Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Introduction to Economics

One thing I always tried to do with my high school students was to explain to them, early on, what economics was and was not. This was harder to do in my early career, but it was always interesting.

I always found it a challenge to get them to abandon preconceived notions about the subject. Convincing them that economics was not just about dollars, but about a wide range of choices often took some doing. Many times, these notions were based on "what I saw on television, heard on the radio, read in the newspaper." (Yes, my students actually read the paper occasionally in those pre-internet days.)

Discussions such as the one by Russell Roberts on the Cafe Hayek blog would have done much to help students see the wider picture. And the comments submitted would have helped the discussion, I'm sure. I recommend you look at this post before you start your next course. I think it will help your students see where economics can take them intellectually.

Posted by TSchilling at 3:15 PM | Comments (0)

No comments: