Simulation-based research allows a direct connection to be drawn between micro-level behavior and emergent macro-level outcomes, and hold great promise for theoretically driven quantitative research. However, the skills required to understand and participate in this new research have not yet been integrated into social science curricula. This project will consolidate and develop learning materials in this important new area. The investigators will work on model courses at the University of Washington and Cornell University, publish a Teaching Resource Guide in social simulation, sponsor a workshop on Teaching Simulation at the American Sociological Association annual meeting, and set up an online repository for exchange of teaching and learning materials, including an arena for interactive learning on the World Wide Web. The published resource guide, online repository, and teaching workshop will assist faculty in developing courses and in integrating computational modeling into their existing courses. By enhancing teaching and curriculum development, this toolkit will improve the integrity of students. applied training in dynamic models. The short-term result should be a faster rate of adoption in disciplinary curricula and improvement in training quality. This will contribute to a longer-term result of increasing emphasis on explicitly modeling dynamics in the social sciences.
