Engaging International Data in the Classroom: Using the ICB Interactive Data Library to Teach Conflict and Crisis Analysis

The challenges of teaching quantitative research methods in international relations are well documented. The key to igniting interest and engaging students lies in creating a participatory learning environment in the classroom. This article discusses these challenges and describes a new piece of software that may be helpful in that regard. The ICB Interactive Data Library , or the ICB Library for short, enhances access to the information available in the ICB data by organizing it into an interactive software package (Brecher, Hewitt, and Wilkenfeld, 2000). The ICB Library is an especially valuable teaching tool because it allows students to easily access the resources from a major data collection project which, in turn, exposes them to the challenges and opportunities offered by quantitative research in international relations. After describing the ICB Library , this article will discuss how it can be used in the classroom via problem-based learning techniques.     

The Uses and Limits of the Model United Nations in an International Relations Classroom

The Model United Nations, already a mainstay of many undergraduate institutions, not only provides a useful framework for particular classes, but also offers an opportunity to integrate several elements of an undergraduate international studies curriculum. However, it is not without challenges for the instructor. To use the Model United Nations format effectively requires the instructor to plan carefully, coordinate activities with the other elements of a class, and never allow the game to overwhelm the learning. When done correctly, the excitement generated by the Model United Nations can be a key for opening the world to students who might otherwise have drifted through the mandatory introduction to international relations. The process of student teaching student, both within and across courses, is beneficial for the experienced student and the novice alike, encouraging peer interaction and cooperative learning. As an instructional device, the Model UN is not a panacea, but a valuable supplement to more conventional teaching methods.     

Ethics and Foreign Policy: Structured Debates for the International Studies Classroom

Debates about humanitarian intervention, foreign and defense policy priorities, and the ethics of the use of force have become highly politicized in the post-Cold War era. This article explores the value of structured classroom debates on ethical dimensions of international relations as active teaching and learning tools for introductory and advanced international studies courses. Specifically, this article presents design information for structured debates on the ethics of the use of military force, humanitarian interventions, and U.S. foreign policy toward international institutions such as the International Criminal Court (ICC). Building on the literature on active teaching and learning, the article describes the development of these exercises and assesses their effectiveness through ten years of classroom application.     

Simulating the Creation of a New International Human Rights Treaty: Active Learning in the International Studies Classroom

This article details a simulation of formulating a new international human rights treaty designed for an introductory international studies course. Student understanding and interest in a range of international relations topics—including diplomacy, two –level games, international law, human rights, and group decision making—are reinforced by actively engaging the students in policy formulation and state –to –state negotiations. The article is structured around the four key components of active learning approaches—educational objectives, design parameters, procedures, and assessment and debriefing—in order to provide a full understanding of the goals, set –up, process, and advantages of the simulation. The simulation has been successfully run multiple times at both a large state university and a small liberal arts institution. Supportive student feedback and an interesting variety of outcomes indicate that this simulation is a positive addition to the course and reinforces the use of active learning approaches in the international studies classroom.     

Experiencing Globalization: Active Teaching and Learning in International Political Economy

This article explores the teaching and learning challenges for the discipline of international studies (IS) that arise from the contemporary social, economic, and political changes usually labeled "globalization." The focus is upon the challenge posed to IS by a transformation in the nature of the relationship of teachers and students to the subject matter that they study: that is, teachers and students increasingly experience and contribute to globalization in the course of their daily lives as they simultaneously teach and learn about it. Significantly for the study of globalization in IS, pedagogical debates surrounding active teaching and learning highlight the potential for strategies that actively engage students' interests and everyday experiences with the subject itself. On this basis, the article outlines some potential routes into the active teaching and learning of globalization in the field of international political economy, illustrating these with examples from classroom activities and exercises.     

Linking Experiential and Classroom Education: Lessons Learned from The American University–Amnesty International USA Summer Institute on Human Rights

How can internships and other forms of experiential or service learning be designed to best accomplish academic goals? This article explores the benefits and pitfalls of experiential education by looking at the relevant scholarly literature and at students' and faculty members' experience with the American University–Amnesty International USA Summer Institute on Human Rights. Overall, faculty and students report that internships, when integrated with traditional classroom learning, greatly enhance learning overall. The article suggests strategies for structuring internships to enrich students' learning.     

Open Doors and Closed Ceilings: Gender-Based Patterns and Attitudes in the International Studies Association

In 1995, the Gender Research Committee of the International Studies Association conducted a survey of the membership concerning the impact of gender on members' lives. In 2006, the Women's Caucus for International Studies sponsored a follow-up survey utilizing similar questions. A comparison of the findings of the two studies shows increased representation of women within international studies, persistent frustration with the slow pace of progress in women's access to senior positions and in accommodating family issues, some evidence of a chilly climate for women and a leaky pipeline, and significant differences between men's and women's perceptions of the status of women in the profession. The 2006 survey reveals a marked increase in concerns regarding the tension between women's family responsibilities and the academic environment, identification of structural discrimination, and concerns that men have been disadvantaged by affirmative action for women.     

Drug Trafficking, the International System, and Decision-Making Constraints: A Policy-Making Simulation

The classroom simulation laid out in this article can help international relations educators to identify compelling linkages between the abstract global theories and concepts typically analyzed in an introductory international relations or international political economy course and what most students have experienced as a 'local,' even deeply personal issue—illicit drugs. By role-playing an international drug cartel intent upon advancing the global production, trafficking, and consumption of illicit drugs, students will see the world as it increasingly appears to non-state actors—as effectively borderless. By assuming the role of consultants to the U.S. drug czar, students experience for themselves the often vexing decisional constraints that hamper the ability of governments to respond effectively to transsovereign challenges. By offering a primer on constructing and running this simulation, the article contributes to a growing literature within the discipline that advocates and supports moving away from traditional lecture methods of teaching toward approaches that advance discussion-based, interactive, and participatory learning.     

A Survey of International Studies Programs at Liberal Arts Colleges and Universities in the Midwest: Characteristics and Correlates

International studies majors have become increasingly popular at liberal arts colleges and universities in the Midwest. What are the features of various international studies programs, particularly regarding the degree of "structure" in the major? What factors appear to be related to whether a liberal arts college or university offers an international studies major in the first place? What explains the variations that exist that characterize international studies majors? This paper empirically investigates these questions by surveying sixty-six liberal arts and sciences colleges and universities in Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri. We find that although international studies majors are somewhat prevalent in the "heartland," there is considerable variation in how they are structured. Further, the results suggest that whether or not an institution has an international studies program is largely a function of whether an institution has a graduate program in a field that allows for a concentration in international affairs. We conclude with some observations that might promote future discussion on development of international studies majors.