EconomicsToo

by Tasha Jayabalan Image source: Economics Society website , University of Edinburgh How do I even start? Ah, uni life. University life is amazing in all aspects, you’re constantly meeting new people from completely different backgrounds, engaging in sport and activities, and there’s just about 1000 societies that will cater to whatever your interested in. Not forgetting the drunken nights out, hungover mornings and laundry-filled weekends, and you’ll have your typical week at university set up.  In terms of economics, I feel blessed to have studied Economics at A level at GIS, because of the fact that so much of what I’m learning now, overlaps with what I’ve learnt for the last two years. In that sense, I already feel like I’ve got a mile head start for the semester, where we’re covering topics that we covered immensely at A level such as Theory of Consumer Choice and Competitive Markets. Don’t get me wrong, it is harder in the sense that the two lectures a week ...

Few economics educators will have missed the December 2014 documentary by Aditya Chakrabortty on Radio 4 titled Teaching Economics after the Crash . It has likely been discussed in many an A level economics classroom, particularly with students eager to know more about their potential economics degrees...I know a couple of my classes watched it with interest and had many questions about their future economics degrees afterwards...  Unfortunately, few asked "Is what the documentary said actually true?" The documentary did lead to some fascinating discussions with both students and colleagues and whilst all found it enjoyable viewing, it was not particularly clear to enough students that it was a rather unfair and one-sided representation, and a portrayal that most economics degree courses do not typically deserve. I felt that its unbalanced nature could not only have negative consequences in terms of the selections some students made in terms of their future study...