5 Vital Economics Lessons Your Kids Won’t Get in School
While some schools are better than other, generally basic economic lessons are absent from public school curriculum. These are vital lessons needed to understand the world around them. Here are just five lessons I wish someone had taught me in school.
1. Prices
Why do some things cost more than others? Why does the price of gas go up in the summer? The concept of supply and demand eludes many, leaving them to wander through a world of seemingly arbitrary pricing. When people fail to understand cost, they often resent things they feel are unfairly priced.
The two key factors in determining price are supply, the amount of any given purchasable good, and demand, the amount of people who want that good. High demand/low supply will lead to higher prices, whereas low demand/high supply leads to lower prices. Competition between two or more companies offering the same good could also cause prices to fall.
If prices don’t reflect supply and demand, look for government intervention in that market, either taxes or subsidies are likely causing the disparity.
