Economics: Follow the Incentive

What if the world could make more sense than you thought but the code to understanding is locked behind its own language?

Follow the Incentive is an economics elective that goes beyond supply and demand curves. Drawing on Freakonomics, How Money Works, and real-world case studies, this course teaches you to see the hidden forces driving nearly every decision people make, including potentially your own

We'll cover four units:

Unit 1: How Economics Works

The fundamentals, but make it interesting. Before you can spot the hidden patterns, you need to understand the rules of the game incentives, trade-offs, and markets

Unit 2: How Economics Impacts Your Life

How does economics impact your life? Why are college tuition costs exploding? Why does healthcare work the way it does? Why do gas prices swing and who actually controls them? We'll trace large-scale economic forces, the ones playing out in the headlines, back to the real impact they have on your daily life and future decisions.

Unit 3: How Economic Motivations Shape the World

Zoom out. The same incentives driving individual behavior are also shaping governments, corporations, and global systems. We'll examine how economic motivations, not just money, but power, status, and survival, explain why the world looks the way it does.

Unit 4: What Do You Actually Need?

The most practical unit. What does it cost to live? What do you actually need to live the life you want? We'll build a real picture of financial independence, challenge assumptions about the traditional path, and give you tools to make decisions on your own terms. We'll explore career paths and a lifestyle they can provide based on each student's preferences. 

Teacher: Mr. Jay

Monthly Cost: $30

Supply Fee Type: Semesterly

Supply Fee: $40

Supply Fee Covers: Freakonomics and Degree Free Way books along with printouts for class when they are needed. 

Student provided supplies: I would bring a binder for handouts and a notebook to take notes during class 

Pre-Requisites: None, just curiosity and a desire to understand how money works 

Homework: 2-3 hours

Credit earned: 0.5