Presents a simple classroom simulation of the Lucas supply curve mechanism with rational expectations. Concludes that the exercise has proved very useful as an introduction to the concepts of rational and adaptive expectations, the Lucas supply curve, the natural rate hypothesis, and random supply shocks. (DB)

Contends that the standard description of the relationship between the long-run marginal cost curve and the short-run marginal cost curve is often misleading and imprecise. Asserts that a sampling of college-level textbooks confirms this confusion. Provides a definition and instructional strategy that can be used to promote student understanding…

Reports on a study of economic knowledge and attitudes of 873 upper secondary school, Chinese students. Finds that Chinese students performed better than northern California students on the Test of Economic Literacy. Concludes that the relatively high level of economic knowledge and the impact of Western economic ideas will encourage further…

Describes a senior project that requires students to relate their undergraduate studies to the works of distinguished economists. Argues that this activity fulfills the need for integration and a culminating experience at the end of undergraduate study. Discusses mentoring the projects and possible project topics. (DSK)

Examines the underrepresentation of women in undergraduate economics programs. Finds no evidence that gender of instructor influences first-year microeconomics performance or the likelihood that a student will continue in economics. Female students do, however, fare worse in economics courses than do male students. Study controlled for measured…

Surveys introductory business and economics statistics textbooks and finds that they differ over the best way to explain one-tailed hypothesis tests: the simple null-hypothesis approach or the composite null-hypothesis approach. Argues that the composite null-hypothesis approach contains methodological shortcomings that make it more difficult for…

Examines doctoral origins of economics faculty training new doctorates in economics. Finds that doctoral origins are highly concentrated, with the top ten schools producing 47% of the faculty at Ph.D.-granting schools, 54% of weighted doctoral-production faculty, and 67% of thesis supervisors at 47 top schools. (DSK)

Describes an international economics course in which the culminating activity is a simulated General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) conference. Discusses the simulation phases and their timing, as well as modifications for using the simulation in other international-economics settings. Presents student evaluations of the course. (DSK)

When the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act became law in 1917, home economics, agriculture, and trade and industrial education were the first three disciplines to be earmarked for federal funding. Over the century, these fields have evolved to reflect changing realities in jobs and lifestyles. (JOW)

Describes an interdisciplinary course on economics and religion offered at a medium-sized state university. Explains that the class was mostly a disaster and analyzes reasons for its failure. Concludes that significant blame lies with general attitudes entrenched in economics, including a disregard for reality as opposed to methods and theories,…

Examines the determinants of class-specific academic cheating on examinations, class-to-class differences in the severity of the cheating problem across 12 principles of economics classes, whether control measures are effective, and the relative effectiveness of deterrent measures. Considers methods for gathering data on cheating. (CMK)

Summarizes four reasons for abandoning Keynesian economics and explains why the reasons should be disregarded. Argues that parts of Keynesian economics are worth preserving and teaching to students. (CMK)

Offers instructors a presentation of the IS (investment saving)-LM (liquidity preference-money supply) model, suggesting that a number of benefits emerge if the instructor focuses on what determines the size of both the horizontal and vertical distances between the IS curves and between the LM curves. (CMK)

Demonstrates that it is possible for economies of scale to induce a price-discriminating monopolist to sell in an unprofitable market where the average cost always exceeds the price. States that higher profits in the profitable market caused by economies of scale may exceed losses incurred in the unprofitable market. (CMK)

Analyzes effects of curriculum changes resulting from university education reforms in Spain during 1990-95, focusing on first-cycle undergraduate economics students and using estimated education-production functions. Considers both affective and cognitive education-output dimensions. Curriculum reform produced no significant differences in…