Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Index
Introduction
3 Introduction
EYP Parliament
Simulation Programme
www.eypej.org
info@eypej.org
Authors
Tapio Schrey
Ville Vasaramki
Layout and photographs
Tapio Schrey
Preparations by Teacher
Instructing Students
Committee Work
8
Getting Started
Introduction
10 Discussion
11 Teachers Role
General Assembly
12 Overview
13 Procedure
Other
14 Example of a resolution
15 Tips... What to do when...?
16 Feedback about the Simulation
17 The Parliament Simulation Programme
18 The work of EYP
Publishing Information
European Youth Parliament: Parliament Simulation Programme,
Teachers Guide. Edition revised in the framework of project
502906-LLP-1-2009-1-DE-COMENIUS-CAM that was funded by
the European Commission.
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and theCommission cannot be held responsible
for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Introduction
Parliament simulations
In Finland, EYP parliament simulations have been organised for
students aged 15 to 19 (grades 9 to 12) since 2005. Teachers have
organised the simulations independently or by inviting the local EYP
to arrange the event. One of the goals of EYP has been to broaden
the class room experience by presenting the students a new kind of
an opportunity to express and discuss opinions and to practice active
citizenship and participation in society.
Teachers guide
This guide includes instructions to arranging a parliament simulation. The simulation consists of preparations, discussion of topics (the
committee work), and discussion of results in the form of a General
Assembly. To help students prepare for the committee discussions,
background material is available on the parliament simulation website
or can be ordered from your local EYP organisation.
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
The European Youth Parliament (EYP) was founded in 1987. The aim
of the international organisation is to encourage youth all over Europe
to be active European citizens.
EYP promotes the European dimension in education and gives students and teachers an opportunity to participate in a practical and
positive learning experience. The EYP experience encourages students, future citizens, to acquire first hand information and knowledge
of other peoples and their cultures, to appreciate their differences, and
to co-operate with representatives of other cultures in reaching common goals. EYPs main target group is the youth attending its sessions.
The European Youth Parliament extends beyond EU borders creating
a forum in which young people can genuinely express their own opinions without political pressure or resorting to role play. Students are
encouraged to explore current events and the democratic process, to
think independently, and to take initiative.
However, EYP is much more than politics. The international sessions
are events where cultures meet and friendships across borders are
formed. EYP is a comprehensive experience which inspires thoughts
and invokes emotions. Participating in an international session is a
remarkable opportunity to represent ones country internationally and
a unique learning process which yields experiences that delegates
can benefit from for the rest of their lives.
The foundation of EYP is the National EYP Committees in over European countries. National Committees co-ordinate EYP activities in
their countries, organise events, and select representatives to international EYP sessions. On the international level, the activities are
co-ordinated by the international organisation of the EYP.
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Instructions to teachers
Preparations
o
Getting started
o Brainstorming
o
Developing solutions
Defence speech
Attack speech
Open debate
o Voting
o
Conclusion
o
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Preparations by Teacher
7590 min
Additional information
If any part of the simulation seems unclear during the preparations, or
if you have any questions regarding the simulation in general, please
contact your local EYP.
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Background material
Each committee is appointed a topic. EYP has compiled material to
help students prepare for the committee work on a selection of topics. The material is handed out to students when the committees are
formed, preferably a week before the simulation.
Students should not prepare for the simulation in groups, but research
and familiarise with the topic independently and form their own opinions which they can then express during committee work. Therefore,
you should tell the students that the idea is to discuss the topics later
and encourage them to form opinions on their topics. If you want, you
can naturally also refer to other background material, e.g., course
books, websites, media platforms or the EUs websites, and introduce
the topics before students discuss and debate them.
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Committee Work
Committee Work
Stages of CW
I
Starting 10 min
II Introduction
20 min
10 min
Committee work is the first and the core stage of the simulation. Committee work should be allocated at least 60 to 75 minutes, but if the
lesson plan allows it and students want to continue the discussions,
more than two lessons can be used for this stage.
Human Knot
Even though students already know each other, it is good to start the
lesson with a short teambuilding activity. Short group activities show
students that the lesson is unordinary and help in getting even the
more quiet students involved in the group. In the following pages are
examples of two ways (Human knot, Fastest ball) to start the committee stage and relieve nervousness among students and help them
relax. The icebreaker games should be quick and take no more than
10 minutes.
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Committee Work
1. Brainstorming
Brainstorming5 min
Give each student 2 to 4 pieces of paper (e.g. Post-it notes). Ask
students to think about their topic and write down on each piece of
paper a word or a phrase (1 to 3 words) that they find important and
relevant to the topic.
Explaining5 min
2. Explaining
Grouping5 min
3. Grouping
When all ideas are on the table, it is time to group them. The committee removes multiple versions of the same idea and organises the
rest in a few groups according to similarity of ideas. Possible categories could be money, religion, human rights, and other matters the
grouping of course depends on the committee topic, but 3 to 5 groups
is enough. If the committee notices that a relevant word or phrase is
missing, they can still add it on the list. After this, however, the list is
finished and new discussion points should not be added in order to
keep the discussions manageable.
Scheduling5 min
4. Scheduling
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Committee Work
III&IVDiscussingandWriting(30-50min)
Overview
During committee work, students discuss their topic following the
schedule they have set up. In practice, the committee discusses each
group of ideas separately and goes through the ideas one key word
or phrase at a time.
The aim of this stage is to identify problems and issues related to the
topic and to find solutions on which the whole group agrees.
Unanimity
One of the basic principles of the
EYP methodology is consensus
within the committee.
Unanimity
One of the basic principles of the EYP methodology is consensus
within the committee. The committees do not vote on matters, but
should instead reach decisions that all members agree on. If a group
of 7 to 10 people are unable to form a common opinion, the proposed
resolution will not convince others either.
A resolution?
The result of the committee work is a resolution (a model is included in
this guide). In short, a resolution is a list of clauses which summarise
the problems identified by the committee and the solutions they propose, one solution for each problem. Students should take notes during the discussion and write down in collective memory, for example
on a large sheet of paper, the problems they have focused on and the
solutions they have agreed on. This way, disagreement on outcomes
can be avoided in the end of the discussion stage.
Writing a resolution
In the end of the discussion, committees gather the problems and
solutions on a resolution form. Both problems and solutions should
be described as clearly and concisely as possible, preferably in single
sentences. A blank resolution form is included in this guide book and
is also available in electronic form on the project website.
Distributing roles
Having finished the resolution, the committee needs to plan a strategy
for the General Assembly. The different roles and the course of the
General Assembly will be described later in more detail.
10
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Commitee Work
Teachers Role
Teachers Role
The aim of committee work is to find solutions to the problem discussed
and to propose actions to realise the solutions. Usually committees
begin to collect such suggestions because they know the final goal,
the writing of a resolution. However, it is important that the teacher follows the group work closely and if needed, reminds the group to write
down things they have agreed on.
Consensus
The final moments of the discussion are usually when disagreements
arise and the need to reach a compromise becomes evident. The key
principle of the resolution is that it represents the opinion of the entire
committee: the whole group needs to support it. Thus, you should not
take a stance or sides in possible conflicts; the only way to assist is
to offer facts to help students form opinions. Some ways of resolving
possible conflict situations are presented later.
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
Fastest Ball
The idea of the game is simple:
the groups task is to move the ball
from one member to another as
quickly as possible. The ball has to
touch each group member at least
once!
For example, you can divide the
class in two groups and give them
ten minutes to come up with a
solution to the problem. After ten
minutes, the groups will show their
solutions while you time them. After
the game, its time to face more
demanding challenges!
11
General Assembly
Overview
Overview
Permission to address
the Assembly
During the General Assembly permission to address the Assembly is
granted by the President.
Committees ask the permission by
rising a sign with the committees
name, and wait for the president to
recognise them
Preparations
Ideally, each student receives a copy of all resolutions in advance. This
way, students have time to prepare for defending their own committees resolutions and for discussing the work of other groups. Before
this stage, the committees need to decide who presents (reads)
the resolution and who holds the defence speech.
The teacher or an experienced EYP alumnus presides over the General Assembly, in other words, moderates the discussion and sees to
it that the schedule is followed. If discussion seems to come to an end
too early, the teacher can of course reactivate the discussion by asking
questions. The committee defending its resolution answers questions
from others so that other students can then decide whether or not the
presenting committee has in their opinion found good solutions. After
discussion, each resolution is voted on. While asking and answering
questions students stand up and when presenting the resolution and
holding the defence speech stand in front of the class.
Rejecting a proposal
It is important for the students to
understand, that a proposal being
rejected does not imply it being a
bad proposal. It can also be a sign
of creativity and courage to propose new controversial solutions.
12
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
General Assembly
Procedure
1. Reading
2. Defence Speech
Voting3 min
After the above phases, students vote on passing or failing the resolution. Each student can vote FOR/AGAINST/ABSTAIN. Students
should be encouraged to form their own opinions, since casting an
empty vote can be disrespectful towards other committees work. First,
the votes are collected within each committee after which a representative from each committee announces how the committee voted.
The votes are counted, and by a majority vote the motion for a resolution is passed or failed. It is important that students understand that if
a resolution fails to pass, it does not mean that the resolution was not
good. Failing can also be a sign of creativity and courage to suggest
new and controversial solutions.
3. Open Debate
4. Voting
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
13
The Resolution
Example resolution
DATE
Committee Information
Name of the school,
names of the committee members
and topic of the committee.
School of Europe
Introduction:
Introduction
The introduction presents the
current situation and problems
related to the committees topic
Proposals
The proposals part outlines the
actions the committee proposes
for developing the status quo and
solving the problems presented in
the Introduction part.
14
Proposals:
Proposal 1. The European Union must have a common agricultural policy in the
f uture, but at the same time allow reasonable national subsidising
of agriculture.
Proposal 2. The EU must lower subsidies and tariffs in all products to open markets
f or products from the developing countries.
Proposal 3. However, The EU must always secure the possibilities of sustaining
a griculture to some extent in all countries and to heavily encourage
modernising and transforming the sector by supporting for example
organic farming and agricultural travel.
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
What to do when...?
Tips
...writing resolutions?
In the end of committee work, the committee needs to formulate their
agreed solutions into a resolution. Sometimes this can be difficult
when students disagree on small details. To avoid such problems, the
students are recommended to write down at least raw versions of the
clauses during the discussion, to write down the agreed solution as
soon as an agreement has been reached. That way, all that remains
to be done in the end is to rewrite the clauses.
If students are short on time or disagree on how to express the
solutions, the clauses can be divided for individual group members
or pairs to finish. Finally, the entire committee will go through each
clause together and approve or revise them. It is important to remember that each clause needs the approval of all committee members.
The resolution has to be the result of the whole committees work, and
everyone has to be able to defend it.
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
15
Feedback questions
Did the discussions affect your knowledge of or attitude towards the
EU?
Was it easy to defend your opinions?
Did you get upset? If yes, which statement caused that?
In which ways was the parliament simulation useful?
Feedback Form
You can fill in a feeback form
at the programme website
www.parliamentsimulation.org.
16
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
The Programme
Contact
European Youth Parliament
Schwarzkopf Foundation
Sophienstrasse 28 - 29
10178 Berlin
Germany
phone: +49 280 95 146
info@eypej.org
www.eypej.org
e y p pa r l i a m e n t s i m u l at i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
17
Today the EYP is one of the largest European platforms for political
debate, intercultural encounters, political educational work and the
exchange of ideas among young people in Europe. The EYP consists
of a network of 34 European associations and organisations in which
thousands of young people are active in an honorary capacity.
At the over 50 regional, national and international events year in the
34 national organisations, the EYP reaches well over 20,000 young
people. Three major International Sessions also take place every year.
On each of these occasions the European Youth Parliament brings
together 300 young people from 34 countries for 10 days in alternating
European cities.
18
e y p p a r l i a m e n t s i m u l a t i o n w w w . e y p e j . o r g
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and theCommission cannot be held responsible
for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
www.eypej.org