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Tuesday, August 31, 2010
British Lifestyle report
Our word or phrase, of the week this week is disposable income. The guardian.co.uk article I have chosen explains what is happening on the British High Street and how consumers are choosing to spend their money at the moment.
Underwear, alcohol, pets and beauty treatments top the list, are these products important in your country too? Discuss how people in your country spend their disposable income.
Why is disposable income so important to economists? Discuss with your teacher and class.
Does the information in this article fit with your understanding of British Lifestyle ? Discuss with a colleague.
Have people in your class changed their holiday patterns because of the recession?
Write a short questionnaire, ask your class mates your questions and then prepare a report on this topic; do not mention names in the report, then give the report to your teacher for checking.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Structural problems of the US Economy
America's century is over, but it will fight on
This week’s Guardian article is a longer one than usual, it is about the structural problems in the American economy.
We have had quite a few of these negative articles in the press this week and I am not sure that so much negativity helps any economy.
What do you think? Discuss the following question with a fellow student or your tutor.
Does constant negativity in the press depress the people and the economy further?
There is a lot of good vocabulary in this article- check you know the meaning of the following words before you read the article and then answer the quiz which will be in the next post.
Deepseated
Pithy
Robust
Foreclosures
Liquidity
Stringent
Retrenchment
Bleaker
Looking forward to chatting again next week
Sunday, August 15, 2010
How the US economy is being 'Japanised'.-economic sclerosis
The article I have chosen for this week is critical of the Federal Reserve’s methods of stimulating the US economy. One of the problems highlighted by the author Chris Payne is that if they continue in this way the economy will become more ‘Japanised’ and it seems to him that "economic sclerosis" is becoming seen as a positive rather than a negative outcome.
Read the article and take the quiz in the next post.
Further activities
Discuss the article with a partner, do you think that the dangers Chris Payne mentions are real? What should the Federal Reserve do to stimulate the American Economy?
Research the 1930’s depression, Keynesian economic theory or the lost Japanese decade and give a short 5-10 minute talk to your class or teacher.
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