The Productivity Puzzle (Page One Economics)

Are many products made in the United States anymore? As it turns out, yes. In fact, U.S. manufacturing output is near its highest level ever—and with fewer workers. How is that possible? Productivity growth. The March 2017 issue of Page One Economics describes what affects productivity, why economists are concerned about its recent slowdown, and what can be done about it.

Teachers: Visit the Reading Q&As in our Econ Lowdown Teacher Portal to find the teacher edition for this issue, to assign an online version of the student materials and to collect student scores on the questions. The materials are still free—but having them in the portal keeps students from accessing the answer key.

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Keep your students in the know on timely economic issues with Page One Economics. Page One Economics provides a simple, short overview of a current economic event that offers students an opportunity to use close reading strategies. The Teacher’s Guide includes student questions and a teacher answer key, plus additional resources and lesson ideas for classroom, extra credit, or make-up assignments. You can subscribe via RSS feed or email.

Awards

This lesson received the 2017 Curriculum Gold Award from the National Association of Economic Educators.
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