Teaching Economics Using the Media as a Resource

Economics is so pervasive in modern life that economic questions and issues cannot be avoided. If young people do not have a basic understanding of economics they will be confused and misinterpret much of the world around them.
The media makes it almost impossible to avoid economics and by reflecting and portraying the issues and events that make up and concern society it is constantly spelling out an economics agenda. Thus the media is an important source of material to stimulate economic thinking.
All kinds of media material are sources - newspaper cuttings of current economic events, television news or feature programmes, cartoons, statistical data, and historical material. All "these can be used profitably to add interest and relevance to economics lessons, but it is not a straightforward task. Economics is not portrayed by the media with schools in mind. An examination of how economics is portrayed will help, and using this analysis will assist in the development of economics curricula.