Macroeconomics Course Research Articles

Introducing a Learning Management System in a Large First Year Class: The Impact on Lecturers and Students

The challenges of teaching large classes are well documented in the literature on teaching in higher education. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have the potential to address some of these challenges, but, used inappropriately, technology can perpetuate entrenched practices and simply support performance models of teaching that encourage transmission approaches to learning. This paper reports on the impact of implementing a learning management system (LMS) in a first year introductory macroeconomics course with 600 students in blended learning context. Experiences of the course coordinator, lecturers and an educational technologist are discussed and data was also collected on student perceptions via a course evaluation questionnaire. Results show that the LMS was successful in a number of areas, particularly in improving the lecturers' accessibility to students and in encouraging interaction and participations in online discussion forums.

Are Native and Non‐Native English Speaking Tutors Equally Effective?

Abstract Many studies find a negative effect of non‐native English speaking instructors on students' performance in universities where the language of instruction is English. However, the negative effect observed in the existing literature is not found in the study by Fleisher, Hashimoto and Weinberg (2002), which uses the sample of instructors who received training in the Ohio State University's PhD programme. In many economics departments in Australia, mainly because their PhD programmes are not large enough, it is unrealistic to have all the tutors trained in the methods recommended in Fleisher, Hashimoto and Weinberg (2002). This gives rise to a potential negative impact of non‐native English speaking tutors on students' performance. Nevertheless, by analysing the panel data drawn from first‐year quantitative methods, microeconomics and macroeconomics courses in an Australian university, we find no statistically significant difference in the effectiveness of small class teaching between native and non‐native English speaking tutors.

The Open Economy IS/LM Simulation Model: A User Guide

This is a user guide for the computer simulation of the short-run open economy IS/LM model (UVA-S-BP-0522.xls). The model is also known as the Mundell-Fleming model. We assume the user is a student who is studying the short-run open economy model in an intermediate level macroeconomics course. The simulation requires Microsoft Excel® version 2000 or newer to run.

One-Semester Principles and Student Performance in Intermediate Theory Courses

The Economics Department at California State University Northridge had the unique experience of replacing its two-semester principles course with a one-semester principles course. This was done on a large scale as the principles course, along with intermediate micro and macroeconomics, was required of all business and economics majors. The timing of course offerings made it impossible for students to select the one-semester principles course over the two-semester course. This environment allows us to investigate whether completion of a one-semester, rather than the standard two-semester, introductory course lowers student performance in intermediate micro or macroeconomic theory courses. Regression analysis indicates that students who complete the one-semester course earn slightly lower grades in both intermediate micro and macroeconomics.

The bulk shipping business: market cycles and shipowners’ biases

Despite a strong linkage with the macro-economic course, the bulk shipping market, in the short period, follows a typical cyclic pattern, where continuous freight adjustments balance demand and supply movements. In this context—widely unstable but quite regular in its general scheme—the shipowners may have enough competencies and information to take logical and consistent decisions about ship purchasing and chartering. Yet, why do they periodically make mistakes? The analysis of shipowners’ behaviour provides a reasonable answer: mistakes incur when they ignore or undervalue the market trends, following their personal intuition or even unwisely imitating their competitors. The analysis of the Handysize segment among the bulk shipping business offers a significant example of the lack of timeliness in shipowners' behaviour: after a long period of disregard, operators began to notice the opportunities of this market niche and they are now heavily investing in minor units. Maybe it's not too late, but the market has already changed and only a few brave—or lucky—shipowners took advantage of the magic moment.

Modeling Performance on Collaborative Homework Projects

This paper investigates the determinants of grades on homework projects performed by assigned pairs of students in an undergraduate macroeconomics course. The assignment grade is found to depend on the ability of both students and the relative importance of the stronger and weaker student differs in predictable ways depending on the kind of assignment. Male-male pairs earn lower grades than male-female or female-female pairs, conditional on the measured ability of the students.

Using the tutorial system to improve the quality of feedback to students in large class teaching

This article discusses the implementation of peer assessment in the tutorials system of an introductory macroeconomics course of 600+ students at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa in order to improve their access to formative feedback. Peer assessment was introduced to improve the quality of feedback and learning pay-off for the students from the weekly tutorial tasks set for the course. The problems with tutor-graded, weekly tutorial exercises included the poor quality and poor presentation of work submitted by students, complaints by tutors (postgraduate students) of an overwhelming workload and complaints by students of the poor quality of the feedback from the tutors. Formal evaluation data on the effectiveness of using peer assessment from the point of view of the student experience and that of the tutors is presented. Results show that learning was enhanced for the majority of the class, but that some of the negative outcomes found in other studies, like stress and time consumption, were also experienced.

A Comparison of Course Delivery Methods: An Exercise in Experimental Economics

This paper compares student performance in traditional versus online classes using a methodological framework free from problems affecting past studies including self-selection bias. The data employed in this study consists of 1) students’ test scores in Principles of Macroeconomics courses, 2) students’ academic information collected from the registrar’s office, and 3) students’ personal information collected from a survey completed by students involved in the study. Employing a maximum likelihood estimation procedure, we find that the average grade for students in the online class is approximately one letter grade lower than the average grade for students in the traditional class, ceteris paribus.

A Simple Wicksellian Macroeconomic Model

This paper describes a simple Wicksellian macroeconomic model that can be used in undergraduate macroeconomics courses. It is designed as an alternative to the Romer (2000) model that is slowly replacing IS-LM/AS-AD in many textbooks. The chief advantages of the Wicksellian model over the Romer model are that it accounts for the term structure of interest rates, and it uses the federal funds rate as a freely-determined monetary policy instrument rather than imposing a monetary policy rule. The model can be used to analyze a number of interesting issues in monetary policy that are difficult to handle in the IS-LM/AS-AD or Romer model framework involving permanent versus temporary expenditures shocks, anticipated expenditures shocks, and shocks to the term structure of interest rates. The model can easily be simplified for use in a principles course or extended for use in upper-level macroeconomics courses.

A Computer Algebra Primer and Homework Exercises for use in an Intermediate Macroeconomics Course – A Student/Teacher Collaboration

This paper details some of the results of a student/teacher collaboration to develop computer algebra materials for use by students in an intermediate macroeconomics course. Many years ago the teacher required students solve macro models using a pencil and paper. For the most part these models were linear IS—LM models. One problem that arose with the pencil and paper solution is that introducing slight modifications to the model could require substantial solution time on the part of the students. This tended to reduce the complexity and sophistication of the models considered. Computer algebra systems have certain advantages. They can produce symbolic solutions as well as numerical solutions. Symbolic solutions are often presented in textbooks giving students some confidence that the solutions really are valid. The teacher also found that using a CAS was far more efficient in a lecture than solving models on a blackboard. The teacher wrote a primer discussing the features of the CAS that the students would need to complete projects given in the class as well as a series of classroom exercises. For the most part the exercises only required that the students copy the program, change parameters or exogenous variables and discuss the results of the changes. The teacher discussed the value of the exercises with a number of students after the semester ended and found that they thought the exercises were too easy. The teacher succeeded in getting one student to enroll in an independent study class to revise the primer and to reconstruct the exercise so they would be more meaningful to the students. The choice of a CAS is considered, followed by a discussion of the prevalence of CASs in various disciplines, followed by the primer, then the exercises and lastly, some example lecture notes created using a CAS.

Does Active Learning Improve Student Performance? Results of a Quantity Theory Game

We describe a game to illustrate the Quantity Theory of Money and test the marginal effect of this game on student learning. Specifically, we compared student performance on a quiz about the Quantity Theory in sections of Principles of Macroeconomics courses in which we played the game and then lectured on the Quantity Theory, to performance in sections of that course in which we gave only the conventional lecture. Mean quiz scores were not higher in the sections in which the game was played than in the other sections. The most striking effect of participation in the game was to increase the performance of stronger students while decreasing the performance of other students.

A Classroom Experiment on Exchange Rate Determination with Purchasing Power Parity

We develop a classroom experiment on exchange rate determination appropriate for undergraduate courses in macroeconomics and international economics. Students represent citizens from different countries and need to obtain currency to purchase goods. By participating in a sealed bid auction to buy currency, students gain a better understanding of currency markets and the determination of exchange rates. The implicit framework for exchange rate determination is one in which prices are perfectly flexible (in the long run) so that purchasing power parity (PPP) prevails. Additional treatments allow students to examine the impact of transport costs, nontradable goods and tariffs on the exchange rate and to explore possible deviations from PPP.

Intermediate Macroeconomics Made Simpler

In the last thirty-five years, the course in intermediate macroeconomics has become more difficult, both for the student to learn and the instructor to teach. In this paper, some simpler approaches are presented to teaching the following topics: the distinction between private, public, and national savings; the Ricardian Equivalence Hypothesis; Economic Growth Theory; and the derivation of the Lucas Supply Curve.

Taking General Education Seriously: Expanding The Boundary Of A Principles Of Macroeconomics Course

Does teaching a course that “counts” for general education credit carry with it any responsibilities beyond discipline content? How might you entice students to view a discipline specific course in more general terms? What might be done to link a course in one discipline to courses in related disciplines so that students see connections? These are some of the questions that I have been attempting to answer within the context of a Principles of Macroeconomics course at the University of North Dakota. This paper describes two initiatives undertaken over the past two years. The first initiative occurred during the Spring 2003 semester within two sections of Principles of Macroeconomics. In one section students were given a traditional lecture-based course. In the other section, in addition to lectures, students were asked to read, think about, discuss, and write about how economics relates to other disciplines and how economic thinking might be applied when examining issues beyond economics. The main vehicle used for this latter aspect of the course was to have the students explore the book Dollars and Change: Economics In Context by Louis Putterman. The second initiative took place during the Spring 2004 semester. During this semester, within two sections of Principles of Macroeconomics, all students were asked to read, think about, discuss, and write about general education (liberal learning). The main vehicle used for this initiative was to have the students explore the book A Student’s Guide to Liberal Learning by James V. Schall and the description of general education in the University catalog. A detailed description of each of these two initiatives is provided, including copies of assignment sheets and grading rubrics. A discussion of the outcomes of each of these initiatives is presented, from the perspective of the students as well as of the faculty member. The analysis presented is primarily qualitative.

What Matters in Large Class Teaching and Learning? A Case Study of an Introductory Macroeconomics Course in South Africa

In many universities, economics teachers now face the challenge of dealing with large, diverse classes, especially at undergraduate level. A common concern is the non-attendance at lectures of unmotivated (conscript) students. This paper presents the results of a student assessment of a macroeconomics 1 course, coupled with a self-assessment of their own input into the course. The results obtained, using an econometric model, suggest that what students do outside of lectures is equally, or more, important than lecture attendance itself. The paper concludes by examining the possibility of using peer assessed group learning as a feasible way to encourage deep learning in large classes.

A Computer Algebra Primer and Homework Exercises for use in an Intermediate Macroeconomics Course – A Student/Teacher Collaboration

We discuss using computer algebras systems (CAS) in an undergraduate intermediate macroeconomics class. The criteria used in choosing a CAS are considered. One criterion was that students would bear little or no financial. The lessons learned in implementing a CAS – things that worked well and those that did not work so well – are noted. We also discuss the need for communications with information technology staff for successful implementation.

Teaching Macroeconomics by Bringing Marx into the Classroom

The aggregate demand and supply graph is a staple in undergraduate macroeconomics courses. The foundations of this model and questions it addresses are often different from radical economics. The current article develops an alternative to the aggregate demand and supply framework. In the alternative framework, students are quickly introduced to certain aspects of Marx’s economic theory with the aid of a simple graphical tool.

A Wicksellian Alternative to the IS-LM Model

This paper proposes a Wicksellian alternative to the IS-LM/AS-AD model that serves as the centerpiece of most intermediate macroeconomics textbooks. The model has a simple, intuitive structure that is consistent with modern monetary theory and the actual operating procedures of the Federal Reserve. The model centers on the market for bank reserves, the term structure of interest rates, the IS relationship, and the AS or Phillips curve relationship. The model allows for a simpler analysis of monetary policy than the traditional IS-LM/AS-AD model and is more in tune with what students encounter in the popular media. It can be used to analyze a number of interesting issues in monetary policy that are difficult to handle in the IS-LM/AS-AD framework, including the effect of anticipated changes in interest rates, the effect of anticipated budget deficits, and the optimal monetary policy response to changes in inflation expectations. The model can easily be simplified for use in a principles course or extended for use in upper-level macroeconomics courses.

Using Mimio Boardcast in an Online Principles of Macroeconomics Course to Improve Student Performance

The emergence of the speedily evolving world of technology has given many universities an interactive medium to facilitate teaching and learning. One such medium has been online courses, which have provided greater access to both traditional and non-traditional students. In quantitative courses such as economics, however, there are often concerns about whether students in online and on-campus sections of the same course receive equivalent educational experiences. This paper will compare student performance, as measured by grades and retention, of students enrolled in economics courses from the fall of 1998 through the summer of 2003. The paper will also focus on how one university has used technology and pedagogy to facilitate teaching and learning, In addition, the paper will show how one professor is effectively using Mimio Boardcast to enhance the quality of education offered to students taking online courses and will describe the methods the professor has used to empower the students to successfully integrate pedagogy, technology, and academic outcomes.

A Child's Guide to the Solow Model

The Solow model is widely regarded as the workhorse model of the theory of economic growth. While at one point this model was something first confronted by graduate students, it has filtered down to the intermediate and sometimes to the principles of macroeconomics course. Many have commented on how difficult it is to teach the Solow model to undergraduates, especially to students in the principles of macroeconomics course. In this paper, we demonstrate that if we assume that the level of savings is autonomous, the essence of the stock-flow adjustment of the Solow model becomes much easier to comprehend.