Making Economics Instruction Relevant

Economics has changed, with new areas of inquiry such as behavioral economics, the role of information, and network and contagion effects. Economics students have also changed, coming from more diverse backgrounds, representing a wider range of ages, and having broader career and life interests. The economy has changed as well, due to the 2008 financial crisis, the rise of the digital economy, the effects of COVID-19, and the growing importance of services. As we begin the new academic year, EconoFact Chats interviews Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers (University of Michigan) on the way they have addressed these changes in their new Principles of Economics textbook. Betsey and Justin also discuss their efforts to make the teaching of economics more inclusive, to draw to the subject women and people from underserved minorities.