DESCRIPTION
This four-part animated program examines economic systems and how they work. Shows how a system can be
identified as a command, market, or mixed system. Examines the modified free enterprise economy, or mixed
system, in detail. Covers the four partners and their roles, and how to determine prices according to supply and
demand. Also looks at the business cycle, inflation, recession, depression, and economic growth.
ACADEMIC STANDARDS
Subject Area: Economics
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Standard: Understands characteristics of different economic systems, economic institutions, and
economic incentives
§ Benchmark: Knows that in a command economic system a central authority, usually the government,
makes the major decis ions about production and distribution (See Instructional Goal #1)
§ Benchmark: Knows that in a market economic system individual households and business firms make
the major decisions about production and distribution in a decentralized manner following their own
self-interests (See Instructional Goal #1)
§ Benchmark: Understands that national economies vary in the extent to which they rely on
government directives (central planning) and signals from private markets (See Instructional Goal #1)
§ Benchmark: Understands that in a market economy the pursuit of economic self-interest directs
people and businesses in most of their economic decisions (e.g., to work, to save, to invest) (See
Instructional Goal #1)
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Standard: Understands the concept of prices and the interaction of supply and demand in a market
economy
§ Benchmark: Understands that people buy less of a product when its price goes up and more when its
price goes down (See Instructional Goal #4)
§ Benchmark: Understands that businesses are willing and able to sell more of a product when its price
goes up and less when its price goes down (See Instructional Goal #4)
§ Benchmark: Understands that changes in supply or demand cause relative prices to change; in turn,
buyers and sellers adjust their purchase and sales decisions (See Instructional Goal #4)
§ Benchmark: Understands that a shortage occurs when buyers want to purchase more than producers
want to sell at the prevailing price, and a surplus occurs when producers want to sell more than buyers
want to purchase at the prevailing price (See Instructional Goal #4)
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Standard: Understands the roles government plays in the United States economy
§ Benchmark: Knows that in a market economy the government helps markets to operate efficiently by
protecting property rights (i.e. the right to exclude others from using a good or service and the right to
transfer ownership) and by providing a system of weights and measures and a standard and stable
currency (See Instructional Goal #2)
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Standard: Understands how Gross Domestic Product and inflation and deflation provide indications of
the state of the economy (See Instructional Goal #3)
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§ Benchmark: Knows that inflation refers to a sustained increase in the average price level of the entire
economy (See Instructional Goal #3)
§ Benchmark: Understands that inflation reduces the value of money and that people's purchasing
power declines if their incomes increase more slowly than the inflation rate (See Instructional Goal
#3)
§ Benchmark: Knows that Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total market value, expressed in
dollars, of all final goods and services produced in the economy in a given year and is used as an
indicator of the state of the economy (See Instructional Goal #3)
INSTRUCTIONAL GOALS
1. To present the differences and similarities in command, market, and mixed economic systems.
2. To examine the roles of consumers, business, government and organized labor in a mixed economic
system.
3. To illustrate how Gross National Product (GNP) and inflation are used as measurements to indicate
economic growth, recession or depression.
4. To dramatize how the law of supply and demand influences pricing in a modified free enterprise system.
VOCABULARY
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communist
capitalist
consumer
goods
services
depression
recession
economic growth
surplus
shortage
BEFORE SHOWING
1. Compare communism and capitalism.
2. List daily interactions local people have with consumers, business, government and organized labor.
DURING SHOWING
Discussion Items and Questions
1. View the video more than once, with one showing uninterrupted.
2. Pause after the first part, “Economic Systems,” to discuss.
a. What factors of production are necessary to produce goods and provide services?
b. What questions must be answered to produce goods or provide services?
c. What are the differences between a market and a command economy?
d. What kind of economic system does the United States have?
e. What are the motivations of individuals in a market economy and of the government in a command
economy?
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f. What role does centralization play in market and command economies?
3. Pause after the second part, “Partners in Economics,” to discuss.
a. What is a modified free enterprise system?
b. Who are the partners in a modified free enterprise system?
c. How do consumers influence business and government?
d. What do consumers need from business?
e. What are the goals of a business in a modified free enterprise system?
f. On what must consumers and business agree?
g. In what way is a business also a consumer?
h. How does government function to improve quality of life in a mixed economy?
i. How does government influence business and organized labor?
j. What are the goals of organized labor in regard to business and government?
k. What do business and organized labor do if negotiations between them are unfair?
l. How do strikes and lockouts influence the local population? How does the size of local population
affect the impact of strikes and lockouts?
4. Pause after the third part, “The Business Cycle,” to discuss.
a. What are the ups and downs of the economy called?
b. How does a recession affect business, consumers and organized labor?
c. During a recession, what may government do to push the economy back on track?
d. To interrupt the recessionary spiral, what may government do to stimulate investing and spending?
e. Historically, what has been the relationship between economic depression and war?
f. What is economic growth?
g. How is economic performance measured?
h. How does the GNP or Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reflect economic growth?
i. What is inflation?
j. What are the consumer, business and government causes of inflation?
k. What is the wage-price spiral?
l. Why may the government decide to print more money?
m. What does the interaction between GNP (GDP) and inflation indicate about economic growth and the
value of a dollar?
5. Stop at the end of the video. Discuss the fourth part, “Determining Price.”
a. In what ways are prices determined?
b. What is supply and demand?
c. How do consumers and businesses respond to high prices?
d. How does supply and demand influence decisions businesses make in regard to setting prices and
production quantity?
e. What is the value to a business of knowing point of equilibrium and market clearing price?
f. How are point of equilibrium and market clearing price determined when the cost of production is
constant?
g. What are the advantages and disadvantages of surplus and shortage to the consumer, business and
organized labor?
AFTER SHOWING
1. Collect and display news articles related to economics.
a. Consider the following topics: GNP (GDP), inflation, labor unions and strikes, recession, depression,
capitalist and communist.
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b. Classify articles by geographical location.
2. Plan and execute fundraising activities using the three economic systems from the video.
3. Investigate how increases in price of raw materials from varying geographical locations influence the
prices of local goods and services.
4. Research wars that were preceded by depression.
a. How does war alleviate depression?
b. What other alternatives might work to end a depression?
5. Investigate current GNP (GDP) and inflation rates for the United States and other countries.
6. Research labor strikes and lockouts.
a. Collect and display news articles related to current local, national and international labor issues.
b. Investigate historic labor strikes.
c. Interview local business leaders and union members regarding local labor issues.
7. Compare the prices of similar products.
a. Hypothesize reasons for the price differences. Consider effort, risk and ingenuity.
b. Investigate the place of production, cost of raw materials and labor issues.
8. Imagine living in a pure market or command economy.
a. List pros and cons of each economy.
b. Research modern and historic nations that operated in more pure market or command economies than
the United States.
9. Research modern and historic communist countries’ command economy.
a. Consider consumers, business, government and labor.
b. Investigate prices, shortages and surpluses of daily necessities and luxury items.
10. Investigate how a market economy functions. Interview local business leaders, union members or
government officials.
a. What does the government do to put more money in the hands of spenders and lower interest rates?
b. The government regulates which American product and service prices?
c. How are point of equilibrium and market clearing prices determined when product cost is not
constant?
11. Write economic news stories using one of the following headlines: “Up, Up and Away” or “Happy Days
are Here Again.”
12. Imagine the responses of consumers, business, government and labor to surplus, shortage, increased or
decreased demand, and increased or decreased supply.
RELATED RESOURCES
Captioned Media Program
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1929-1941: The Great Depression #3202
Businesses #2595
Great Depression and Foreign Affairs, The #1676
Japan: Economic World Power #3147
Market Prices: Supply and Demand #1614
New Deal, The #2862
Organizing America: A History of Trade Unions in the US #3278
Smackers: Elementary Entrepreneurs #3081
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Taxes--Give & Take #3304
Technical Signs: Economics (Tape 41) #2886
Technical Signs: Economics (Tape 46) #2904
Understanding Taxes: Evolution of Our Federal Tax System #2122
Western Europe: Government and Economics #3316
World Wide Web
The following Web sites complement the contents of this guide; they were selected by professionals who have
experience in teaching deaf and hard of hearing students. Every effort was made to select accurate, educationally
relevant, and “kid-safe” sites. However, teachers should preview them before use. The U.S. Department of
Education, the National Association of the Deaf, and the Captioned Media Program do not endorse the sites and
are not responsible for their content.
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UNITED STATES SENATE JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE
http://www.senate.gov/~jec/jechmpg.html
Link to a weekly-updated This Week in Economics: Latest Economic News and Statistics includes the
latest information on the American economy. Also has information related to economic and tax policy,
including reports with charts and graphs, congressional hearing transcripts, an economic data release
schedule, and links to economic indicators, data and statistics, and news organizations.
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GREAT ECONOMIC LESSONS http://ecedweb.unomaha.edu/ecedweek/lessons.htm
Online economics lessons--all levels and many content areas keyed to the Nebraska Social
Studies/Economics Standards.
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ECONOMICS RESOURCES FOR K-12 TEACHERS http://ecedweb.unomaha.edu/teach.htm
A subpage of the EcEdWeb (Economics Education Website), this page delivers what it’s called: online
materials to teach economics.
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ECONOMICS EDUCATION http://www.frbsf.org/econedu/indx.eced.html
Resources for economics teachers, including Internet-based lesson plans and activities, publications, and
economic research. Covers the Federal Reserve System, foreign exchange rates, fiscal policy, and the
Century Date Change project.
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A LIST OF SELECTED RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS OF ECONOMICS IN SECONDARY
SCHOOLS. http://www.ecom.unimelb.edu.au/ecowww/school.html
Annotated directory of economic education resources. Covers other directories, specific economic topics,
and examples of how educational technology can be used to teach economics.
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DATA ON THE NET http://odwin.ucsd.edu/idata/
An easy way to find online data on just about any topic.
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AMOS WORLD: A GUIDE TO ALL THINGS ECONOMIC AND HOME TO MR. ECONOMY
http://amos.bus.okstate.edu/
A site for advanced students that includes a searchable economic glossary and a self-checking testing
system. Also included is a fictional narrative entitled, “Extra Credit: A Lesson in Economics.”
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LAVA MIND http://www.lavamind.com/
Features downloadable shareware of three business simulation games in increasing difficulty. These
games are designed to offer insights into business, investing, and money management concepts that often
get left out of the standard curriculum. Accompanying ideas, notes, lesson plans and curriculum are
available.
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