Join us at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis for the opening reception, where FRED economics data champion Diego Mendez-Carbajo will kick off our conference. He will share insights on how the Research Information Services division at the bank evaluates the success of initiatives and builds products that scale to serve the world.

Slides

We’ll kick off our concurrent sessions with a keynote by Mahmoud Harding, Instructional Design Director at Data Science 4 Everyone—a University of Chicago initiative focused on expanding K–12 data science education. He’ll explore how data science is transforming both K–12 and college classrooms, and what that means for the future of economics education.

Slides

Session A: Escape Rooms & Gamification

1. Unlocking Econ: Escape Room Puzzles in the Principles Classroom – Tom Flesher (Suffolk County Community College and Touro Law Center)
2. The Final Test: Escape – Noah Trudeau (Troy University)

Session B: Literacy-Targeted (LT) Teaching

1. Enhancing Decision-Making Skills Using the PACED Model: A Literacy-Targeted Approach – Andrea Caceres-Santamaria (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis)
2. Who Needs Cost Curves? – Avi J Cohen (University of Toronto and York University) – Slides
3. Rethinking Monetary Policy Instruction: A Literacy-Targeted Approach – Scott Wolla (St. Louis Federal Reserve)

Session C: Building Connections

1. Diversifying Economics in the Undergraduate Classroom: Plug and Play Video Modules with Diverse Role Models, Relevant Research, and Active Learning – Elaine Frey (California State University, Fullerton) – Slides
2. Inspiring Students and Building Student Connection – Wayne Geerling (University of Texas at Austin) and Dirk Mateer (University of Texas at Austin) – Slides
3. Building an Undergraduate Research Lab and a Culture of Research – Abdullah Al Bahrani (Northern Kentucky University) – Slides

Session A: Making Economics Personal

1. Beyond the Paycheck: Using Cost-Benefit Analysis to Make Smart Career Choices –
   Amber Thomas (North Carolina Council on Economic Education) – Slides
2. Struggling for Economics Majors? Offer Personal Finance as Your Introductory Economics Course – Irene Foster (The George Washington University) – Slides | Appendix
3. Teaching About the Stock Market Through Memes –  Mary Clare Peate (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) & Cameron Tucker (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) – Slides

Session B: Creative Tech in the Classroom

1. One Year of AI Assignments – Matthew Hill (MRU and USC) – Slides
2. Using Desmos Classrooms Activities to Teach Economic Concepts – Marisa Cameron (Pomona College) – Slides
3. Econ Nerds: How to Make Short Economics Videos Quickly and Easily – Matthew Hill (MRU and USC)

Session C: Science of Learning

1. Deliberate Practice as a Guide to Active Learning – William L. Goffe (Penn State) – Slides | Appendix
2. Integrating Formative Assessments in Principles Courses – John Kruggel (James Madison University Center for Economic Education) – Slides
3. Negative Examples in Lecture Improve Student Learning – William L. Goffe (Penn State) – Slides | Appendix

Session A: Teaching Today’s Students

1. Oooh, Squirrel!: Teaching Neurodiverse Students – Luis Diego Granera (Villanova School of Business) – Slides
2. Managing Gen Z in the College Classroom – Erin Yetter (Purdue University) & Kathryn Bender (University of Delaware)
3. From Friction to Function: Finding Solutions That Empower, Engage, and Improve Efficiency – Kaycee Washington (Collin College) – Slides

Session B: Data Analysis

1. Using Tableau to Teach Economics –  Marisa Cameron (Pomona College) and Jadrian Wooten (Virginia Tech) – Slides
2. Data Science and Economics – Teaching Fundamentals With Computation – Eric Van Dusen (UC Berkeley) – Slides

Session C: Hands-On Economics

1. Students as Producers: Teaching Production and Costs With a “Glove” Making Activity – Sarah Reed (Villanova University) – Slides | Appendix 1 | Appendix 2 | Appendix 3
2. Getting Board in Macroeconomics – Timothy Haase (Ramapo College of New Jersey) – Slides
3. Economics Through the Lens of Fraud: A Fresh Teaching Approach – Varun Gupta (Wharton County Jr. College) – Slides

Session A: Pop Culture

1. Game Theory (Taylor’s Version) – Cameron Tucker (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) & Mary Clare Peate (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) – Slides
2. Our Pop Culture Gets Older, but Our Students Stay the Same Age: Teaching Economics With Media They Don’t Recognize – Jadrian Wooten (Virginia Tech) & John Kruggel (James Madison University) – Slides
3. Music and Memory: Creating and Using Songs About Economics Using AI – Melanie Fox (Purdue University)

Session B: Elevating Presentation Design in Economics Education: Simple, Actionable Tools for Instructors

Workshop: Elevating Presentation Design in Economics Education: Simple, Actionable Tools for Instructors – Christopher Clarke (Washington State University) & Morgan Taylor (University of Georgia) – Slides

Session C: Community Engagement

1. Beyond the Classroom: Implementing a Community-Engaged Experience in an Economics Course – Sarah Jenyk (Youngstown State University) & Daniel Wakefield (Youngstown State University)
2.  Teaching Economics Through Community Engagement – Sarah King (Christopher Newport University) – Slides
3. First Responder Finance: A New Take on an Old Model – Susan Doty (Center for Economic Education & Financial Literacy at The University of Texas at Tyler) – Slides

Session A: Sports Betting

1. Price of the Pick – Derek D’Angelo (Foundation for Economic Education) & James Redelsheimer (Foundation for Economic Education) – Slides
2. The House Always Wins: Sports Betting in the Economics Classroom – Eric Dunaway (Wabash College) – Slides
3. Beyond the Bet: Economics of Gambling – Jamie Wagner (University of Nebraska at Omaha)

Session B: Economics for All Ages #1

1. Financial Fluency: How a Classroom Economy Teaches Essential Life Skills – Jeremiah Riesenbeck (Roanoke City Public Schools)
2. Teaching With the Monday Morning Economist Classroom Edition – Joel Miller (Foundation for Economic Education) – Slides | Appendix
3. Developing Economic Understanding by Engaging Students with the Real World: Applying Theory to Current Events – Heather Schumacker (Salt Lake Community College) – Slides

Session A: Interactive Classroom Experiments

1. Experimenting With Taxes and Subsidies in a Classic Pit Market – John Kruggel (James Madison University Center for Economic Education) & Tim Dye (Perry Meridian High School) – Slides | Appendix
2. Stickynomics: Teaching Market Phenomena With Post-it Notes – Cathleen Johnson (West Virginia University)
3. Adapting the Trade Creates Value Experiment for a Small Class – Wayne Geerling (University of Texas) and G. Dirk Mateer (University of Texas) – Slides | Appendix

Session B: Economics for All Ages #2

1. Real-World Economics: Teaching America’s Housing Crisis Through a Policy Lens – James Redelsheimer (Foundation for Economic Education) & Scott Alford (Sphere Education Initiatives)
2. Food Truck Challenge: A Game of Supply and Demand – Jamie Wagner (University of Nebraska at Omaha & Foundation for Teaching Economics)
3. Why Are Some Countries Richer Than Others? – Megan Kirts (Econiful) – Slides

Social Media, Current Events, and Economics

We’ll explore using social media to engage students with economic topics and connect theoretical concepts with real-world events. Platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok can enhance students’ understanding and stimulate discussion around current economic issues. Social media can empower students to critically analyze how global events shape economic realities and prepare them to be informed citizens and economic thinkers in a rapidly changing world.

Slides

The Wealth of Notions: Reimagining Economics through Experimental Learning

Together we’ll explore the intersection of experiential learning, technology, and the future of economics education. Experiential learning and “econ-tourism” visits can be powerful tools to bring theories to life in an increasingly AI-driven world while enhancing our students’ understanding of economic principles and their global implications. These experiences can help educators address the need for economic education to evolve in response to 21st-century challenges such as technology, globalization, and climate change.

Slides

Session A: Teaching Economics with AI

1. AI in Economics Education: A Demonstration of Pearson’s AI Study Tool With Q&A to Follow. Presented by Thomas Hayward (Pearson) & Chris DeJohn (Pearson)
2. The AI Ate Homework: Designing Assignments to Work With AI. Presented by Matthew Hill (MRU & University of Southern California) – Slides
3. Instructional AI: Reshaping Education Beyond Generative Tools. Presented by Bobby Thompson II (Packback) – Slides

Session B: Musicians and Influencers

1. Economics Is Bejeweled: Teaching Economics Using Taylor Swift Songs. Presented by Sarah King (Christopher Newport University) – Slides
2. The Country Music Guide to Macroeconomics. Presented by Mark Melichar (Nebraska Wesleyan University) – Slides
3. Female Influencers: The Economics Behind the Millions. Presented by Stefani Milovanska-Farrington (University of Tampa) – Slides

Session C: Cognitive Science in the Classroom

Organized Session: Using Cognitive Science Principles to Optimize Classroom Activities and Assessments

Presented by Michael Enz (Virginia Tech) and William Goffe (Penn State) 

Slides | Worksheet 1 | Worksheet 2

Session A: Getting Students Engaged

1. Using the Comic Book Industry to Teach Supply, Demand, And Market Structures. Presented by Patrick DeRosa (George Mason University Center for Economic Education) – Slides
2. Cupcakes & Graphs: Teaching Inequality. Presented by Christopher Clarke (Washington State University) – Slides
3. Live In Five: Teaching Economics Through Live-Streaming. Presented by Noah Trudeau (Troy University) – Slides

Session B: Data-Based Applications

1. The Econ Games – Just Do It! Here’s How… Presented by Kathryn Bender (Delaware), Volker Grzimek (Berea College), and Daria Sevastianova (University of Southern Indiana)
2. Perfect Complements – The Undergraduate Economics Curriculum and the Econ Games. Presented by Kathryn Bender (Delaware), Volker Grzimek (Berea College), and Daria Sevastianova (University of Southern Indiana)
3. Data Enchanted: Developing Undergraduate Skills for a Data-Driven World. Presented by Kathryn Bender (Delaware)

Session C: Storytelling

1. Economics in One Virus. Presented by Scott Alford (Sphere), and Travis Towne (Lenoir County Early College High School) – Slides
2. Monday Morning Economist Classroom Edition. Presented by Derek D’Angelo (FEE) and Jadrian Wooten (Virginia Tech) – Slides | Appendix
3. What 100,000 Students Have Taught Us. Presented by Dirk Mateer (Texas) and Wayne Geerling (Texas) – Slides

Session A: Integrating Disciplines with Economics

1. Socioeconomic Portraits: Leveraging the Production Possibilities Frontier to Expand Coverage of Inequality and Economic History in Principles Classes. Presented by Scott Milliman (James Madison University) and John Kruggel (James Madison University) – Slides
2. Arts Integration: Economics + Dance. Presented by Meghan Millea (East Carolina University) and Jayme Klinger Host (College of Charleston) – Slides
3. Inviting Co-creation for Our Future Economy. Presented by Tiffany Sargent (Diablo Valley College) – Slides | Appendix

Session B: Using Technology to Teach

1. Teaching complexity at scale: leveraging technology to get back to teaching. Presented by Abigail Cormier (Georgia)
2. AI with AI: Asynchronous Instruction with Artificial Intelligence. Presented by Ian Taylor (Virginia Peninsula Community College)
3. Experiential Learning: The Use of Interactive Resources to Foster Student Success from Classroom to Career. Presented by Thomas Hayward (Pearson) & Chris DeJohn (Pearson) – Slides

Session C: Macroeconomics

1. Debt and Discourse: Building Viewpoint Diversity and Civil Discourse While Learning About the National Debt. Presented by James Redelsheimer (FEE) and Scott Alford (Sphere) – Slides
2. The Heart of Monetary Economics: A Novel Diagram Depicting the Relationships Between Aggregate Monetary Variables. Presented by Jesse Aaron Zinn (Clayton State University) – Slides
3. The Inflation Rate Is Falling But Prices Are Not. Presented by Mary Clare Peate (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) – Slides

Session A: Personal Finance

1. Create Your Own Personal Finance Portfolio Using Google Sites. Presented by Travis Towne
   (Lenoir County Early College High School) – Slides
2. Teaching Economics and Personal Finance with AI: a Quick Start Workshop! Presented by Jeremiah Riesenbeck (Roanoke City Public Schools) – Slides

Session B: Unique Approaches to Teaching Principles

1. Opening Moral Inquiry in a Principles of Economics Course: Using Writing-To-Learn Conversations to Introduce the Moral Limits of Markets Debate. Presented by Brooks Depro (Elon) – Slides
2. The Visible Hand: Integrating Law and Economics in the Principles Classroom. Presented by Tom Flesher (Suffolk County Community College and Touro Law Center) – Slides | Appendix
3. Labor Market Lessons Powered by Inductive Reasoning. Presented by Megan Kirts (Econiful) – Slides

Session C: Influencers and Athletes

1. Econ 101: Taylor’s Version. Presented by Derek D’Angelo (Foundation for Economic Education) – Slides
2. Bobby Bonilla Teaches Present Value. Presented by Eric Dunaway (Wabash College) – Slides
3. From Startup to Success: Using Gen Z Entrepreneurs to Teach Economics. Presented by Stefani Milovanska-Farrington (University of Tampa) – Slides

Session A: Making Economics Personal

1. Humanizing Econ 101: Fostering Caring Attitudes Through Introductory Economics Topics. Presented by Aselia Urmanbetova (Georgia Tech)
2. Multimedia Group Presentation: Connecting and Applying Economic Concepts to a Social Issue Important to You. Presented by Heather Schumacker (Salt Lake Community College) – Slides
3. Using AI for Normative Economics Projects. Presented by Daniel Farhat (Radford University)

Session B: Economics for All Ages #1

1. Teaching Economic Disciplinary Understanding in Secondary Grades as Democratic Citizenship Preparation—Benefits, Challenges, and Best Practices. Presented by Cheryl Ayers (Virginia Tech) – Slides
2. Teaching Supply and Demand – Without Line Graphs. Presented by Edward Scahill (The University of Scranton) – Slides | Appendix
3. Effective Reading Strategies for Economics at the Secondary and Post-Secondary Level. Presented by John Kruggel (James Madison University) and Tim Dye (Perry Meridian High School) – Slides

Session A: Puzzles and Games

1. Increasing Online Student Engagement with Gamified Logic Puzzles. Presented by Bret Sikkink (Drake University) – Slides
2. Active Learning with the Circular Flow Model. Presented by John Kruggel (James Madison University) – Slides
3. Promoting Learning with Academic Integrity Controls : A Scoreboard Excel Demonstration and Presentation of Evidence from Business Statistics. Presented by Timothy Haase (Ramapo College) – Slides

Session B: Economics for All Ages #2

1. A Practice-Based Theory and Practical Applications of How to Teach Economics at the Secondary Level. Presented by Cheryl Ayers (Virginia Tech) – Slides
2. Teaching Economics with Disney’s Encanto. Presented by Brad Scott (Rowan-Cabarrus Community College) – Slides
3. Bluey-Economics: Using A Children’s TV Show To Teach What Matters. Presented by Lauren Shifflett (James Madison University) and Stephen Day (Virginia Commonwealth University) – Slides

What can Machine Learning teach us about Economic Education?

How LT Principles Can Improve Diversity, Inclusiveness and Student Interest

Session A1:

1. Fostering Community and Engagement in Large Classroom Settings (Morgan Taylor) – Slides
2. A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words: Infographic Assignments in Economics (Lauren Calimeris Kocman and Ed Kosack) – Slides
3. Helping students build their core values in an economics principles course (Aselia Urmanbetova)

Session B1:

Organized Session: Empowering Educators & Engaging Students with Artificial Intelligence
Joel Miller, Derek D’Angelo, and Jadrian Wooten

Slides 1 | Slides 2

Session A2:

Session A3:

Session A4:

Session A5:

Session A6:

Economic Education at Multiple Levels: Continuing (or starting) the Conversation (slides)

As an educator of economics at multiple levels, Melissa will talk about some of the differences and similarities observed. Teacher education will also be discussed. How can we work together to make economic education the best it can be at every level?

Recording of Keynote:

Session A1:

1. Playing Economic Sudoku to Teach Cost by George Dirk Mateer, Charity-Joy Acchiardo, and Wayne Geerling (slides | appendix)
2. Deal Me In! Econ Card Games for Retrieval Practice by Megan Kirts (slides)
3. Creating Robust Automatically Graded Multipart Questions in Blackboard Using Simple Regular Expression Pattern Matching by Kevin S. S. Henning (slides | appendix)

Session A2:

1. Strengthening the Writing Component in Upper Level Economics Electives by Helen Schneider (slides)
2. Hands On Economic Research: Using A “Student Price Index” to Drive Involvement in an Econ Club by Daniel Kuester (slides)
3. A Guide for an Experiential Learning Program: The College Fed Challenge Competition by Khawaja Mamun and Gerald McCloghry (slides)

Session B1:

1. A New Voyage in Entertainment Economics: The Digital Concert by Erwin Erhardt
2. The Hero’s Order: Understanding Economics By Investigating the Hidden Order of the Worlds Our Heroes Inhabit by Brian Hollar (slides)
3. The Marvelous World of Economics: Using Superheroes to Teach Econ by  John Kruggel (slides)

Session B2:

1. Revelations on student difficulties from reflective quiz responses on pre-recorded lectures by Sylvia Kuo (slides)
2. Embedding Economics: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching Economics Concepts by Terra Aquia (slides)
3. Ethics, Economic, and Social Issues—A new curriculum for Principles and High School Economics by Jamie Wagner
   

Session C1:

1. Real World Economics: A Data-Driven Economic Indicator Research Project by Kim Pickering (slides)
2. Teaching Economics Through Old Testament Stories by Brian Hollar, Amel Ben Abdesslem, and Jadrian Wooten (slides)
3. Understanding the Features and Outcomes of Economic Systems: A Missing Part in Economics Education by Natalia Boliari (slides)

Session C2:

1. Adaptive Teaching, Self-Regulating and Goal Setting: Low-Cost Strategies to Make Economics Courses More Inclusive by Basak Horowitz (slides)
2. Using Challenge Questions to Stimulate Participation, Collaboration, and Discussion in the Classroom by Becky Lafrancois (slides)
3. Teaching Economics with RBG: Relevance, Belonging, and Growth Mindset by Han-Yen Kao (slides)

Session D1:

1. How to Use and Make EconGraphs by Chris Makler
2. Drawing Up Interest in Principles of Macroeconomics: A Simple Exercise to Illustrate Economic Growth by Mark Melichar
3. Interacting with Students Through MobLab by Kelvin Wong (slides)

Session D2:

1. Surviving the Principles of Economics by Alina Klein and Rudy Klein (slides)
2. Meet the Economists: A First Day of Class Assignment by Kelsi G. Hobbs (slides)

Session E1:

1. Learning How to Learn: Teaching Study Skills in Introductory Economics by Irene Foster (slides)
2. Roll the Dice: Teaching Expected Value Using Randomly-Assigned Grades by Tom Flesher (slides)
3. Costs in the Short Flight by Noah Trudeau

Session E2:

Panel on Teaching Economics Through Social Media (slides)

• Panel: Chris Clarke, Craig Palsson, and Matt Pierson
• Moderator: Jadrian Wooten

Session F1:

1. Introduction to The Economics Media Library by Jadrian Wooten (slides)
2. Principles of Macroeconomics Scavenger Hunt on the Economics Media Library by Matt Pierson (slides)
3. Teaching Principles of Microeconomics with the Economics Media Library by Kelsi G. Hobbs (slides)

Session F2:

1. Is the Invisible Hand Red or Green? by Rudolf F. Klein and Alina F. Klein (slides)
2. Using macroeconomic indicators to explore the continent of Africa by Janet Scott (slides)

Featuring Emily Marshall, Dirk Mateer, & Brian O’Roark (Slides)

Featuring Courtney Brandt, Lucy Malakar, & Janise Turso (Slides)

1. Using GIS and Economics Simulations to Increase Student Engagement by Ian Lyons (Slides)
2. How to ACE your ADAS by Stefan Ruediger (Slides)

Featuring Lee Coppock & Emily Marshall (Slides)

1. Opportunity Cost of a Job by Dawn Renninger (Slides)
2. The Alchian Maze by Michael Clark (Slides)

Featuring Lucy Malakar & Dirk Mateer (Slides)

Featuring Lee Coppock, Carter Doyle, Ken Elzinga, & Marc Santugini

Featuring Lee Coppock, Dirk Mateer, & Brian O’Roark (Slides)

1. Context-based Learning: Using Popular Country Music in the Classroom by Mark Melichar (Slides)
2. Learn It, Share It – a project in personal finance by Florencia Gabriele (Slides)
3. Segmenting Media for Maximum Impact by Jadrian Wooten (Slides)

Featuring Diana Bajrami (Slides) & Yolunda Nabors (Slides)

1. The End of the Semester is Too Late! Using technology to improve student performance throughout the semester across the academic unit by Ben O. Smith (Slides)
2. The Inclusive Economist: Celebrating Cultural and Linguistic Diversity Through Pop Culture by Wayne Geerling (Slides)