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Grade 9-12, Higher Education
,
On-Demand Webinar

Ethics, Economics, and Social Issues: Is Efficiency Ethical?

Time: 60 mins,
Presenter: Stephen Day, Ph.D.
Teacher Version
Objective Standards Description Resources
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Objective

After completing this lesson teachers will be able to:
  • Describe how efficiency and ethics relate.
  • Explain how conflicting ethical visions can make economic analysis difficult.
  • Integrate ethical thinking into marginal analysis.

 

Standards

State Standards

Concepts

Decision Making/Cost-Benefit Analysis, Incentives, Income, Income Distribution, Opportunity Cost, Public-Choice Analysis

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Description

First, teachers play the role of a doctor who is trying to choose who gets scarce medicine and having to make decisions about efficiency. Teachers will learn how both positive and normative statements can be used to make decisions. Next, they analyze the effects a casino could have on jobs and other outcomes for a city. Lastly, they analyze the effects of ethical considerations on their own purchasing decisions. The lesson helps students understand both the power and the limits of economic analysis.

Resources

Subjects:

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