CCE · Primary 6

Active learning ideas

Migration and Global Citizenship

Active learning transforms abstract concepts like migration and global citizenship into tangible experiences. Students move beyond textbooks to analyze real-world dilemmas, fostering empathy and critical thinking. This topic demands engagement with varied perspectives, making role-plays and debates essential for deep understanding.

• MOE Syllabus Outcomes
• MOE: Singapore and the World - P6
• MOE: Social Responsibility - P6

• 35–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Philosophical Chairs
• 45 min · Small Groups

Role-Play: Refugee Decision Points

Divide class into small groups. Each group receives a scenario card with a refugee's background, challenges, and choices at borders. They act out decisions, discuss rights, and vote on outcomes. Debrief as whole class on ethical responsibilities.

Analyze the ethical responsibilities of nations towards migrants and refugees.

Facilitation Tip

During the Role-Play: Refugee Decision Points, assign roles with clear profiles and time limits to keep the activity focused and empathetic.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'If Singapore receives a large influx of refugees, what are our ethical responsibilities, and how can we balance these with our national needs?' Facilitate a class discussion, guiding students to consider different perspectives and potential solutions.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Philosophical Chairs
• 50 min · Pairs

Debate Carousel: Migration Impacts

Set up stations for economic, social, and cultural effects of migration. Pairs prepare arguments for and against at each station over 10 minutes, then rotate. Conclude with whole-class synthesis on balanced views.

Evaluate the economic and social impacts of migration on host countries and countries of origin.

Facilitation Tip

For the Debate Carousel: Migration Impacts, assign each group a specific stakeholder perspective to ensure balanced arguments.

What to look for

Ask students to write on a card: 'Name one economic benefit and one social challenge of migration. Then, suggest one action a global citizen can take to support migrants or refugees.'

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Philosophical Chairs
• 40 min · Small Groups

Global Citizenship Pledge Project

In small groups, students research a migration case relevant to Singapore, list responsibilities as global citizens, and create posters with pledges. Share and refine pledges in gallery walk.

Justify the concept of global citizenship in an interconnected world.

Facilitation Tip

In the Global Citizenship Pledge Project, provide sentence starters for the pledge text to scaffold students who struggle with articulating their commitments.

What to look for

Present students with short case studies of individuals migrating for different reasons (e.g., economic opportunity, fleeing conflict). Ask them to identify the primary push and pull factors for each individual and classify them as migrant, refugee, or asylum seeker.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Activity 04

• Philosophical Chairs
• 35 min · Small Groups

Migration Flow Mapping

Provide world maps. Small groups trace major migration routes using data cards, annotate causes, impacts, and rights issues. Present findings to class for discussion on interconnectedness.

Analyze the ethical responsibilities of nations towards migrants and refugees.

Facilitation Tip

During Migration Flow Mapping, model how to use data sources like Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower reports to ground the discussion in facts.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'If Singapore receives a large influx of refugees, what are our ethical responsibilities, and how can we balance these with our national needs?' Facilitate a class discussion, guiding students to consider different perspectives and potential solutions.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach this topic by grounding discussions in students’ prior knowledge of fairness and community. Use local examples, like Singapore’s foreign worker policies, to make global concepts relatable. Avoid overwhelming students with statistics; instead, focus on human stories to build empathy. Research shows that when students connect emotionally to the topic, they retain ethical reasoning better.

Students will confidently articulate the push and pull factors behind migration, distinguish between migrants and refugees, and justify responsible actions as global citizens. They will use evidence to challenge stereotypes and propose solutions that balance national interests with humanitarian duties.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Role-Play: Refugee Decision Points, watch for students assuming refugees are economic burdens without considering the roles they fill, like healthcare workers or construction laborers.

  Use Singapore’s foreign worker statistics during the role-play debrief to highlight how migrants contribute to essential sectors. Ask students to reflect on how their assigned characters might fill gaps in the labor market.

• During Debate Carousel: Migration Impacts, watch for students oversimplifying refugees as people who choose to leave their homes.

  In the debate preparation phase, provide real stories of refugees from conflict zones. During the carousel, challenge groups to justify their arguments with these stories, not assumptions.

• During Global Citizenship Pledge Project, watch for students writing pledges that ignore legal frameworks or national borders.

  Before drafting pledges, review Singapore’s laws on asylum and migration. Ask students to include how their pledge aligns with both global empathy and local laws, using the UN Refugee Convention as a reference.

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Methods used in this brief

• Philosophical Chairs