Each student in sixth through eighth grade was assigned countries to research and represent in four committees throughout the day.
By KRYSTAL NURSE
The Sun
Friends School of Mullica Hill hosted a United Nations Day on Nov. 3 where sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students civilly debated student-picked topics as if they were representatives of a country. Students discussed issues and resolutions in the economic effects of climate change, capital punishment, drug addiction and artificial intelligence committees.
Each student, said Peter Manzelmann, fifth- through eighth-grade English and social studies teacher, is assigned a country from a different continent every year to make them more aware of what issues concern the regions the most.
“If a sixth grader gets a country in Africa, in seventh grade, they’ll get a country in a different continent and same with eighth grade, so that over the course of their three years, they’ve studied a country in depth in other places of the world and it gives them a perspective on how life is similar, or different, from how we live here,” said Manzelmann.
Manzelmann has been a part of UN Day for 20 years and added it’s inspiring to see kids come in “dressed up, have a discussion and talk about some really difficult topics.”
“We’re planting seeds about the UN and how it’s a vehicle for the peace and security,” said Manzelmann. “It gives students the opportunity to do a group project together instead of reading out of a textbook and memorizing for a test.”
Students were instructed to start the day with a UN General Assembly where a roll call of the nations was made. Following that, they broke up into four committees to have an in-depth discussion on how each topic is, or isn’t, relevant to the country they represent and what needs to be changed or kept the same.
Leading up to UN Day, students were asked to present their country’s culture and food during the school’s World’s Fair and share their knowledge to all in some fashion.
“A kid made this statue of a bungee jumping they do in Vanuatu, and other kids prepared foods from these far away countries and they really begin to learn about the global community and that the world isn’t just the United States,” said Manzelmann.
Brad Gibson, who teaches English, humanities and civics for grades sixth through eighth, asked his students when school started what topics are of interest to them and had them present on why they should be covered for UN Day.
“That’s the idea of the curriculum: to make them into global citizens and not just think about their local community,” said Gibson. “So this project is designed to make them imagine what it’s like to live somewhere else and have a different set of concerns.”
Throughout the presentations, students were seen representing major countries such as China, United Kingdom, United States and Russia, and smaller-scale ones like Namibia, Rwanda, Morocco and Bhutan. Erica Salmon, director of admissions and marketing, added eighth-grade students are usually chosen to represent the big five countries in the UN (France, China, Russia, United Kingdom and the United States).
The students collaborated with one another during the presentations through their iPads and made live edits to a Google Document dedicated to each committee, which Gibson said was pleasing to see.
“It’s gratifying to see that they’re figuring out how to work together and lead discussions,” said Gibson. “We work on it throughout sixth and seventh grade so that by the time they’re in eighth grade, they’ll have these skills.”
In a topic like drug addiction, where the kids discussed the idea of growing opium poppy seeds and economically benefiting from the exchange of drugs, Spanish and drama teacher Sophie Ragone said it showed through their presentations how much they learned about the topic and its application to the countries they represent.
“My favorite part so far was listening to them talk about the crisis in each of their countries because it showed that they really put in the effort to understand or try to understand a place that is different from their home,” said Ragone.
Ragone went on to say that while there were times when the students didn’t debate on the issue as a country, they still kept the focus of UN Day by relating it to their everyday lives with a discussion on police presence in schools, searching items on school property and whether or not it’s an invasion of privacy.
“I feel proud of their ability to have a discourse that is polite, kind, respectful and to listen to each other so even if they’re not able to solve all of the world’s problems, at least they’re working together,” said Ragone.
