Teachers should note that the units project units and their organisation have been slightly revised in January 2000. There are now only two age categories (6-11 years and 12-17 years). Within each of the age categories there are ten units of five lessons per unit. I made these changes after speaking with teachers in India, Pakistan, and Kenya and I hope that the decrease in catregories will allow for more flexibility for the taechers. As ever, I urge that teachers adopt and adapt the lessons to best suit their students and their classes. Use the lessons as a guide not as an absolute truth. Use colleagues to help with ideas and strategies and if you have any questions get in touch with John Strudwick

Philosophy for Teachers:

The teaching units of this economics curriculum project are global in focus and are constructed broadly so that they can be taught in any school system throughout the world.

The complete set of lesson plans is not meant to be a hard and fast economics curriculum to be followed verbatim but rather a "menu" from which any number of lessons (or parts of lessons) can be chosen by individual schools and teachers of numerous subjects.

Each unit focuses on a particular economics topic with the five lessons of each unit highlighting a specific issue.

Foolproof instructions for delivery of lessons is difficult as so much will depend on teacher's own ideaology and the methodology that they usually employ. The project's lesson plans use a variety of classroom organisations to help promote stimulating learning environments (for example: small groups; pairs; individual projects as well as the large class setting). The hope is that the lessons can be adapted and taught usefully in any school or classroom setting.

The lesson plans are all student-centred and involve active learning principles. In addition, they are meant to be flexible, and easily manipulated to fit specific local educational and teaching needs.

Each lesson is designed to be be able to fit a multitude of settings from the small class of twenty students meeting for an hour to a larger class of fifty meeting for 30 minutes. All that is required of the teacher is to recognise the key element of the focus activity in each class and adapt accordingly. In some cases teachers will want to spend more that one class period on one lesson plan in order to cover the material fully. In other cases, teachers can use the central concept of the focus activity and adapt it for greater local relevance.

Teachers should think through ways to make the large class smaller by the use of group work, multiple and simultaneous activities, and older student helpers.

The key is for the teachers to feel comfortable in being in charge of their own classroom. The lesson plans are teaching aids to help promote a greater understanding of economics. They should be used wisely taking into account the local conditions and the needs of the students.

Teachers should review lesson plan materials and use the lessons (or parts of them) that are suitable for their ability level. In some cases lessons from the grades 5-8 units will be suitable for younger students and in some cases for older students, etc.

Teachers should introduce the topics in a way that their students can relate to before jumping to the lesson plans. The plans should not be taught in isolation for their most beneficial effect. A key to success is to make the lessons fun yet relevant. The philosophy which underpins the project's lesson plans (and which leans heavily on Bruner) is that children should be given stimulating problems which give them an opportunity to: think creatively; think laterally; collaborate; conduct research; collect and analyse data; and report on their findings.

Remember: each lesson plan includes the following:

(1) Objectives -- Goals of the lesson and key ideas/concepts to convey.

(2) Teaching Notes -- Notes on the topic being covered to help the teacher understand the basic principles of the lesson and to be used to help the student's preparation.

(3) Focus Activity -- A central activity for the lesson to both stimulate and teach and which will promote active and collaborative learning as well as utilise a wide variety of teaching methods
and technological resources.

(4) Directions on Using the Focus Activity -- Instructions to help teachers use the focus activity for maximum classroom benefit.

(5) Questions -- Key questions to be answered during the class and activity.

(6) Answers to Questions -- Information to help the teacher.

(7) Extensions and Variations -- Ideas for the individual teacher for lesson extensions and particular local variations of the lesson.