July 2024 Updates and Notices
Monday 1 July 2024
Dear InThinking users
Welcome to the July 2024 Updates and Notices. Please see below for some of the latest additions to the InThinking IGCSE Economics website:
A new cloze exercise for Unit 1.3.2 (The influence of opportunity cost on decision making) has been added here. This interactive fill-in-the-blanks quiz uses the InThinking drag and drop function to get students thinking about their responses. Additional cloze exercises will be added to the website over the next few months.
A new set of Paper 1 multiple choice questions for Unit 5.3 (Population) has been added here. There are 15 self-marked MCQs in this quiz, taking the total number of Paper 1 MCQs on the website now to over 800 questions.
On 11th June, the annual WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2024 was published. The global gender gap has improved slightly, closing 68.5% of the gap, but it will still take 134 years to achieve full parity at the current pace(!) One of the highlights of the report is that closing the gender gap in employment and entrepreneurship could increase global GDP by more than 20%, highlighting the economic benefits of gender parity. The report provides great stimulus for Unit 3.3.3 Reasons for differences in earnings, with a summary of the main findings here.
A new Paper 2 exam practice question for Unit 6.3.3 (Causes of foreign exchange rate fluctuations) has been added here. These questions are based on Argentina's recent devaluation of its currency by about 50 per cent.
To help students develop their skills of analysis and evaluation, a new feature on the website is the inclusion of discussion activities. For example, for Unit 2.10.2 (Causes of market failure), two discussion activities have been added here. These are based on the economic costs and benefits of banning smartphones in schools and whether we can consider the growing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) as an example of merit goods. There are accompanying notes to support teachers and students.
.jpg)
True or false quizzes can be a quick and effective way for students to assess and consolidate their understanding of the contents in the syllabus. On InThinking, these are all auto-marked quizzes with guided answers to support students. Some of the additional quizzes uploaded during the past month include:
Unit 3.3.2 (Wage determination) has been added here.
Unit 3.4.2 (The role of trade unions in the economy) here.
Unit 4.3.6 (Impact of taxation) here.
Unit 5.2.1 (Definition of absolute and relative poverty) here.
Unit 6.2.6 (Consequences of protection) here.
Unit 6.2.5 (Reasons for protection) here.
InThinking is not all about providing resources for content knowledge and exam practise. Another benefit of using the website is the vast number of teaching ideas that can save you many hours of lesson planning. For example, a new classroom activity based on blind taste test has been added here for Unit 2.7.3 (Determinants of price elasticity of demand). The activity will take about an hour, and help students to reflect on whether branding and other product differentiation strategies used by firms really make any difference to the value of PED for different products such as cola drinks and crisps (potato chips). This is a great activity for those looking for an engaging lesson either at the end or start of the academic year.
Content on the website now exceeds 450,000 words (that's significantly more than a 762-page textbook), including more than 370 interactive quizzes, revision flash cards covering the entirety of the syllabus, and exam practice questions and mark schemes for both Paper 1 and Paper 2. Resources are continually added on a weekly basis, 52 weeks a year, as highlighted above.
In case you were not aware, InThinking's slogan and pledge is Dynamic, Creative, Personal:
Dynamic (weekly) updates ensure InThinking IGCSE Economics never stands still – subscribers know that more great teaching and learning materials are continually added to the site, as highlighted in our monthly Newsletter.
Creative and rich classroom activities are what that drives us and our students: provoking inquiry, inspiring a lifelong love of the subject, and providing opportunities for extended discussions and engagement.
Personal responses to subscriber questions and queries on the website help us to build a relationship with you and to gain an even better understanding of your needs and preferences.
Please remember that you can activate Student Access for all of your students to be able to use the resources on the InThinking IGCSE Economics website. This is completely free of charge and enables your students to access the entire site - you control what they can see and when. At the time of writing, we have over 700 registered students who enjoy free access. You can activate this via the Student Access link from the homepage.
To stay up to date with the website's developments and professional discussions about the IGCSE Economics course, teachers are welcome to join our Facebook and WhatsApp support groups here:
We know at InThinking that the strength and growth of the community of teachers using our sites rely on word of mouth. If you find the website useful in supporting your students, please share your insights through your own social networks. Testimonials and recommendations for the InThinking IGCSE Economics website can be found here.
There are also InThinking websites for IGCSE Geography and IGCSE History, with more IGCSE subjects in the pipeline.
Wishing you and your students the best with the upcoming IGCSE examination results!
Paul Hoang
