Observations on the Teaching of Economics Based on Academic Experience

Abstract

This paper gives a condensed rapid review of the main components of economics typically taught in universities in the various states of the world, including universities in the Arab states. The aim is to present suggestions for an appropriate approach to teaching economics in higher education in Arab universities, especially in institutions specializing in graduate studies, which pave the way for creative and original contributions by means of a new generation of Arab academics. The paper proposes that Arab universities adopt the field of development economics as an entryway to the teaching of economics, without teaching the traditional components of the subject. The paper notes that understanding development as a process for expanding people’s real freedoms gives scope to achieve an aim that complements the curricula of the social sciences.