Recharting the history of economic thought: approaches to and student experiences of the introduction of pluralist teaching in an undergraduate economics curriculum

Abstract

The student movement calling for the introduction of pluralist and heterodox economics teaching in higher education presents a unique set of challenges for those who want to incorporate different economic approaches into their teaching. This paper outlines an innovative redesign of a course on the History of Economic Thought, which acted as a vehicle for exposing students to different theoretical traditions and engaging them in critical reflections on mainstream economics. It also presents findings from a research project conducted with economics students at the University of Northampton that aimed to understand their experiences of the redesign. We reflect on the pedagogical challenges highlighted by students and the implications this has for (re)designing the economics curriculum. Our findings challenge arguments commonly deployed against the introduction of pluralist teaching. These include the notions that there is no appetite for this in the broader student population, that students would fail to engage with such an approach, that they fear a negative impact on their employability and that alternative economic approaches should only be introduced at an advanced level.