Using Model United Nations & Sustainability to Teach Geography

This is an extension of the Curriculum Guide which gives general topic overviews to help teachers change the way they think about teaching social studies.
This outline was created by Donell Willey & Merinda Davis. 

Utah Teachers: Teach the new Geography Core in a semester using the guides below

Simulations

  • Which Activities do you use to connect content to the world outside the classroom?
  • Skills: Content and Process-Outcome
    • ​What do you use in your classrooms to develop geographic skills and provide application for those skills?
    • Open-ended vs. closed-ended activities
  • MEU & MUN -
    • ​Real World, Adult Problems, BIG PROBLEMS rather than contrived story problems from a textbook.
    • Scholars, including Geographers talk with and write papers for each other at a time when the humanity's survival may depend on leaders being able to perceive or at least acknowledge the geographic perspective.​​

Foundational Geographic Literacy

Big Problems (Sustainability Topics Packet)

  • Water, Agriculture, Energy, Cities (Urbanization), Disaster Resilience
    • ​Tie into World Civilizations (Early Civilizations
    • Physical and Human Geography
    • ​Stand Alone Unites, Scaleable

Model United Nations Student Packet: Preparing students to apply geography in the real world - Students will:

  1. Collaborate in a democratic setting
    1. ​Diplomacy
    2. Parliamentary Procedure
  2. Problem solve and compromise rather than argue and confront
    1. ​Caucuses
    2. Resolution Writing
  3. Develop Global Awareness and Empathy
    1. ​Country Research
    2. Role Play/ Simulation
    3. Core & Global Competence Matrix
  4. Think Critically
    1. ​Thesis-Antithesis Activity
    2. Position-Solution
  5. Employ reading and writing skills aligned with the Core Standards
    1. Thesis-​Antithesis 
    2. Position Papers
    3. Resolutions (Synthesis)
  6. Develop Self-Esteem, Confidence and Leadership Skills
    1. ​Public Speaking
    2. Negotiation
    3. Challenge

See Some Examples