How to Teach Macroeconomics Strategically
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Hi Everyone, I hope this week’s version of The World is Our Classroom finds you well! I’d first like to thank you for all of the positive feedback I’ve received over the last few months on the usefulness of these weekly newsletters. It has always been my goal to share my thoughts, insights, and strategic decisions I have made in my years as an educator. So, thanks for taking the time to reach out. This week I thought I’d share some of the insights I presented at the IB Economic Teacher Summit in Shanghai, China, specifically focused on teaching Macroeconomics. This critical section of the IB Economics syllabus is packed with content, tools, and diagrams that can feel overwhelming at first glance. But here’s the thing: with the right strategies, teaching Macroeconomics becomes not just manageable but an opportunity to inspire students and bring economics to life. But it ain’t easy. Five Key Teaching Strategies for Macroeconomics:
Start with Context: Framing the Big Picture Macroeconomics is the story of a country’s economic activity—its growth, challenges, and goals. To make this resonate with students, I frame their learning experience like this: Imagine students are economists working for a government. Their task? To measure the economy, identify issues, and use policy tools to achieve the goals of economic growth, low unemployment, and stable inflation, etc. This context grounds abstract concepts into real-world examples, making the content more engaging and relevant. And this is exactly the context the IB is placing them in throughout the course—in The Internal Assessment, and on Paper 1, Paper 2, and Paper 3. Teach Through The Diagrams If there’s one takeaway I emphasized in Shanghai, it’s this: Teach Macroeconomics through the diagrams. I think they got sick of me repeating this over and over. It’s all about the diagrams. In Macroeconomics, focus on the big two—the Neoclassical Aggregate Demand and Supply Model and the Keynesian Model. They are the keys to unlocking student success because these two diagrams:
From these two base diagrams, students can draw and understand shifts, gaps, and policy impacts, of nearly all of the Macroeconomics with a few exceptions. Focus on the Tools: Fiscal and Monetary Policies Macroeconomics is also about the tools governments use to manage the economy:
Teach students to evaluate these tools in terms of their effectiveness, trade-offs, and applicability to different economic situations. For example, how does fiscal policy differ during a recession versus a period of economic growth? How might monetary policy impact inflation differently in developing economies compared to developed ones? We could think of a hundred different scenarios here. All of which would be helpful. The use of Real-World Examples is huge here! Emphasize Strategic Government Goals Every macroeconomic discussion should tie back to the government’s main goals:
Helping students connect policies to these goals reinforces their understanding of macroeconomic theory and its real-world implications. A useful exercise here is to examine historical or current events where governments have struggled to balance these goals. COVID was the best gift to teaching IB Economics in the last 100 years. Use it. Reinforcing these goals overtly (and repeatedly) gives students a practical lens through which to understand the challenges policymakers face. And they are quite literally the reasons why politicians enact economic policy. That's pretty cool. Make Strategic Teaching Decisions This might be the hardest part. As I often say, “While all content is important, it’s not all equally important for success on the IB exams.” Here’s how to focus your efforts:
These straightforward methods simplify the complexity of everything we teach, helping students grasp them more quickly. Keeping the train running on time. In the end, you need to cover all of the content, so some things will need to be covered lightly. That's just true. Final Thoughts... As you know, teaching Macroeconomics isn’t just about covering content—it’s about equipping students with the tools to think critically, solve problems, and make connections. To be economists! By creating context, focusing on diagrams, and tying lessons to real-world examples, we can make Macroeconomics the highlight of the IB Economics course. As teachers, our role is to demystify the subject, inspire curiosity, and empower students to approach economics with confidence. Macroeconomics is a great opportunity for us! If you’re looking for more help teaching Macroeconomics, you may find my Teaching Macroeconomics On-Demand Teacher Workshops helpful. Thank you to the 200+ teachers who have taken my on-demand teacher workshops. I am incredibly grateful. Be good out there and we’ll see you next week! Whenever you are ready, here are three ways I can help: IB Core Professional Development - Reach out and let me know how we can help work together to build a more robust and well-structured IB Programme at your school. We’ve worked with thousands of teachers and IB Coordinators from hundreds of schools around the world. We'd love to collaborate with you. IB Economics On-Demand Teacher Workshops - Join me for my on-demand teacher workshops that cover all aspects of the IB Economics curriculum including the Internal Assessment, Extended Essay, Understanding IB Assessments, and content-based courses on Teaching Macroeconomics, Market Power, and The Global Economy. IB Economics Teacher Collaboration Program - A one-on-one teacher collaboration program where we can share new ideas on lesson plans, new writing strategies for students, and perspectives on teaching the IB Economics curriculum. |