Entrepreneurship as a Point of Departure for a Course in Pluralist Economic Principles

Many commentators have pointed towards a downturn in the enrolment of students on economics degrees. Part of the explanation for this phenomenon is probably because business studies degrees meet students' requirements for practical understanding more closely. We suggest here that one of the problems with economics is that introductory principles courses adopt a 'theory-first' pedagogy. This means that students are asked to abandon any pre-formed notions/understanding about the nature of competition and accept the equilibrium model of perfect competition as the foundation of their future understanding. The downside of this approach is that: 'The everyday appearance of social life provides little in the way of verification for the student of basic economic ideas. The result is an analytical confusion that captivates the student more or less forever' Bernstein (2004: 33). By grounding introductory economics on the foundation stone of theories of entrepreneurship this problem is circumvented. Our discussion here suggests how entrepreneurship could be introduced to students and how it can lead to a deeper understanding of the true nature of the competitive process. The approach we advocate is pluralist.