When Christopher Laincz, PhD, and colleague Yoto Yotov, PhD, examined their principles of economics courses (ECON 201 and ECON 202), they concluded that students struggled with the math required for the intermediate level (ECON 301 and ECON 321), but that it would require a prohibitive number of additional math courses for them to gain command of the concepts.
The math needed is typically taught in calculus IV or linear algebra classes, neither of which are required nor taken by most students. For those students who do end up taking the advanced math courses, they typically do so later in their academic career.
This issue, common at most universities, according to Laincz, exposed an inherent gap between how math and economics are taught, and led him to devise a solution to bridge that gap for students.
An associate professor of economics in the LeBow College of Business, Laincz created a two-credit, five-week course — described as a “sprint”— with a flipped classroom approach. The course, “Mathematical Models in Economics” (ECON 248), was designed to equip students with the tools to succeed.
He also wrote a new interdisciplinary textbook that serves as a companion to the course.
This work led Laincz to be among four Drexel faculty recognized for implementing outstanding innovations in teaching and learning with the inaugural Provost Award for Pedagogical Innovation in 2023. As articulated in the award description, “Pedagogical innovation refers to the development of new ways of teaching, delivering curricula, interdisciplinary methods, or interfacing with the community or the workforce to create and implement novel courses and learning experiences.”
Laincz is also a past recipient of the LeBow College of Business Innovation in Teaching award.
Laincz believes the new course could serve as a model for delivering fundamental academic concepts in subjects that similarly rely on certain foundational skills.
“Learning to use the math tools, understand a model, and understand how to interpret them in an economics context was the primary goal,” Laincz said. “We talk a lot about interdisciplinary education and research, but actually implementing it has proven challenging. One avenue worth exploring is using this model to blend two fields in a way that lowers the burden on students and faculty alike by reducing the time and credit commitment.”
In this interview, Laincz shares more about the new course, the textbook he wrote and why student feedback is so valuable.
What drew you to teaching?
Some of it goes back to both of my parents. My father was a college professor at Kuztown University and my mom was a substitute art teacher. While they were mentors, I had zero interest in becoming a college professor or teacher. That changed when I was at the PhD level and started teaching; I enjoyed it and enjoyed teaching college students. I have grown to thoroughly enjoy it.
Drexel offers a Mathematical Economics course. Why didn’t that work as a solution to close that gap?
That course is intended for students who are past the intermediate courses and want advanced tools, perhaps to prepare for graduate programs. So, that course was not an appropriate solution for the issue at hand without drastically changing the content to serve a different type of student. It was clear from student focus groups and conversations with the faculty teaching the intermediate courses that our students were not being properly prepared or given the proper expectations for the intermediate level. Some additional training and exposure to modeling was needed.
Why make the new Mathematical Models in Economics a 2-credit course?
We felt a 4-credit course would discourage students from enrolling, particularly those less inclined to enjoy math, and those are precisely the students most in need of additional preparation. It is also less of a risk to a student's GPA or schedule. With that in mind, we settled on this two-credit course run in a flipped classroom and over just five weeks.
What was the reasoning behind using a flipped classroom approach?
Students read and watch videos to absorb the dense information at home, at their own pace, while class time is devoted to questions and problem solving, which further emphasizes application. The approach is similar to an intensive foreign language course that may skip over the nuances of some grammar points and rely heavily on conversation practice. The intent was not to replace any math or economics course, but to complement both through repeated application and interpretation of the math tools in an economic context — glue the two together in the students’ analytical minds, if you will.
Provide more information about the textbook you wrote.
A 100-page handout circulating for more than a decade was the jumping off point for what would become the course textbook, “Mathematical Models in Economics: An Introduction,” published in 2023 by Cognella Academic Publishing. Reflecting the philosophy behind the course, the book bridges math and economics by focusing on examples that help students understand the world around us. This textbook is not a math textbook and it is not an economics textbook. This textbook and associated course are meant to connect the two by aiding students to see how economics applies math to build models and understand the world around us.
You took a unique approach to artwork for the book.
I initially used images and graphics that were either copyrighted or dull and dry. I decided I needed something more appealing. I commissioned my father to create illustrations that represent a range of cultures and diverse people. He conducted some research and contributed a set of illustrations meant to highlight diversity and inclusion.
How have students reacted to the course and textbook?
The vast majority found the course material and delivery method beneficial and for the intended purpose. Students said they felt better prepared for intermediate level economics courses and, of the few who had already taken them, said they wished this course had been available to them.
How did you incorporate student feedback?
I take student survey feedback quite seriously. They are the ones living through a course and, even if there are complaints, you want to think about what they are saying, why and adjust. The course has been modified in two ways based on the survey feedback. I added a new chapter in the textbook and created new lectures because of student feedback. It also became clear that 50 minutes was an insufficient amount of time to spend in class.