
• a campaign managers’ meeting to set timetables and parameters;
• an election call or campaign launch;
• one campaign speech;
• writing and/or production of two television/internet commercials, one less than one minute and one less than two minutes;
• one news conference;
• a one-on-one media interview; and
• an all-candidates’ debate.
Each of these tasks is designed to cover themes common in upper-year courses in Comparative (industrialized) courses. Team formation and selection of the party to represent familiarizes students with political parties. The campaign launch by the parties familiarizes students with the party platform. The planning of the mock election campaign familiarizes students with electoral systems, the legislative and executive branches of government, and any election laws or regulations. Media reports or interviews, if they occur, familiarize students with the role of the media in the politics of the country under study, as well as journalist, media consumer and voter behavior. Campaign speeches will ensure students are familiar with the most important political issues in the given election campaign or cycle. The leaders’ debate, which occurs in almost all liberal democratic countries, will show the brand of leadership for that country, as well as confirming students’ understanding of platform elements and extemporaneous speaking skills. Finally, the holding of the mock election itself reveals how the social cleavages and stratification will occur as represent by voting behavior. The instructor may devote entire classes to teamwork if required or possible, or the instructor may choose to intersperse lectures with the mock-election classes, providing information that the students can use in the next scheduled event. Another option is to use the simulation for that part of term where students are usually the least motivated, say in the latter half of a term.
Students can choose their roles within the political party apparatus of each party, or they can be assigned. The election campaign is usually a national one, so there has to be a party leader, as well as a campaign manager, someone responsible for election fundraising, spending and reporting, at least one speechwriter, a researcher who may be researching other parties’ flaws or embarrassing moments, a strategist, and a media relations specialist if there are media.
If there is media, then each class during the campaign starts with media reports. These take the form of brief written articles written in the style and tone of newspapers of the country under study. Next are the campaign events scheduled for that class, followed by some time for the professor to give feedback to students on the accuracy and realism of their performance, to highlight any particular characteristic of the politics of the particular country, and to assign tasks to particular teams to improve their performance. The teams are assessed either on their performance in class, evaluated in the same way a participation grade would be assessed. They can also be assigned analytical assignments that helps them put their learning into context, which would be marked like more traditional short-answer or longer form written assignments.
A sample campaign/classroom work schedule follows. Class 1 is Campaign Launch Day and consists of a short presentation by each group to introduce their party to the class. Class 2 is devoted to campaign speeches: the parties outline their positions on major issues and unveil their election platform. During class 3, students present a short (less than one minute long) political commercial. They may introduce themselves to the public or make pitch for a particular group of voters’ support. Each party leader faces the press during class 4. If there are no reporters appointed, the instructor asks the questions. Each party also has five minutes at the start to make a speech, show a commercial or otherwise add information to their platform. Class 5 is dedicated to one on one interviews between each of the party leaders and a member of the media. If there are no students acting as journalists, the instructor prepares and asks the questions. Class 6 is the time when the parties show their second, longer commercial. The leaders’ debate takes place during class 7, with the format being negotiated in advance by the campaign managers and the media or instructor. Finally, the vote is held on class 8, with the victory speech from the winning party. The instructor is free to remove an event or to change the order to suit the class schedule or to more closely follow events in the country being studied.
For each of these events, some rules of behavior to direct students’ behavior toward better learning, are provided. An alternative would be for the professor to assign the task of developing such rules to the campaign managers, or the class as a whole, depending on the class’ experience with active pedagogy. Rules for an all-party debate could also be developed this way. For example, here are some rules worked out by campaign managers for a simulated election in Germany. The instructor needs to approve all the rules outlined above, since students may reach agreements that take the pressure off their candidates.
Themes and Concepts Covered
The content of the simulation familiarizes the students with the domestic political systems of two liberal democratic countries with industrialized economies, while the simulation itself provides an active pedagogy increasing the odds of students learning in a way that allows better retention of material. Themes covered by the classroom simulation described below include elections, political culture, economic, social, and other domestic policies, political issues, political parties, media, electoral law and reform, some legislative and administrative processes, political structure, voting behaviour, and political cleavages. The role play simulation has the advantage of also expecting leadership roles from students in specific areas; of requiring reflection on students’ part for their classroom participation; of fostering independent critical thinking through the analytical assignments that accompany the simulation. It also presents the advantage of making fraud using the internet much more difficult. Not covered by the role play are theories and models, methodology, or debates in the field. These need to be covered in the classes not taken up with the role play simulation.
Example 2: The United Nations Security Council
The students are required to prepare for, and conduct, presentation of foreign policy issues for decision by the various organs. some procedures for presidency include: the member state introduces the resolution; other members ask questions of clarification or facts; member states state why they support or do not support the resolution; member states propose amendments; amendments can be accepted by the proposing member or voted on by all members; amendments are discussed; a vote is taken; votes may be taken repeatedly on a resolution after discussion; the member states options are: support, propose amendment, abstain, vote against. The member states who are permanent members veto the resolution if they vote against. France, the UK, the US, China and Russia have the right of veto.
All member states must post their resolutions 48 hours preceding their presentation. All member states must bring copies of their resolution to the day of the meeting. A Security Council resolution has three parts: a list of previous relevant resolutions; an explanation of the principles or reasons why the resolution is desirable; and an outline of the solution to the particular situation with numbered proposals. It is usually no more than two pages long. Student resolutions should include the relevant facts and the details of the situation. Student resolutions also need to include what students need to know to determine whether to support the resolution, propose amendments, abstain, or vote against the resolution. Resolutions for the last years can be found at http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/, double-clicking on 'Resolutions' at the far left of the top of the screen.
The role-play simulation follows as much as possible the rules of the UN Security Council itself. With respect to the agenda, for example, the procedures are as follows. The Secretary-General shall immediately bring to the attention of all representatives on the Security Council all communications from States, organs of the United Nations, or the Secretary-General concerning any matter for the consideration of the Security Council in accordance with the provisions of the Charter. The provisional agenda for each meeting of the Security Council shall be drawn up by the Secretary-General and approved by the President of the Security Council. Only items which have been brought to the attention of the representatives on the Security Council in accordance with rule 6, items covered by rule 10, or matters which the Security Council had previously decided to defer, may be included in the provisional agenda. The provisional agenda for a meeting shall be communicated by the Secretary-General to the representatives on the Security Council at least three days before the meeting, but in urgent circumstances it may be communicated simultaneously with the notice of the meeting. The first item of the provisional agenda for each meeting of the Security Council shall be the adoption of the agenda. Any item of the agenda of a meeting of the Security Council, consideration of which has not been completed at that meeting, shall, unless the Security Council otherwise decides, automatically be included in the agenda of the next meeting. The Secretary-General shall communicate each week to the representatives on the Security Council a summary statement of matters of which the Security Council is seized and of the stage reached in their consideration. The Security Council may, however, in urgent circumstances, make additions to the agenda at any time during a periodic meeting.
With respect to representation and credentials, the procedures of the UN Security Council are as follows. Each member of the Security Council shall be represented at the meetings of the Security Council by an accredited representative. The credentials of a representative on the Security Council shall be communicated to the Secretary-General not less than twenty-four hours before he takes his seat on the Security Council. The credentials shall be issued either by the Head of the State or of the Government concerned or by its Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Head of Government or Minister of Foreign Affairs of each member of the Security Council shall be entitled to sit on the Security Council without submitting credentials. Any Member of the United Nations not a member of the Security Council and any State not a Member of the United Nations, if invited to participate in a meeting or meetings of the Security Council, shall submit credentials for the representative appointed by it for this purpose. The credentials of such a representative shall be communicated to the Secretary-General not less than twenty-four hours before the first meeting which he is invited to attend. The credentials of representatives on the Security Council and of any representative appointed in accordance with rule 14 shall he examined by the Secretary-General who shall submit a report to the Security Council for approval. Pending the approval of the credentials of a representative on the Security Council, such representative shall be seated provisionally with the same rights as other representatives. Any representative on the Security Council, to whose credentials objection has been made within the Security Council, shall continue to sit with the same rights as other representatives until the Security Council has decided the matter.
With respect to the presidency of the Security Council, the procedures are as follows. The presidency of the Security Council shall be held in turn by the members of the Security Council in the English alphabetical order of their names. Each President shall hold office for one calendar month. The President shall preside over the meetings of the Security Council and, under the authority of the Security Council, shall represent it in its capacity as an organ of the United Nations. Whenever the President of the Security Council deems that for the proper fulfillment of the responsibilities of the presidency he should not preside over the Council during the consideration of a particular question with which the member he represents is directly connected, he shall indicate his decision to the Council. The presidential chair shall then devolve, for the purpose of the consideration of that question, on the representative of the member next in English alphabetical order, it being understood that the provisions of this rule shall apply to the representatives on the Security Council called upon successively to preside.
With respect to the secretariat and the Secretary General, the procedures of the Security Council are as follows. The Secretary-General shall act in that capacity in all meetings of the Security Council. The Secretary-General may authorize a deputy to act in his place at meetings of the Security Council. Each member shall act in that capacity in all meetings of the Security Council. The Secretary-General, or his deputy acting on his behalf, may make either oral or written statements to the Security Council concerning any question under consideration by it. The Secretary-General may be appointed by the Security Council, as rapporteur for a specified question. The Secretary-General shall give to representatives on the Security Council notice of meetings of the Security Council and of its commissions and committees. The Secretary-General shall be responsible for the preparation of documents required by the Security Council and shall, except in urgent circumstances, distribute them in advance of the meeting at which they are to be considered.
With respect to the conduct of meetings, the procedures of the Security Council are as follows. The President shall call upon representatives in the order in which they signify their desire to speak. The Security Council may appoint a commission or committee or a rapporteur for a specified question. The President may accord precedence to any rapporteur appointed by the Security Council. The Chairman of a commission or committee, or the rapporteur appointed by the commission or committee to present its report, may be accorded precedence for the purpose of explaining the report. If a representative raises a point of order, the President shall immediately state his ruling. If it is challenged, the President shall submit his ruling to the Security Council for immediate decision and it shall stand unless overruled. Proposed resolutions, amendments and substantive motions shall normally be placed before the representatives in writing. Principal motions and draft resolutions shall have precedence in the order of their submission. Parts of a motion or of a draft resolution shall be voted on separately at the request of any representative, unless the original mover objects.
The following motions shall have precedence in the order named over all principal motions and draft resolutions relative to the subject before the meeting: 1. To suspend the meeting; 2. To adjourn the meeting; 3. To adjourn the meeting to a certain day or hour; 4. To refer any matter to a committee, to the Secretary-General or to a rapporteur; 5. To postpone discussion of the question to a certain day or indefinitely; or 6. To introduce an amendment. Any motion for the suspension or for the simple adjournment of the meeting shall be decided without debate. It shall not be necessary for any motion or draft resolution proposed by a representative on the Security Council to be seconded before being put to a vote. A motion or draft resolution can at any time be withdrawn so long as no vote has been taken with respect to it. If the motion or draft resolution has been seconded. The representative on the Security Council who has seconded it may require that it be put to the vote as his motion or draft resolution with the same right of precedence as if the original mover had not withdrawn it. If two or more amendments to a motion or draft resolution are proposed, the President shall rule on the order in which they are to be voted upon. Ordinarily, the Security Council shall first vote on the amendment furthest removed in substance from the original proposal and then on the amendment next furthest removed until all amendments have been put to the vote, but when an amendment adds to or deletes from the text of a motion or draft resolution, that amendment shall be voted on first. Any Member of the United Nations which is not a member of the Security Council may be invited, as the result of a decision of the Security Council, to participate, without vote, in the discussion of any question brought before the Security Council when the Security Council considers that the interests of that Member are specially affected, or when a Member brings a matter to the attention of the Security Council in accordance with Article 35 (1) of the Charter. Any Member of the United Nations invited in accordance with the preceding rule, or in application of Article 32 of the Charter, to participate in the discussions of the Security Council may submit proposals and draft resolutions. These proposals and draft resolutions may be put to a vote only at the request of a representative on the Security Council. The Security Council may invite members of the Secretariat or other persons, whom it considers competent for the purpose, to supply it with information or to give other assistance in examining matters within its competence. Voting in the Security Council shall be in accordance with the relevant Articles of the Charter and of the Statute of the International Court of Justice.
Unless it decides otherwise, the Security Council shall meet in public. Any recommendation to the General Assembly regarding the appointment of the Secretary-General shall be discussed and decided at a private meeting. Subject to the provisions of rule 51, the verbatim record of each meeting of the Security Council shall be made available to the representatives on the Security Council and to the representatives of any other States which have participated in the meeting not later than 10 a.m. of the first working day following the meeting. The representatives of the States which have participated in the meeting shall, within two working days after the time indicated in rule 49, inform the Secretary-General of any corrections they wish to have made in the verbatim record. The Security Council may decide that for a private meeting the record shall be made in a single copy alone. This record shall be kept by the Secretary-General. The representatives of the States which have participated in the meeting shall, within a period of ten days, inform the Secretary-General of any corrections they wish to have made in this record. Corrections that have been requested shall be considered approved unless the President is of the opinion that they are sufficiently important to be submitted to the representatives on the Security Council. In the latter case, the representatives on the Security Council shall submit within two working days any comments they may wish to make. In the absence of objections in this period of time, the record shall be corrected as requested. The verbatim record referred to in rule 49 or the record referred to in rule 51, in which no corrections have been requested in the period of time required by rules 50 and 51, respectively, or which has been corrected in accordance with the provisions of rule 52, shall be considered as approved. It shall be signed by the President and shall become the official record of the Security Council. The official record of public meetings of the Security Council, as well as the documents annexed thereto, shall be published in the official languages as soon as possible. At the close of each private meeting the Security Council shall issue a communiqué through the Secretary-General. The representatives of the Members of the United Nations which have taken part in a private meeting shall at all times have the right to consult the record of that meeting in the office of the Secretary-General. The Security Council may at any time grant access to this record to authorized representatives of other Members of the United Nations. The Secretary-General shall, once each year, submit to the Security Council a list of the records and documents which up to that time have been considered confidential. The Security Council shall decide which of these shall be made available to other Members of the United Nations, which shall be made public, and which shall continue to remain confidential.
When it comes to the admission of new members, the procedures of the Security Council are as follows. The Secretary-General shall immediately place the application for membership before the representatives on the Security Council. Unless the Security Council decides otherwise, the application shall be referred by the President to a committee of the Security Council upon which each member of the Security Council shall be represented. The committee shall examine any application referred to it and report its conclusions thereon to the Council not less than thirty-five days in advance of a regular session of the General Assembly or, if a special session of the General Assembly is called, not less than fourteen days in advance of such session. The Security Council shall decide whether in its judgment the applicant is a peace-loving State and is able and willing to carry out the obligations contained in the Charter and, accordingly, whether to recommend the applicant State for membership. If the Security Council recommends the applicant State for membership, it shall forward to the General Assembly the recommendation with a complete record of the discussion. If the Security Council does not recommend the applicant State for membership or postpones the consideration of the application, it shall submit a special report to the General Assembly with a complete record of the discussion. In order to ensure the consideration of its recommendation at the next session of the General Assembly following the receipt of the application, the Security Council shall make its recommendation not less than twenty-five days in advance of a regular session of the General Assembly, nor less than four days in advance of a special session. In special circumstances, the Security Council may decide to make a recommendation to the General Assembly concerning an application for membership subsequent to the expiration of the time limits set forth in the preceding paragraph.
Assessment and Facilitation
The main effort is in the design of the simulation and the enforcement of its rules. Once preparatory material is ready and the role play is launched, however, the instructor can focus on the proceedings themselves. While teaching, management and assessment strategies are up to individual instructors, I recommend the instructor use analytical assignments on the content of the simulation on an ongoing basis, and not assign more than 20% of the final grade for participation. I also recommend that students be graded by their performance as a group, so that the peer pressure and solidarity natural in this setting helps improve the performance. Students learn a great deal, driven in part by the desire to perform well in front of their peers, but also to win the election. There is also extensive learning from each other. While simulation is suitable for the classroom, it may be possible to adapt it to distributed learning. That said, the valuable face-to-face interactions that facilitate student understanding and retention would be greatly restricted using distributed or distance learning
My experience over several years of using this approach has been that I too learn a good deal about the domestic politics of foreign countries from the students, because the collective research capacity of the students exceeds my own. I do have to keep up on the most recent political developments in the country under study, since those issues tend to come up in the simulation. That is true if there are no students playing the role of journalists. On the other hand, not only are these simulations fun, students develop skills as well as knowledge, and motivation to work is never a problem. Those, however, are the usual benefits of active pedagogy.
References
Gould, Lawrence V., Jr. Scenario, Canada And The United European Community : A Simulation Exercise. Halifax, NS : Centre For Foreign Policy Studies, Dept. of Political Science, Dalhousie University, 1979.
Walcott, Charles. Simple Simulations : A Guide To The Design And Use Of Simulation/Games In Teaching Political Science. (Washington : American Political Science Association, 1976.;
Woodworth, James R. and W. Robert Gump, Camelot, A Role Playing Simulation For Political Decision Making, Homewood, Ill. : Dorsey Press, 1982.
No comments:
Post a Comment