Suchergebnisse

As with other sciences, the author argues that there are no unquestionable ideas in economics, and attempts to impose "No Child Left Behind" K-12 type "technical standards" in universities will turn higher education in economics into remedial education. Students need to learn that the very nature of a science is to have unresolved topics and an on-going scrutiny of theories no matter how steeped they are in tradition. He provides examples to show how the dumbing down of economics to the dogmatic preaching of a few simple concepts, principles, and axioms of old misses the excitement of modem day economics and is a deceitful representation of the science of economics and a disservice to students seeking a higher education.

This volume addresses topics related to the role of post-secondary education in microeconomic development within the United States. Although several of the chapters are aimed at research/teaching universities, much of what is presented can be generalized to all post-secondary education. The articles in this book summarize the research literature and synthesize what economists and other social scientists have learned about the contribution of higher education to individual and regional growth within society. All contributors to this book have individually made significant contributions to the literature in higher education

Introductory economics courses emphasize opportunity cost, comparative advantage, and specialization to show the benefits of trade. We assert that this emphasis leads to erroneous student mind-set that trade requires specialization based on comparative advantage. We test students who have been exposed to the typical textbook and classroom presentation of specialization and trade with real but paradoxical situations where the same goods are both imported and exported by a country. Students are found to generally understand comparative advantage calculations but wrongfully apply the idea to this multiproduct trade situation for which specialization is not relevant.