Promoting Active-Student Learning Using the World Wide Web in Economics Courses

Abstract

In recent years, as the number of economics majors and students taking economics courses has declined, the issue of pedagogy in economic education has taken on increased importance. Economists have begun to think seriously about how economics is taught to college students, especially in introductory courses where students often experience economics for the first time. An important element in the current focus on teaching within the economics discipline is the recognition that current teaching practices, which rely heavily on the lecture format, are not doing enough to develop students' cognitive learning skills, attract good students to economics, and motivate them to continue coursework in the discipline. Some economists have argued that to increase the effectiveness of economic education, and at the same time increase undergraduate enrollment in economics courses, economics instructors need to reexamine and change their current mix of teaching methods. In particular, advocates of pedagogical change emphasize the need for greater use of activeand collaborative-learning exercises that encourage students to take greater responsibility for their learning. Learning theory and educational research suggest that teaching strategies that actively engage students in the learning process increase the academic performance of students and generate more positive attitudes about learning.' At the same time, changes in instructional technology, in particular the development of the Internet and the World Wide Web, are providing new opportunities for improving teaching and learning. The challenge for instructors of economics is how to use effectively these new technologies to develop an active-studentlearning environment in economics courses.' In the following sections, I discuss how this technology can be used to encourage and motivate students to become active participants in the learning process and describe two Web-based activelearning exercises that can be used in introductory economics courses. The examples illustrate how Web technology can be integrated with traditional teaching methods to enhance learning for students with a variety of learning styles, at the same time making economics more relevant, more interesting, and more fun for teachers and students alike.