Brief Overview of the Summit Program

Detailed Summit Rules and Instructions for Teachers.

The Summit program is a ten-week economics curriculum designed around the theme of international trade and globalization. Over the course of the semester, you will guide your students in preparing to serve as virtual “Economic Advisors” to their assigned countries. You will advise your students in the following activities:

• Country Research
  Your students will explore economic, political, and social conditions. They will define their country's strengths and weaknesses.

• Strategic Improvement Plan
  You will help your students create a strategic improvement plan for the their countries based on their research findings. They will propose and submit an import plan prior to the culminating day-long Summit event.

• Economic Proposal
  They will also submit an “Economic Proposal” for debate at the Summit and they will vote for the most important proposals.

• The Summit Event
  You and your students will attend the culminating Summit competition and participate in the day's activities.

Brief Overview of the Summit Program
The following is a brief overview of the Summit program including Pre-Summit preparation and the Summit Event. For detailed Summit rules, schedules and procedures see Rules and Instructions for Summit Teachers, which are available to all teachers who have been trained in the Summit program and are registered for a Summit event.

Prior to the Summit Event
Prior to the Summit event, each student team will submit certain information through this Web site. This includes:

• An Economic Proposal
• A Country Fact Sheet
• A Country Strategic Plan
• A Certification Test

Country Research
Your students must become acquainted with the challenges that their country faces. To do this, each student team, which is composed of five or six students, begins by researching their country and its statistics. Areas of research include:

• Country Classification
• Exports and Imports
• Currency
• Foreign Aid

Country Classification
Each country is classified into one of three categories: High, Middle, and Low Income countries. The criteria for this classification system are based on export totals and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.

• High Income Countries
  1st World Countries are those that have the highest standard of living. They are sometimes referred to as “industrialized” or “developed” countries. They have the largest number of export coupons, cash endowments, and foreign aid obligations.

• Middle Income Countries
  2nd World Countries have fewer exports, less cash and a lower GDP than 1st World Countries. They may be described as having “developing” or “emerging market”

• Low Income Countries
  3rd WCs are those with few resource endowments and exports. They have the lowest standard of living out of the three country classifications. “Underdeveloped” is a common term that describes this category of countries. 3rd WCs have the fewest exports and the least amount of cash of any of the three categories. 3rd WCs export foreign aid coupons for cash.

Exports and Imports
Your students will be asked to complete many objectives regarding exports and imports. In the Summit program there are 13 categories of exports and imports. At the Summit event, the demand for imports will be greater than the supply of exports. The export categories are:

• Unprocessed Food
• Processed Food
• Raw Materials
• Energy
• Consumer Goods
• Capital Goods
• Electronics
• Media
• Tourism
• Offensive Military
• Defensive Military
• Banking
• Science/Technology

Summit Currency
Each country is endowed with one of three currencies: WELCOs, DEVCOs or LESCOs depending on whether they are a High, Middle, or Low Income country.

• 1 WELCO = 2 DEVCOs
• 1 DEVCO = 2 LESCOs
• 1 WELCO = 4 LESCOs

Foreign Aid
Foreign aid is a means for more developed countries to offer monetary assistance to less developed countries.

Country Fact Sheet
During the semester each of your teams will complete a Country Fact Sheet. This Fact Sheet asks for the country's statistics that reveal information about that country's standard of living.

Strategic Plan
Each team will create a strategic plan for their country. This includes a specific set of goals to address your country’s need for imports and internal improvements.

Internal Improvements
Your students may purchase Internal Improvement coupons in education, health care and infrastructure. One unit of internal improvement costs 5 WELCOs and is purchased from the Summit Bank.

Economic Proposal

• Each team of economic advisors will propose an economic solution to some regional or world problem.

The Summit Event
At the end of the semester, the student teams of economic advisors will meet for a one day Summit Event. This event is typically held at a university but can also take place at a high school or even within the classroom. Student teams compete to earn points for their countries. The primary activities of the Summit event include:

• Geography Quiz
• Country Alliance Negotiations
• Economic Proposal Campaign
• Economic Proposal Debate and Voting
• Economics Test
• International Trade Session
• Global Banking Session
• Costume and Table Display Judging
• Team Scoring
• Awards Ceremony

Geography Quiz
Team members work together to identify several countries. They are shown the country location on a world map, the country’s flag, the country GDP and a major export.

Country Alliance Negotiations
During this session, countries form alliances with other countries. These alliances become strategically important during the export/import trading session later in the day. Countries that trade outside their alliance pay tariffs on their imported goods. Countries may also enter into bi-lateral contracts with each other. If one country fails to comply with their contract obligations, other countries may seek penalties for that country.

Economic Proposal Campaign
Each country receives a packet containing either 5 Signature Cards at the beginning of the Summit. These cards are exchanged for a commitment to vote for that country’s Economic Proposal. Countries that gain the most Signature Cards receive the opportunity to present their proposal in the upcoming debate.

Economic Proposal Debate and Voting
Ten countries are allowed to present their proposals to the general assembly. Members of the audience are allowed to ask questions of the presenting countries. At the end of the debate, all countries vote for their choice of the top 3 proposals.

Costume and Table Display Judging
Teams win points for their costumes and table displays. The Summit also recognizes the overall costume and table display winners.

Economics Test
Team members work together on the Economics Test. Points are awarded for the number of correct answers a team achieves.

International Trade and Banking Session
During this exciting session, countries sell or trade their export coupons to obtain imports or cash that will help them reach the goals of their strategic plans. They also borrow money and purchase Internal Improvements from the Summit Bank and they either award or receive Foreign Aid.

Team Scoring
During the Summit event, official scorekeepers keep track of points awarded to each country for the various activities of the day. At the end of the Summit the points are tallied and winners determined.

Awards Ceremony
The day closes with the Awards Ceremony. Awards are given in several categories including:

• Summit Grand Champion
• Top High Income Country
• Top Middle Income Country
• Top Low Income Country
• Winning Costume
• Winning Table Display
• 100% Geography Test
• 100% Economics Test