Outreach Activities

 

EURO CHALLENGE

What is Euro Challenge?

The Euro Challenge is an exciting educational opportunity for high school students to learn about the European Union (EU) and the euro. Student teams of three to five students are asked to make presentations answering specific questions about the European economy and the single currency, the euro. They are also asked to pick one member country of the "euro area" (the 17 EU member countries that have adopted the euro so far), to examine an economic problem at the country level, and to identify policies for responding to that problem.

Euro Challenge Goals

 

  • to increase students' knowledge and understanding of the European Union and the Euro
  • to promote an understanding of economic challenges facing European Union member nations
  • to support local learning standards related to global studies and economics
  • to foster economic and financial literacy and understanding of economic policy issues
  • to develop communication, critical thinking, and cooperative skills 

The Competition

The Euro Challenge competition for high school students tests their knowledge and understanding of the European economy and the euro, the currency shared by many of the 27 countries of the European Union (EU). For the 2011 Euro Challenge competition, which took place in the spring of 2011, student teams were asked to make a 15-minute presentation in which they were required to:

Describe the current economic situation in the euro area (the economic region consisting of the 17 EU member countries who have adopted the euro).

Select one economic-related challenge confronting the euro area as a whole (see list below), and pick one of the 17 member countries of the euro area to illustrate that challenge.

Recommend a policy or policies for addressing the challenge you identified in the country you selected. Be sure to include in your recommendation a discussion of how having a single currency may or may not affect the policy choices for addressing the challenge.

Teams can choose one of the following economy related challenges:

 

  • slow growth
  • high unemployment
  • inflation
  • adaptation to technological change (raising productivity)
  • globalization (including immigration)
  • aging (including health care)
  • living with a single monetary policy
  • sustaining the social system (welfare state)
  • coping with a housing market slowdown
  • high government deficits and debt


 Presentations are followed by 10 minutes of questioning by a panel of judges who are
educators or experts in European economic affairs.

Schools selected to participate in the Euro Challenge will be provided with professional
development, information resources, and coaching to provide guidance and assistance.

University of Wisconsin-Madison the European Union Center of Excellence is one of the host institutions in the Midwest Region for Euro Challenge 2012.

Resources and Videos

The resources link contains a host of information that will help you prepare for the Euro Challenge competition - the current economic situation, the challenges and the countries.

You can also find videos of the past Euro Challenge competitions and more.

Information and Questions

Questions can be directed to the European Union Center of Excellence Assistant Director, Csanád Siklós, at siklos at wisc.edu or 608.265.4766.

More information on Euro Challenge, complete rules for the competition and eligibility requirements may be found by visiting their official website.

The Euro Challenge is also on Facebook!

 

EURO CHALLENGE 2012

Welcome to the Euro Challenge 2012

Madison East and Brookfield Academy will be representing the State of Wisconsin at the Euro Challenge 2012 Regional (Midwest) Preliminary Round.

The Midwest Preliminary Round will take place on March 28, 2012 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, 230 South LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60604.

Madison East and Brookefield Academy will compete with other high schools from the Midwest Region to qualify to the Semi-Final and Final Rounds of Euro Challenge 2012, which will take place on April 30, 2012 at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

We wish both Wisconsin high schools best of luck in Euro Challenge 2012.

 

EURO CHALLENGE 2011

Madison East High School Team Competes in Euro Challenge 2011 National Finals!

A team of sophomore high school students from Madison East went to the Federal Reserve Bank in New York City on April 27 to compete in the final rounds of the annual 2011 Euro Challenge Competition. They advanced to the finals after winning the Midwest preliminary round in March at the Federal Reserve Bank in Chicago, where they competed against high school teams from Indiana, Iowa, and Illinois. For an update on the Euro Challenge winner, please visit the featured news update on the Euro Challenge website here.

EURO CHALLENGE 2010

Read about the 2010 Euro Challenge

The High School Euro Challenge is a national academic competition targeting students in grades 9 and 10. Supported by the Delegation of the European Commission to the United States, the Euro Challenge is designed to develop and expand students’ knowledge of the European Union (EU), the European economy and the euro. Students in social studies, global studies, economics, world history/geography or European studies classes will especially benefit from participating in this innovative and fun educational competition. Two Wisconsin High Schools (Madison East and Kettle Moraine) participated in Euro Challenge 2010.

To read about their experiences Click Here.

Find out more about the Orientation Workshop.