Abstract
A common theme in the many articles published by frequent contributors to the Journal of Economic Education is that economists undervalue teaching, place too much faith in traditional lecture-based teaching methods, and are generally apathetic to the problems that students face when learning economics. It is my belief that these inferences and conclusions are not representative of most economists. Rather, economists seem to adhere to many folk theories of what successful teaching looks like, and act on those folk theories. Until recently, due to the lack of a scientific framework for investigating learning processes, economists could be forgiven for viewing teaching as more art than science. It is the purpose of this book to show that a scientific investigation of learning processes—as opposed to an investigation of teaching methods or estimation of an input–output model of the education production function—is not only possible but also essential to improving economic and financial literacy. The first chapter is aimed at documenting the success, or lack thereof, of the economics profession in communicating its disciplinary knowledge to students of economics and to the general population.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Supriya Sarnikar
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Sarnikar, S. (2015). Introduction. In: What Can Behavioral Economics Teach Us about Teaching Economics?. Palgrave Pivot, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137497444_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137497444_1
Publisher Name: Palgrave Pivot, New York
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-69925-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-49744-4
eBook Packages: Palgrave Economics & Finance CollectionEconomics and Finance (R0)