Teaching American Students About Urbanization in Developing Countries: The Use of Role-Playing

A common problem facing many American instructors offering courses in Third World urban development issues is the difficulty of finding suitable pedagogical tools which not only capture the stark realities of developing world cities, but also expose the American student to a different planning context and milieu. While a case study approach can provide effective descriptions of the problems and procedures of urban development processes, it cannot cogently replicate the conditions in a developing country, or provide the students with an appreciation of urban development challenges. A role-playing simulation exercise, however, can overcome this constraint and is an effective pedagogical technique that also complements the case study method. This paper describes a role-playing exercise used in an undergraduate course. The administration of the exercise, its success and student reactions from a written evaluation are reported.