Rationale: This lesson allows students to explore the concept of competition versus collaboration and to begin to understand that conflicts are easier to manage when the people in conflict work together, trust one another, and strive to maintain their relationship. This is true in interpersonal conflicts, but also in inter-group and international conflicts.
Objectives:
- To examine how cooperation can help parties in conflict find mutually agreeable solutions.
- To explore the role of trust in building or maintaining relationships in conflict situations.
Materials: Cross the Line Handout (Download PDF - Requires free Adobe Reader)
Time: 20 minutes
Procedures:
- Select six to nine volunteers from the class.
- Divide the volunteers into groups of three and have them stand in different places in the room.
- Ask for one volunteer in each group to be an observer.
- Have the other two in each group face each other with a piece of material, or an object on the floor dividing them.
- Provide each student in the pairs with the statements on the Cross the Line handout. Gather those assigned Student 1 and make sure they understand what they are supposed to do. Do the same with those assigned Student 2. Tell them they can use any strategy except physical violence to accomplish their task.
- Tell them that they will begin on “Action” and have 3 minutes to solve the problem.
- After the 3 minutes is over, lead a group discussion using some or all of the following questions:
- How many groups “solved” the problem? How did they do this?
- Why were some groups unable to solve the problem?
- What could they have done differently?
- How important was it to trust the person on the other side of the line?
- What does the game teach about cooperation versus competition?
- How can you relate this learning to conflict situations?
Note: The solution is for both people in the pair to cross the line to the other side and to stay on the other side until the 3 minutes are over.
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