In his wonderful put up titled “To Fix Economics, Try Teaching Economists,” Alex Salter does a pleasant survey of the a few of the finest books for instructing introductory economics, intermediate microeconomics, and superior economics.
I largely agree together with his evaluations however I’ve a couple of variations on the introductory economics and intermediate economics classes.
Introductory Economics
My favourite textual content for instructing introductory economics, which Alex doesn’t point out, is The Financial Approach of Pondering by Paul Heyne, Peter Boettke, and David Prychitko. I’ve a couple of minor criticisms of the guide, however only some. I’ve succeeded with it in instructing U.S. Navy officers in a distance-learning course of an Govt MBA. In fact, I added a variety of readings however Financial Approach of Pondering was the important thing.
I’ll additionally be aware that you just don’t essentially have to make use of or assign the brand new version. Textbooks change little or no from version to version and never all the time for the higher. One factor I did for my college students was advocate that they purchase used copies of editions that have been two earlier than the present version. That approach they saved some huge cash.
Intermediate Microeconomics
I agree with Alex that Steven Landsburg ‘s Price Theory and Applications is excellent. As an economist, I liked David Friedman’s Value Concept: An Intermediate Textual content so much. And definitely the worth, provided that David has offered it free on line, is a powerful promoting level. However as a instructor, I didn’t prefer it as a lot as Landsburg’s textual content.
Right here’s why.
After we educate economics, one of many issues we do that may open college students’ eyes is present them one thing that’s counterintuitive however makes absolute sense. Each good textbook does a few of this. For my part, David Friedman’s guide does an excessive amount of of this. The one which was a show-stopper for me and persuaded me to make use of Landsburg’s textual content as a substitute of Friedman’s, was David’s part titled “Application: Housing Prices—a Paradox.” He exhibits that when you’ve purchased a home, you might be higher off if the worth rises but additionally higher off if the worth falls. See when you can work out why earlier than checking that part of the guide.
That one utility satisfied me that I must spend a lot horsepower on driving that time dwelling that I might have much less time for different issues. Furthermore, it’s true solely in a slim sense: you purchase a home to devour “housing services.” So he’s implicitly that you just’re consuming all of the housing providers that the home offers. However what when you purchase one home to stay in and one other to take a position with? His argument falls aside. And so, when you persuade the scholars that he’s proper, you’ll persuade them of a slim level however miss a broader level that’s most likely the best way they assume and is true.
Twenty-five years in the past, a pupil who was in our program on the Naval Postgraduate Faculty instructed a colleague the next story. Beginning as an Ensign contemporary out of the Naval Academy, she invested in housing. When she had made sufficient cash on one home, she borrowed on it and acquired one other home. In the end she beginning shopping for duplexes. Then four-plexus. Rinse and repeat. By the point she was in our program, she had a internet price of $6 million. She benefited huge time when the costs of housing rose.
I say, with some trepidation, that David’s improper. After I first met David, at a convention at Columbia College within the fall of 1971, I realized, from each of his talks, issues I had by no means considered. So perhaps he may persuade me on this one. I doubt it although.
