News Highlights

Center for Economic Education helps boost student knowledge of economics

High scores

Minnesota high school students score well in economics, thanks in part to the Center for Economic Education at Minnesota State Mankato.

2007-09-27
By Amanda Dyslin, Free Press Staff Writer [published in The Free Press, Mankato, MN, 9/27/2007]

Saving, investing, planning for retire­ment, even voting — at least a basic understanding of eco­nomics is important for all of these things.

And in this era of global relations, things going on in China and India affect us in the United States directly, said Ashok Chowdhury, direc­tor of the Center for Economic Education and pro­fessor of economics at Minnesota State University.

That’s why the results of a recent study are such good news to educators. “The Nation’s Report Card: Economics 2006: National Assessment of Educational Progress at Grade 12” shows high school seniors scored better than expected in eco­nomics. About 600 public and non-public high schools were chosen randomly nationwide, and 11,500 seniors were test­ed.

The results may not be so surprising in Minnesota, which has a strong network of economics teachers, Chowdhury said. The Minnesota Council on Economic Education is a net­work of centers at MSU, the University of Minnesota ­Duluth, St. Cloud State University, University of St. Thomas, Minnesota State University-Moorhead and the University of Minnesota.

These centers and the Minnesota Council on Economic Education help teachers increase their knowledge of economics so they can incorporate it into the curriculum.

“In Minnesota, we are requiring some economics standards,” he said. Economics still is an elec­tive in Minnesota schools. There are about 20 states that require an economics class in school. And about 20 states require testing of a cer­tain level of knowledge of economics.

At the Center for Economic Education, work­shops are offered for teachers and a weeklong course is offered in the summer. An economics challenge also is offered once a year for stu­dents with area schools par­ticipating.

The winning schools go to state and compete for a shot at nationals.

Outside of the event, stu­dents must learn about eco­nomics in the classroom. Workshops are held only for teachers, who then use that knowledge to teach students.

“(Students) should under­stand how our economy works,” Chowdhury said. “You become a better reason maker. You understand how you allocate your resources. You can become a better saver, investor and consumer, and politically, we always vote based on a lot of eco­nomic issues.”

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