"Bringing the World to Our Children [now known as Global Classrooms] offers an exciting curriculum that promises to engage students, enrich the high school social studies program, and stimulate the sort of inquiry that enhances the educational goals of every classroom teacher."
-- Thomas W. Payzant, Superintendent, Boston Public Schools
Global Classrooms is a unique educational program designed and developed by the United Nations Association of Greater Boston. The program brings the Model UN experience into the classroom through a series of class sessions that teach negotiation, communication, research and conflict resolution skills. This preparation culminates in a Security Council simulation, with students playing the role of country ambassadors working to solve the conflict at hand. The curriculum provides students with an understanding of the UN, and teaches them valuable skills of cooperation and non-violent conflict resolution by bringing the complexities of global issues into the classroom. The program has now been used successfully by public and private high schools and middle schools as well as community colleges and American colleges abroad, reaching to date over 20,000 students. UNA-GB supports the curriculum with professional development seminars and teachers' workshops. The UNA-GB Education Office staff is available to assist teachers in the classroom.
Global Classrooms Model UN curriculum can be used:
- In-class as part of a social studies curriculum;
- Co-taught with English Language Arts or other disciplines;
- As a Model UN Club activity;
- By home schoolers;
- As an After School program.
Meeting of the Security Council
In Global Classrooms, students role-pay ambassadors to the Security Council
working to resolve an international conflict
"I learned that non-violent conflict resolutions are important in our daily lives."
-- Boston English High School Student
"...it brought the real world to the classroom, which we wouldn't have known about..."
-- City Roots High School Student
"It was a pleasure to see the students become more sophisticated about world issues and conflicts as we progressed through the program"
-- Madison Park High School Teacher
The Global Classrooms curriculum teaches:
- Conflict resolution skills
- Interactive experiential learning
- Team Building
- Negotiation skills
- Greater self-confidence
- Cultural sensibility
- Global awareness
- Knowledge of the UN and the Security Council
- Role playing and speech making skills
CURRICULUM DESCRIPTION
The curriculum includes a Teacher's Guide with twelve step-by-step lessons and resources, as well as a Student Workbook. A Classroom Set includes 1 Teacher's Guide and 20 Student Workbooks. Please contact Rachel Krebs, Education Director, at 617-482-4587 or rachel.krebs@unagb.org for further information.
Teacher's Guide
- alignment of curriculum to national standards in social studies (NCSS), English Language Arts (IRA/NTCE), geography (National Geography Content Standards), and civics and government (U.S. Department of Education);
- Twelve step-by-step lessons to teach skills necessary for a simulation of the U.N. Security Council. Lessons include standards, and assessment tool, extension activities and time-saver options;
- Four scenarios to choose from, each scenario offering: a summary of potential crisis varying in difficulty, Secretary-General’s Report to set the stage, Press Release for each scenario, and country positions for 15 countries of the Security Council, and parties to conflict; Resources for each lesson aligned with the lessons including a glossary of terms and acronyms, and Internet resources;
- Country packets to provide an overview of each country.
Student Workbook
- Consumable workbook with activities aligned to each lesson in the teacher’s guide;
- Activities to help create a Delegate’s Portfolio which can be used as portfolio assessment.
PROGRAM SUCCESS
Since its pilot launch in 1994, the Global Classrooms curriculum (originally known as Bringing the World to Our Children) has achieved classroom success in Boston, New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and across the USA and abroad, impacting over 20,000 students. In the spring of 1996, the curriculum was used by the Massachusetts Corporation for Educational Telecommunication (MCET) for a series of nationwide interactive broadcasts via satellite. The curriculum was fully updated in 2000.
Both students and teachers give the program's experiential learning format high marks. Evaluations reveal that participants increased their knowledge of the UN and its role in maintaining peace around the world. An overwhelming majority agree they learned important negotiation, communication, and conflict resolution skills, along with a greater understanding of world issues.
ORDER INFORMATION
View a Sample Lesson from Global Classrooms: Peacekeeping Unit.
A Classroom set including 1 Teacher's Guide and 20 Student Workbooks is $295, $195 for workshop participants.
For more information, please contact our Education Staff, at Tel: 617-482-4587, or via email at global.classrooms@unagb.org
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