Introduction
- The Wall Street Journal provides unrivaled news and insight across a variety of mediums. See how
James A. Dearden, professor of economics at Lehigh University, utilizes the Journal to teach
critical course concepts.
Selecting Articles to Assign
2. Professors can choose from articles, editorials, columns and opinion pieces to integrate into their
classes.
In his economics class, Professor Dearden makes sure the articles he chooses demonstrate
good application of the principles and theories his students are taught. Editorials should
teach students how to critically evaluate statements about economic policy, columns
should have summaries of economics research and opinion pieces should make normative
points explaining how things should be in economics.
How to Assign Articles
3. Professor Dearden assigns three to five current articles each week for students
to read. He does not assign past articles. He only assigns current articles for
two reasons:
• To get students into the practice of reading the Journal every week
• Students have been observed to be most interested in learning about
current events
In each class, one or two articles are discussed for about five to ten minutes.
Types of Assessments to Use
4. Professor Dearden uses the content he assigns to craft three types of questions for
his exams:
• General questions about points made in columns
• Questions in which students analyze and explain the economic concept involved
in an article
• Economic modeling questions based on the economics involved in an article