Incorporating a Sophisticated Supreme Court Simulation into an Undergraduate Constitutional Law Class

Abstract

Role-playing activities and simulations have been popular teaching tools in political science courses for many years. One area where simulations and role-playing activities have been used extensively is constitutional law. These projects can range from a short judicial decision-making scenario to a full-semester Supreme Court simulation involving lawyers, interest groups, and justices. This paper explains how to incorporate a sophisticated Supreme Court simulation into an undergraduate constitutional law course. Instead of having students play the role of a generic justice who must decide a case, the simulation requires students to assume the roles of current Supreme Court justices and they must decide cases and write an opinion from the perspective of the justice they are playing. This type of role-playing assignment requires higher order thinking because students must apply their substantive knowledge of constitutional law and the jurisprudence of their justice in deciding important constitutional issues. Although the simulation places extra demands on the instructor and students, the effort is worthwhile because this kind of class project creates a learning environment that is challenging, interactive, and fun.