Economics – the study of the production, distribution and consumption of wealth
While there was no pilot run specifically for economics, the Great Restaurant Sim was run with a business class and gave a good sense of how this would work with economics classes. Our previous experience with business sims also reinforces these conclusions. We believe that these results are valid for the economics sims that we have planned.
- What were the best things about this programme? “The ability to learn while running your own business and having fun whilst doing it.” Oliver Macdonald, Class 4D, Auckland Grammar School
- 93% of pilot group 1 wanted more of these simulations used in their future education
Objectives
These are simulations designed for year 12 economics students and are based on NCEA level2 curriculum and Cambridge International A levels.
- The simulations tests students economics knowledge and gets them to use what they have learned in simulated problems.
- The simulations should be done one at a time as the content is covered in class.
- Learned material can be aggregated into bigger “chunks” and then applied holistically to broader problems.
- When playing the simulations the goal is to answer the randomly generated problems correctly or make simulated decisions;
- Hints can be requested, as well as the solution if the student cannot solve the problem first time.
- The simulations assist teachers by providing real time/rapid feedback of student’s performance that shows them what areas the class is having problems with, and which individual students are having trouble with the course.
- The simulations can be run at home or in the classroom with students working individually or as teams.
- The simulation works well as homework, the teacher can easily check the homework is completed and see where students had trouble.
The simulations are based on the qualifications as shown in the table below.
Economics: NCEA Level 2 Achievement Standards
| AS | Description | Sim Title |
|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | Describe inflation and its causes and effects using economic models | Inflation |
| 2.2 | Describe international trade and its causes and effects using economic models | International trade |
| 2.3 | Describe economic growth and its causes and effects using economic models | Economic growth |
| 2.4 | Process, present and analyse statistical data in relation to given economic issues | Statistical data |
| 2.5 | Describe government policies in relation to economic issues | Government policies |
Economics: Cambridge International A Levels
| Topic | Sim Title |
|---|---|
| Basic Economic Ideas: Scarcity, choice and resource allocation, Production possibility curve, Factors of production, Division of labour | Basic Economic Ideas |
| Price system: Supply & demand curves, Price, income and cross elasticities of demand, Movements and shifts | Price system |
| The government intervention: Externalities, public/ ptivate goods, government intervention tools | Government intervention |
| International trade: Principles of absolute and comparative advantage, Free trade arguments, Types of protection, Terms of trade, BOP, Economic intergration | International trade |
*Note: availability of some simulations based on certain achievement standards are limited due to authoring time constraints. However all simulations will be completed by December 2010.
The Great Restaurant – a 7-minute video
Watch this 7-minute video clip to see an example of our Great Restaurant business simulation that has many elements of micro-economics, and get an idea of how it can complement your teaching. This type of real-world context can be broken up into small 5-minute knowledge “blobs” that the student can learn easily and later build upon and integrate into a big picture.
Components of the Sim
A sim consists of a teacher briefing, a student briefing, a video introduction, pre and post tests, the simulation, and use of the platform. Clicking on the active links above gives the resources used in the pilot and below is an image of the Great Restaurant simulation.
Results from the Business Pilot
Students liked that the programme was interactive, competitive, and realistic to what it would be like to run a business.
- 93% of pilot group 1 wanted more of these simulations used in their future education
- Based on pre and post test results both pilot groups 1 and 2 showed on average a 20% increase in learning while the control group recorded a 3% increase in learning.
- “To see how the business runs and if the decisions are changed what effect it has on the business not only short term but long term.” Jur Na, Student, Auckland Grammar School
Click Contact us now if you need more information.
Click Join Us to join the community, give us your feedback and tell us your areas of interest.