Teaching Economics: Perspectives on Innovative Economics Education

Description

This book looks at a number of topics in economic education, presenting multiple perspectives from those in the field to anyone interested in teaching economics. Using anecdotes, classroom experiments and surveys, the contributing authors show that, with some different or new techniques, teaching economics can be more engaging for students and help them better retain what they learned. Chapters cover a wide range of approaches to teaching economics, from interactive approaches such as utilizing video games and Econ Beats, to more rigorous examinations of government policies, market outcomes and exploring case studies from specific courses. Many of the chapters incorporate game theory and provide worked out examples of games designed to help students with intuitive retention of the material, and these games can be replicated in any economics classroom. While the exercises are geared towards college-level economics students, instructors can draw inspiration for course lectures from the various approaches taken here and utilize them at any level of teaching. This book will be very useful to instructors in economics interested in bringing innovative teaching methods into the classroom. Front Matter ....Pages i-x The Development of Interactive Classroom Activities to Teach Economic Freedom to Students of Various Learning Styles (Signè Thomas)....Pages 1-7 Video Games in Teaching Economics (David Youngberg)....Pages 9-31 One-Shot Game: A Free-Market Approach to the Principles of Microeconomics Class (Ninos P. Malek)....Pages 33-43 A Highly Simplified Pollution Abatement Game (Nimish Adhia)....Pages 45-51 Assignments to Engage Students in Economics Study Abroad Programs (Darshak Patel)....Pages 53-62 The Economic Principles of My Cancer Treatment: How to Use Medical Experiences to Teach Economics (Joab Corey)....Pages 63-73 Textbook Confessions: Government Policies and Market Outcomes (Hugo Eyzaguirre, Tawni Hunt Ferrarini, Brian O’Roark)....Pages 75-87 University and High School Economics Educators Partnership: A Model from La Crosse, Wisconsin (Adam Hoffer, Andrew Beckstrom)....Pages 89-96 A Classroom Experiment: The Redistribution of Quiz Scores (Gordon Smith)....Pages 97-103 Making Economics Stick with Econ Beats (Abdullah Al-Bahrani, Leith Thompson)....Pages 105-114 Navigating the Economics Major: The Effect of Gender on Students’ Degree Pathways (Laura J. Ahlstrom, Carlos J. Asarta)....Pages 115-136 Taking a Path Less Traveled: Mastering ‘Metrics Without a Textbook (Alice Louise Kassens)....Pages 137-153 Structured Writing Assignments in an American Economic History Course (Judge Glock, Joshua Hall, Marcus M. Witcher)....Pages 155-161 Integrating the Economic Way of Thinking into US History Courses (M. Scott Niederjohn, Colin O’Reilly)....Pages 163-182