SIER (Simulation of International Economic Relations) is a macroeconomic multi-country game that can be used as a practical assignment or an experiment. It is played over the Internet.
The setup of the SIERgame is as follows. The class is divided into groups of 3 to 4 students. Each group has its own PC with Internet connection and represents the government of a country. The economies of those countries are connected. The governments implement economic policies over a number of playing rounds. This changes the economic situation in their own country, but because of the links between the countries, also in the other countries. The state of the economy affects the political support the government has. That political support depends on how much citizens can consume, employment and the degree of price stability. In addition, the government must ensure that there are enough gold and foreign exchange reserves. If the balance of payments deficits increase, this supply may run out and the government will face certain punitive measures.
At the beginning of the game, political support is still equal in all countries, but this changes in the course of time. In the first playing round, all countries submit their policies on the computer. The computer calculates the consequences of these policies for the state of the economy in all countries and thus for the political support in those countries. This situation is then immediately the starting position for the second playing round. The governments again introduce their policies. The computer again calculates the effect on the economies of all countries and the political support of their governments. This continues until the final round.
In that final round, it is election time. The winner of the game is the group whose political support in that final round is the highest in the world: that country has the happiest inhabitants and therefore its government has the best chance of being re-elected. The condition is that the political support at the end of the game is higher than at the beginning (which is by no means always the case).
During the development of the game, the precondition was that the teacher should be able to vary the game in a number of respects, but also that, for the sake of the shortest possible familiarisation time for the teacher, a standard variant should be available that a class can start using immediately.
The teacher should take the following steps sequentially when introducing a game. Click on the underlined pieces of text to retrieve the relevant section.
At each game round you can see whether the gold and foreign exchange reserves of one or more teams have been exhausted, indicated by a negative value of those reserves displayed in red on the screen and a red color of the box with the number of the corresponding country in the lower right corner of the screen. The players of that country are shown a notice on their screen at the beginning of the playing period that a red card will be given. The instructor then hands that team a red card stating the restrictions imposed on that team regarding the policy to be followed for the next playing round. An example of a red card can be found here.
If desired, also pay attention to the limitations of models in general, applied here to the model underlying SIER. Examples of limitations of those constraints are:
This demonstration explains the interface of the SIERgame using images from the game itself. There is also a student version of this presentation that can be used in the introductory lesson.
This Powerpoint presentation can be used to discuss the essence of the game in class. The presentation is a summary of the full game description (see below) which students should study at home beforehand.
The game description of the version best suited for use in upper secondary school can be found here.
Do you want to try the game for free? Fill out this form for a test license. You will then receive a free test license which allows you to play the game at your school site. The test license is valid until the end of the school year.
Did you try the game last year and do you want to use it in the coming year? Then you can buy a license for the SIERgame. The following licences are available:
You purchase the right to play the SIERgame for a full school year at your school site. You get two World names to play two games (two "worlds") at the same time. With each World name you will get the passwords so that you can play with up to ten teams per game. You can play as many times as you want. This is useful, for example, if you want to check the effects of certain policy instruments for yourself in between classes.
Price: EUR 199 excl. 21% VAT per school location per school year.
You purchase the right to play the SIERgame for a full school year at your school site. You get four World names to play four games (four "worlds") simultaneously. With each World name, you get the passwords so you can play with up to ten teams per game. You can play as many times as you want. This is useful, for example, if you want to check the effects of certain policy instruments for yourself in between classes.
Price: EUR 299 excl. 21% VAT per school location per school year.
You purchase the right to play the SIERgame for a full school year at your school site. You get six World names to play six games (six "worlds") simultaneously. With each World name, you get the passwords so you can play with up to ten teams per game. You can play as many times as you want. This is useful, for example, if you want to check the effects of certain policy instruments for yourself in between classes.
Price: EUR 399 excl. 21% VAT per school location per school year.
The General terms and conditions apply to licenses issued. By applying for a license you accept these general terms and conditions.