It takes a village: using a trading game to teach economics
It takes a village: using a trading game to teach economics
It takes a village: using a trading game to teach economics
By Suzanne Bonner, K. K. Tang, Terence Yeo
March 10, 2023
Summary
Our team developed the game to provide students with insights into why international trade occurs.
A successful classroom game begins well before students enter the room.
We developed the trade game to have the option to add or remove villages to scale the game based on the number of students.
From our experience, if a game expects students to move around, a flat room with enough floor space between pieces of furniture is required.
The debrief is crucial in maximizing the benefits from the game because it formalizes the connections between the students' experiences and the learning objective.
We have found that students who were more engaged at the start of a game were also more active in the debriefing exercise.
In smaller, tighter classroom environments, students had additional questions relating to international trade in practice, including trade wars between China and the US, and what happens when there are trade embargoes - showing deeper takeaways from the game.
Reference
Bonner, S., Tang, K., &; Yeo, T. (2023, March 10). It takes a village: Using a trading game to teach economics. THE Campus Learn, Share, Connect. Retrieved April 5, 2023, from https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/it-takes-village-using-trading-game-teach-economics