Education

Do economics departments exclude diverse perspectives and fail to foster critical thinking skills? A dozen prominent economists confront the charge.

Economics departments: limited range of courses at the advanced level; reliance on "chalk-and-talk" pedagogy.

Our re-imagining economics education series turns to the questions of how to broaden advanced course offerings and how to go beyond "chalk-and-talk" teaching methods. Could Marx have a place in a traditional Labor Economics course? One TCU professor thinks so. Another suggestion: have students play "math charades" on the first day of class to convey the strengths and weaknesses of a modeling approach.

Critics of status quo identify range of options to transform intro and intermediate curriculum away from current narrow focus.

As the Supreme Court looks ready to restrict or eliminate race-based affirmative action in its 2012-13 session, supporters of such preferences have a tool not yet deployed: race-based affirmative action as a means to compensate for the disproportionately negative impact of current-day "legacy admissions" policies on minority applicants.

Readers respond to beginning of Remapping Debate series on the narrowness of economics education at most schools.

Economics education in profound conflict with the philosophy of a liberal education. Part 3 of our series.

Though presented to students as "value-free," neoclassical economics is a cheerleader for free markets.

Exposure to only a narrow subset of perspectives undermines students' ability to think critically about the economy.