Photo above: The Hertford Bridge in Oxford, England. Used by Permission. © Tom Ley 01302 782837

Monday, April 26, 2010

Schooling and Economic Growth

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robertson School of Government

Received an e-mail the other day from Dr. Larry Willmore, an economist with an interest in education and the economy at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Vienna, bringing to my attention a recent paper by Harvard economist Lant Pritchett on the relationship between schooling and economic growth. Professor Pritchett is famous for holding the view that there is no evidence whatsoever for a connection between schooling and economic growth. Here are three excerpts from the paper ("Does Schooling Help Explain Any of the Big Facts about Growth?" (24 January 2009)), which can be found at his Harvard web site, http://www.hks.harvard.edu/fs/lpritch/:

Friday, April 23, 2010

RSG U.S. Economic Brief for April 2010

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robertson School of Government

This month's brief provides a general overview of the state of the U.S. economy and the economy of the region. It points out that the general level of economic activity in the U.S. is no longer falling but seems to have stabilized. The economy does not appear to be recovering as quickly as in the past, however, and Personal income, while starting to rise, is struggling to maintain its momentum. Some points made in the Brief are:

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

The IMF and World Bank Meetings and International Monetary Reform

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robertson School of Government

The Spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank will take place later this week and next.

On the agenda is a review of the state of the world economy, the prospects for a recovery in world output and trade, and of course, the impact of the global financial crisis and measures that could be taken to strengthen the global financial system.

Monday, April 12, 2010

RSG Economic Brief for March 2010

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robertson School of Government

The RSG U.S Economic Brief for March focuses on the current state of the U.S. economy and the recent health care bill passed by Congress.

The Brief points out:
  • The banking system remains under strain as commercial banks continue to be shut down due to bad real estate loans;

Paul Krugman and Lessons from the Greek Debt Crisis

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robertson School of Government

In an article published yesterday, Paul Krugman of the New York Times discussed the debt crisis in Greece and what he regards as its implications for the U.S. He pointed out the crisis in Greece seems to have reached the point of no return, as he put it, and this small country is going to pay a steep price for its past irresponsibility.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Quick Links on the Economy

Dr. Douglas O. Walker
Robetson School of Government

Some links to items of interest to students of economics:

1. A new paper by N. Gregory Mankiw on "Questions about Fiscal Policy" offers a survey of current issues regarding U.S. fiscal policy. Professor Mankiw is the author of the text used in RSG's Principles class. Strongly recommended to RSG students.