Using classroom experiments is easy, fun, and a very effective way to teach students about economic concepts. A simple way for you to test this proposition is to try an experiment in your own classroom.
To enable you to try an experiment, we are making available a shortened version of the first chapter of our book (in postscript format). Once each student has a copy of the chapter, you will be able to conduct a simple classroom market experiment that will allow your students to actively experience a market, as well as learn the theory of supply and demand. You will also find a chapter from our Instructor's Manual that provides detailed instructions for running the experiment. This experiment can be conducted in a single 50-minute class period. It runs smoothly in classes ranging in size from 12 to 75 students (here is some information for using it in larger classes).
Obviously, we hope that you will enjoy using our experiment and at the same time be persuaded to use more of our experiments in future classes. The book includes twelve additional experiments, each designed to teach fundamental economic ideas. Among the topics treated are sales taxes, prohibition, minimum wages, monopoly, entry and exit, externalities, information, bargaining, comparative advantage, and auctions.
You can order the entire book to use either as a free-standing text or as a supplement to your current text. If you prefer to run only a few experiments from the book, you can order a custom-printed text that includes only the experiments of your choice.
First some legal issues: The authors and McGraw Hill retain all ownership rights to these sample chapters. You have our permission to download the material for the purpose of making a single, personal copy. You have the right to use the materials in any course that is currently being offered. Instructors may make copies of the student chapter for distribution to their students, but such copies must keep intact the entire chapter (including all copyright notices) and may not be sold for a price in excess of reproduction costs. We retain the right to revoke these terms of use at any time.
If you agree to the "Terms of Use" above, you can go here to download the free sample chapter for students. Each student in the class will need a copy.
If you agree to the "Terms of Use" above, you can go here to download the Instructor's Manual coinciding with the sample chapter. The instructor of the course needs a single copy (it contains some general instructions and some materials that you will need to copy before running the experiment).
(A note to students: We realize that instructor's manuals hold a certain amount of intrigue for some students. Unfortunately, this manual doesn't contain any test questions, easy answers to your homework, etc., but rather good discussions of the mechanics behind how to conduct the experiment, and so forth. You are welcome to download and read this document, though the easiest way to understand the material and do well on your homework is to focus your time and effort towards the student chapter.)