Race and Gender in Economics St. Cloud Winter Institute Afternoon Session

Reconstructing Economics Today’s presentation is not my original ideas, but I have borrowed from a number of sources. All are experts in the field so you are receiving “second-hand” good advice. The thank you (to people I have stolen ideas from) would go on for pages, so I will start with a blanket – Thank You!

Reconstructing Economics After you go back home, look at the text that you are using. Count the number of times that race or gender are mentioned in the first chapter. If your text is like most economics texts, there is clearly an unbalanced presentation.

Reconstructing Economics A quick look at most economics textbook may give the students the impression that economics provides little to assist with racial and gender issues. Or worse, women and minorities may think economics is not worth learning. As a result, some of your best students may shy away from the subject.

On the other hand Within any given group of students, one can expect to find differences along all, or most, of the following parameters: preferred learning styles (including concrete vs. abstract, sequential vs. random, introverted versus extroverted, etc.), race, gender, ethnicity, intellectual skill level (including reading, writing, speaking and listening skills), culture, family history and level of functioning, emotional development, physical or mental disability, personality, intellectual characteristics, self-esteem, knowledge, motivation, creativity, social adjustment, genetic intellectual inclinations, and maturity -- to name some of the most commonly considered candidates. To put this another way, each and every student who comes to us is unique, and, what is more, unique in a variety of ways.

In one sense, it seems apparent that we should take into account individual differences of students, and that we should consider those differences when designing instruction. In another sense, given the multiplicity of differences within and among students, it seems obviously impossible to simultaneously teach to all of those differences. We have a dilemma

Make Dilemmade No teacher is capable of taking into account or teaching to every form of diversity. At the very essence of teaching lies the dilemma of what to teach and what to leave out, what issues to place in the foreground and what issues to place in the background. As teachers, for example, we must choose between extensive coverage and deep learning.

The Solution Critical Thinking If we teach students to reason well through any issue, and, through this emphasis, help students become life-long learners, then, of necessity, students will acquire the tools of mind they need to deal with issues of diversity. The ability to reason well through any issue will require many example! This is where we need to improve our diversity!

Course Design Before you run back and chop up those lesson plans, you need to start with a goal. Like most teacher, your goal is get your students to “think” like an economist. That is a very important goal if they want to pass the AP test You, however, do not need to limit yourself to that. One of my goals is to improve student’s critical think skills

Course Design Potential secondary goals Developing analytical skills Developing mathematical skills Develop the ability to apply economic theory affectively. To make judgments critically To calculate measurements accurately To think creatively To communicate effectively

Develop an understanding of how different cultures, races, and gender affect their economic decisions and how that affects the aggregate economy

Facing the Fears and “What If” Questions Incorporating race and gender issues into the classroom is challenging. Where do I find the material? When will I find the time? Don’t these belong in a social issues class or a college class? I am not a racist, yet race is a touchy subject I do not treat the girls different from the boys. Is not that sufficient? Is not this just political correctness?

You do not need to elevate race and gender to a primary goal. Clearly one can think like an economist and exclude race and gender, but if we ignore those issues our students may not possess the analytical and creative skills when they encounter those questions in their future.

Examples Examples Examples My suggestion: Proceed slowly and gradually add information. Reflecting about how economic concepts are by different groups and ask students about their view greatly enriches the education process. Examples Examples Examples

An example The natural rate of unemployment. The normal rate of unemployment around which the unemployment fluctuates Is this a constant? Is it different for different racial groups, genders, regions, types of occupations, cultures, religions, countries…………..

An Interesting Way to Start the Semester On the first day of classes, ask the students to write down their primary culture identity. You can offer some terms to get everyone started. For example—you might offer terms like teacher, economist, mother, woman, Latino, mid-westerner, university athlete, Jewish, working-class, Republican, or others. They may or may not apply to you.

Then set out several pens (so nobody is embarrassed) and ask everyone to write their identity on the board. Start by asking them to write one and then encourage them to get every type one the board. You will have a diverse group even in one might appear to be a homogenous group.