Slovak secondary school students also had the opportunity to try out the Electionville game and learn about democratic and local governance in a playful way.
EulectionVille is a board or floor game for groups. By playing ElectionVille, students had the opportunity to understand democratic processes, the principles of how political decisions work and their complexities. They also practised group work and presentation, argumentation and debating skills. The Eulectionville game provided an innovative, fun and educational way of educating secondary school pupils.
The game was played by students in 12 schools in Slovakia and a total of 353 students played the game. Teachers enjoyed the game and informed us that they will definitely use the game in the future as part of their education. The list of schools in which students played EulectionVille is as follows – Business Academy Levice- date 12.6.2023 and 7..2023, Gymnasium Sobrance- date 8.6.2023, Secondary School of Transport and Services, Nové Zámky- date: 9.6.2023, Secondary Vocational School of Commerce and Services – Kereskedelmi és Szolgáltatóipari, Komárno – date: 16.6.2023 , Secondary Secondary School, Detva – date: 5.6.2023, Secondary Sports School, Košice- date: 6.6.2023, , Business Academy Michalovce– date: 23.6.2023, Private Secondary Vocational School in Žilina– date: 6.6.2023, Evangelical Gymnasium J.A. Komenského, Košice– date:14.9.2023, SOŠOaS Michalovce- date:6.6.2023 and 7.6.2023, European English School in Prešov- date: 13.6.2023, Secondary Medical School in Prievidza – date:26.9.2023 and OA Imrich Karvas in Bratislava– date:25.9.2023. .
In the schools, students played the game in an educational workshop concept. The aim of this workshop was to promote active citizenship of young people at local and European level. Furthermore, during the workshop the pupils actively practised group work, cooperation, presentation, argumentation and discussion skills.
EulectionVille also aimed to improve their ability to find logical arguments under pressure and to have a civilised debate. Students learned to actively seek compromises and understand the opinion of others. Last but not least, they had the opportunity to understand democratic processes and to understand the principles of how political decisions work and their complexity. In most schools, the game took place over 2 lessons of 90 minutes. However, some classes needed more time and played the ElectionVille game for 3 lessons.
What did the teachers say about the game ?
Teacher 1- The game is a very good way not only to understand but also to practice active participation of young people
Teacher 2- We played the game in 4 lessons. It took us 1 hour to get acquainted with the rules of the game. The game was quite challenging but interesting for my students. What the students appreciated about the game was the possibility of cooperating with each other. expressing their own opinions and making decisions. I will definitely include this game in the classroom next year.
Teacher 3. The Eulectionville game is a nice diversion to the classroom. Pupils were engaged and revealed their hidden sides too – regarding political questions (answers). Very good – a fun way for pupils to try out discussion (debate) and learn to accept other opinions and accept the majority decision.
What did the students say about the game ?
Dominik: I liked the fact that we experienced authentic participation and interactivity because the activities in Electionville are interactive and engaging for the students. For the first time in our lives, we experienced deciding the political strategies of our and other political parties in a game and watching them interact. Such interactivity helps us pupils better understand the political process and supports our active learning.
„The game was interesting, I liked that it led us to think and decide together“
„It’s a learning game which taught me how to manage money. I could have had a chance to try how it works in politics“
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
