Learning through repetition: using "simple" simulations to teach basic principles of international negotiations (original) (raw)
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Journal of Educational and Social Research, 2014
Instructional simulation practices represent a milestone in the educational methodology of most western universities by harmonizing equal balance between theory and practice. This paper will describe and assess the positive role that simulation practices offer towards better acquisition of the theoretical input during the undergraduate academic courses in the discipline of International Relations and European Studies (IRES). It will investigate and identify the need for academic integration of simulation activities in the core academic courses shedding light on the discrepancies of the current academic practice at in Albania, simultaneously, highlighting the advantages of instructional simulation towards in-depth learning versus surface learning of theory. The paper will be conducted through utilizing observation method with the contrastive textual analysis of the theoretical and empirical data, thus providing an argumentative exhibition and credible insights on the necessity of simulation practices to be intertwined with the academic compulsory curricula for better comprehension of the IRES theoretical concepts. It will draw on the successful experiences applied by international academic initiatives and upon their advantageous value to engage students in analytical learning, critical thinking and eloquence, building public speaking models, seeing the correlation between scientific knowledge and the tangible testable hypotheses on the empirical level. Unfortunately, the traditional Albanian higher education suffers from an unbalance between the massive theoretical input of the academic curricula-in our case study to the discipline of IRES-with the transfer, implementation and active learning of the theories of international relations and theoretical approaches to European Union. Therefore, incorporating and practicing instructional simulation at the undergraduate academic courses of IRES implies equipping the future political leaders, international negotiators, European delegates and prospective Albanian experts of international organizations with the scholastic knowledge and the relevant social interactive skills.
2006
The most common challenge confronting instructors of international relations is engaging "resistant populations" in meaningful dialogue. The use of simulations has long been touted as an effective way to overcome challenges associated with student learning. Simulations provide experiential learning, which helps students develop the crucial skills required for the study of the international politics. While this claim seems logical, there have been few studies that have actually measured the impact of simulations on student learning in the classroom. Additionally, the "resistant population" is often absent from discussions of this kind. A preliminary study of the effect of simulations on the "resistant population's" learning was conducted in the Introduction to International Relations (POLS370) course at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in the Fall 2005 semester. Doug Eder, Vice Provost and Director of the Office of Undergraduate Assessment and Program Review, provided support for this project in the area of assessment. In addition to discussing the characteristics of the "resistant population, this paper discusses the simulation mechanism and assessment devices used in this study. The paper also provides an overview of the preliminary findings of the study.
Using Hybrid Simulations to Enhance Student Learning of International Relations Theories
Issues in Educational Research, 2021
The theoretical frameworks explicitly or implicitly employed by diplomatic historians and international relations scholars can lead to significantly different explanations for the same historical events. Therefore, a sound understanding of the basic international relations theories is required for a more comprehensive understanding of international politics. However, students tend to shun theoretical topics and debates, considering them irrelevant to practical issues and problems that they face in their daily lives. This paper argues for employing simulations as a way of enhancing student learning of international relations theories. It provides a justification and outline for the organisation and development of a hybrid simulation using the Council on Foreign Relation's Model Diplomacy interactive platform. Hybrid simulations integrate components of both face-toface and cyber simulations, with students physically interacting during the more formal simulation procedures (e.g., making formal policy statements and voting) and using the cyber environments for informal activities (e.g., as negotiations). Ultimately, hybrid simulations transform the learning environment by restructuring the interaction process between instructors and students and can contribute to enhancing student learning and their understanding of the main theories underscoring international relations theories. The use of hybrid simulations becomes more relevant as universities continue to promote more online educational opportunities for students and as unanticipated disruptions require them to have more options available to continue providing students with the best educational experiences possible.
International Studies Perspectives, 2013
This article reviews experiences from a large-scale student simulation, which concluded the Istanbul Conference on Mediation: Enhancing Peace through Mediation that took place in February 2012. We share insights on two unique aspects of the simulation. First, the paper examines a rare case where the simulation crossed paths with real life: a number of the impersonated officials (and offices) including the president of the General Assembly of the UN, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, and the Director of the Policy and Mediation Division of the UN Department of Political Affairs were in the audience and shared their impressions. Second, the setup of the simulation was more complex than its typical in-class counterparts. Our insights from this multiday, multi-stage, and multi-issue simulation can inform colleagues who plan to run larger scale simulations. Besides sharing experiences on a number of logistical points, we especially draw attention to the constructive role facilitators can play in augmenting the learning benefits accruing to the students from simulations.
For some time, simulations have been used to understand the complexity of international relations and diplomacy. Many contemporary teacher-scholars believe using simulations, games, and strategic exercises is the most effective way to teach learners negotiation skills. This multi-day immersive setting allows students to develop character profiles and apply theorydriven strategies to a real-world diplomatic crisis. Develop the High Stakes Diplomacy (HSD) model of principled negotiation for use in international relations and diplomacy courses. HSD is an experiential learning simulation designed to educate learners on the perils of positional bargaining in international negotiation, enhance student leadership and followership experiences, and engender positive diplomacy skills. The High Stakes Diplomacy simulation, developed in January 2022, supports the application of experiential learning techniques for knowledge retention, student learning, student motivation, and theory-building. To assess learning, this study draws on Kolb's (1984) model of experiential learning, which consists of four points of awareness: (1) concrete experience, (2) reflective observation, (3) abstract conceptualization, and (4) active experimentation. The frequentative negotiation rounds occurred across three 75-minute class sessions. The author used pre-assessments, multiparty peer observations, and a post-assessment survey and debriefing to gauge learning outcomes and experiment validity. The post-simulation survey revealed that 83.3 percent of participants found the High Stakes Diplomacy simulation facilitated greater learning of the method of principled negotiation. This result reflects a 50 percent increase in student learning from pre-assessment levels.
Teaching the European Union: a Simulation of Council’s Negotiations
European Political Science, 2015
Simulations can be extremely successful in acquainting participants with a negotiation's logic and process, especially in those political systems in which negotiations are prominent, such as the European Union (EU). After a brief introduction on the simulations in teaching the European integration, in this article we present, step-by-step, a simulation game on the adoption of a real piece of European legislation: the regulation that implemented the European Citizens' Initiative, one of the main innovations of the Lisbon Treaty. Special attention is devoted to the different phases of a simulation design, from the choice of the topic, the choice and allocation of roles, the preparation of all the necessary documentation, to the debriefing and assessment phases. The article originates from a 4-year long study with undergraduate students from two Italian universities.
International Studies Perspectives 13(4), 437-457
The essay describes new way to evaluate variation among simulations through six distinct categories. The six points involve the content of the simulation, the integration of the simulation with other aspects of the course, the length of a simulation, the strictness of rules, the interaction among students during the simulation, and assessment techniques. The essay assesses the benefits and costs of the simulation and course design through student feedback and instructor evaluation. In addition, the essay uses these six points of variation as a framework to explain a sample simulation integrated with course objectives, goals, lecture material, two short research essays, and other class activities designed to teach game theory applied to current international problems. The simulation uses current world issues to help students incorporate class content, game theoretic modeling, and strategic interaction into an international negotiation conducted in class.
Culture and Negotiation: The Pedagogical Dispute Regarding Cross-Cultural Simulations
International Studies Perspectives, 2009
This article examines one especially challenging aspect of active-learning international studies courses-the use of cross-cultural simulations. What is the significance of culture for negotiation? What difficulties might cross-cultural negotiations pose, and how might negotiators work with cultural differences to achieve successful outcomes? Is it possible to model the effects of cultures on negotiators in a classroom role-play? What are the advantages to using cross-cultural simulations, and what difficulties do they entail? How might an instructor make best use of materials that focus on cultural issues and their effect on negotiation? When teaching students of different cultures by active-learning methods, what ought an instructor to bear in mind? What cross-cultural simulations are available, and what readings might be assigned to accompany them?
University language educators often struggle to find the balance of providing their students with interesting and relevant content while also promoting language learning through interaction with appropriate vocabulary and structures. Courses that focus on content may rely on more traditional learning methods, such as lecture and reading, leaving students without adequate opportunities to actively interact with the language they need to improve their ability. However, more communicative language skill courses may not deal with the discipline specific language and tasks that students need for success in their major of study or future career. Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) employs a range of approaches to create a balance between academic content and language study. This paper describes the development and implementation of an e-learning simulation activity in which groups of students in a university foreign studies program assumed the roles of diplomats to negotiate an agreement between several state actors involved in the North Korean denuclearization talks. The CLIL lesson unit combined traditional academic study with online interaction to engage students with their learning and provide them with opportunities to practice real world communication strategies. Outcomes of the simulation are discussed.
Journal of Contemporary European Research
The article reviews the experience of the role-play simulation (RPS) 'Modelling negotiations between the EU and EAEU', arranged in 2018 and 2019. Its specific goals were building knowledge (about the European Union (EU) and Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and enhancing a transnational dialogue between EU (Western) and Russian students in the context of a deteriorated EU-Russian relationship. This latter aspect of international RPS has received insufficient attention in the literature, yet it might contribute to the improvement of real-life EU-Russian relations through fostering a transnational dialogue and mutual understanding among young citizens. The article outlines the setting of the RPS and addresses three major difficulties that the organisers faced (designing the RPS, preparing students and fostering their dialogue), the solutions that were developed and the assessments of the results.