Simulation Games in Cooperation with Regional German Schools

In cooperation with the German-Swiss International School Hong Kong and the Christian German School Chiang Mai, our grades 9 and 10 have taken part in an online simulation game over the past few weeks on the subject of “Changing Climate”. The games were conducted over three project days. Around 50 students took on the role of different interest groups and conducted negotiations with one another, similar to the Model United Nations debates.
Students took on the roles as representatives of socialist or conservative parties, interest groups from the environment, agriculture, industry and mining from three fictitious countries with different degrees of development. In these roles, they debated, discussed, negotiated and finally voted on measures which could be implemented to combat climate change. Depending on the result of these votes, the economic, social and ecological consequences of the measures taken were simulated by a computer program. The results of the simulation then had to be used as a basis for the subsequent round of negotiations.
The students played their roles with commitment, and searched for compromises in a solution-oriented manner. In addition to interdisciplinary skills on the subject of climate change and language skills, the learners could also particularly develop incipient abilities in dealing with conflicts.