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California Association of School Economics Teachers (CASET)
Social Studies Review, Fall 2003 by Benjamin, Joanne
The California Association of School Economics Teachers (CASET) is an organization of educators promoting the effective teaching of economic principles in grades K-12. Why was CASET formed? This article explains the history, challenges, and successes of the organization.
Over the years, economics has been perceived as a complicated and difficult subject that is beyond the abilities and attention spans of most K-12th graders. It is also thought to be a tedious and even boring subject as it is often referred to as the "dismal science" due to its perceived reliance on statistical tables, charts and graphs. It was a subject that was usually not taught to high school students let alone those in middle or elementary schools. While college students often took an introductory economics course as part of their general education or breadth requirements, there were still many specialized majors where economics was never studied at all.
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Survey results of adults in the United States show a surprising lack of understanding of basic economics concepts. Especially disturbing is the general population's ignorance of basic supply and demand forces, how our government's economic policies influence business activity and our level of prosperity, and how our global economy operates. Recognizing that economics literacy is essential for an informed citizenry in a democratic society, educators and business professionals began lobbying to include the study of economics as part of California's secondary school curriculum. In 1985 this effort was successful with the California Legislature passing the Economics Mandate. This legislation called for all high school students to complete a one-semester course in economics as a requirement for graduation. Although, educators welcomed this requirement statewide, many schools were not prepared to offer the class, as they had no experience with the subject matter and there were very few trained faculty members. Most high schools placed the newly mandated economics class into their 12th grade curriculum and assigned any available or interested instructors as teachers. Generally speaking, these first time economics instructors had little formal training in the subject, only vaguely exposed to it due to their college backgrounds (frequently only one course in the social sciences or home economics). Often, there was only a single, newly christened economics teacher per school, which ruled out collaboration and "team teaching" approaches. Where were these teachers to go for help?
Two California high school economics teachers, Donna McCreadie and Sue Weaver, recognized the need to provide infrastructure and support to help the state's fledgling economics teachers. They also wanted to promote the teaching of economics at every grade level, including kindergarten. Donna and Sue knew that teaching economics could be both exciting and relevant. The biggest challenge facing them was how to develop meaningful lessons so that their students would understand the impact of economics on themselves and those around them. Recognizing the challenge and need is one step, but these two dynamic professionals went a step further and founded the CASET organization with the mission, "To help California teachers improve and expand their students' economic literacy." They envisioned an organization that would help teachers be more effective in their classrooms.
Donna and Sue approached Dr. Jim Charkins, Professor of Economics at California State University, San Bernardino and the Executive Director of the California Council on Economic Education - CCEE - for advice. (The CCEE is a consortium of business, political, and higher education leaders involved in promoting economics literacy through curriculum development, legislative actions, and fundraising.) Jim became a mentor and cheer-leader for CASET and not only helped the new organization get off the ground, but aided its growth and evolution into the organization it is today.
CASET is a nonprofit - IRS 501 (C)(3) organization with a Board of Directors consisting of elementary, middle school, and high school teachers from throughout the state. These volunteer board members secure funding, manage operations, plan programs and conferences, write newsletters, and conduct special events. Regional activities are performed through the CCEE's Centers for Economic Education, which are located on California State University campuses throughout the state. These CSU centers also support CASET by helping organize local programs and providing curriculum assistance for teachers in their locale. The CCEE generously provides administrative support for CASET, which uses the CCEE's Cal State San Bernardino office as its "headquarters".
In the middle 1990s, the National Council on Economics Education (the CCEE's parent organization) developed a set of comprehensive curriculum guides known as the Voluntary National Content Standards in Economics. These standards were greatly appreciated by the economics literacy advocates as they provided a consistent framework for teaching the subject throughout the primary and secondary grades. In 1998, the CCEE's efforts resulted in these national standards being reflected in California's curriculum, as the "economic strand" was integrated into the state's History/Social Science Standards. Thus economic reasoning and analytical skills were finally an integral part of the K-12 curriculum.
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