Tulane University professor Gary Hoover shares how his personal journey to the field of economics shaped his teaching philosophy. Hoover also reflects on the mentors who changed his life, the importance of making economics real and relevant, and the responsibility educators have to meet students where they are. “Hoov,” as he’s known, talks with St. Louis Fed Economic Education Officer Scott Wolla about how economics isn’t just about markets—it’s about people—and how great teaching means equipping students with tools to answer their own questions.
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Wendy Stock: Harnessing Student Curiosity to Fuel Economic Education
Wendy Stock, a professor of economics at Montana State University, doesn’t begin the first day of the semester reviewing a syllabus with her students. Rather, she asks them what topics in the world are the most important to them. Stock then uses their answers to frame lessons about how economics can help them better understand what they feel most affects their lives. In this episode, Stock talks with St. Louis Fed Economic Education Officer Scott Wolla about how her own curiosity led her to economics and how she hopes harnessing her students’ curiosity will help them better grasp complicated topics.
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Avi Cohen: If Students Only Take One Econ Course, What Should They Learn?
Let’s say you’re writing a syllabus for the only economics class a student might ever take. What would you teach? That’s the question on the mind of Avi Cohen, a professor of economics at York University in Toronto, Canada. For Cohen, the answer lies in the literacy-targeted approach to teaching, which argues that it is more valuable for students to be able to apply core economic concepts well than to be exposed to a wide range of concepts they may soon forget. In this episode, Cohen explains to St. Louis Fed Economic Education Officer Scott Wolla how this approach can help all students, even those who go on to pursue a career in economics.
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Annamaria Lusardi: How Lessons in Personal Finance Can Help Teach Economics
In the latest episode of our Teach Economics podcast, Annamaria Lusardi, faculty director of the Initiative for Financial Decision-Making at Stanford University, talks about her career journey and passion for teaching personal finance education. “When the tooth fairy comes is the time to talk about money,” she says. “Give a piggy bank to a child and you will instantly turn (the child) into a clever banker. I enjoy empowering people with the knowledge and skills that are so important today. I really do think I am empowering the student to be able to navigate the world around them.”
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Greg Mankiw: When Introducing Economics to Students, It Helps to Keep Things Simple
When introducing economics to students, Harvard University economics professor Greg Mankiw says it helps to keep it simple. “Maybe they will only take one course in economics,” Mankiw says. “So the question is, for that student, what can you leave them with?” With that in mind, Mankiw wrote the hugely influential Principles of Economics more like a magazine than a traditional textbook. In this episode, Mankiw discusses his journey to the field and how down-to-earth language can unlock students’ understanding of complex economic concepts.
The Teach Economics podcast series features conversations between the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ Economic Education team and thought leaders, innovators and high-profile economic educators. Topics range from trends in the field to why it’s important to teach economics. The series can be used as a resource for educators, and parents also may find it useful.
(Views expressed are not necessarily those of the St. Louis Fed or Federal Reserve System.)
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