Teaching an economics capstone course with a policy focus

摘要

This article's authors offer an organizational framework for an economics capstone course focused on analyzing current public economic policy issues. In this course, thesis topics often include public issues such as city planning, health care, transportation, education, law, the environment, and monetary and fiscal policies. The authors provide practical guidance on the development and organization of such a policy course, discuss course assignments and assessment tools, and offer advice on how to deal with potential challenges. They argue that a properly designed policy-oriented capstone course is well-suited for facilitating students' achievement of most of the highest Hansen's proficiencies in economics. It also may help students to gain a head start in a career in the related fields of public policy and public administration.