Thousands of middle school, high school, and college students around the world participate in Model United Nations, which involves substantial researching, public speaking, debating, and writing skills, as well as critical thinking, teamwork, and leadership abilities.
What is Model United Nations?
Model United Nations, also known as Model UN or MUN, is an extra-curricular activity in which students typically roleplay delegates to the United Nations and simulate UN committees. This activity takes place at MUN conferences, which is usually organized by a high school or college MUN club. At the end of most conferences, outstanding delegates in each committee are recognized and given an award certificate; the Best Delegate in each committee, however, receives a gavel.
Top 5 Reasons for Students to do Model UN
- STEP INTO THE SHOES OF WORLD LEADERS
- DISCUSS AND DEBATE CURRENT EVENTS
- MAKE NEW FRIENDS WHO CARE ABOUT THE WORLD
- BUILD CONFIDENCE IN PUBLIC SPEAKING
- IT MAY HELP YOU TO GET YOU TO YOUR DREAM UNIVERSITY
Kings participates in MUN conferences and provides students with the opportunity to gain this invaluable experience for further personal growth.
How you can help your child succeed in Model UN
Get them to sign up!
Encourage you child to join Model UN - that little push may be all it takes to get them to go to
their first meeting and find out if this activity is right for them. Talk about the benefits of meeting new people, traveling to different conferences, or even how it will look on a college application- just get them through the door that first time, and see where it takes them!
Ask them Questions
While you may be able to help your child with their Algebra or Social Studies homework, odds
are you’re not going to be able to teach them each of their topics at an MUN conference - unless you work in these fields, you probably aren’t an expert on Climate Change Related Natural Disasters, Communication Technology’s Role in Development, or the Conflict in Yemen. That’s okay! At a Model UN conference your child is going to have to intelligently speak about these issues in front of an audience, and explain what it means to them - so be their first audience! Sit down and ask them about their topic, what it means, who it impacts, and how to fix it. If they can’t explain it to you, they’ve got more research to do! Just by talking it through with you and explaining concepts to you for the first time, their confidence about these topics will soar, and they may even come up with new ideas from your conversation!
Sending them to programs and conferences
Local conferences are great, but students that don’t experience a broader range of Model UN programs are missing out! Sending your child to a major conference someplace they’ve never been, or a summer program at a college campus with dozens of new friends are a great way to deepen their experience past what’s available in your city. The potential to meet thousands of like-minded students from dozens of countries opens up their mind to a whole world of possibilities about college, careers, and may help them find what they’re passionate about.