Week 1: Overview of the NSW Economics Syllabus: Teaching and Learning Strategies

1. Week 1: Overview of the NSW Economics Syllabus: Teaching and Learning Strategies Topics, assessment and general capabilities

2. Important key documents • Revised syllabus: date on the front of your document should be 2009 • Available on the web only • Assessment are in a separate document to the syllabus Also on the web

3. Key information in the syllabus • The aim of Economics Stage 6 is to develop students’ knowledge, understanding, skills, values and attitudes for effective economic thinking that contributes to socially responsible, competent economic decision-making in a changing economy. • The objectives • Knowledge and understanding • Skills • Values and attitudes

4. More key information • Objectives and outcomes • Important for assessment as well as planning learning sequences • Preliminary vsHSC • Key competencies • Collecting, analysing and organising information • Communicating ideas and information • Using mathematical ideas and techniques • Working with others in teams • Solving problems • Using technology

5. Still more…the context • Problems and issues approach • Key issues are: • Economic growth and quality of life • Unemployment • Inflation • External stability • Distribution of income • Environmental sustainability • Effects on individuals, firms and governments • Global, regional and national contexts

6. Topic structure • Outcomes • Learn to • Examine economic issues • Apply economic skills • Learn about • Looks like the content • Explicit • Arranged under bolded headings • Dot points • Dash points

7. Overview of the Preliminary Course

8. Prelim Topic 1- Introduction to Economics • Critical first up theory • Opportunity cost, PPCs, circular flow of income, business cycle • Economies: their similarities and differences to focus on an Asian economy • Melbourne Declaration

9. Prelim Topic 2 - Consumers and Business • Topic 2: Consumers and Business • Consumers- • Income • Needs the theory around Y = C+S, if students are capable in Year 11 • Business- • Basic questions • Goals of the firm • Efficiency and production • Impacts: Ethics and environmental sustainability a new area to consider for impacts on a firm

10. Prelim Topic 3- Markets • Introductory microeconomic theory • Demand • Supply • Market equilibrium • Government intervention • Elasticity • Market structures

11. Prelim Topic 4- Labour Markets • Demand and supply of labour • Factors affecting • LFPR • The Australian workforce: unemployment key here • Labour market outcomes • Labour market trends • Link to distribution of income • Labour market institutions • Important for the HSC course

12. Prelim Topic 5- Financial markets • Types of financial markets • Regulation is key • Share market • Listed as a ‘type of financial market’ and not a separate section • Domestic and global financial market distinction highlighted • Interest rate determination is key

13. Prelim Topic 6- Government and the Economy • Important prep for HSC course • Role of govt • Key…economic functions of govt • Reallocation of resources • Redistribution of income • Stabilisation of eco activity • GBSs • Competition and envt policies • Federal budget (key…fiscal policy) • Influences on government

14. Overview of the hsc course

15. HSC Topic 1- The Global Economy 1 • International economic integration is the focus of the topic. • Global economy and globalisation • Trade, financial flows and foreign investment • Protection, including reasons, methods, international orgs, and govt forums as well as trade blocs and agreements • Globalisation and economic development the other key area • Case study- evaluation of strategies and influence of globalisation

16. HSC Topic 2- Australia’s Place in the Global Economy • Trade and financial flows • Make sure that they get this! • Balance of Payments • Structure, links and trends • Students find this difficult • Exchange rates • Free trade and protection • Two examples of both multi and bilateral FTAs required • Implications for Australia of protectionist policies now other countries and trading blocs

17. HSC Topic 3- Economic Issues • Economics growth- include demand and supply side • Focus here. The rest hangs off it. • Unemployment • Inflation • External stability. Topic 2, but not! • Distribution of income and wealth Environmental sustainability • Climate change explicit and important • Set up well for policy in topic 4

18. Scaffold for issues • Define the term • Define the issue • Measurement • Date and trends • Theory • Causes • Effects • Policy

19. HSC Topic 4- Economic Policies and Management 1 • Topic ‘bookended’ with the issues reframed as objectives. Important. • Theory embedded in the macro and micro policy. Needs to be clear and detailed with diagrams and applications • Fiscal • Monetary • Micro

20. HSC Topic 4- Economic Policies and Management 2 • Labour market policy • National and global context for environmental management • Limitations important, but brief • Students need to be able to analyse limitations in terms of the theory, the application and also with the use of evidence

21. Assessment • Assessment not in the syllabus...underneath the syllabus on the web • Apply the assessment components and weightings • Rubrics for the HSC • 800 word guide for extended responses • Writing ‘booklets’

22. Implications of recent changes to assessment • Questions designed to minimise prepared responses from students • Reversed causalities? • Students need to learn to (be taught to...) write concisely • Students need to be able to use their knowledge, skills and understanding and apply them in a range of contexts • Minimise use of prepared answers

23. General Capabilities • These are well-reflected in our syllabus and place us well as we move towards an Australian Curriculum in Economics. They guide is with pedagogical approaches: • Literacy • Numeracy • ICT Competence • Critical and creative thinking • Ethical behaviour • Personal and social competence • Intercultural understanding

24. Literacy and Numeracy • Literacy • Need to be explicit with literacy strategies • Lots of language, terms and concepts • Sample task for BOP, which is dense in language and concepts • Liaise with English and others to facilitate transfer • Common scaffolds? • Numeracy • Embedded • Needs to be taught explicitly and with confidence • Liaise with Maths and others to facilitate transfer

25. Impact of greater student access to technology • Heaps of current information, BUT... • Students need help with how to find it • Example: Google can be used to assist in searching the ABS site • Students need skills of analysis and evaluation to assess it • How do they validate what they find? Is there better data (and what does this mean)? • Overload • Being realistic about the amount of supporting data that they can usefully recall and helping students work out what matters • What does ‘recent’ mean in the digital age?

26. Growing importance of critical and creative thinking • Metacognition • More talk about how students learn in Economics • Reflection • Economics is a great subject for enhancing critical thinking and creativity • Evaluation is key to our course • Problem solving is our business • We can assist with scaffolds • Extended response scaffolds • Eco issue scaffolds (define, measure, current data and trends, theory, cause, effect, policy) • Importance of students finding connections for themselves • Mind maps and other graphic organisers • Flow charts • Connections between issues and policies

27. Ethical behaviour • GFC is an example to bring economics and ethics together • Other examples too... • Environment, transnational corporations, international division of labour. The area of ethics is strengthened in the changes. • We need to make the connections. • HSC ‘All My Own Work’ supports notions of ethical behaviour for our students

28. Personal and social competence • Economic literacy enhances personal and social competence • HSC ‘All My Own Work’ also supports notions of personal competence • Explicit teaching of appropriate use of technology • Syllabus guides us with some group (team) tasks to enhance positive relationships between our students • Can be easier to build team work into Year 11, and it is more evident in the syllabus there too

29. Intercultural understanding • Asia in Prelim Topic 1 • Whole of HSC Topic 1 • Case study in HSC Topic 1 • Notion of Australia’s connectedness with the global economy throughout the course • Important to consider this focus in program and lesson design • E.g. simulation games around global trade, guest speakers, articles from journals and websites sources from a range of countries, IB Economics resources

30. Professional Learning Implications: Teaching Standards • Learning opportunities are not just for the students • A new syllabus provides opportunities

31. The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers • National Standards • Standard 2 is around content knowledge and pedagogy • Includes numeracy explicitly as well as literacy • Does not explicitly reference NSW syllabuses, but is implied • Requires that teachers differentiate and modify work for individual needs • Reflect the Australian Curriculum

32. Source: http://www.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.atesolact.org.au/media/images/6187b3a8e9ff41399534d1af2402b1e0.png&imgrefurl=http://www.atesolact.org.au/recent-atesol-act-events.html&usg=__7MMTnMoZ4vv7a5rld0gyvVO0Xl0=&h=201&w=322&sz=42&hl=en&start=0&sig2=ACl9hBZ0Tig7hiQ8MtaXjg&zoom=1&tbnid=4s0n8ZWkMWdg_M:&tbnh=119&tbnw=190&ei=s0dHTaPcKsODcIe3pfgC&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dnational%2Bstandards%2Bfor%2Bteachers%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1680%26bih%3D855%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=477&oei=s0dHTaPcKsODcIe3pfgC&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=45&ved=1t:429,r:34,s:0&tx=93&ty=67 Economics is a subject rich in learning opportunities...for students to think and learn, and... for teachers to meet teaching standards (both the NSW and National sets)

33. Some final thoughts on classroom implications • Changes in assessment have implications • How do we prepare students best so that they can use their knowledge to answer the set question? • Considering the general capabilities in the way we design lessons may assist e.g. critical thinking, literacy skills, numeracy skills • Be pedantic about using the current language of the syllabus with your students. • Exam committee will expect the new terms to be used by students • Use resources in the classroom with care • Use pre-2011 texts and resources with care, and update the content, terms and concepts for your students • Updated content is at the author’s discretion, so teachers and students are advised to supplement texts (as we have always done anyway...), especially in the new areas