From Rhythm and Blues to Broadway: Using Music to Teach Economics

Abstract

In an attempt to make the learning of economics more interesting and memorable, economic educators have used a variety of materials to convey economic knowledge. This material includes novels and other forms of literature, the popular press, motion pictures and videos, computer simulations, board games, experiments, the Internet, and other nontraditional vehicles (Becker and Watts 1998, 1995). Two noteworthy interdisciplinary efforts include Watts and Smith's (1989) use of literature and drama to teach economics and, more recently, KishGoodling's (1998) success using Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice as a vehicle to develop the economic concepts of interest, investment, loan defaults, and usury laws in her monetary economics course. Little if anything has been written about the use of music in the teaching of economics. Few economists have actually attempted to harness the power of music to support their teaching because (we suspect) its use as a pedagogical tool has, up to this point, not been carefully examined.' Although there is little evidence of the use of music in the teaching of economics, music certainly is an important influence in the life of young people. The advent of the internet is likely to contribute to this interest as music companies devise new ways to induce customers into listening to and buying music via the internet (Bayne 1998). Radio is a medium ... that becomes increasingly important to young listeners as they grow older, particularly for the popular music that describes the life that awaits them (Carroll et al. 1993, 162, citing Christenson and DeBenedittis 1986). What's more, racial and social class origins of rock and roll music continue to be reflected in today's music (Lipsitz 1982, ch. 10). Clearly, the act of listening to a piece of music evokes a sensorial and emotional response (Lacher 1989, Lacher and Mizerski 1994). A number of recent studies in psychology explore whether music makes people smarter and more intelligent. Music stimulates thought processes and enhances spatial reasoning, which are essential for academic achievement (Rauscher 1995). Sarnthein et al. (1994) tested the effects of music on spatial task performance and demonstrated that musical training has long-term positive effects on cognitive abilities. Despite overwhelming evidence that music has significant effects on cognitive