Sumner La Croix, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Abstract

In Spring 2004, the Hawaii Council on Economic Education and the Hawaii Department of Education arranged for 521 students in 19 Hawaii public high schools to be given a 20-question multiple-choice test designed by the National Council on Economic Education to determine their understanding of basic microeconomic and macroeconomic concepts and applications. Using the econometric literature on average treatment effects and geographically stratified samples, we estimate the average treatment effect of a full or partial course in economics or consumer education on a public high school student. Our results have the potential to be used as a catalyst for the development of new policies by the Hawaii Department of Education and the U-Manoa Center for Economic Education to improve curriculum standards, in-service teacher training, and course offerings in Hawaii's public schools.