What does MEP even stand for, you might ask yourself? Trust us we didn’t know either. When we heard about the preparation course for the Model European Parliament, we were still confused about what to expect from it. We were quite stunned because students were teaching students, isn’t that weird? Nevertheless, it was great to be taught by people who had real MEP experience and could tell us about proceedings and give us tips. Not only climate change but also integration of migrants and overtourism were some of the countless and controversial topics we discussed and covered in the course. Having Gerald, Tobias, Moritz and sometimes Paula – students from the eighth and seventh grade – as our tutors was not only a special opportunity but also a splendid experience. Discussing various topics and giving fiery speeches may sound scary and utterly overwhelming but after some time holding presentations about adorable dolphins or advertising a fancy little cheese grater will mean the world to you. The course is a place where you can share and use your knowledge, express your opinion, socialize and learn to convince others of your point of view. Emphasizing the biggest and most important benefits of the course like a broad expansion of vocabulary, an increase in confidence overall and while speaking spontaneously we can only recommend you to participate in the course.
Last but not least, we’d like to thank our tutors for doing such an amazing job and being so dedicated about allowing us to benefit and learn from their prior experiences.
So, guys if you are interested in debating about political and social issues, the MEP prep course is your place to go to.
Verena 6C, Valerie 5A, Manuel 5A
Tutors’ perspective on the MEP prep course:
“Thank you for the word, Mr. President” – For us, the students of the 8th grade, it was a pleasure to bring in our expertise in the first MEP prep course. To be honest, we were a bit nervous before the first lesson, but surprisingly we easily managed to deal with the problems of being a “teacher”. It was interesting for us to see what the job as an instructor looks like. We hope that this course will also take place in the future because we not only enjoyed the political and cultural debates with other students but we also had the impression that the self-confidence and discussion skills of some students really improved as the course came to an end. Furthermore, we appreciated talking to students from other grades. The MEP prep course gave us the opportunity to pass on the experience we gained in former MEP sessions and we also had the chance to give younger students tips to enhance their performance as delegates.
Moritz 8B, Tobias 8A