Factors Affecting the Content of High School Economics.

This article examines various aspects of the high school economics curriculum in the U.S. High school economics is not a homogeneous product. Students have not rigorously identified what high school economics ought to be; consequently it is difficult to measure teaching and learning effectiveness. In recognition of the above two problems, the evaluation of the high school economics course given in this paper deals first with an identification of the course product in terms of its conceptual content. The two purposes of this study are to identify common characteristics among inputs and to determine the relationship between the conceptual content of the course and groups of explanatory variables that characterize "the teacher," "the course structure," and the institutional framework provided by the school and the school district. The use of the principal components model permitted the computation of factor scores from the matrix of factor loadings, making it possible for a limited number of variables to be carried over in further analysis. The two variables found to be significant were the number of students per grade level and course length measured in class hours. The number of students per grade level loaded high on factor 4.