Poor Teaching in Economics
It’s not a mystery that most introductory economics courses are of poor quality. I was lucky; my first economics course was taught by Mark Witte, a well-loved lecturer at Northwestern known for his ability to communicate clearly. Most aren’t so lucky, and the discipline as a whole suffers both internally and in reputation as a result. Marginal Revolution has a post about this phenomenon, complete with quiz:
You won a free ticket to see an Eric Clapton concert (which has no resale value). Bob Dylan is performing on the same night and is your next-best alternative activity. Tickets to see Dylan cost $40. On any given day, you would be willing to pay up to $50 to see Dylan. Assume there are no other costs of seeing either performer. Based on this information, what is the opportunity cost of seeing Eric Clapton? (a) $0, (b) $10, (c) $40, or (d) $50.