Programmed Learning-Policy Analysis: An Experiment in Teaching Principles of Economics

Darnton reports on an experiment using programmed instruction in macroeconomics. He also explains how assignments to write “position papers” on economic policies are used. An analysis of the experiment deals with the time devoted to the course by students and instructor, student understanding of economics and student attitude toward this approach. The TUCE was used as the testing instrument, and Darnton asserts that the experimental group did better than the control group on complex application questions. The experimental approach proved to be popular with the students, and the author claims that it provided for a more efficient use of faculty resources.     

The Effectiveness of Economics Instruction in Two-Year Colleges Revisited

Several studies of the teaching of economics in two-year colleges have concluded that students in these institutions learn less than those in the four-year schools. Labinski comments on some of these pieces of research, and then reports his own findings which raise doubts about the hypothesis that inadequate instruction explains the relatively poor performance by junior college students. He discusses four alternative hypotheses, considering the different objectives in two-year colleges, inadequate sampling in the earlier studies, and the possibility that the TUCE has a cultural bias.     

A Preliminary Report on the Efficiency of Introductory Economics Courses

This article is the first report of a project in which the efficiency of the introductory economics course at Queen's University in Canada is being examined. Finding that the TUCE “relies too heavily on a knowledge of U.S. institutions,” Crowley and Wilton assembled a set of questions from several sources (including TUCE items adapted to the Canadian situation). Taking into account the student's initial understanding of economics, sex, major field, student year, the instructor's ability to arouse and maintain interest, and the amount of time spent on the course, the authors employ a regression model with student score on the posttest as the dependent variable. Their findings, although preliminary, add to the growing body of research on the introductory course and suggest some interesting possibilities. Among these possibilities is the fact that some “natural” learning may occur among students not exposed to a formal economics course.     

Technical Efficiency in the Production of Economic Knowledge

This paper is an attempt to estimate technical efficiency in the production of economic knowledge. To that end, an educational production frontier was estimated via linear programming and an index of technical efficiency computed by forming the ratio, actual post TUCE/computed post TUCE. Professor teaching preferences and student learning preferences along with age and sex were used as regressors in an attempt to identify factors accounting for technical efficiency. Students were found to be very efficient in the production of knowledge.     

Political Opinions and the TUCE

The TUCE is being widely used in economic education research at the college level. Although it has gained acceptance as a standardized evaluation instrument, it has also become the subject of close scrutiny. Rothman and Scott report on their study to determine whether or not the TUCE “may also measure political attitudes.” The relationship between the students' political opinions and their scores on the TUCE are examined, but other possible explanatory variables (such as previous economics instruction, sex and SAT scores) are also analyzed. The authors discuss possible reasons why “untrained conservatives know more about market systems than do untrained liberals,” and suggest that there are factors other than economic conservatism at work.     

The New Economics Tests for the College and Pre-college Levels: A Comment

The authors examine the recently revised Test of Understanding of College Economics (TUCE) available from the Joint Council on Economic Education. The article examines its reliability, validity, norms, and item statistics with attention to limitations.     

Some Evidence on the Value of Instructors in Teaching Economic Principles

Using data collected from three universities, the authors of this article attempt to show that student attitude is “an important dimension of learning” and that the quality of instruction is indeed associated with attitude. The attitude referred to here is that of student opinions toward economics (as measured by Karstensson's “Questionnaire on Student Attitude Toward Economics”) rather than opinions on economic issues. Posttest scores on the TUCE and the attitude instrument were the dependent variables, while scores on the TUCE pretest, ACT scores, sex, major field, economics background, university attended, and quality of instruction were used as independent variables.     

Further Evidence on the Value of Lectures in Elementary Economics

Buckles and McMahon have designed an experiment which can be used in all types of colleges to provide evidence on the best methods of teaching elementary economics. They have tested the hypothesis that class lectures which do no more than recapitulate assigned readings fail to help students learn elementary microeconomic theory. Grade point average and performance on the TUCE pretest were found to be important variables, but attendance at lectures was not. The authors discuss the implications of their findings and suggest further research efforts.     

Textbooks and the Teaching of Economic Principles

In this article, Dr. Meinkoth discusses the desirability of requiring a uniform textbook for the Principles course. She reports on an experiment in which five faculty members used the same textbook in the first semester but adopted books of their own choice in the second semester. The Test of Understanding in College Economics (TUCE) was then administered to the students, along with a questionnaire to determine their attitudes toward the books and towards economics. The results raise serious questions about the standard practice of requiring uniform textbooks.     

EVIDENCE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ECONOMICS AND CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS

This research provides empirical support for the hypothesis that learning economics increases a student's critical thinking skills. Using the short form of the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA-S) as our measure of critical thinking skills, we find that students who gain a high level of economic understanding in their introductory economics class, as measured by the Test of Understanding College Economics (TUCE), have statistically significant gains in their WGCTA-S scores. Students who spend more time taking classes and are more fully engaged in the university experience also have greater gains in critical thinking. These results lend support to the idea that introductory economics courses can work in concert with other university level courses, especially within the context of a full-time curriculum, to enhance critical thinking skills. ( JEL A22)     

Enhancing the Macroeconomics Course: An Experiential Learning Approach

Although the history of the development of reliable testing instruments for economics goes back only a few years, the Test of Economic Understanding (TEU, 1963) and the Test of Understanding of College Economics (TUCE, 1967-1968) have already resulted in valuable measurements of student learning. Villard's critical appraisal of these tests, and of research based upon their use, summarizes where we now stand in the evaluation of teaching effectiveness.     

A SIGNALING THEORY OF GRADE INFLATION*

When employers cannot tell whether a school truly has many good students or just gives easy grades, a school has incentives to inflate grades to help its mediocre students, despite concerns about preserving the value of good grades for its good students. We construct a signaling model where grades are inflated in equilibrium. The inability to commit to an honest grading policy reduces the efficiency of job assignment and hurts a school. Grade inflation by one school makes it easier for another school to do likewise, thus providing a channel to make grade exaggeration contagious.     

论当代大学生的成功教育

当代大学生成功教育是培养和谐的人的必然要求,要科学界定成功的概念,冷静剖析时下流行的成功学,在高校率先开发具有中国特色的成功学,力求将成功学拓展为大学生思想政治教育的辅助课程,突出大学生成功教育的引导和启发功能,塑造大学生的健康人格,积极开展大学生成功体验的实践活动,为大学生正视成功、走向成功而彰显教育的力量。     

大学理念与大学生使命感

造就人格独立、思想自由、勇于担当的社会主义事业建设者是大学义不容辞的责任。通过调查可知,当代大学生自主意识有所增强但在社会意识的认知上存在一定的弱化现象,看重自我价值但在社会价值取向上出现偏差,注重物质利益而对社会需要事业的追求意愿存在一定的弱化现象。今后应注重使命感教育的时代性、科学性、多样性,注重发挥大学生在教育中的主体作用,强化思想政治理论课的主渠道作用,并努力营造良好的育人环境,培养学生健全的品格,引导学生走上成才之路。     

试析案例教学法在教学中的运用——以高职会计专业为例

应用型人才是高职教育的培养目标,"理论+实践"是其特点和要求,学生动手能力的培养是其重点。案例教学法由于在充分调动学生的积极性和主动性、培养学生的动手能力等方面有着显著作用而备受关注。因此,以会计专业为例,对高职教育中如何有效运用案例教学法进行了一定的探讨。     

当代大学生依法维权的思考

近年来,大学生维权现象被越来越多的人所关注。由于大学生群体的特殊性,其参与的维权活动有着自身的特点和困难。在依法治国的时代背景下,大学生的维权活动理应依法展开。站在法治的视角,从为什么维权、维什么权和怎么维权三方面入手,阐述了大学生维权的必要性、维权的重点内容和维权的方式方法等问题,在分析中结合大学生、学生会、高校三者间的关系,以求为大学生依法维权提供新的路径。     

Sorting,school performance and quality: Evidence from China

School choice reforms give talented students the option to sort out of low-performing schools but often leave disadvantaged students behind. This study shows how a Chinese city was successful in helping its low-performing schools to catch up by encouraging talented students to sort into these schools. The city identified eleven low-performing middle schools and guaranteed elite high school admission to their top ten-percent graduates. This study documents that the policy improved school performance by 0.19-0.26 standard deviations. Using data on lottery middle school assignment, I further test for potential mechanisms, including strategic sorting and improvement in school value-added.     

大学生审美需要与消费观的研究

据对教育部重大攻关项目“2003-2006年中国公民人文素质调查与对策研究”中有关中国大陆31个省市1090名大学生审关需要和消费观的数据进行了统计分析,结果表明：大学生审美需要强度普遍不高,女大学生审美需要强度显著高于男大学生;健康、理性消费是主流,大学生消费观地域差异显著而无显著性别差异;具有强烈审美需要的大学生不注重精神消费。     

“教学做”一体化的情境教学在高职《基础会计》中的应用

在高职会计专业的教学改革中,必须以社会职业岗位的实际需要为培养依据,强调应用性,突出综合实践能力的培养＂。教学做＂一体化的情境教学是连接课堂和岗位,达到学生零距离就业的一个有效方法。在《基础会计》中应用＂教学做＂一体化的情境教学,能激发学生的学习兴趣,调动学生的学习积极性,培养学生的职业能力,并且为培养学生的创新性和学习能力打下很好的基础。     

从新疆高校学生调查看提高大学生音乐素质教育的必要性

培养复合型高素质人才是现阶段普通高校的迫切任务,艺术教育的开展情况将对复合型高素质人才培养产生直接影响。音乐教育被公认为高校艺术教育的主要内容之一。本文选取新疆普通高校集中的鸟鲁木齐地区,对六所高校在校大学生的音乐素质进行了问卷调查。调查结果表明：当代大学生音乐知识贫乏、音乐素质低下的现象普遍存在。因此,在普通高校中推广和普及大学生音乐素质教育已刻不容缓、势在必行。