PUBLIC SPEAKING & DEBATING

In committee sessions, students have an excellent opportunity to develop and cultivate their public speaking and debating skills. Delegates are expected to know their country’s position and to be able to communicate it effectively to their committee. Whether students speak in front of fourteen other delegates in the crisis committee or fifty nine others in one of the general assemblies, they will learn to clarify and articulate their ideas in a persuasive manner. Refining their public speaking skills in this way will help students increase the effectiveness of their communication in school and in their everyday lives.

COOPERATION & NEGOTIATION

With sharply contrasting views likely to arise in all bodies, negotiation and consensus building will be key aspects of the UMassMUN experience. Delegates will need to learn to compromise without abandoning their countries or persons fundamental beliefs and principles.

LEARNING ABOUT INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

Delegates will develop a keen understanding of international affairs by participating in UMassMUNXI. The committee background guides posted on the UMassMUN website and committee debate itself are designed with the goal of educating high school students about committee topics, with the idea that students’ own preparatory research will bring these topics into clearer focus by shedding light on the policies and practices of an individual country or character. Delegates will also gain a general knowledge of international organizations and current and historical issues in international politics. They will experience first-hand how the art of diplomacy is practiced and how the actions of the United Nations and other international organizations affect the global community.

PERSPECTIVE

Participation in UMassMUNXI will give students the unique opportunity to take on the role of a representative from a foreign nation. Delegates will have to shed their own personal beliefs in favor of the ideas, values, and principles of another government and people. UMassMUN seeks to offer a diverse array of countries and positions for delegates. More than sixty nations will be represented in the general assemblies, while regional bodies and security organizations will give delegates the opportunity to examine the positions of their country in a more specialized setting.