ABSTRACT

The teaching of economics in the UK increased dramatically in the 1950s and 1960s and the subject is now well established in secondary school and tertiary education curricula. One important factor that undoubtedly contributed to the rapid expansion of the subject in Europe was the economic growth which characterized many EEC countries in the 1960s and which created an unprecedented need for employees with basic economic knowledge and expertise. Economic studies within the general secondary education curriculum, was either introduced de novo or, where it already existed, was expanded in one form of another. The rapid expansion of the teaching of economics in Europe has undoubtedly been accompanied and stimulated by an increased perception of the subject's value and relevance both to the individual and to society as a whole. A survey of GCE and Scottish Certificate of Education (SCE) syllabuses in economics, commerce and business studies available in 1980 revealed little real variation between them.