Abstract

International negotiations, particularly in international organisations with a large number of members, can be long and fraught. Reaching consensus between a large number of countries is not an easy task and this point is often ignored in news reports relating to international negotiations. This article argues that when teaching students about the conduct of international negotiations, their understanding can be greatly enhanced by the use of active learning techniques such as role playing, simulations and games. However, much of the literature describes simulations which take time to prepare and are often run over several hours or days. This article argues that we need to develop shorter, seminar length simulations which students can relate to in order to help their understanding of the issues and processes around negotiations. Highlighting the consensus process in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and drawing on experience of teaching students about the WTO, this article elaborates a seminar length exercise which can be used to illustrate some of the negotiation processes in the WTO while at the same time teaching students about the process and difficulties of consensus building with a familiar scenario.

摘要

国际谈判，尤其是在拥有大量成员的国际组织中，可能会漫长而充满挑战。在众多国家之间达成共识并非易事，这一点在有关国际谈判的新闻报道中往往被忽略。本文认为，在向学生教授国际谈判的进行时，可以通过使用角色扮演、模拟和游戏等主动学习技术，大大提高学生的理解力。然而，许多文献描述的模拟需要时间来准备，并且通常运行数小时或数天。本文认为，我们需要开发更短的、研讨会长度的模拟，学生可以与之相关，以帮助他们理解围绕谈判的问题和过程。