Educational project on voting in the European Parliament
European Parliament Ambassador School Programme
After solving “The Parliament fraud”, case 5 of Katadoku Escape, the investigation continues in class. The logic game's story leads to a real question: how voting works in the European Parliament and how its results can be checked.
The challenge that starts the project
In a fictional story, an impostor has tampered with a vote and is fleeing through Parliament. Students must use the clues to reconstruct the route: number the eight areas visited from 1 to 8, identify the unvisited area and discover where the escape ended. They can solve it on paper or on the classroom screen. The project then compares the fiction with how Parliament really works.
Guidance for teachers
The project starts with “The Parliament fraud”, a Katadoku Escape, and connects its fictional story with an investigation into how voting really works in the European Parliament. It can be used within the Ambassador School Programme.
Objective. Compare fiction and reality, investigate how decisions are made and recorded, and develop a conclusion supported by reliable sources.
Skills and themes. Forming hypotheses; finding and selecting information; distinguishing claims from evidence; reasoned argument and reflection on democratic transparency.
Materials. The Katadoku, printed or on the classroom screen; this worksheet, printed or projected; devices for consulting official European Parliament sources; and notebooks if the activities are projected.
Suggested sequence. First lesson: solve the Katadoku and connect its spaces with Parliament's real work and languages. Second lesson: investigate voting, write a verdict and share the final reflection.
Supporting students. Encourage students to check whether information applies to all votes or only to a particular voting method. Do not assume it is always possible to see each individual's vote: this is one of the issues they should investigate and qualify.
Starting sources. Consult the European Parliament's official page on multilingualism and its explanation of interpreting at meetings. For voting, ask students to find its official procedures and documents.
What to assess. The quality of sources, the link between evidence and conclusion, and the ability to revise initial ideas. The verdict should explain its conditions and limitations rather than simply answering yes or no.
For teachers. Prepare two worksheets: first the logic case, then the activities that build on it. Print each separately or project them in class for students to answer in their notebooks.
First, solve the Katadoku online or on paper: choose whichever option you prefer. Then continue with the project activities.
Preview of the worksheet you will print
European Parliament Ambassador School Programme · After the challenge
How does voting really work in the European Parliament?
Before you start. Solve “The Parliament fraud”, a Katadoku Escape. Then continue with this investigation.
Katadoku Escape · Case 5The Parliament fraudDifficulty: Easyhttps://katadoku.com/en/the-parliament-fraud/From the game to reality
In the Katadoku, an impostor tampers with a vote and flees through Parliament. This story is made up.
Now we will investigate how voting really works and what safeguards exist to check the results.
What safeguards would our impostor have to get past to change a result without anyone noticing?
At the end, answer using what you have discovered, distinguishing evidence from assumptions.
From the game plan to the real Parliament
The game included the Plenary, Committee and Translation areas. The plan is fictional: its areas are a starting point for learning about Parliament's real work.
- What is the Chamber and what happens during a plenary sitting? What work do parliamentary committees prepare before the plenary?
- The game has an area called “Translation”. If two MEPs do not speak the same language, how can they follow a debate? Explain the difference between interpreting speeches and translating documents.
What we have discovered about spaces and languages:
Voting under the microscope
Now investigate the central part of our fiction: tampering with the result. Use official information to check these three questions.
- What voting methods are used, and what information is recorded for each?
- When can we find out how each MEP voted? Avoid answering as if all votes were the same.
- How can a voting result be checked? Find a procedure explained by Parliament and note the source.
Evidence we will use in our verdict:
Sources consulted: institution or author, title and link.
Back to the question: could it happen?
Return to the story of “The Parliament fraud”. Which of the safeguards or records you have investigated would make it harder for tampering to go unnoticed?
Explain which part of the case is fiction and support your conclusion with your sources. You do not have to prove that fraud is impossible: say what the evidence allows you to claim and what this investigation cannot establish.
Our verdict and the evidence supporting it:
To finish
Why is it important to know and check how decisions are made and voted on in a democratic institution?
Before handing it in
- We have distinguished the fictional case from the real procedures.
- We have identified the sources and evidence supporting our verdict.
- We have explained our conclusion and its limitations.