Example Course 10: Coordination and Allocation Mechanisms in Norwegian Agriculture

A historical lens on the structural changes that occurred in Norway’s agricultural sector, focusing on its structure, coordination and allocative mechanisms

Example Courses

In this chapter, we demonstrate how to create actual courses using the Economy Studies design toolkit, showing various example courses. Each of these courses flows from our central philosophy: teach students how to study the economy, rather than teaching them one form of economic thinking in the abstract. In terms of our principles, they vary: some of these example courses focus more on pluralism, others on real-world economics, others yet on thinking about values. As for the building blocks, each of the example courses uses at least one of the ten building blocks, while most use more than one.

These courses are described rather briefly in this chapter, as full syllabi, slides or exam questions would take up too much space in a physical book. More extensive course descriptions, syllabi and teaching material can be found in the online database of our partner organisation Exploring Economics.

The courses shown here are highly diverse, and mainly intended to inspire and to show the range of possibilities. Depending on the knowledge available within a department, the courses designed there could be vastly different from the examples shown here.

Example Courses:

  1. The Challenges of Our Time (Main BB1, Additional BB2, BB3, BB8, BB9, BB10)
  2. Argentina and the IMF (Main BB9, Additional BB2, BB3, BB6, BB8, BB10)
  3. The Economics of Oil (Main BB8, Additional BB3, BB6)
  4. A Historical Perspective on Economic Success (Main BB4, Additional BB1, BB6)
  5. The Digital Economy of South Korea (Main BB2, Additional BB3, BB5, BB6)
  6. Agent-Based Modelling (Main BB7, Additional BB4, BB9)
  7. The World of Production (Main BB8, Additional BB2, BB3, BB4, BB5)
  8. The Political-Economic System of India (Main BB6, Additional BB2, BB3, BB10)
  9. Economics for a Better World (Main BB10, Additional BB1, BB2)
  10. Coordination and Allocation Mechanisms in Norwegian Agriculture (Main BB5, Additional BB2, BB3)
  11. The Economics of Financial Crises (Main BB8, Additional BB3, BB4, BB6)
Do It Yourself: Design Your Own Course, Step by Step

Example Course 10: Coordination and Allocation Mechanisms in Norwegian Agriculture

By Benedikt Goodman (Rethinking Economics Norway)

Course outline:

Agriculture is the lifeblood of any society. In Norway, it is one of the oldest and historically most important sectors. Over the 20th century, the sector has been restructured several times. It has gone from having independent farmers with high degrees of local autonomy to nationwide cooperatives that bargain with the state for subsidies. Thus, it is a sector that has been subject to a wide range of arrangements: from market forces embedded in local communities to nation-wide planned economy principles.

Using the agricultural sector as a central case study, this module explores the economic history of the country at large, providing a critical analysis of the different coordination systems that have emerged and dominated over time.

Required background knowledge:

Economic History (BB3), Introductory Economic Organisations & Mechanisms (BB5) Introductory Political Economic Systems (BB6)

Nominal workload:

7,5 ECTS (225 hrs)

This course uses the following building blocks:

Main:

  • Economic Organizations and Mechanisms (BB5)

Additional:

  • Know your own Economy (BB2)
  • Economic History (BB3)