Web-based survey to assist high school economics students

First day of the meetings, the most outstanding use of technology in the classroom today has to go to Alan Krueger, Princeton University and NBER, for his paper "Using a Web-based Questionnaire as an Aide for High School Economics Instruction." Krueger provides a questionnaire online at the Princeton survey research center that HS economics instructors can assign to their class. In a few days the center sends the instructor a full report of what the students reported. The survey provides response date for classroom discussion on various economics principles. I think it is a wonderful idea

I think it is also a good tip for every day use at the university level. I can create a survey in WebCT (as I am sure the Blackboard schools can too) and have my students take it, then follow up with my students on why they chose these answers and use their responses to engage the students. Mike Nelson and I have done this as part of a larger research project where we were trying to get a baseline of student's economic awareness, but we did not go on to use it in class. Perhaps I should. Read Krueger, you will like it.

ASSA Annual Meetings

I write this on the train heading to Philadlephia for the annual ASSA meetings. I look forward to these meetings and this year especially as there are many projects swimming in my head and this is the time to see how many of them I can bring to fruition. I am especially excited to see how others are using technology to assist their teacing and will report here what I find. I will concentrate on the economic education sessions and always look forward to the exhibitors.