Engagement and Learning Through a WTO Simulation in the International Business Classroom
Arbuda Sharma
UPES School of Business, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
Yashsvi Pancholi
FORE School of Management, New Delhi, India
Volume 20: 2025, pp. 365-390; ABSTRACT
This paper presents an engagement and learning framework for a roleplay simulation of
the World Trade Organization (WTO), aimed at promoting experiential learning and critical
thinking through role-play. The objective was to engage students in the classroom activity,
participate in discussions, and develop their learning via reflective understanding about the
international trade dynamics of the WTO. A structured simulation exercise was designed and later
developed into a replicable model. Student learning was observed through three levels of
deliberation, reflecting their depth of immersion and cognitive engagement during the simulation.
Feedback was collected using a qualitative approach and analyzed to develop the Engage–
Participate–Learn (EPL) framework, grounded in Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy. The EPL
framework was chosen because it reflects the spectrum of learning in which a student engages while
taking part in this type of roleplay simulation. The taxonomy also guided the design and assessment
of learning outcomes throughout the simulation. The pedagogical tool in this study contributes to
the discourse on active learning by offering a robust, adaptable framework for international business
education and by showcasing simulation as an effective tool for deep, reflective learning for students
of the WTO and international business.
Keywords: WTO Simulation, experiential learning, Bloom’s Taxonomy, role-play pedagogy, EPL
Framework.
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