Using Just-in-Time Teaching in Economics

JiTT was originally developed for physics education but has now been adapted for use in many different disciplines, including economics. JiTT is particularly useful for increasing student engagement in economics courses, where lecturing remains the dominant pedagogy. JiTT can also be used in combination with other teaching practices

such as classroom experiments, seminar discussions, case studies, and cooperative learning to increase their impact on student learning.

Jump to the following sections on this page:

• JiTT Improves Student Learning in Economics
• Developing Effective JiTT Exercises in Economics
• Combining JiTT with Teaching Practices You're Already Using

Using JiTT in Economics - An Example

Just-in-Time Teaching focuses on improving student learning through the use of brief questions (JiTT exercises) posted online prior to an upcoming class. Students' responses to these questions, submitted a few hours before class, allow instructors to gather information about student understanding of course concepts "just in time" and develop activities for this class session that target students' actual learning needs.

A Sample JiTT Exercise on Marginal and Fixed Costs

The following exercise is posted online: Last year my wife and I made plans to take our family to the beach for the Labor Day weekend, accompanied by another family. Each family paid a non-refundable beach rental payment of $350 a couple of months prior to the trip. As Labor Day approached we watched the weekend weather report with growing interest. The weather forecaster was predicting rain for the entire weekend! As we packed up the car to go to the beach, I asked my wife if perhaps we should stay home for the weekend, rather than going to the beach. After all, we had recently moved and needed to unpack (and paint). She responded, "We've already paid $350 for the beach rental, of course we're going to the beach!"

Was my wife's argument "rational," in an economic sense? Why or why not?

Student Responses

Show a sample of student responses to this JiTT question (unedited).

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Student #1- I think I would decide to go to the beach, rather than staying home to unpack and paint. I think the wife's decsion to go to the beach was a good economic decision. To me, the additonal benefit of the activity is greater than the additonal cost of the activity. I feel like if I have already paid for a $350 trip, if I fail to go I will be wasting money. There will always be more time to paint and unpack. Even if it is raining at the beach, the family might have the additional benefit of spending some quality time together. My opinion of wasting money is alot more important to me than wasting time. I would rather waste time over money any day.
Student #2 - No because you will spend most if not all of your vacation inside due to the rain. That time could be spent working on your house. You also save money because you're at home versus being on vacation where you'd spend money on keepsakes, gifts and other needless items. By not going, you also save money on gas and food. The marginal cost of going to the beach outweigh the marginal benefits and thus it is not rational to go the beach.
Student #3 - I believe that your wife's decision was a rational one in an economic standpoint because the non-refundable $350 deposit could have been used for some other type of activity for the new home. Even though the weather did not suit your standards it would be irrational to waste $350 by not taking the vacation.
Student #4 - Well i personally feel that her argument is very rational, because the trip was already paid for and the trip was going to be restfull something that was more worth her time.

In-Class Collaborative Learning Activity

For this exercise I might include the following questions with the four student responses listed above (or hand out on a separate piece of paper). These questions then form the basis for an in-class collaborative learning activity.

Which of these responses comes closest to the argument that an economist would make? After selecting one of the responses below, how might you improve the answer, based on your understanding of the material for today?

In four-person collaborative learning groups, have each person develop a response to the questions, then share with the group. Based on the individual contributions, have each group develop a consensus answer to the questions, then have each group (or a sample) report out to the full class. Assess (or have other groups assess) whether students are able to display the correct economic reasoning in their responses.

Finally, have each student develop a response to the following question and hand in:

After completing this exercise, what questions do you still have? What concepts are still unclear?

Watch Dr. Mark Maier, Glendale Community College (CA), discuss the use of Just-in-Time Teaching in economics in this brief video (Quicktime Video 6.5MB Sep16 10). Maier and Dr. Scott Simkins (North Carolina A&T State University) led a National Science Foundation project adapting JiTT, originally developed for physics education, for use in economics (DUE 0088303)

JiTT Improves Student Learning in Economics

JiTT focuses student attention on important course concepts, increases time on task, and gets students prepared for class. Classroom research carried out by Simkins and Maier (2004) showed that JiTT had a modest, statistically-significant effect on cognitive learning outcomes in introductory economics after controlling for a variety of other demographic and academic variables. Also, students rated JiTT among the most effective learning tools in the course. In addition to economics, JiTT has been shown to increase student learning in a variety of other disciplines (Simkins and Maier, 2010).

Developing Effective JiTT Exercises in Economics

The key to successful JiTT implementation is the development of effective JiTT questions. What makes an effective JiTT question in economics? That depends upon the student learning outcomes the instructor has in mind. Two types of learning outcomes are listed below, with suggestions for effective JiTT questions.

• Knowledge-related Learning Outcomes - What do I want my students to know at the end of this course?

Knowledge-related JiTT questions might ask students to relate new terminology to their lives, summarize economic data or graphs, or explain the relevance of economics-related historical policies.

• Skill-related Learning Outcomes - What do I want my students to be able to do at the end of this course?

Skill-related JiTT questions might ask students to practice writing and critical thinking skills using economics examples and concepts, use statistical analysis to support or reject economic hypotheses, or articulate economic concepts using multiple representations (graphically, analytically, mathematically, and verbally).

For more information on developing effective JiTT Questions...

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Combining JiTT with Teaching Practices You're Already Using

JiTT is a flexible teaching tool, easily combined with teaching practices you may already be using in your economics courses. See how JiTT can increase the impact of these teaching practices:

• Interactive Lecture - JiTT exercises provide insights on student learning gaps that can be followed-up and further assessed in the next class period.
• Cooperative Learning - Responses to JiTT questions provide a starting point for in-class cooperative learning exercises.
• Classroom Experiments - Use JiTT exercises to have students predict the outcome of in-class experiments that will take place in the upcoming class period.
• Teaching with the Case Method - JiTT exercises help students come to class prepared for in-depth discussions of case topics and provide a window into students' understanding of case issues prior to the actual discussion of the case in class.
• Using Classroom Response Systems - Use student responses to JiTT questions to develop in-class "clicker questions" that directly address student learning gaps identified in the the responses.