Student Engagement: Why Classroom Simulations?

Dr. Wendy Ghiora – Posting #11

A classroom simulation is a reproduction of the essential features of something, especially as an aid to study or training. It is comprised of a well thought-out replication presented by the teacher, creating a specific classroom setting that will engage and clarify students’ understanding of the nature of the concept or event.

What do classroom simulations have to do with student engagement and motivation? Virtually all types of project-based learning, including classroom simulations, are positively correlated to student motivation. Students naturally gravitate to simulations as is evidenced by their high level of engagement and enthusiasm as participants. This style of learning calls for active participation in the research and learning process and usually requires collaboration, cooperation, self-direction, and some self-assessment. Why are they so popular (especially with students)? Because they work!

The idea behind simulations is to submerge the students deep into the context of the concept being taught, explored, and uncovered. According to Edgar Dale, (Cone of Learning creator), “the very best learning experience is doing the real thing. A well thought out and executed simulation is definitely the next best thing.”

Please read this interview done by Education World, with Max Fischer, a teacher who has created some extraordinary classroom simulations. Please feel free to try the one he describes:

EW: Do you have a favorite original simulation activity?
Max Fischer: After a number of years in teaching during which time I had used simulations sporadically at best, I created an activity that crystallized the engaging effects of a worthy simulation. I called it The King's M & M's. In order to get my students to realize how American colonists really felt about King George's Stamp Act and the subsequent Intolerable Acts, which taxed various imported goods such as tea, I gave each student ten M&M's in a paper cup. I randomly assigned roles where most students were colonists, two were tax collectors, two were members of Parliament, and one was King George. Members of Parliament drew slips of paper out of a hat on which I had written down the names of some common items. These items -- for example, blue jeans, Nike shoes, or eyeglasses -- would be subject to taxation. The tax collectors came around and withdrew a specific number of candy pieces for each taxable item if a student possessed that item. The confiscated candies were distributed among Parliament members and the king (with a few going to the tax collectors). The student colonists were infuriated, and I compared their umbrage of the apparent inequity in candy distribution to what the colonists actually felt toward the British system of taxation. The fact that the students had no say in what was taxed in the classroom paralleled the infamous "taxation without representation" sentiment of the colonists. Later, at parent conferences, one set of parents remarked to me how powerful a lesson that had been. There had been a lengthy discussion at the dinner table the very evening of The King's M & M's, and these parents remarked positively on the impression the simulation had left on their child.

This website provides more data about classroom simulations including several usable examples: http://www.todaysteacher.com/Simulations.htm

My middle school teachers used a simulation called:
LEWIS AND CLARK: A Simulation of the Corps of Discovery

Working in teams, students retrace Lewis and Clark's route on a map as they "earn miles" by learning facts about the expedition and practicing cross-curricular skills. Sample activities include deciding what supplies to take, making a speech to Congress requesting funding, learning sign language, building a model of Fort Mandan, mapping Native American tribes, making a rainstick, keeping an expedition journal, and cataloguing plants and animals. Interact. ©2000.

Our students completely immersed themselves in this project. They wrote and performed an amazingly life-like play about the journey of Lewis and Clark. They built an extremely realistic set and constructed all of their own props. The boys even insisted on sewing their own costumes to make them as authentic as possible. It was an incredible experience. I can say without hesitation, if you meet any one of these students years from now, you can ask them anything about the Lewis and Clark Expedition. They will not only answer your question, but also add more depth and understanding than you could ever imagine!

“Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.” Chinese Proverbs

Look for more strategies to engage your students in my posting next weekend.