Teaching globalisation in the social sciences

The effectiveness of a refugee simulation

in Learning and Teaching
Author:
Stacy Keogh George University in Spokane sgeorge@whitworth.edu

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Abstract

This article describes the incorporation of a refugee simulation into an upper-division sociology course on globalisation at a liberal arts institution in the United States. The simulation is designed to inform students of the refugee process in the United States by inviting participants to immerse themselves in refugee experiences by adopting identities of actual refugee families as they complete four stages of the refugee application process. Student reactions to the refugee simulation suggest that it is an effective tool for demonstrating the complexities of the refugee experience in the United States and for evoking social empathy.

Contributor Notes

Stacy Keogh George is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington. She researches national and international social and political movements and regularly teaches study-abroad courses in sociology and social change. E-mail: sgeorge@whitworth.edu

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Learning and Teaching

The International Journal of Higher Education in the Social Sciences

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