The Beacon School
Since this school year began, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have dominated the world’s headlines. These conflicts have spilled over into many others areas: Iran, Syria, Lebanon, among others.
At the same time, violence and tension in another crucial part of the Middle East also persist: between the Israelis and Palestinians, with almost weekly deaths on both sides of that dispute. Many people would assert that resolving the conflicts in the Middle East is the central international problem of our times.
On Friday January 15, 2010 at New York University, Beacon’s 9th grade students are going to try to do what all the world’s political leaders know they should: hold a world summit on the possibilities for peace in the Middle East. To culminate our semester-long inquiry into the conflicts over land and ideas, we will focus on the past and present of the Middle East. All 9th grade students will assume the role of diplomats/negotiators representing key nations of the world and participate in a simulated conference. At this conference, students will debate past and current issues and work on producing resolutions for peace in the future.
In this project, we will continue to explore the larger themes of the semester. Are the conflicts motivated by religion or by struggles for power and land?
Each of the 9th grade streams at Beacon will research and represent one of the countries for the conference. The countries are: Egypt, France, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United States.
Students will be diplomats/negotiators for their countries in one of the critical issue areas for the conference. The issue areas are:
10. Iran
Assessment
Position paper (due January 7). Type a two-three page statement that explains your country’s position on the issue you are assigned; attach a hand-drawn map that depicts your issue in the Middle East; and include a properly formatted bibliography. The statement should include:
Introduction:
Thesis: According to your country’s point of view, what is the best way to alleviate or solve the problem/issue and why?
Body Two and Three: Ways of Dealing with the Problem (Give Israel and the Palestinian Authority’s points of views for dealing with the problem)
Conclusion:
***PLAGARISM***
If you take words and ideas from sources, you MUST give them credit. CITE
ALL YOUR SOUCES! This also includes if you take main ideas from someone else
(such as the issue statements). You still have to cite them. You
must cite them in the text of your paper AND in your works cited page. Failure
to do so will earn you a 0 on this paper. You will be reported to the
academic standards committee and you will have to do this paper over again
and it will be averaged with the 0 paper.
Conference Participation (on January 15). You will present your country’s position on the issue, take notes on other countries’ statements, and seek a settlement or compromise that all or most of the countries can live with. You must be an active diplomat/negotiator throughout the day, seeking allies and searching for solutions. Your issue area group will report to the entire assembly at the end of the day on the settlement or compromises that you reached. You must dress in formal attire (that would be acceptable at the United Nations).
Conference Reflection (due on January 18): A two-page typed statement that is based on the notes that you take at the conference. What was the position of each of the countries? How did the negotiations go? Did you feel that your group was able to play an important role in shaping the final outcome? What do you think of the final settlement or compromise? In the bigger picture, why is it so difficult for countries to resolve difficult problems, especially in the Middle East?