Research on Economic Education and Economic Literacy among High School and University Students in Asia-Pacific Region

本研究项目将《经济素养测验第三版》（TEL3）翻译成日语，并进行测试，以确定日本高中生和大学生经济素养的现状和问题。TEL3最初是由内布拉斯加州大学的Walstad和圣克劳德州立大学的Rebeck开发和实施的。我们对2631名10 -12年级的日本高中生（16所高中）和2877名大学生（29所大学）进行了TEL3测试。此次调查的主要结果是，高中生和大学生的经济素养有相似之处，大学生的经济素养比高中生高6.6%。这两组人对一些基本的经济概念，如稀缺性或机会成本，知之甚少，而且他们对微观经济学的理解相对较好，但对宏观经济学的理解却不够。中国、韩国、菲律宾和新西兰等亚太地区的研究同行以及美国和日本进行了同样的测试。根据各国的测试结果，我们于2004年8月在早稻田大学召开了亚太地区经济教育国际会议，对各国学生的经济素养进行了国际比较。该项目的调查人员和外国同行检查了这些结果，并讨论了如何改善该地区的经济教育。讨论摘要载于下面“参考资料”所列的报告。该研究项目还制作了日本版的Walstad和Rebeck开发的“财务适合生活测试”。研究人员于2004年在日本进行了测试，并在阿肯色州小石城举行的全国经济教育委员会年会上发表了测试结果。

This research project translated the Test of Economic Literacy, 3rd edition (TEL3) into Japanese, and administered the test to determine the present status and problems of economic literacy among Japanese high school and university students. The TEL3 was originally developed and conducted by Walstad of Nebraska University and Rebeck of St.Cloud State University. We conducted the TEL3 on 2,631 Japanese senior high school students in the 10th-12th grades (16 high schools), and on 2,877 university students (29 universities). The major findings from the test results are that there are similarities in economic literacy among high school and university students, with 6.6 % higher scores by university students. The both group demonstrated little understanding in several fundamental economic concepts, such as scarcity or opportunity cost, and that they have a relatively good understanding of microeconomics but not of macroeconomics.The research counterparts from Asian-Pacific region such as China, South Korea, the Philippines and New Zealand conducted the same test as well as the United States and Japan. Based on the test result of each country, we had the International Conference on Economic Education in the Asian-Pacific region at Waseda University in August, 2004, and made international comparison on economic literacy among the students in these countries. The investigators and foreign counterparts of this project examined these results and discussed how economic education in the region might be improved. The discussion is summarized in the report shown below in the "references".The research project also made a Japanese version of "the Financial Fitness for Life Test" which was also developed by Walstad and Rebeck. The investigators conducted the test in Japan in 2004 and made a presentation about the result of the test in the Annual Conference of NCEE : National Council on Economic Education in Little Rock, Arkansas.