Linda Ghent

Eastern Illinois University

Workshop Participant, Website Contributor

Website Content Contributions

Activities (5)

"Irreplacable" by Beyonce part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:Teaching Methods:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning:Examples
This flash animation for the song "Irreplaceable" demonstrates how the availability of substitutes affects the price elasticity of demand. Beyonce notes that her current boyfriend is not "irreplaceable," meaning that her demand for him is elastic.

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Seinfeld: The Baby Shower part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:Teaching Methods:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning:Examples
This is a clip from Seinfeld in which Jerry does a cost -benefit analysis of installing illegal cable. He decides to commit the crime when he finds out there will be 75 televised Mets games on TV.

The Simpsons, "New Kid on the Block" part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:Teaching Methods:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning:Examples
This is an excellent clip from The Simpsons that demonstrates the concept of diminishing marginal utility and marginal analysis.

"Father Christmas" by The Kinks part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:Teaching Methods:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning:Examples
"Father Christmas" by The Kinks is used in conjunction with Joel Waldfogel's article "The Deadweight Loss of Christmas" to examine the relative value of cash versus inkind gifts. This can then be extended to an analysis of various public policies.

"Closer to Free" by The BoDeans part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:Teaching Methods:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning:Examples
This flash animation for the song "Closer to Free" describes the Economic Freedom of the World index, provides a summary of countries with high and low values of the index, and highlights the importance of economic freedom in a country's standard of living.

Other Contributions (2)

Linda Ghent part of Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics:About this Project:Project Participants
This is a faculty profile page for Linda Ghent, an economics professor and department chair at Eastern Illinois University, detailing her academic background, research interests in the economics of aging and gambling, teaching philosophy, development of a pop culture economics course, and recognition through teaching awards, hosted on the SERC (Science Education Resource Center) website as part of the "Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics" project.

Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Using Media to Enhance Teaching and Learning
This educational resource page from the Pedagogy in Action library explores how instructors can use films, music, news, and digital media to engage students, enhance retention, and illustrate real-world relevance, offering strategies, examples, and scholarly references for effective implementation across disciplines.

Workshop Participant

Developing Modules for Teaching Economics
October 2009