[PEN-L:6739] RE: Economics Course

["Breen, Nancy" <BreenN@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Campagna (Michael?) produced a thick text about U.S. 20th century
macroeconomic policy.  I used it in an undergrad Am Econ Hist course a few
years ago in it's first edition.   Warning:  it's long and precludes a lot
of additional reading, unless you have the students selectively read from
it.

Nancy Breen
NIH
 ----------
From: pen-l
>Subject: [PEN-L:6728] Economics Course
Date: Thursday, October 17, 1996 7:36AM

Next fall I'll be teaching an introductory course on a variety
of different economic topics. The focus will be on the U.S.
The course will focus on issues, not on the use/misuse of
economic theory of any particular brand.

The main problem with such a course is finding good readings.
Mansfield's Leading Economic Controversies seems to be
the best of the middle-of-the-road approach (here's what a
so-called liberal says; here's what a conservative says). Of
course, this approach has its weaknesses.

What readings for a class mostly of first year college
students would people recommend on topics like:
the "bankruptcy" of social security, immigration, income
distribution/standard of living changes, size of goverment
and growth/efficiency, healthcare, debt/deficit, and so on.

Does EPI or similar organization put out a reader. I haven't
used URPE material ("XXX in the real world") in recent years;
does such stuff still exist, is it any good, is it appropriate for
a non-principles course, it it up-to-date?

Thanks for any leads.

Eric