A short case about long-run economic growth issues in the African nation of Mali is presented. Issues discussed in the case include challenges related to Mali's education system, investment, and trade. Basic facts and statistics about Mali are provided. Analysis of public policy issues and the...

This paper argues that the reason that the DSGE model, which has proved so successful in convincing academic economists of its value, has made relatively few inroads into the undergraduate teaching sphere is that it fails to allow for the development of higher order educational objectives in...

Economists often introduce their classes to opportunity cost concepts by pointing out the additional incomes students could be earning were they employed full time rather than attending university. A potential additional cost, a reduction in years of future labor force participation, is unlikely...

We describe the use of a serious game in intermediate macroeconomics: Mankiw’s Presidential Game. Students in the classroom are assigned different roles as monetary and fiscal policy makers, while the online game is used to estimate the impact of their decisions. After the game, the instructor...

The number of undergraduate-level textbooks on environmental economics has increased in recent years, but the textbook treatment of optimal emissions (abatement) varies markedly from textbook to textbook. In particular, there is no consensus as to whether to model the economic “bad” (i.e....

In this paper, the distinction between nominal and real income is highlighted by positing the existence of an imaginary “real dollar store.” In this store, all items are sold at a price of one dollar in the base year and the price of each is indexed to the cost of living. Hence, such...

This paper argues that the various theories of economics have the potential to add value when they are applied to the appropriate situation, yet educational institutions each seem overly committed to only a single theory. The resulting intense debates between economists are destructive and...

This article examines the cooperative learning technique of Structured Problem-Solving that induces students to work together to understand cost-calculations in microeconomics. Cooperative learning methods can help students better extract and interpret knowledge about economic issues and then...

One-minute papers are often used to encourage students to think and write briefly about their own learning, because teachers believe that metacognition and writing help students to learn. The proportion of online one-minute papers that students submit, however, has not previously been used to...

This paper details a dynamic process of course-embedded assessment of student learning about foreign exchange markets. Three iterations of the assessment have occurred, and modest improvements in student outcomes are demonstrated. The process reveals the apparent difficulties that students face...