Like the public in general and those interested in business issues in particular, we all have been focused on the complex web of issues impacting the markets and the economy. I have also been trying to grapple with whether and, more importantly, to what extent I should cover such issues in class.
To be sure, my response likely would be easier and my coverage of these issues more extensive if I was teaching Securities Regulation. However, currently I am teaching Business Associations, which of course is a class designed for students with little to no business background. I teach BA by beginning with a focus on partnerships and other business entities. This means that the class had barely begun talking about how to form a corporation when these events began to unfold. Of course, given that it is a class about businesses--even if an introductory one--I certainly feel it is important to discuss these current events. This means I end up devoting some portion of the beginning of each class talking about recent economic events, while trying to highlight how at least some of the issues being raised will relate to topics covered during later class sessions. I must admit that when I finally turn to my "regularly scheduled reading assignments," the cases that previously seemed to reflect weighty corporate concerns somehow seem to pale in comparison. But I also wonder how others who teach in this area are striking the balance between covering their syllabus, on the one hand, and informing students about the economic/financial issues being played out, or otherwise discussing such issues in class, on the other.
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1. Posted by Jason Kilborn on September 25, 2008 @ 7:30 | Permalink
I have struggled with this, too (in Bankruptcy), and I have decided to entertain the questions/comments at the beginning of most classes. This crisis illustrates so many useful points about all of our business classes (perhaps Bankruptcy in particular), and the students are paying attention--something that cannot always be said with respect to the assigned material. I've had a blast broadening and deepening our discussion, and I sense that the students are really getting something valuable out of it, so I say go for it!
2. Posted by Steven Zimmler on September 25, 2008 @ 9:32 | Permalink
Our law students are extremely concerned that they're going to graduate with over $100k in debt and no job prospects. It is a very scary time for them, and understandably so. I've been trying to offer as much advice and guidance as possible. I managed to find a free site for them to conduct their job searches, and think it might be advantageous for others to share. Direct them to Outlines.com . Seems to offer a lot of assistance.
3. Posted by David Zaring on September 25, 2008 @ 9:45 | Permalink
I think my students are really interested in the topic, but I haven't tried too hard to integrate it into an international economic regulation class. But I know people often do things the way you do - current events to start, and then regular assignments the rest of the time. It does make the class seem relevant.....
4. Posted by Karl Okamoto on September 25, 2008 @ 10:04 | Permalink
My choice has been to ignore it completely (other than once on the Monday after the Lehman announcement I put the real time quote up for the S&P 500 - my class meets from 8:30 to 10:30 and the blips formed some good comic relief). To be honest, I spent many minutes explaining what a dividend is (as I told my class it's a lot like explaining snow to Southern Californians who don't ski) and many more trying to explain how a pro rata buyback is equivalent. So I'm afraid any foray into current affairs, while perhaps interesting, won't yield much pedagogically.
5. Posted by Usha on September 26, 2008 @ 9:46 | Permalink
I'm right there with you, Lisa, just introducing the corporate form and trying my best to talk about current events. I've talked about preferred stock in the context of AIG and Buffett's investment. The next topic with be executive compensation, I think. It's hard, but the students seem to appreciate it.
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