This site is organized around a curated library of podcasts, primarily from NPR’s Planet Money, but you will also find podcasts from Freakonomics, EconTalk and some other sources mixed in as well. The podcasts are categorized and searchable by economic concepts and course content keywords. You will also find a menu of assignments you might find useful inspiration for incorporating audio into your course assignments.
What students say about the use of podcasts in class
- “I enjoyed listening to the Planet Money Podcasts that were assigned. I felt they were a good way to apply real life current examples to economics and the business world.”
- “The podcasts are a great way to understand real life and current economic issues”
- “The podcasts make me more interested in economics which I find to be the best part about them”
- “The utilization of Planet Money podcasts in addition to the text and course material was extremely helpful in understanding the concepts talked about in class.”
From a survey conducted as part of research into the effectiveness of the use of podcasts for instruction in introductory classes (article forthcoming in International Review of Economics Education)
- 95% of students agreed that listening to economics-themed podcasts helped them to understand how economic concepts are applied in the world.
- 90% of students agreed that listening to economics-themed podcasts helped them understand how economics is relevant to the world;
- 80% of students agreed that listening to economics-themed podcasts helped their understanding of economic concepts.
How to listen to podcasts
Podcasts are an increasingly popular medium for disseminating and accessing information, as well as entertainment. PC magazine defines a podcast as “an audio broadcast that has been converted to MP3 or other audio file format for playback in a digital music player.” If you are not a regular podcast listener, you may be asking how you and your students can easily listen to these podcasts.
You can listen to Planet Money podcasts directly through the Planet Money Website links that are provided here, which will launch the NPR Media Player. You can also find the podcasts through iTunes. You can download the podcasts from either site to your iPod or other Mp3 player, which provides mobility for you and your students to listen while they commute, at the gym, in the library (with headphones!), etc.
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