The first three panels below are intro's to the "Prejudice" simulation. At the beginning of the simulation the whole class will view these. After this introduction, small groups of students will rotate through the several phases of the simulation. Most time is spent away from the computer, reading and discussing; small groups of students return to the computer only to input their decisions, get feedback, and receive instructions for the next round.

Students are the collective "mayor" of the town and must make decisions based on the information given them by the cadre of advisors pictured below (also played by the students) who come from different perspectives (campaign manager, political activist, lawyer, and historian). The students must read informational booklets, each based on the viewpoint of one of the advisors. Based on what they read, and following the role of their advisor as closely as possible, the students advise the mayor as to the best course of action to take.

The simulation requires several decisions to be made. The choices which are available depend on the objectives/priorities set by each small group at the beginning of the simulation. The mayor listens to the opinions offered by the advisors and then must make a choice.

Depending on the choices available to the mayor and the priorities/objectives set by each team at the beginning of the simulation, the computer will assign advisors relevant sections of the booklets to read. The four terms below, "Prejudice, Problems, Rights, Stereotypes" refer to sections in the advisors' booklets.

After advisors have presented the mayor with the information contained in the relevant passages of their booklets, the team will discuss alternative actions and make a decision. This process is repeated several times until the simulation is complete. At that time, the computer will score each team and let them know the results of the mayoral election.

At the end of the simulation, students often want to review their choices and decide how they might change their strategy should they play the simulation again. There are numerous possibilities for writing assignments before, during and after the simulation.

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Created by: krauss@lclark.edu
Updated: 2/25/98