Q: What do you like most about teaching Economics?

David Flynn: Lifting the veil from the dismal science—demystifying the discipline. While economics, like the other social sciences, can be complex, the fundamental concepts underpinning the discipline, with careful attention and study, can actually be relatively easy to understand and master. Observing the students making this realization as we move through the semester is very rewarding.

Q: What key learning would you like your students to take away from your class?

DF: The ability to be better decision makers by incorporating marginal analysis into their decision making process. In microeconomics I focus a lot of attention on Cost/Benefit Analysis – decision making using economic thinking. This requires a clear understanding of all the real and potential costs and benefits of a particular decision. Students are introduced to such cost concepts as opportunity cost, sunk cost, and marginal cost.

In the macroeconomics section, my hope is that students gain an understanding of how a market economy functions. Why do we have recessions and what can be done about them? What are the causes of inflation/deflation and what policies are available to control it? What is the role of government?