Good-byE old, hello new in teaching economics

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'The' Market for Higher Education: Does It Really Exist?

Higher education, like any other commodity or service, has been viewed in a variety of economic frameworks. Little of this work, however, appears to have made any effort to define carefully the boundaries of the relevant market for higher education, which is the subject of this particular inquiry. Market definition is an essential preliminary step before any academic or policy investigation can properly be made into the forces that determine the behavior of the buyers and sellers of higher education, those who provide inputs into the education process, or those who fund or otherwise subsidize it. The authors spell out the key economic dimensions of a market, and illustrate their relevance for research that seeks to analyze the players and policies in the many distinct domestic and international markets that exist for the inputs and outputs of the higher education sector.competition, efficiencies, market boundaries, markets, higher education, public policy

Do Undergraduate Majors or Ph.D. Students Affect Faculty Size?

Regression analysis using panel data for 42 colleges and universities over 14 years suggests that the economics faculty size of universities offering a Ph.D. in economics is determined primarily by the long-run average number of Ph.D. degrees awarded annually; the number of full-time faculty increases at almost a one-for-one pace as the average number of Ph.D.s grows. Faculty size at Ph.D. granting universities is largely unresponsive to changes in the contemporaneous number of undergraduate economics degrees awarded at those institutions. Similarly, faculty size at colleges where a bachelor’s is the highest degree awarded is responsive to the long and short term average number of economics degrees awarded but not the annual changes in BS and BA degrees awarded in economics.faculty size, student body, Ph.D. degrees, bachelor degrees

Does Teaching Load Affect Faculty Size?

Random effects estimates using panel data for 42 colleges and universities over 16 years reveal that the economics faculty size of universities offering a Ph.D. in economics is determined primarily by the long-run average number of Ph.D. degrees awarded annually; the number of full-time faculty increases at almost a one-for-one pace as the average number of Ph.D.s grows. Faculty size at Ph.D. granting universities is largely unresponsive to changes in the number of undergraduate economics degrees awarded at those institutions. In contrast, faculty size at colleges where a bachelor's is the highest degree awarded is responsive to the average number of economics degrees awarded annually, growing by about one for each additional eleven graduating economics majors.student body, faculty size, Ph.D. degrees, bachelor degrees

Quit lying and address the controversies: there are no dogmata, laws, rules or standards in the science of economics

As with other sciences, the author argues that there are no unquestionable ideas in economics, and attempts to impose "No Child Left Behind" K-12 type "technical standards" in universities will turn higher education in economics into remedial education. Students need to learn that the very nature of a science is to have unresolved topics and an on-going scrutiny of theories no matter how steeped they are in tradition. He provides examples to show how the dumbing down of economics to the dogmatic preaching of a few simple concepts, principles, and axioms of old misses the excitement of modern day economics and is a deceitful representation of the science of economics and a disservice to students seeking a higher education

Time Allocations and Reward Structures for US Academic Economists from 1955–2005: Evidence from Three National Surveys

Using survey data collected in 1995, 2000 and 2005 from US academic economists, in which respondents were asked to indicate what percentage of their work time they allocate to research, teaching and service activities, and also how their departments and schools weight research, teaching and service in determining annual raises and making promotion and tenure decisions, we find these economists were allocating more time to teaching even though perceived departmental and school incentives provided a clear premium for research. The overall samples did not show major changes in their allocation of time from 1995–2005, but there were different responses at different types of schools, with increased time spent on research by faculty at doctoral schools while at masters' and baccalaureate schools more time was devoted to teaching. We use regression analysis to investigate factors that affect how different faculty members allocate their time between teaching and research. In addition to Carnegie school classifications and related school characteristics, faculty members' gender and rank were significant predictors of how economists allocate their time. Male economists, particularly among assistant professors at research universities, spent less time on teaching and more time on research than female economists.

Does teaching load affect faculty size?

Random effects estimates using panel data for 42 colleges and universities over 16 years reveal that the economics faculty size of universities offering a Ph.D. in economics is determined primarily by the long-run average number of Ph.D. degrees awarded annually; the number of full-time faculty increases at almost a one-for-one pace as the average number of Ph.D.s grows. Faculty size at Ph.D. granting universities is largely unresponsive to changes in the number of undergraduate economics degrees awarded at those institutions. In contrast, faculty size at colleges where a bachelor's is the highest degree awarded is responsive to the average number of economics degrees awarded annually, growing by about one for each additional eleven graduating economics majors

'The' market for higher education: Does it really exist?

Higher education, like any other commodity or service, has been viewed in a variety of economic frameworks. Little of this work, however, appears to have made any effort to define carefully the boundaries of the relevant market for higher education, which is the subject of this particular inquiry. Market definition is an essential preliminary step before any academic or policy investigation can properly be made into the forces that determine the behavior of the buyers and sellers of higher education, those who provide inputs into the education process, or those who fund or otherwise subsidize it. The authors spell out the key economic dimensions of a market, and illustrate their relevance for research that seeks to analyze the players and policies in the many distinct domestic and international markets that exist for the inputs and outputs of the higher education sector

Quit lying and address the controversies: there are no dogmata, laws, rules or standards in the science of economics

As with other sciences, the author argues that there are no unquestionable ideas in economics, and attempts to impose "No Child Left Behind" K-12 type "technical standards" in universities will turn higher education in economics into remedial education. Students need to learn that the very nature of a science is to have unresolved topics and an on-going scrutiny of theories no matter how steeped they are in tradition. He provides examples to show how the dumbing down of economics to the dogmatic preaching of a few simple concepts, principles, and axioms of old misses the excitement of modern day economics and is a deceitful representation of the science of economics and a disservice to students seeking a higher education

Potpourri: reflections from husband/wife academic editors

The authors provide a review of some of the more notable experiences they have had editing an academic journal and dealing with other editors of journals and books over the past thirty-five years. They address the use of the English language, poor scholarship, the refereeing process and the possible demise of economic education as a scholarly activit