DESIGNING CREATIVE COLLABORATIVE LEARNING (CCL) FOR ECONOMICS: USING PROFESSIONALS AND VIDEO CLIPS IN MBA CLASSROOM

Abstract

Global economy is now characterized by frontier of models and theories that are often shaped by decision makers in global and national institutions. Creative collaborative learning (CCL) is attempted for this first time in a classroom environment for studying macroeconomics and world trade. CCL is suitable for student-centered learning MBA students who must put themselves through realistic situations, asking right questions, and making decisions. Traditional top-down methodology of emphasizing model building and mathematical proofs in studying macroeconomics are not suitable at the MBA level. The proposed CCL model in this study entails the joint efforts of three groups of players--the professionals, the students, and the instructor. Constructive knowledge is acquired not by drill and memorization of definitions, but by learning from the contexts in which terminologies are pragmatically applied, utilizing critical thinking. Professionals are invited to speak on industry topic, while specific video clips were searched and reviewed in C-span video library. The search and review exercise were analyzed by evaluating their effectiveness in motivating interests, learning of abstract terminologies, professional manner and articulation method, and recognizing the role of important institutions through the speaking professionals. CCL demands evaluations for "in-the-moment" expressions and quotations that can "elevate thinking" in a student centered learning environment. Our paper illustrates how designs of CCL can be implemented in different topics on macroeconomics and world trade.