From the assemblies in Athens to the classrooms of Nashville

Theyear is 403 BCE. After decades of war, Greek assemblymen have gathered to decide the fate of Athens. The tension is high, the decisions made will be life-changing for every Athenian, including the very people in the chamber. Will democracy be restored to Athens?

Fast forward 2,424 years, and 9th grade students in Adrienne Jacobs’ World Cultures class recreated the high-stakes debate in a live-action historical role-playing game. The topic in question was Aristotle's law principles, determining who can and cannot participate in the Athenian Assembly. Participating in the debate were recognizable historic names from all sides of the issue, including Aristocles, Archinus, Callias, and Meletus. Embodying these historic figures, students prepared impassioned speeches interwoven with active debate to address each view of what makes an Athenian citizen.

“I loved arguing with my fellow classmates about a topic from thousands of years ago,” said 9th grade student Gracie Meriwether, who took on the role of a Greek politician. “I learned what it was like for Metics (foreigners who lived in Greek cities but had limited-to-no citizen rights of the city), and how they had to overcome all of the difficulties of not being allowed in the Pnyx (the official meeting place of the Athenian assembly).”

The students were well prepared to tackle any question that came their way, and the debate was lively – giving the students insight into what these assembly meetings were like several millennia ago.