From: Andrew.Probert@f20.n772.z3.fidonet.org (Andrew Probert)
Newsgroups: k12.ed.soc-studies
Subject: Exchange              1/
Date: Sun, 03 Jan 93 01:03:06 PDT
Organization: FidoNet node 3:772/20 - IBM NZ Ltd Gate, Auckland

MM=8>Hello Andrew I ama seventh grade social studies teacher in a small city
MM=8>upstate New York called Glens Falls. My students have shown
MM=8>great interest in your country and would love to share any
MM=8>information they can with you. They Know very little about
MM=8>economics however they are very curious. if you can think
MM=8>of a small experiment that would introduce our countries I
MM=8>would love to see you exchange information with them. Maybe
MM=8>a gross national product comparison our somthing more
MM=8>interesting if you can think of it. Please return my
MM=8>message if interested thanks.


Hello, Michael. I am awfully sorry about the delay in my replying to
your message. I got caught up with Christmas and New Year celebrations
down here in NZ which can last up to a week or more. Moreover I was away
from my computer for about a week. I think your idea of an exchange is
really good. As it happens I have thought of something that I an your
students can get together and do which would be more interesting than a
simple GNP comparison. Let me explain.

Have you by any chance heard of a computer simulation program called
SimCity? This simulation package ( the word game does not really do the
program justice) requires the player to manage and guide the growth of a
city over a period of about 200 to300 years. The program adopts a
simplistic format for a modern city. A city is described as being made
up of about 5 elements:
a) there are 3 types of zones or functional areas for the city;
residential, commercial, and industrial
b) there are city services such as roads, railways, and powergrids
c) there are special units such as stadiums, airports, powerplants,
firestations,etc

Each month or year of playtime the player is presented with running data
on how the city is faring given the way it has been set up by the
player, and given any recent changes made to it. This data includes; the
amount of money the city has earned in the past year in both gross and
net of maintenance costs, ie Gross Domestic Product for the city; the
present population for the city in that month, and the rate and
direction of change in that population for the preceding 10  playyears;
a poll of the city's population for each year reflecting the mood of the
city; plus lots more. Armed with this information the idea of the
program is for the player to facilitate the growth of the city while
remaining solvent and keeping the population relatively happy.

I was playing SimCity the other day and I got to thinking what a
wonderful educational tool it could make. One of the big problems I have
had in trying to explain the concepts  of GNP, population growth rates,
rates of productivity growth, etc. to people is that to most people such
data is irrelevant, and so boring and meaningless. It is also incredibly
abstract to most.
However, in SimCity such data is very relevant and far from meaningless.
In order to manage the city successfully the player must pay close
attention to the GDP, population fluctuations etc. In fact such data
even becomes interesting after a while. SimCity can be very addictive,
and I have often found myself and friends who also play the game talking
to each other about GDP fluctuations, dramatic falls in the population,
productivity losses,etc. with great interest. Most of my friends are not
economists and would in other circumstances find these things as dull as
ditchwater.

Now, my idea was that the simplistic format for a city used in SimCity
could be used quite well to describe almost any city in the modern
world. In fact such a basic format of data should be able to give one a
fair idea of the character and "health" of any modern city chosen.
As a result we could use the city format seen in SimCity as the basis
for an interesting comparison making project. In fact it might not be
necessary for the participating to have even played SimCity since I
could describe in greater detail the format involved for those who
haven't played. Now the project I am suggesting is as follows:

1) Participants would familiarise themselves with how
SimCity works. Alternatively, participants familiarise themselves with
the basic city format which I can provide.

2) Then the participants pick a real city to study. This could be the
city in which they live, or any other city on which the
participants can obtain information.

3) Participants then individually or in groups proceed to analyse
their chosen city in terms of the simplistic city format provided (
geography would also be included). This will probably involve some
research. However,  it will be entirely up to the participant how he or
she goes about obtaining the data needed. The sort of data that would be
needed would include the zoning scheme for the city, the population of
the city and the pattern of population change over the past few years,
the present mood of the city as reflected in any polls that have
recently been conducted, the geographical features of the city, the
history and age of the city,etc.

4) Each participant would then distill this data into the simplistic
format seen in SimCity, to obtain a very basic outline of the character
and "health" of the city. Such a distilling or simplification process is
a very useful way of coming to grips with new information and concepts.
>>> Continued to next message
___
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