Innovative Teaching Tool: Poland Launches Game to Teach Young People about Life Under Communism

Teresa Neumann : Feb 1, 2011
Jill Petzinger - Der Spiegel

"The game has been developed by the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), a Warsaw-based research institute that commemorates the suffering of the Polish people during the Nazi and Communist eras."

(Poland)—Begins a report in Der Spiegel: "There are no glamorous avenues for sale, nor can players erect hotels, charge rent or make pots of money. In fact, a new Polish board game inspired by the classic Monopoly is all about communism rather than capitalism. The goal of the game is to show how hard and frustrating it was for an average person to simply do their shopping under the Communist regime in Poland." (Photo by: Karol Madaj)

The name of the game is "Kolejka" after the Polish word for queue or line.

"In the game, you send your family out to get items on a shopping list and they find that the five shops are sold out or that there hasn't been a delivery that day," said IPN spokesperson Karol Madaj, noting that the game "highlights the tough realities of life under Communism."

According to the report, The IPN believes in the power of games as historical education tools. In the last two years, it has produced four games, three of which focus on World War II, including "303," a board game based on the Polish 303 fighter squadron's role in the Battle of Britain."

Read more about this game by clicking on the link provided.