Educators realize we are presenting to a media savvy generation of students. Using animation caters to this mind set of these students. My generation of students relied on books and journals. To a lesser extent television became a medium to transmit information. Now, many years later our students have read a multitude of comic books, played innumerable video games, text and e-mail continually, and are incessantly linked to social networking sites. Students are never without their iPods and more recently, iPhones have kept students persistently connected to the net. Books are read on-line; news is seen on-line; and, we as instructors must meet their needs by providing students with a measure of instruction on-line.
The latest economic simulation guides students through the production function and perfect competition. Student learning is re-enforced. The marginal and average products of labour are found as is the point of diminishing marginal returns. Returns to scale, point of efficiency, shutdown point and short-run supply curve are all reviewed step-by-step. Perfect competition both in the short run and in the long run are examined. Consumer and producer surpluses are generated, and the topic of competition and efficiency is discussed in the perfectly competitive market for golf balls. Excess capacity, permanent changes in demand, external economies and diseconomies, changes in plants sizes and technologies are examined to aid further understanding of these topics. To complete this body of work, normal profits are shown and compared to economic profits, and the underlying idea that each cost curve includes opportunity costs is stressed. Graphs are constructed, charts are studied, formulae are set and relationships are found. With colourful animation, a modicum of humour and an atmosphere of fun, students are able to review dry text and intense lecture material in a relaxed setting at their own convenience on the web. Areas of difficulty can be repeatedly viewed and no one else need know of the learner’s concerns. A glossary of terms is instantly available and self-testing provides instant feedback. This multimedia presentation is meant to aid all students including visual learners and students with physical or learning challenges. It is with ease that this computer-based teaching technique emphasizes and aids students in understanding pertinent concepts in economics.