Economics Goes to Hollywood: Using Classic Films and Documentaries to Create an Undergraduate Economics Course

The authors describe an interdisciplinary approach to teaching economics that uses a powerful contemporary medium, the motion picture, to establish the context for teaching elementary economics concepts. The plots and subplots in many films can be used to illustrate problems and issues that are amenable to economic analysis. They suggest how these films can be sequenced to create a general studies course for nonmajors.     

A Model for Evaluating the Effectiveness of Economic Education in Primary Grades

Understandably, many economists have grave doubts about the possibility of teaching basic economic concepts to primary level children. Davison and Kilgore report on the development and use of their Primary Test of Economic Understanding. Some 500 second-grade pupils and 24 teachers were involved in their experiment. A control group made up of children who received regular social studies instruction was compared with experimental groups using primary level economics materials. Differences in the pupils' general academic ability, socioeconomic environment and teacher preparation were taken into account. The authors found that children in early elementary grades can learn certain basic economic concepts.     

Change and Continuity

Although there is considerable evidence that efforts to teach economic concepts to elementary school children are increasing, little research is being done at this level. William Walstad's article is, then, one of those rare pieces that reports the results of a controlled study in the elementary grades. In addition, it includes a discussion of research design and statistical techniques, and considers some of the problems one encounters in this type of research (such as problems in parameter estimation). The author measured the effects of a teacher in-service program that provided instruction in economics as applied to the Unified Sciences and Mathematics for Elementary School program. The new Test of Economic Literacy was administered to the teachers, while their pupils took the Test of Elementary Economics. Control groups were also tested. Pupil attitudes toward economics were measured, and it was found that achievement in economics had a direct influence on attitude toward economics. Walstad concludes that “teachers and students gain substantial benefits from the in-service program in practical economic problem solving.”     

An Exploratory Study of the Economic Understanding of Elementary School Teachers

Professor McKenzie administered the SRA Test of Economic Understanding to 144 elementary teachers in southwest Virginia and compared their performance with that of several other groups. It is concluded that elementary teachers whose formal economics training is comparable to that of high school teachers are equally knowledgable. His results raise further questions about the effectiveness of two semesters of economics as compared with one, at least as far as long-run impact is concerned. The so-called “Stigler hypothesis” was also tested, McKenzie concluding that Stigler was probably “overly pessimistic about the lasting effects of the college economics course.” Several suggestions for improving the teaching of economics at the elementary level are included.     

Developing business ethics theory and integrating economic analysis into business ethics teaching – a conceptualization based on externalities and diminishing marginal utility

Contrary to understandings that treat ethical considerations and economic thinking as separate if not antagonistic issues, we advocate a holistic view that links business ethics to consequentialist economic concepts and their concern about how scarce means should be used for the attainment of (given) ends. We believe that business ethics students will profit from a development of business ethics theory that facilitates an outcome-based evaluation of business strategies anchored in the economic concepts of externalities, game theory, equilibria, efficiency, transaction costs, and diminishing marginal utility. We outline how moral judgments about (socially irresponsible) business behaviors, which often lack theoretical grounding and self-critical examination, can be made both more consistent and transparent through a systematic application of these theoretical concepts. We furthermore point out that, in this evaluative exercise, business ethics analysts should make all assumptions explicit to meet their task of facilitating informed public debates and informed moral choices.     

Factors Determining Student Retention of Economic Knowledge after Completing the Principles-of-Microeconomics Course

It is probable that all teachers wonder how much of their instruction stays with the students—and for how long. This question has been examined before, but the authors of this article provide new dimensions and suggest analytical techniques that should be of interest to other economic education researchers. For example, they quantify the rate of depreciation of economic knowledge over time, as well as the “counterdecay effects” of several variables.     

Using Art (Paintings,Drawings, and Engravings) to Teach Economics

The authors provide a brief review of how economists have dealt with art in their research and more popular writings, and then consider the case that has been made for using art and other visual materials in general education and—in very few cases—to teach economics. A new Web site on Art and Economics is introduced that makes it easier for economics instructors to find and use art with their students. They discuss several different ways of using the art in classes, and provide a table with over 50 paintings from the Introduction slide show at the Web site to illustrate the range of economic concepts and issues that can be taught with art.     

Coherent behavior in noncooperative games

A new concept of mutually expected rationality in noncooperative games is proposed: joint coherence. This is an extension of the “no arbitrage opportunities” axiom that underlies subjective probability theory and a variety of economic models. It sheds light on the controversy over the strategies that can reasonably be recommended to or expected to arise among Bayesian rational players. Joint coherence is shown to support Aumann's position in favor of objective correlated equilibrium, although the common prior assumption is weakened and viewed as a theorem rather than an axiom. An elementary proof of the existence of correlated equilibria is given, and relationships with other solution concepts (Nash equilibrium, independent and correlated rationalizability) are also discussed.     

AN AXIOMATIC APPROACH TO NATIONAL ACCOUNTING: AN OUTLINE

This article deals in an axiomatic manner with problems of definition, classification, and measurement in the national accounts. It argues that the elementary units which must be classified in national accounting are economic objects (real and financial), rather than transactions. The article defines briefly a set of postulates, and shows that the structure of a simple system of national accounting can be derived from them. There are twenty postulates—certain of them establishing basic categories such as sector, time, economic object, value (price); others establishing relations between categories (for example the notion of ownership); and others describing operations in which economic objects can be involved, such as production, final consumption, change of ownership, and change of debtor and creditor (in the case of financial objects). It is shown that the system of postulates makes it possible to consider a large number of accounting concepts (flows or stocks) as classes (baskets) of real objects (e.g., exports, real capital) or financial objects (e.g., payments, total debt of a sector). These concepts can be defined without reference to prices, although prices are necessary to measure them. Other concepts cannot be defined in this way in this system of postulates, for example value added, foreign balance, saving, net worth. However, it is possible to define magnitudes of the latter type and measure them in terms of value: for example, value added can be defined as the difference between the value of receipts and the value of outlays of a sector. In this way it is possible to establish algebraic relations among the national accounting concepts. (This article is a summary of certain parts of the doctoral thesis of the author, published in Norwegian in 1955.)     

DOES TEACHER‐FAMILY EXPERIENCE AFFECT TEST SCORES?

Since families play a pivotal role in elementary schools, student learning may be influenced by how well the teacher knows a family and how well the parents know the teacher. We test this hypothesis by evaluating whether assignment to a teacher who has previously taught an older sibling affects test scores. We refer to teachers who have previously taught the older sibling as having “teacher‐family experience” when teaching the younger sibling. Using a novel data set that includes administrative data on students and teachers matched to family identifiers, we find that when the older sibling's teacher is teaching in the younger sibling's grade, 40% of younger siblings are assigned their older sibling teachers. We find that teacher‐family experience does not have any significant effects on test scores and we can statistically rule out small effects. (JEL I20)     

AN AXIOMATIC APPROACH TO NATIONAL ACCOUNTING: AN OUTLINE

Reprinted from The Review of Income and Wealth 12: 179–189 (1966) This article deals in an axiomatic manner with problems of definition, classification, and measurement in the national accounts. It argues that the elementary units which must be classified in national accounting are economic objects (real and financial), rather than transactions. The article defines briefly a set of postulates, and shows that the structure of a simple system of national accounting can be derived from them. There are twenty postulates–certain of them establishing basic categories such as sector, time, economic object, value (price); others establishing relations between categories (for example the notion of ownership); and others describing operations in which economic objects can be involved, such as production, final consumption, change of ownership, and change of debtor and creditor (in the case of financial objects). It is shown that the system of postulates makes it possible to consider a large number of accounting concepts (flows or stocks) as classes (baskets) of real objects (e.g., exports, real capital) or financial objects (e.g., payments, total debt of a sector). These concepts can be defined without reference to prices, although prices are necessary to measure them. Other concepts cannot be defined in this way in this system of postulates, for example value added, foreign balance, saving, net worth. However, it is possible to define magnitudes of the latter type and measure them in terms of value: for example, value added can be defined as the difference between the value of receipts and the value of outlays of a sector. In this way it is possible to establish algebraic relations among the national accounting concepts. (This article is a summary of certain parts of the doctoral thesis of the author, published in Norwegian in 1955.)     

National Standards for Financial Literacy: Rationale and Content

The National Standards for Financial Literacy describe the knowledge, understanding, and skills that are important for students to learn about personal finance. They are designed to guide teachers, school administrators, and other educators in developing curriculum and educational materials for teaching financial literacy. In this article, the authors explain the reasons for the development of the Standards by the Council for Economic Education and the work of economists, economic educators, and teachers to prepare them. They describe each of the six content standards and how they are supported by associated benchmarks at the fourth, eighth, and twelfth grades. The authors also discuss several valuable Standards’ features, including a focus on economic content and decision-making skills as the foundation for financial literacy.     

Viewpoint: Empirical research on firms' boundaries

Abstract.  Empirical research on the determinants of firms' boundaries has flourished over the past 25 years. This article discusses the progress that has been made to date, emphasizing the intellectual advances made by researchers in this literature during this period. I stress empirical researchers' important role in operationalizing theoretical concepts and relate how success on this dimension brings these concepts to bear on real-life, make-or-buy decisions. I also discuss shortcomings in the current literature – in particular the paucity of research on how variation in firms' boundaries can affect economic outcomes – and point to how and where such shortcomings might be overcome.     

小学教育本科生实践能力的现状调查与分析

建设小学教育本科专业的目的是培养高素质小学教师,而小学教育本科生的实践能力是高素质小学教师的重要内涵。课题组就小教本科生的教师基本技能、教学技能、教育技能、科研技能等方面设计了调查问卷,在江苏省设置小教本科专业的部分高校对500余名小教本科生进行了问卷调查,运用SPSS统计软件进行数据录入,对调查结果进行了统计、分析。     

Metaphors,social practices,and economic life: ASE presidential address

Our lived experiences of the economy shape the metaphors that we use to describe the economy. Yet, any particular metaphor can only provide a partial perspective. There are two ways our conceptual frameworks have reflected partial perspectives. The first is historical: our conceptual frameworks tend to build upon ideas developed during the factory age. A machine metaphor, grounded in the industrial age, focuses on the transformation of resources into outputs, but it obscures other aspects of economic life. Second, economic concepts and metaphors are affected by our personal standpoints and our social identities. As social economists, we recognize that our economy is embedded in society, a society in which social identities such as class, gender, race, ethnicity, and nationality shape our standpoints. To fully understand the continuities and changes in how social provisioning is organized, we need to be attentive to these social identities and how they are constituted and transformed through social practices.     

Economic emergence: An evolutionary economic perspective

The standard neoclassical approach to economic theorising excludes, by definition, economic emergence and the related phenomenon of entrepreneurship. We explore how the most economic of human behaviours, entrepreneurship, came to be largely excluded from mainstream economic theory. In contrast, we report that evolutionary economists have acknowledged the importance of understanding emergence and we explore the advances that have been made in this regard. We go on to argue that evolutionary economics can make further progress by taking a more ‘naturalistic’ approach to economic evolution. This requires that economic analysis be fully embedded in complex economic system theory and that associated understandings as to how humans react to states of uncertainty be explicitly dealt with. We argue that ‘knowledge,’ because of the existence of uncertainty is, to a large degree ‘conjectural’ and, thus, is closely linked to our emotional states. Our economic behaviour is also influenced by the reality that we, and the systems that we create, are dissipative structures. Thus, we introduce the notions of ‘energy gradients’ and ‘knowledge gradients’ as essential concepts in understanding economic emergence and resultant economic growth.     

Pretesting students to improve teaching and learning

The focus of this paper is on developing ways to evaluate teaching performance on a regular basis as a means of improving teaching effectiveness and increasing student learning in the classroom. In particular, this paper shows how an instructor-developed pretest, when given at the start of an introductory economics course as part of a pre- and post-test strategy, can be used as a diagnostic and developmental tool for instructors to assess and improve teaching effectiveness. Evidence of students' deficiencies in basic economic and math or graphing skills has led to making changes in content and delivery to increase students' chances of success in the economics course. In addition, pre- and post-test results can be used to determine which economic concepts are being taught effectively and which areas need improvement.     

Indirect management of invasive species through bio-controls: A bioeconomic model of salmon and alewife in Lake Michigan

Invasive species are typically viewed as an economic bad because they cause economic and ecological damages, and can be difficult to control. When direct management is limited, another option is indirect management via bio-controls. Here management is directed at the bio-control species population (e.g., supplementing this population through stocking) with the aim that, through ecological interactions, the bio-control species will control the invader. We focus on stocking salmon to control invasive alewives in Lake Michigan. Salmon are valuable to recreational anglers, and alewives are their primary food source in Lake Michigan. We illustrate how stocking salmon can be used to control alewife, while at the same time alewife can be turned from a net economic bad (having a negative shadow value) into a net economic good (having a positive shadow value) by providing valuable ecosystem services that support the recreational fishery. Using optimal control theory, we solve for a stocking program that maximizes social welfare. Optimal stocking results in cyclical dynamics. We link concepts of natural capital and indirect management, population dynamics, non-convexities, and multiple-use species and demonstrate that species interactions are critical to the values that humans derive from ecosystems. This research also provides insight into the management of salmon fisheries in the Great Lakes.     

Index of economic freedom: Unrealized pedagogical opportunities

Although the Index of Economic Freedom appears in many economic textbooks, their coverage of the index misses opportunities to teach statistical and policy-related concepts important for the principles course. The standard textbook presentation passes up an opportunity to examine the statistical issues of weighting in composite index numbers and correlation versus causation. In addition, textbook presentations fail to examine the assumptions made in the indexes about key economic concepts. These include inflation rate targets, appropriate government spending levels, tax rates, labor standards, financial regulation, monetary policy, property rights, government regulation, and even the meaning of economic freedom. This study explores how examining economic freedom index assumptions can help students understand key economic policy debates.     

Using Field Experiments to Change the Template of How We Teach Economics

In this article, the author explains why field experiments can improve what we teach and how we teach economics. Economists no longer operate as passive observers of economic phenomena. Instead, they participate actively in the research process by collecting data from field experiments to investigate the economics of everyday life. This change can be shown to students by presenting them with evidence from field experiments. Field experiments related to factor markets, behavioral economics, and discrimination are presented to explain how this approach works across different economic content. The three questions that are highlighted are the following: (1) Why do women get paid less than men in labor markets? (2) How can we use behavioral economics to motivate teachers? (3) What seven words can end third-degree price discrimination?