DOCUMENT RESUME ED 216 992 SO 014 114 AUTHOR Fels, Rendigs, Ed.; Siegfried, John J., Ed. TITLE Research on Teaching College Economics: Selected Readings. INSTITUTION Joint Council on Economic Education, New York, N.Y. REPORT NO JCEE-312 PUB DATE 82 NOTE 360p. AVAILAPLE FROMJoint Council on Economic Education, 1212 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036 ($10.00). EDRS PRICE MF01 Plus Postage. PC Not Available from EDRS. DESCRIPTORS *Economics Education; *Educational Research; Higher Education; Literature Reviews; Research Methodology; Research Reports; State of the Art Reviews ABSTRACT The journal articles reprinted in this publication were selected to aid scholars interested in doing research on the teaching of college economics or in learning about the results of such research. The preface points out that the readings are not intended to provide advice on how to teach economics better. With the exception of one, all of the articles have been previously published in scholarly journals and subjected to their review procedures. The 28 articles are organized into four main sections: surveys of the literature, critiques of research methodology, foundations of research, and research report3. Some examples of the types of articles included are: Male-Female Differences in Economic Education: A Survey; Student Performance and Changes in Learning Technology in Required Courses; The Efficiency of Programmed Learning in Teaching Economics; The Lasting Ef.lects of Introductory Economics Courses; Teacher Effectiveness and Student Performance; Student-to-Student . Tutoring in Economics; and Test Information. (RM) *********************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * ************************************************************1*.A******** Lital-C_... os U S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER IERICI A. Thos document has been reproduced as received from the person or orgarezabon oeyinatin9 It Minor changes have been made to improve reproductIon quality Points of view or opinions stated in tors docu meat do rot necessarily represent officio, ?VIE prwirion or policy "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL IN MICROFICHE ONLY HAS BEPI GRAN' ED BY Zai.41renee?. or TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC).- Edited by Rendigs Fels and John J. Siegfried Joint Council on Economic Education Checklist No. 312 r RENDIGS FELS is a professor of economics at Vanderbilt University and is one of the founding figures in the study of economic education. He has been treasurer of the American Economic Association since 1976. He was secretary-treasurer from 1970 to 1975, and is a past president of the Southern Economic Association. Professor Fels received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. JOHN J. SIEGFRIED is a professor of economics and chairman of the department at Vanderbilt University. He was an economist at the Federal Trade Commission in 1975-76 and a senior staff economist for the Presi- dent's Council of Economic Advisers in 1976-77 while on leave from Vanderbilt. Professor Siegfried received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin. ©1982 Joint Council on Economic Education 1212 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York 10036 Contents PREFACE vii I.SURVEYS OF THE LITERATURE 1.JOHN J. SIEGFRIED AND RENDIGS FELS RESEARCH ON TEACHING COLLEGE ECONOMICS: A SURVEY (Journal of Economic Literature, 1979) 3 2.JOHN J. SIEGFRIED MALE-FEMALE DIFFERENCES IN ECONOMIC EDUCATION: A SURVEY ( Journal of Economic Education, 1979) 50 II.CRITIQUES OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.BURTON A. WEISBROD RESEARCH ON ECONOMIC EDUCATION: IS IT ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS? (American Economic Review, 1979) 63 4.RICHARD B. MCKENZIE WHERE IS THE ECONOMICS IN ECONOMIC EDUCATION? (Journal of Economic Education, 1977) 71 5.ROBERT J. STAAF STUDENT PERFORMANCE AND CHANGES IN LEARNING TECHNOLOGY IN REQUIRED COURSES ( Journal of Economic Education, 1972) 80 6.JUDITH YATES RESEARCH IN ECONOMIC EDUCATION: ARE OUR HORIZONS TOO NARROW? ( Journal of Economic Education, 1978) 86 7.W. LEE HANSEN, ALLEN C. KELLEY, AND BURTON A. WEISBROD ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF BENEFITS FROM COLLEGE INSTRUCTION (American Economic Review, 1970) 92 III.FOUNDATIONS OF RESEARCH 8.ERIC A. HANUSHEK CONCEPTUAL AND EMPIRICAL ISSUES IN THE ESTIMATION OF EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTION FUNCTIONS (Journal of Human Resources, 1979) 101 9. RENDIGS FELS MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION (Recent Research in Economics Education, 1970) 139 4 10.DARRELL R. LEWIS AND TOR DAHL THE TEST OF UNDERSTANDING IN COLLEGE ECONOMICS AND ITS CONSTRUCT VALIDITY (Journal of Econo nic Education, 1971) 156 IV.RESEARCH REPORTS 11. ELISABETH ALLISON EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTION FUNCTION FOR AN INTRODUCTORY ECONOMICS COURSE (1979; not previously published) 171 12.RICHARD E. ATEIYEH, G. L. BACH, AND KEITH G. LUMSDEN THE EFFICIENCY OF PROGRAMMED LEARNING IN TEACHING ECONOMICS: THE RESULTS OF A NATIONWIDE EXPEI.'IMENT (American Economic Review, 1969) 195 13.WILLIAM E. BECKER AND MICHAEL K. SALEMI THE LEARNING AND COST EFFECTIVENESS OF AVT SUPPLEMENTED INSTRUCTION: SPECIFICATION OF LEARNING MODELS (Journal of Economic Education, 1977) 202 14 JOHN F. CHIZMAR, L. DEAN HIEBERT, AND BERNARD J. MCCARNEY ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF AN INSTRUCTIONAL INNOVATION ON ACHIEVEMENT DIFFERENTIALS; THE CASE OF COMPUTER-ASSIS I Et) INSTRUCTION ( Journal of Economic Education, 1977) 218 15 DAVID G. HARTMAN WHAT DO ECONOMICS MAJORS LEARN? (American Economic Review, 1978) 223 16.ALLEN C. KELLEY TIPS* AND TECHNICAL CHANGE IN CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION (American Economic Review, 1972) 229 *Teaching Information and Processing System 17.DARRELL R. LEWIS AND CHARLES C. ORVIS A TRAINING SYSTEM FOR GRADUATE STUDENT INSTRUCTORS OF INTRODUCTORY ECONOMICS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA (Journal of Economic Education, 1973) 236 18.G. L. BACH AND PHILLIP SAUNDERS ECONOMIC EDUCATION; ASPIRATIONS AND ACHIEVEMENTS (American Economic Review, 1965) 245 19.PHILLIP SAUNDERS THE LASTING EFFECTS OF INTRODUCTORY ECONOMICS COURSES (Journal of Economic Education, 1980) 273 5 20. JOHN J. SIEGFRIED IS TEACHING THE BEST WAY TO LEARN? AN EVALUATION OF BENEFITS AND COSTS TO UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT PROCTORS IN ELEMENTARY ECONOMICS (Southern Economic Journal, 1977) 287 21.HOWARD P. TUCKMAN TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS AND STUDENT PERFORMANCE (Journal of Economic Education, 1975) 294 22.KIM SOSIN AND CAMPBELL R. MCCONNELL THE IMPACT OF INTRODUCTORY ECONOMICS ON STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF INCOME DISTRIBUTION ( Journal of Economic Education, 1979) 300 23. RALPH D. ELLIOT'', M. EDWIN IRELAND, AND TERESA S. CANNON AN ANALYSIS OF THE MARGINAL PRODUCTS OF THE ONE- AND TWO-SEMESTER INTRODUCTORY ECONOMICS COURSE (Journal of Economic Education, 1978) 307 24. ALLEN C. KELLEY AND CAROLINE SWARTZ STUDENT-TO-STUDENT TUTORING IN ECONOMICS ( Journal of Economic Education, 1976) 315 25. MARIAN R. ME1NKOTH TEXTBOOKS AND THE TEACHING OF ECONOMIC PRINCIPLES ( Journal of Economic Education, 1971) 319 26. ALLEN C. KELLEY TEACHING PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS: THE JOINT COUNCIL EXPERIMENTAL ECONOMICS COURSE PROJECT (American Economic Review, 1977) 323 27. WILLIAM F. BARNES TEST INFORMATION: AN APPLICATION OF THE ECONOMICS OF SEARCH ( Journal of Economic Education, 1975) 328 28.SOLOMON W. POLACHEK, THOMAS j. KNEISNER, AND HENRICK J. HARWOOD EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTION FUNCTIONS ( Journal of Educational Statistics, 1978) 334 V, Because the articles in this volume have, with one exception, been previously published in scholarly journals and subjected to their review procedures, these readings have been exempted from review by the niblications Committee of the joint Council on Economic Education. The exception is the article by Elisabeth Allison which, although not previously published, is regarded by researchers in economic education as a significant contribution to their field. 7 Preface JOHN J. SIEGFRIED AND RENDIGS FELS I We have selected these readings to aid an isolated effort.I.1 1961, the American scholars interested in doing research on the Economic Association (AEA) began to pub- teaching of college economics or in learning lish material from its sessions devoted to about the results of such research, rather economic education (see the annual Papers than to provide advice on how to teach eco- and Proceedings issues of the American Eco- nomics better. While the ultimate purpose of nomic Review.) In the early years these all this research is to improve the teaching papers mainly consisted of informal obser- and learning process, its immediate'purpose vations rather than findings based on gen- is to accumulate more knowledge about uine research. In the mid-1960s, however, what i,appens in the classroom. Most of the several developments helped stimulate the papers in this book are therefore mainly beginnings of a cumulative literature: the methodological or not directly applicable to Test of Economic Understanding (TEU) was teaching. A few do contain information rele- published;atelevisionserieson "The vant to classroom procedures. However, American Economy" was shown nationwide; much richer sources of specific advice about programmed instruction (PI) appeared; the how toteacheconomics are Resource Test of Understanding in College Economics Manual for Teacher Training Programs in. (TUCE) was developed. Their impact was Economics (1978)*, edited by Phillip Saun- enhanced by the coming of age of the com- ders, Arthur L. Welsh, and W. Lee Hansen, puter,