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./ Economic Education Newsletter ._,__:.,...__~ V America's Goal - Is It Still Growth? Arthur M. Johnson made the following remarks at the annual meeting of the Economic Education Council of Massachusetts, May 23. Dr. Johnson, who serves as vice chairman of the Maine Council on Economic Education, is director of the Project on Balanced Growth for Maine, at the University of Maine, Orono. " It seems to me that we are in an open-ended situation of transition, comparable to that which existed at the turn of this century when we were trying to decide whether we liked big enterprise and, if so, how we could retain individual identity and opportunity in a corporate age . ... Much of our maneuvering room has been used up, there is a leadership vacuum, and - above all - a lack of understanding of the options and their relative costs and benefits ... . "[We should] recognize that economics is a social science. After all, how an economic system functions is itself a function of the social goals and values of a society . . . . In the past, our obvious goa l was growth and our set of values permitted it to be measured quantitatively. For several generations we have measured our national progress in terms of GNP and per capita income, and compared our economy with others in this fashion. There is nothing wrong with this, of course, but it does not - and does not pretend to - measure the quality of growth ... .In an undeveloped continent, 'more' was a natural goal and measure. But as we polluted our streams, denuded our coun tr yside, jammed our highways, and made city living ever more difficult, we began to recognize that, in economic terms, there was a point of diminishing returns to pursuing 'more' .... "Enthusiasts for Maine's natural beauty are deadly serious when they say , 'Lock the gates at Kittery; don't let a nyone else in.' And th ese recent converts have some support among natives, who would rather have the freedom to go hunting or fishing than a 9-5 job that would increase their incomes by severa l thousand dollars . ... " I see a significant role for economic education in examining dispassionately how the American enterprise system has actuall y operated. With al l its warts and blemishes, it has performed magn if icen ti y in the context of the goals and values acceptable to the American people. The point is that I believe it can sta nd , and will benefit from , critical examination .... '' Economic education can .. . make students aware that where there are benefits, there are also costs; that a decision to move in a given direction carries with it measurable and unmeasurable costs for not taking the opposite course. There are, for example, costs in consuming more than we produce; in consuming more energy than we can supply; in choosing to take a vacation with money that wou ld otherwise be used to paint the house, further our education, or buy new clothes. "In an affluent society we have tended to forget these things: we have been reckless with our natural resources and our use of personal and national credit. In economics, as in other areas of life, the piper h as to be paid sooner or later. ... "Of course, there are many things that a society wants and needs that should not be measured solely in economic terms. But how they are met - the needs of the aged , defense, urban redevelopment, education - have an economic dimension . I suspect that most students are far more aware of social problems and more anxious to cope with them than they are with the economic choices they embody. I know politicians - who, after all, are seeking public support - are. Economic education can help the public understand the real nature of the choices that they will be asked to make, implicitly if not explicitly .... " Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Vol. 1, No. 3· Sept. 1974 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis The Innova tive Classr oom Imagine Yourself Presiden t There you are - the head of a mod ern co rporation with a d ecision to make on a n ew product. Wh a t d o you n eed to con s id er? Wh a t do you do? Or there you are - a town council m ember in ew E n g la nd in th e 1800s wr es tling w ith a d ec ision about a textil e mill co ming to town . What will be th e co n sequ ences of your dec isio n ? Us ing case s tudi es, you a nd your class can find yourselves in simila r situa tion s where your d ec isio n s a re rea l on es and you have to defend the judgments you make. Case studies can be used to fill in background details about a decision ma king situation and bring you up to a critical turning point (or p o ints) in events. F r om th ese tu r nin g p o ints, you r class can " ta ke off" o nto discussions of alterna tive decisions and th ei r impli ca tion s. Students must m ake and defend their own dec is io ns, and, through interactions with their classma tes, they w i 11 come to rea lize tha t there is no "o n e r ig ht a nswer" to these rea listic cases. Throug h the u se of case studies, each altern a tive decision will be seen to h ave its cos ts as well as its be n ef its, as st ud e n ts tac kl e problems a nd come up with more multi p le cho ice a nswers th an they ever thought poss ibl e. Case studies and case discussion can stimul a te stude nt s to think a bout a probl em, its poss ibl e so luti o n s a nd w h a t the solutions imply for the fut ure. To sta rt your class in using cases, P a ul Ted esco h as written a helpful ha ndbook, T eaching With Case Studies, recentl y p ublished by th e Fede ra l R eserve Bank of B os t o n . • Te d esco c oordin a tes BH e lp , In c. (Bu s in ess, Hi s to r y a nd Eco n o mi c Lif e Program ), a n o n -pr o fit e du ca tion a l o r ga niza tion which enthusiasticall y backs th e case st ud y m et h o d . BHelp p u blishes a n ewsletter four https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis tim es a year , c hock full of case materia ls and resources for teachers to use. " The Plight of the Golden Eag les," a fictional case concerning a d ec i s ion o n wh e r e a n ew football stadium should be built, w ill b e publi s h ed in thi s fall 's BH e lp N e w s l e tt e r. (If all thi s a bout a football stadium sounds fa miliar to n eighbor-s of the New E n g la nd P a tri o ts' rece ntl y con structed stadium in Foxboro, MA, it is meant to!) The case includes three m aps of sites which the cl ass ca n co n sid e r a nd w as developed b y R o be rt C ov iello a t W a lp o le High School. A case which Coviello a nd hi s s tud e nt s d eve l o p ed abo ut th e M cD o n ald 's Corporatio n allowed the students to explore the origins o f th e Mc D o n a ld 's r es t a ura nt c h a in , its sys temiz a tio n a nd its ca reful fra nchise decisions which a re b ased o n exte n s ive resea rch into th e proposed site for a n ew McDonald' s. The cl ass researched th e co mp a n y throu g h m agazine a nd newspap er a rticles a nd had a two-hour interv iew w ith th e local M cD o n a ld 's m a n age r . T h eir resea rc h int o so m e thing real and immedia te in their community allowed ma n y insights into the considera tio ns a nd decisions required fo r a large a nd o ngoing business. (T hi case was publi sh ed in the W inter, 1974 BHelp Newsletter.) Already published case ma terial m ay be used as effectively as cases w hi ch the class develop s. In tead o f do in g th e research them elves and getting involved through fi eld work, studen ts can read a case a nd b eco m e in vol ved in liv ely di sc u ss i o n s of case d ec i sion s a nd va lues. At Da n a H all School, a p riva te g irls sch ool in Welles ley, the stud e nt s who e nroll ed in a o ne-sem es ter economics course pursu ed their case study of the STP Corpora tion with a conferen ce teleph o ne co n ve rs a ti o n with A nd y G ra na tell i, lon g-tim e STP promoter, w hose p erson ality a nd a nswers to qu es tions a dded to the students enthusiasm for the case. T he R acer's Edge: Andy Gran atelli an d the S TP Corporation is a p articularl y well don e case study of a compa ny which a ny foll ower of the Indy 500 knows about. (If yo u 're no t a n Indy 500 foll ower, the STP Compa ny m a kes o il a nd gaso lin e ad d itives, and fo r years has sponsored a car in this famou s India na p olis race.) T he case ca n pr o vide a lmo st e ndl ess opp o rtun ities for discussio n on a who le ra nge of economic concepts. T h e cla ss t a u g ht b y J o hn Sc hul e r a lso read cases from Up Against the Corporate Wa ll by S. Praka hf Se th i. T h e students became so involved with fo ll owing a C oca Co la Co mpan y case to its concl usion tha t they wro te a nd final I y ca ll ed the compan y's m ain o ffi ce in Atl a nta for up-to- th emin ute informa tion . T h e case in v o Iv ed a fr a n c hi se of th e Coca Co la Co mpa n y. After the cou rse one student p ursu ed the fra n c hi sin g m ec h a nism furth er w ith a n ind e p e nd e nt study of a local Coca Co la fra nchise. T h e case st ud y, wi th its wide r a n ge o f t op i cs, co n ce pts a n d levels of teaching, stimula tes tud e nt interes t, p a rti c ipa tion a nd thoug ht. • For info rma tion a bout this pu blicatio n a nd o th ers in this article, see "M ulti -Med ia," page 3. FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF BOSTON ONE-DAY TEACHER WORKSHOP A one-day teacher workshop, discussing techniques for bringing economics into the classroom, will be spon sored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Secondary school teachers are invited to participate, share their ideas and learn about : - The Federal Reserve System - why it was founded and how it affects the economy -Mr. Banker - a game about banking which allows students to take the roles of community bankers and make crucial loan decisions . (Play the game and learn to teach it.) - Case studies in the classroom -Educational materials available free from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston - publi· cations, films and games, including a new publication, Introducing Economics When: Tuesday , November 12, 1974, 9 a.m . to 3 p.m. Where: Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, 30 Pearl St., Boston (near Post Office Square) How to apply: Fill out the form below and return to Susan Funderburg, Public Information Center, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, 30 Pearl St., Boston 02106. Additional information and a map will be furnished. Because space is limited , please apply today. Cost : None FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF BOSTON ONE - DAY TEACHER WORKSHOP NOVEMBER 12, 1974 Name _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ A d d r e s s - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - zip _ _ _ __ School _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ phone _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ School A d d r e s s - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Grade level and s u b j e c t - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Have you ever taken an economics course? _ _ _ _ yes ____- no Have you taken an economic education workshop given by one of the Councils on Economic Education? _ _ _ _. yes ____ no Have you introduced economics into your class? If so, how? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Nevv England Update Councils and Centers for Economic Education What was it like to work 13 hours a d ay at a loom in a New England mill town in the 1800s? The lives of young ladies like the one pi ctured above are described in a case s tudy, " Tomorrow I Start at the Belknap Mill ," publi s h ed in th e Summ er , 1973 BH e lp Newsletter (Business, History and Econo mi c L ife Program , Inc.) CONN ECTICUT MAINE A tw e nty-fifth anniv e rsary celebration will be held in honor of th e lon g se r v ice of th e Greater Hartford Council on Economic Education o n O ctober 21 at the T obacco Vall ey Inn in Windsor. One of the fea tured sp eakers will be Dr. Glenn Ferguson, president of the U niversity of Connecticut. Parti cipants in the summer economic educa tion workshop sponsor ed by th e Maine Council on Economic Education will meet Coun c il m e mb e r s inform a ll y when the Council m ee ts O ctober 19 at th e U niv ersity of Maine, Orono. NEW HAMPSHIRE MASSACHUS ETTS MultiMedia Grade level code: Capi tal letters (E -]-H - C) after each item indicate grade leve ls for w h ich the materia ls are most appropriate: £-elementary school, }-junior high school, H-high schoo l, C-co llege . The BHelp ewsletter, (J-H ), is publish ed four times a yea r by the n o n -p ro fit edu cation a l corporation , Busin ess History and Economic Life P rogram , dedica ted to furth e rin g eco n o mi c edu ca ti o n th ro u g h th e u se o f case studies. Th e newsletter conta ins a wea lth o f resource suggestio ns a nd case m a teri a l s fo r teac h e r u se. T h e Winte r, 197 4 iss u e co nt a in ed a case o n the McDon ald 's Corporatio n, " 13 Bi ll ion Wha t?" Th e fall iss u e w ill co nta in a case a b o ut foo tball , "The Pli ght of the G o lden Eag les. " For copies, wr ite: P a ul H . Tedesco, BHelp Coordina tor, 2 I9 C , Depa rtment of C urri c ulum a nd Instruction , Co ll ege o f Ed u ca ti o n , No rth eas te rn U., B os t o n 0 2 11 5, $ 2/ yea r BH e lp m embership and newsletter. Th e Ra cer's Edge: And y Granatelli and the STP Corporation, (J -H-C) E d wa rd F . Brufk e, 28 pages, a well -clon e economic case s tud y w hi c h ca r f rea k s (a nd https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Th e Center for Economic Education a t American International College in Springfi eld will be working with teachers and administra tors in several school system s to w rite economics into the curri c ulum . T h e areas p articipa ting in the program h ave agreed to two to th ree yea r commitm ent s and the involvement of administrators, as well as teach ers, in the impl em e n ta tion o f eco nomics into the curriculum K-12, according to G ordon Morrill, assistant director o f the Center. o th ers!) will love a nd which spotlights a host of economic concepts for discu ssion , 1971. Write: G eneral L earning Press, 250 J am es St. , Morristow n, J 07960, 60 cents. T h e fo ll ow in g two publications a re ava il able free of cha rge from th e Publi c Info rm a tion Center, Fed e ra l R eserve Bank of Bos ton , 30 P ea rl St. , Boston 02106: Teaching With Case Studies, (JH ), by Pa ul Tedesco, 67 pages, a ha ndbook which compreh ensively d esc ribes how to use and di scuss ca se s tudi es in th e cl ass r o om , 1974. Introducing Economics, (E- JH ), brea k s d ow n economic con - cepts into a sta tement of a basic und e rsta ndin g, acco mpa nied by three exampl es and a res tatement o f th e und ers tanding. U nder3 The New Hampshire Council on Economic Education sponsored a panel dis c u ssion on " Economics o f the Environment" August 2 at the University of ew Hampshire in Durh a m. P a nel m emb ers included Henry J. Ellis, supervisor o f en g in ee ring , Public Service Compan y of New H ampshire a nd H e rbe rt Sostek, gen eral manager o f the Gibbs Oil Company, Saugus, MA. Readers are invited to use Th e L edger as a fo rum to share news about their expe rien ces in economic educat ion . Write: Mary J ane Coy le, Ed itor, Th e L edger, Pub lic Services, Federal Reserve Ban k of Bos ton , 30 Pearl Street, Boston 02106 or call: (617) 426-7100 X474. standings deal with subject areas such as the scarcity problem , natural res ources, government, and m o n ey a nd c redit. The boo k is based on a draft prepared for teac h e rs b y th e Economi c Educa ti o n C o unci l of Massachu setts, 1974. Th e Ledger com p il es info rmation from vari o us sources and is p ublished eight times during the school year as a public serv ice by the Federal R eserve Bank of Bosto n . In cl usion o f news about econom ic educa tion should not necessa rily be construed as an endorsement o f spec ifi c programs by the Ban k. Ma teria l co nt ai n ed herein does no t necessa ril y refl ec t th e vi ews of the Federa l Reserve Ba nk o f Bos ton o r th e Board of Governo rs. Copies of thi s newsletter and a ca ta logue o f o th er edu ca tiona l publ icati ons, fil ms a nd p u blished research info rm at i o n may be o btai n ed free o f c harge by wri ting Public In formation Center, Federa l Reserve Ba n k o f Bos to n, 30 Pearl Street, Bos to n 02 106 or by ca lling (6 17) 426-7 100 X657 . Boil Be£ore Drinking The following fictional situation and questions were designed to suggest discussion possibilities in examining the issue of pollution and its contro l. To talk about pollution only in terms of "clean versus dirty" air or water is to miss many of the economic and social choices included in the issue of pollution. The questions below explore some of the implications of a new pollution regulation for a community. The answers to these questions - and more - are up to you. out for expanding the company. Now what? Ballard arranged a Board of Directors meeting for the next morning. Now , he said to himself, if I on ly knew what to say to them ... " The level of pollutants in the river has reached a danger point, with fish and plant life threatened," the Pollution Authority report said. "Unless the pollution is abated, Riverton residents will no longer be able to swim in or fish in the river," it said. The new anti-pollution act passed last month will make court action and fines against polluters readily avai lable to the Pollution Authority. Frank Ballard, president of Ballard Metal Company, was unavailable for comment. .. You bet I am, Ballard thought. Pollution control equipment would cost $2 million and would mean skipping a dividend for stockholders and taking out a loan for the equipment. That was a loan we were planning to take https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis • Does the Pollution Authority have a responsibility beyond clean air and water for the total welfare of the community? What does that total welfare include? Is a balance between business and ecology possible? Can you define the balance point if there is one? If there is no balance point, why not? • Why would the government be concerned about the polluted river? What difference does it make to the community? Now? In 10 years? In 50 years? • Does the fact that the Ballard Company recycles old metals for reuse mean that it is helping to preserve natural resources? Does it outweigh the pollution the company causes? The president of the Ballard Metal Company, recycler of used metals into reusable materials, was furious. He gazed at the front page story and picture of the Indian River pol luted with sewage from his company. "Local Factory Told to Clean Up," was the story headlin e. He began to read: RIVER TON - T h e main source of industrial pollution for the Indian River was identifi ed as the Ballard Metal Company, the State Pollution Authority announced today. ton 's state? To close all polluting factories? To give rivers and parks back to towns for recreation? • Is there a point where the market value of the metals is less than the cost of recycling them and cleaning up the pollution caused? What happens to the company if this point is reached? Must the company close? Will it change its product or processes? E1wironmema l ProtecLion Agency • If you were Frank Ballard, what alternatives cou ld you present to your Board of Directors? Some of the directors will want to fight the an ti-pollution directive as antibusiness; do you agree? If you do decide to expand, will you have to change your process or product to decrease pollution? • If you were the State Pollution Officer, would you grant Ballard Metal Company a time extension? Since this is one of the first actions after the pollution act was passed, the precedent it sets is important. How does the importance of the company to the community's economy weigh against its destruction of the community's river? • Can you take a position simply for or against clean water and have the solution to the problem of this company and its community? If so, explain the solutions your position implies. If not, why not? • Why do you think the anti-pol1u tion law was passed in River4 • What if half of all the heads of households in Riv erton are employed at the Ballard Company? Should that change the attitude of the Pollution Authority toward allowing more time for the company to clean up its operations? What if just a few people from Ri verton were employed at the plant, but most employees came from out-of-state? What would be the responsibi lity of the State Authority? • Is the State bent on ruining the economy of Riverton? If you were employed at the Ballard Company, would you rather fish and swim in the river or would you rather have possib ly higher pay and job security? What are the costs to you personally of a polluted river - more sickness in your family, a longer distance to travel for recreation? • Is pollution ju st the price of " progress"? • You are the editor of the Riverton Times. The pollution story is big news and deserves an ed itorial. What do you write?
