We surveyed high school students in Southern California to investigate whether there is an improvement in financial attitudes from eight class periods of financial literacy intervention in a high school economics course. We examine whether the money management (MM) and financial investing (FI) components of financial instruction influence…

The primary purpose of this study is to assess student-level impacts of a problem-based instructional approach to high school economics. The curriculum approach examined here was designed to increase class participation and content knowledge for high school students who are learning economics. This study tests the effectiveness of Problem Based…

Since 1995, the Buck Institute has partnered with university economists and expert teachers to create the Problem Based Economics curriculum. The curriculum was developed to respond to NCEE (National Council on Economic Education) standards, and it is supported by professional development for teachers. This study examines whether the Problem Based…

This study examines whether the Problem Based Economics curriculum developed by the Buck Institute for Education improves grade 12 students' content knowledge as measured by the Test of Economic Literacy, a test refined by the National Council on Economic Education (NCEE) over decades. Students' problem-solving skills in economics were also…

The learning effect of instructional objectives treatment in economics was tested by seeing if significant differences existed in mean achievement scores of the economic understanding of students using the treatment and those with no treatment. During the 1970 fall semester, 300 students from three community colleges in California (Cypress, Mount…

This study compared the effectiveness of problem-based learning (PBL) and traditional instructional approaches in developing high-school students' macroeconomics knowledge and examined whether PBL was differentially effective with students demonstrating different levels of four aptitudes: verbal ability, interest in economics, preference for group…

This study investigated the academic background and instructional practices of California family life education teachers from home economics and other disciplines. A total of 661 principals and 415 teachers in schools with a ninth and/or tenth grade completed surveys examining teacher and course characteristics. Results are discussed. (Author/CT)