Student Development
K-12 Program
Today, students learn more from hands on development experiences than any book or informational packet could ever teach. There is something within the concept of seeing and learning in a particular environment that creates a better learning experience for the students. The following are several ideas to integrate into your classroom to create more hands on experiences for your students. Some of the ideas are more sophisticated and extensive, but there are several ideas that are much more feasible, depending on how in depth you would like your classroom to go.
Washington DC
Organize and develop a 4-7 day trip to our nation's capital. Washington DC is one of the most internationally developed cities in the United States. The value of an excursion to DC will provide students, not only and understanding of our political and governing bodies, but as well as the international commerce aspects of the United States. The visit should include some of the following concepts:
- US trade relations / International trade
- Interaction with leaders in the fields of International Commerce
- National Leadership Forum on Defense, Intelligence, and Diplomacy
- Foreign Policy objectives
Los Angeles
International Economic Summit
Organize and develop an excursion to Los Angeles, CA to attend the annual International Economic Summit (IES). At the IES, statewide high school students explore basic concepts within the international trade theme. Students work in small groups and adopt a country and then take on the role of economic advisors. Each team's goal is to improve the country's standard of living through international trade. Each team will conduct somewhat extensive research to evaluate the conditions of their country and develop strategic plans to improve standards of living. The summit brings all the countries together to share and implement their strategic plans through a day of negotiation and trade. Other curriculum topics include scarcity, opportunity costs, standard of living, voluntary trade, supply and demand, and comparative advantage.
Local Multinational Companies
Smaller Scale
Take a quick look at your surrounding community and find/contact local companies that operate on an international level. Set up a visit with the company to get quick overviews of how international operations within their organization work. Make sure students ask plenty of questions so they get the true idea of how an MNC operates. You may consider requiring them to take notes as they tour the facilities and learn. These notes could enable the students to give reports on what they have learned and even compare the company's practices with what they have learned in the classroom.