The Journal for Economic Educators publishes articles of interest to teachers of Economics and Finance from high school through doctoral degree levels. ISSN 2688-5956 (online)
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COMPARISON OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE IN AN ECONOMETRICS CLASS PRE AND POST REMOTE TEACHING DUE TO COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in an emergency shift to remote teaching in March 2020. Past research determined that this shift negatively impacted students’ learning in Spring 2020. In this paper, I investigate the persistence of this negative effect by comparing students’ performance in an econometrics class after the return to in-person teaching (Fall 2021) with the last pre-pandemic semester when classes were fully in-person (Fall 2019). Student performance is significantly lower in Fall 2021, but certain subgroups of students, such as those with a lower prior GPA and seniors, performed even worse. Instructor, course structure, assessments, and majority of the material taught remained the same over the two semesters.
Copyright (c) 2026 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
DO INTERPRETIVE ECONOMICS DISCUSSIONS IMPROVE LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM?
This paper explores the academic outcome of using interpretive economic discussions in introductory microeconomics. Economics instructors often weigh the costs and benefits of using cooperative learning exercises in the classroom. The purpose for this study is to add to the literature another approach for cooperative learning and to determine if its use in the classroom improves the learning outcome. Our findings indicate that students participating in classroom interpretive economic discussions grasp a deeper understanding of the material, yielding higher exam scores compared to students participating in traditional lecture classes. This outcome suggests that an increased use of cooperative learning exercises might be warranted in economics classes.
PRICELESS OR PRICEY? “ARBITRARY” CHOICES IN LOG-LINEAR MODELS AND THE “ARBITRARY” COST OF HAVING CHILDREN
A popular fix when dealing with zeros in the dependent variable, y, is to add a scalar value, a, within the log transformation, i.e. log (y+a). However, the choice of the scalar value is often seemingly arbitrary. Using data from the Current Population Survey, I step-by-step walk through an empirical investigation of how an additional child in the household affects childcare cost, and I show that the choice of the arbitrary scalar value significantly affects the estimates of a log-linear regression model. For those “special couples” who are mining through data from the Current Population Survey to inform them on life decisions, they can estimate a model to justify any decision by their choice of a. We demonstrate that the best practice may be to forgo the log-linear regression model when dealing with zeros and turn to a Poisson regression.
INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS IN ECONOMICS: UNDERSTANDING STUDENT ENGAGEMENT USING MENTIMETER
In this paper, I examine whether different types of non-game-based audience polls affect students’ in-class performance and participation. I administered two types of Mentimeter polls in small group classroom setting for two first-year undergraduate Economics courses, one timed quiz and the other an un-timed quiz. Using ordinary least squares methods, my analysis indicates that students seemed to perform 16-17% worse in timed quizzes. Interestingly, contrary to the existing literature, female students did not perform worse in these quizzes. Students were quite keen to participate in both types of quizzes with an overall average of approximately 80% completion. Finally, students’ gender does not affect their participation or performance conditional on the gender of the tutorial leaders.
THEY PASS THE TESTS, BUT WHAT DO THEY REALLY BELIEVE? COLLEGE STUDENTS’ VIEWS ON THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT IN AMERICAN ECONOMICS
Teaching college economics poses challenges, such as engaging students and fostering critical thinking, given the subject's abstract and intimidating nature. To address these challenges, this project explored the integration of an adaptation of Q methodology, termed Q pedagogy, in a college undergraduate macroeconomics course. The project involved 33 students who completed a Q sort to express their views on the role of government in American economics. The data analysis revealed four distinct viewpoints among the students ranging from limited to no government interference in the economy to governments serving a critical role. This project provides preliminary evidence of using Q pedagogy to promote "big think" critical thinking among economics students. The project also demonstrates how Q pedagogy can provide a safe space for students to share opinions and appreciate diverse perspectives of their classmates.
Paws and Pedagogy: Using Pet Photos in a Learning Management System to Enhance Student Engagement
In an era of hybrid and digital learning, maintaining consistent student engagement presents a formidable challenge, particularly in an asynchronous environment where students learn at their own pace and on their own schedule. This paper outlines a creative, low-cost teaching intervention, delivered to an introductory-level Macroeconomics subject at Charles Sturt University in 2025. We use photos of staff pets to build rapport, foster a sense of community, and motivate students to regularly log into the online learning management systems (LMS) platform and read the subject content. This approach demonstrates how integrating light-hearted, emotionally resonant stimuli – such as pet photos – can serve as a behavioral nudge to deepen academic interaction and improve student engagement.
Copyright (c) 2026 Wayne Geerling, Nicola Thomas http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
The Impact of Multimodal Transportation on Retail Sales
This study seeks to estimate the impact of walkability, bikeability, and multimodal transportation on retail sales per capita. A secondary goal is to determine whether home values positively, or negatively, contribute to retail sales per capita in a community. These questions are considered with a linear and non-linear ordinary least squares model. The sample analyzed is Colorado towns with populations greater than 1,000. In each specification, a positive relationship between the transportation variables and retail sales per capita is found. The same is true for home values. These results can be applied to proposed transportation infrastructure projects to determine if the construction costs outweigh the benefits to local businesses. Additionally, these findings can be used to inform the broader debate regarding car dependency, environmental sustainability, safety, and quality of life as they relate to issues of local economic development.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Nathanael D. Peach, Liam Goettelman, Beckett Ledger http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
IMPACTS OF ASYNCHRONOUS DISCUSSION FORUMS ON STUDENT LEARNING: AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY
Using asynchronous discussion forums to mimic class discussion and participation has been around for some time but increased dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of the current research on asynchronous discussion forums focuses on best practices for implementation but does not address its effectiveness on student learning. This research focuses on quantifying the impact of asynchronous discussion forums on student learning in an introductory principles of microeconomics course. An observational study using two treatments and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression was used to estimate the models. The results indicate that participation in a discussion forum had little impact on student learning compared to an in-person format. The results show a boost in homework scores for upperclassmen but a negative effect on final grades for freshmen, compared to the control group. The results suggest that asynchronous discussion forums boost grades on collaborative assignments but do not translate into higher scores or improved learning on solo assignments such as exams or essays, nor does it lead to any improvement in final grades.
Copyright (c) 2025 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
ECONOMETRICS AND MACHINE LEARNING IN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS EDUCATION: FACTS AND A GUIDELINE ON TEACHING PRACTICES
Econometrics, and related courses, are often thought of as the most challenging courses for many undergraduate economics, business, and management students. Using a large international dataset of business and economics syllabi, I show an upward trajectory in including machine learning topics within business syllabi, with a discernible shift of emphasis from econometrics topics. With the growing number of undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds, there is a growing need to improve the teaching of econometrics and make it more inclusive and applicable. I discuss and formalize actionable guidelines for practices and interventions that can improve econometrics teaching and make it accessible and relevant to increasingly diverse students in economics, business, and management schools.
OUTSIDE READINGS IN PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS: TEACHING STUDENTS TO SEE NUANCES
Principles curricula frequently introduce students to complex social choice questions. The literature has emphasized the use of outside readings and real-world examples to improve students’ understanding and economic literacy. This paper focuses on robotization and its macroeconomic consequences as an example of a multifaceted social transformation that is relevant to both the textbook material and current economic events. I present an assignment on this topic based on news articles. The proposed intervention builds on the knowledge students have at the end of a semester-long, undergraduate Principles of Macroeconomics course. The goal of the assignment is to improve students’ ability to reconcile a complex trade-off. Using an experiment, I measure the contribution the assignment makes to students’ learning experience. I show that exposure to the texts changes students’ attitudes and preferences over policy. The paper contributes to the literature on outside readings and economic literacy.
BAM! ZAP! POW!: TEACHING MICROECONOMIC CONCEPTS WITH COMIC BOOK SUPERHEROES
One part of the unwritten superhero code is that heroes should not charge for their services; however, this runs contrary to the entrepreneurial spirit. Some heroes are leaving money on the table by adhering to this code. Other heroes try to get involved in a business, but their superpowers do not include basic economic knowledge. In this paper we examine some fundamental microeconomic issues by examining why comic book superheroes do not earn a higher income. We provide specific references (and links) to comics and movie clips, as well as teaching tips and questions for instructors interested in teaching about markets and business decisions using a creative, non-textbook method.
Logged In or Logged Out? A Statistical Analysis on Absences and Virtual Presence in Business Statistics
The COVID-19 pandemic forced faculty and students to adapt to a culture of virtual learning. The transition back to normalcy was immediately positive for some, while others maintained preferences towards the virtual classroom. We elaborate on the importance of classroom attendance in business statistics courses with an online learning component by estimating the impact of virtual learning on performance. We use a sample of six sections of business statistics across three semesters. Each semester employed the same instructor, text, lecture format, and algorithmic assignments but differed in delivery. One semester was completely virtual, one was mixed in-person and virtual, and one was completely in-person. We find that students who attended class virtually scored significantly lower on exams than their classmates who attended lectures in person. Additionally, students who attended virtually and were absent for one or more classes performed worse on exams when compared to students attending in person. Online assignment performance is a strong predictor of exam success but less so for students who attend class virtually.
Copyright (c) 2026 Timothy Haase http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
See Like an Economist: Photo Assignments in Economics Courses
This paper explains the design and purpose of a photo assignment for economics courses. To make vital connections between their own world or lived experience and economic theory, students take pictures in familiar surroundings and explain them through concepts learned in economics courses. The students choose the subject of their photographs and process information from their familiar world through economic theory, communicating their ideas both visually and in writing. The goal of the assignment is to develop long-lasting skills and to ensure that each student is given a creative outlet, which is often not present in our quantitative assignments. The paper discusses the design of effective assignment instructions and selected student work is used to illustrate the benefits of using the photo assignment as a learning tool to enhance student understanding of economic concepts and theories.
Copyright (c) 2026 Lavinia Moldovan, Ambrose Leung, Carter Davidson, Anna Johnson, Gurvir Sangha, Brady Sommerfeld http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Impact of Student Financial Aid, Labor Costs, and Government Appropriations on College Tuition from 2012-13 to 2021-22
Using institutional-level panel data from 2012-13 to 2021-22 from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), this study re-examines the impact of demand-side factors such as students’ financial aid and supply-side factors such as labor costs and government appropriations on college tuition for public four-year and private four-year non-profit institutions. It extends prior research on this topic by using data from more recent years and includes additional factors that may impact tuition. The results reveal that an increase in the average institutional grant will increase tuition for public and private nonprofit institutions. For instance, a $1000 increase in average institutional grant drives up tuition by 593 dollars for private institutions, 302 dollars (out-of-state) and 104 dollars (in-state) for public institutions. However, an average Pell Grant increase, which is a demand side factor, has a negative effect on tuition, contradicting prior literature’s finding that the increase in Pell Grant drives the tuition increase. This study did not find a large effect on tuition for other types of individual subsidies, labor costs, and state appropriations.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jinxin Tian http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
SWIFTONOMICS: USING TAYLOR SWIFT TO TEACH ECONOMICS
Taylor Swift is the most iconic music artist of her generation; her current Eras Tour is already the highest grossing of all time. Given her fame, fortune, and popularity among Millennials and Gen Z, which make up the vast majority of today’s college and high school students, Taylor Swift’s career offers a myriad of opportunities for teaching economics. The impact of her career has led to a new term entering the economics lexicon: Swiftonomics (the economics of Taylor Swift and Swift’s impact on the economy). This paper provides two lesson plans that make use of the Taylor Swift phenomenon to illustrate the concepts of supply and demand and exchange rates. For each lesson plan, we provide links to videos and news articles and a range of assessment activities involving Quizizz and a standalone handout which can be used in-class or assigned for homework. The size, diversity, and devotion of Taylor Swift’s fanbase (colloquially known as Swifties) presents economic educators with a unique opportunity to incorporate economic lessons within their current curriculum, from high school through to an introductory economics course at the college level.
Copyright (c) 2024 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
The purpose in this paper is to create a teaching module on the economics of automation. Avoiding technicalities but focusing on critical thinking, key ideas in the economics of automation are highlighted, and class discussion material is provided based on popular books published in the 2020s. Differing perspectives from these books allow for rich class discussions on topics including the risks of automation, the power of Big Tech, and policy responses for the digital economy. For ECON 101 students, Disney animation clips are provided as hooks to engage in analogy-based understanding of issues in automation. Likewise, other video clips are used to discuss the risks and dangers of automation related to jobs, scams, democracy, and political polarization. Overall, this teaching module highlights key ideas in the economics of automation, incorporates ideas from recently published books, and complements the lecture with videos to retain student interest.
FEMALE INFLUENCERS: THE ECONOMICS BEHIND THE MILLIONS
While women comprise nearly 60% of all undergraduate students in the United States (Causey et al., 2023), they account for less than one-third of economics majors (Buckles, 2019). There are few female role models in economics textbooks. To help address this lack of diversity and engage female students, we present teaching guides based on three of the most popular female influencers among Gen Z students. Each guide highlights an influencer's backstory and business acumen. This paper builds on the work of Geerling et al. (2024a and 2024b) who use viral YouTube and TikTok videos to engage Gen Z students on their social media platforms of choice. This paper offers a unique opportunity for educators to teach foundation-level economics concepts in a creative way while helping stimulate engagement among all students.
This paper introduces two exercises on shifts in simple non-linear demands within a monopoly market. These exercises aim to address a common misconception among undergraduate economics students: the mistaken belief that the comparative static effects of shifts in demand in monopoly and perfect competition are qualitatively identical. To illustrate that these comparative static results may diverge, we present examples in which an increase in demand—a shift to the right in the demand curve—leads to a higher price in a competitive market but results in a lower price in a monopoly market. Additionally, these exercises reinforce fundamental concepts such as marginal reasoning, profit calculation, and the significance of demand level and elasticity in monopoly pricing. Furthermore, they underscore the role of assumptions in economics. Our activities are tailored for undergraduate students enrolled in principles and intermediate-level economics, microeconomics, and industrial organization courses.
USING GAMES TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ ENGAGEMENT AND UNDERSTANDING OF STATISTICS IN HIGHER EDUCATION
In this article we present a series of light-touch, easy to implement, classroom activities designed to improve students’ understanding and interpretation of regression coefficients. Using an experiment, we evaluate the effectiveness of the activities by randomly allocating first-year undergraduate students into a seminar with the activities (treatment group) or not (control group). We demonstrate that the classroom activities have a large, positive effect on several domains including engagement (measured by seminar attendance), enjoyment of learning (measured by an end-of-term student satisfaction survey), and their understanding of the material (measured by test scores). These results suggest that adopting more varied pedagogical approaches to teaching statistics/econometrics can benefit students.
EXTREME PRICING GOES VIRAL: LESSONS FOR TEACHING PRICE CONTROLS
Price controls are a popular topic among students. However, the effects of implementing price controls are not as straightforward as students typically expect, especially the unintended consequences that students tend to overlook. This paper provides three teaching guides designed to teach price controls which can be easily implemented in an introductory-level economics course. We build on the work of Geerling et al. (2023c) by using short-form viral videos from popular platforms such as YouTube and TikTok, which match the streaming and content medium of choice for Gen Z. The use of celebrities and social media influencers make abstract teaching moments more relatable to students. As such, this paper offers a unique opportunity for creatively teaching economics to a new generation of students.
Engaging undergraduate students in economics courses relies increasingly more on using classroom games or experiments. In this paper we propose a linear form of a popular game-theoretic simulation, and then we suggest multiple applications in a variety of contexts. Playing our game in the classroom, students can see for themselves whether their individual choices, guided by self-interest, tend to lead to nearly optimal group outcomes. With little to no change in the setup of our experiment, we show how any instructor can extend the analysis to exemplify inefficient pure-strategy Nash equilibria, the equality/efficiency trade-off and the issue of who “deserves” more, government redistribution versus private charity to the poor, the free-rider problem, and the tragedy of the commons.
WELFARE ANALYSIS WITH MULTIPLE MARKETS, MULTIPLE MARKET FAILURES OR SUBOPTIMAL POLICY CALIBRATION
One of the hallmarks of welfare analysis as a system for organizing policy-relevant evidence is that it embeds accounting standards. Every dollar of impact can, at least in theory, be included in a net benefit estimate exactly once—no more and no less. The visualization tools of partial equilibrium analysis can be powerful and elegant contributors to this goal, especially if integrated with accounting ledgers. However, only a few illustrative cases are taught in a manner that combines user-friendly analytic tools with accuracy. This paper fills in some of the resulting gaps, toward the goal of greater understanding for both students and the practitioners of policy-oriented welfare analysis they might eventually become.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! RECORDING CLASSROOM LECTURES – A SIMPLE AND AFFORDABLE APPROACH
While the demand for online courses has increased, many students also still want to be educated in a traditional face-to-face environment. Lecture capture offers a way for faculty to teach a class both face-to-face and online simultaneously, making the course accessible to both types of students. By using a camera to record the instructor and the whiteboard along with a screen capture and video editing program such as Camtasia 2000 or OBS Studio, instructors can record their in-person lectures and create high-quality videos that can be posted online. These videos can be used by students who are taking the course in an online format or who were unable to attend class as well as by students who attended the in-person lecture and would like to use the lecture video as a study aid. This paper describes a comparatively low-cost method for recording, editing, and producing online content using lecture capture. The features of two video recording software packages, Camtasia and OBS Studio, are compared, and step-by-step instructions are provided for using both software packages to record classroom lectures.
Copyright (c) 2023 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
ECONOMETRICS WITH YOUTUBE DATA: A TIME SERIES TEACHING CASE
This paper explains a teaching case I have designed for econometrics and business analytics courses. Time series remains a difficult topic to teach, in part because existing textbooks lack examples using real data and applicable to business problems students may encounter. This case aims to fill that gap using data from my own YouTube channel to give students an opportunity to practice time series analysis. Issues include endogeneity, seasonality, and unit roots. I also include discussion on how the case can be adapted for different course levels.
DEPICTING DEADWEIGHT LOSS FROM IMPERFECT INFORMATION
The concept of deadweight loss is used by introductory microeconomic textbooks to convey the social welfare consequences of many market failures and distortions. But while the market model is used to reveal the deadweight loss from externalities, market power, taxes, tariffs, and even public goods, it is not employed to illustrate the deadweight loss from imperfect information. This paper advances a way to relate imperfect information’s effect on social welfare by showing the deadweight loss it causes within the standard supply and demand framework.
USING DISCUSSION TO IMPROVE ECONOMIC KNOWLEDGE
This paper offers a response to a paradox in the literature on economics education. The paradox is that economic knowledge has been found to be sensitive to an individual’s ethical, moral, and political convictions. I hypothesize that the source of this paradox is the divergence between the learning of economics and its application outside the classroom. Often the teaching and assessment of economic knowledge focuses on the technical dimensions of our discipline. This begins with introducing students to theory in principles courses and continues as the subject becomes more mathematically rigorous. Outside the classroom, the more subjective elements of economics matter tremendously. From the minimum wage to climate policy, the application of economic knowledge is steeped in normative considerations. In response to the divergence between the learning and application of economics, the normative and technical sides of economics ought to be taught in tandem. In this paper, ways to use discussion to bridge the gap between these two branches of economic knowledge is presented. The merits and limitations of this technique are considered. For the reader interested in trying this technique, a sample selection of prompts that have been used in principles courses is provided. Ultimately, the goal of teaching is to increase students’ economic knowledge. The argument is made that open-ended discussion, coupled with lecture, is an effective way to achieve this end.
This paper econometrically investigates what variables impact the probability a college/university offers an undergraduate major in economics, multiple tracks within the major, or economics minor. Data is collected from four-year, comprehensive institutions, with control variables accounting for whether the school is public, year founded, enrollment, if the school offers a business degree, and selectivity measures. In addition, data is collected on the requirements of economics majors across institutions. Regression is used to determine what institutional variables influence specific track requirements, such as math/statistics, econometrics, capstone course, and internship. Given the unique data set that has been created, this paper offers new information and several conclusions about the economics major.
TEACHING PRICE AND INCOME ELASTICITIES OF DEMAND USING EXCEL AND FEDERAL RESERVE ECONOMIC DATA
This paper describes an assignment designed for use in an undergraduate Principles of Economics course. The assignment is a pedagogical tool that encourages collaborative problem-solving and the use of recent up-to-date data from the Federal Reserve Economics Data (FRED) to compute and analyze the price and income elasticities of demand. This tool is an efficient way for undergraduate economics students to understand the price and income elasticity of demand, gain valuable experience using public datasets, and develop their computer skills without taking classes outside of the economics major.
TOWARDS A RENEWED PERSPECTIVE ON TEACHING TRADE
The objective in this paper is to provide a renewed perspective on teaching trade. The idea is to create a teaching module like the one offered by the CORE textbook that blends microeconomics and macroeconomics concepts to address globalization. Neoclassical textbooks are contrasted with heterodox ones to provide a comparative outlook on key themes on trade. Subject material from various textbooks is complemented with YouTube videos, game theory applications, and a nuanced graphical analysis on topical issues. Apart from tariffs and current account deficits, the issues of fair trade, environmental sustainability, and economic sanctions are considered to appeal to students.
FOUR COMPARATIVE STEADY-STATE EXERCISES USING THE DIAMOND-MORTENSEN-PISSARIDES MODEL
The Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides (DMP) model of two-sided labor market search is now a common topic in first-year graduate courses in macroeconomics. Following Pissarides (2011), Alogoskoufis (2019) derives a two-equation in two unknowns solution to the DMP model that is useful for teaching this topic. I discuss four comparative steady-state exercises that he does not consider: (i) a direct change in the posting price of a vacancy; (ii) a change in labor-market matching efficiency; (iii) financing unemployment benefits that are proportional to the real wage with a labor income tax; and (iv) the addition of a minimum wage. The first two exercises are empirically motivated, and the second two exercises are policy motivated.