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Describes and evaluates a package of measures designed to introduce a collaborative problem-solving (CPS) approach to learning tutorials of a second-year university macroeconomics subject. Presents findings related to the influence of CPS on tutors' teaching experiences, students' attitudes attendance and hours of study, and academic achievement. (CMK)

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8462.2008.00503.x Byline: Ian M. McDonald ([dagger]) Author Affiliation: ([dagger])Department of Economics, The University of Melbourne Article History: March 2008

This paper applies a two good, multi-region Ramsey-Solow model of the world economy to determine the impact that alternative world fertility rates would have on international capital markets and living standards. Notable features of the model include: relative consumption demands and relative employment efficiencies that vary by age, traded and non-traded goods, vintage technology, outward-looking reference consumption, a proportion of non-optimising rule-of-thumb consumers and imperfect capital mobility due to asymmetric information. The model suggests that projected demographic change will imply a flow of international capital from the ageing regions to the younger regions; and that the world interest rate will fall. The lower world interest rate will cause a loss in living standards for ageing regions, the lenders, and a gain for the younger regions, who are borrowers.

This paper reviews the measurement of equilibrium unemployment in Australia using the Phillips curve. To provide a theoretical framework through which these measurement exercises can be understood, the theory of equilibrium unemployment based on wage bargaining is also described and reviewed. The paper shows how studies have moved from specifying a unique and constant equilibrium rate of unemployment to specifications which emphasise the influence of unemployment benefits, hysteresis and a range of equilibrium rates of unemployment.

Falling rates of fertility in many countries have led to concerns that low fertility is a threat to future living standards. In this article we report simulations of living standards for Australia that take into account the effect of demographic change. These simulations show that reduced fertility would actually increase living standards, albeit by a small amount. We also present projections of government social outlays. These projections suggest that reductions infertility will have an insignificant or tiny tax-disincentive effect on GDP, thereby reinforcing our conclusion that reductions in fertility are not a threat to future living standards.

A vintage production function is used to compare the level of socially optimal investments with that produced by the nonvintage homogenous capital production function. The socially optimal series reveals much more volatility. The possible role of investment restraints should be studied.

This paper makes new projections of government social outlays for Australia. The calculations suggest that government social outlays will increase considerably as a percentage of GDP over the next 50 years, by 7.3 per cent of GDP in the base case. This is a greater increase than that found by previous investigators. Over 60 per cent of this increase will occur between 2011 and 2031, the years when the baby boom generation retires. The major contribution to this increase will have come from increased government outlays on social security. Lower rates of net immigration are shown to yield an even larger increase in the percentage of government social outlays in GDP. The paper also considers the disincentive effect of taxation and the effect of increasing the age of retirement. However, notwithstanding the trends suggested by the projections, the paper argues that there are a number of reasons to be sanguine about the implications of ageing on the share of government outlays in GDP.

Steady urbanization and decreasing availability of health services for an aging rural population are occurring in Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan medical graduates find rural practice unattractive, and medical careers are not attracting rural youth. A comprehensive strategy of recruitment and reorganization of health care is needed. (MSE)

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8462.2008.00519.x Byline: Ian M. McDonald ([dagger]) Author Affiliation: ([dagger])Department of Economics, The University of Melbourne Article History: June 2008