Introduction to Economics - Detailed Outline (Online)

This page provides a detailed outline of the online Introduction to Economics course, a five-day programme for students aged 15-18 who are interested in exploring economics and are considering studying the subject at A-level or beyond. The outline below shows what students study on each day, moving from the core question of how choices are made under scarcity through macroeconomics, inflation, growth, trade, inequality, and financial markets.

The course is taught fully live, with all sessions delivered in real time by expert tutors. Teaching takes place in small groups (maximum 12 students), allowing for detailed discussion, individual feedback, and active participation throughout.

The course is designed to give students a clear and engaging introduction to economics as a way of thinking about the world. Rather than focusing on exam technique, it emphasises discussion, analysis, and the application of economic ideas to real-world problems. Students are introduced to key concepts and models, and encouraged to think carefully about how economists explain decisions, markets, and wider economic systems.

Prefer to view and download the PDF version of the Introduction to Economics outline? You can do so here.

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Day One – What Is Economics?
Day Two – The Economy as a Whole
Day Three – Inflation, Growth and Trade
Day Four – Inequality, Firms and Markets
Day Five – Financial Markets

Across the week, students explore a wide range of economic topics and approaches, including scarcity, incentives, GDP, inflation, fiscal and monetary policy, economic growth, international trade, inequality, market structures, behavioural economics, and the role of financial markets in the wider economy. The course emphasises not only how these ideas work in theory, but how they can be used, tested and debated when thinking about real economic questions.

By the end of the course, students will have developed a clearer understanding of what economics involves as a subject, how economists approach different kinds of problems, and how economic reasoning can be used to interpret the world around them.

Please note that for some groups, sessions may run in a different order.

10.00 – 10.20 Welcome and Introductions

Students begin by meeting one another and their tutor, with a short icebreaker to create a relaxed and open environment. The tutor outlines how the online course will run, encourages participation, and gives a quick overview of what to expect from the week ahead. A warm-up activity helps the group learn each other’s names and start thinking on their feet.

10.20 – 12.30 What Do Economists Study?

The course begins with the central question of economics: how do individuals, firms and governments make choices when resources are limited? After welcome and introductions, students begin exploring the idea of scarcity and choice, using practical examples to see how economic thinking starts with trade-offs – what must be given up in order to gain something else. This opening session is designed not just to define economics, but to show why it matters, and why economic reasoning can be applied to many different kinds of decision.

As the morning develops, students are introduced to some of the key distinctions that shape the subject. They explore the difference between microeconomics and macroeconomics, learning how economists move between questions about individual households, firms and markets, and wider questions about inflation, unemployment and growth. They also examine the contrast between positive and normative economics – between claims about what is happening in the economy and arguments about what ought to happen. Together, these sessions provide a strong foundation for the rest of the week, helping students see economics as both an analytical discipline and a subject shaped by debate, evidence and judgment.

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch

1.30 – 3.30 Economic Theories Through Time

In the afternoon, students begin to look at how economists have tried to explain the world over time. The course introduces some of the major thinkers and traditions in economic thought, from early ideas about population, markets and industrial society through to the arguments of Keynes, Friedman and others in the modern era. This part of the day helps students see that economics is not a single fixed doctrine, but an evolving conversation shaped by historical events, political pressures and changing assumptions about how economies work.

The second half of the afternoon turns to the basic assumptions that underpin many economic models. Students explore ideas such as rational choice, opportunity cost, marginal thinking and incentives, and consider both why these assumptions are useful and where they may oversimplify real human behaviour. The day then moves into the central model of supply, demand and market equilibrium, introducing students to the way economists think about prices, quantities and changes in market conditions. By the end of the first day, students have begun not only to understand some of the core language of economics, but also to see how economic models can be used – and questioned – when analysing real-world decisions and markets.

10.00 – 10.15 Morning Recap

The day begins with a short warm-up quiz and discussion reviewing key concepts from Day One. Students test their recall of scarcity, opportunity cost, and the laws of supply and demand, setting a confident foundation for today’s focus on the wider economy.

10.15 – 12.30 From Households to Nations – Introducing Macroeconomics

The second day shifts the focus from individual choices and markets to the economy at national level. Students begin by exploring how households, firms and governments fit together through the circular flow of income, tracing the movement of money, goods and services through the wider system. This provides a foundation for thinking about how economists describe and measure an economy as a whole, and helps students see how the different parts of economic life are connected rather than separate.

The morning then turns to GDP and national income, asking how economic performance can be measured and what those measurements can and cannot tell us. Students compare the main approaches to calculating GDP and consider why they should, in theory, arrive at the same result, while also discussing the practical difficulties that can make measurement imperfect. The final part of the morning introduces aggregate demand and aggregate supply, giving students a first look at the models economists use to think about output, prices, booms and recessions across the whole economy.

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch

1.30 – 3.30 Government Policy and Economic Strategy

In the afternoon, students examine the main tools governments and central banks use to influence economic outcomes. They begin with fiscal policy, looking at how taxation, public spending and transfer payments can be used to stimulate demand or restrain inflation. This is followed by monetary policy, including the role of interest rates, the Bank of England, and measures such as quantitative easing. These sessions help students understand not only what policymakers do, but why timing, confidence and political judgment matter so much in practice.

The day concludes by comparing different approaches to economic management, especially the contrast between Keynesian demand-side intervention and supply-side economics. Students consider the strengths and limitations of each approach, and reflect on the wider question of when governments should intervene in the economy, and when they should step back. By the end of the day, they have moved beyond basic description and into one of the central debates of economics – how far economies can, or should, be managed.

10.00 – 10.15 Recap and Discussion

The day opens with a short recap of yesterday’s key ideas – GDP, aggregate demand and supply, and the role of fiscal and monetary policy. Students share examples of how governments have recently tried to manage inflation or unemployment, helping to bridge classroom theory and current events.

10.15 – 12.30 Business Cycles and Economic Indicators

The third day begins by examining one of the most widely discussed ideas in economics: inflation. Students explore how price levels are measured, what terms such as CPI, real income and purchasing power actually mean, and why even modest changes in prices can have important effects on households, firms and governments. This part of the course helps students move beyond the casual use of the word inflation in news coverage, and towards a clearer understanding of how economists define and analyse it.

The morning then broadens into the study of the business cycle. Students look at how and why economies move through phases of expansion, peak, contraction and recovery, and consider the indicators economists use to judge where an economy stands. Along the way, they are encouraged to think critically about the limits of these models, including the ways consumer behaviour and wider social expectations can complicate neat economic patterns. By the end of the morning, students have a stronger grasp of how economists interpret short-term economic change, and why those interpretations are often contested.

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch

1.30 – 3.30 Growth, Development and Trade

In the afternoon, the focus shifts from short-term fluctuations to the deeper question of why some countries grow richer than others. Students explore the drivers of long-term growth, including education, technology, investment, governance and natural resources, and consider why similar advantages can lead to very different outcomes in different parts of the world. This includes discussion of ideas such as the resource curse, helping students see that growth is not simply a matter of possessing wealth, but of how economies are organised and managed.

The final part of the day turns to international trade and exchange rates. Students examine how currencies shape imports and exports, and debate the advantages and disadvantages of free trade and protectionism. These discussions are tied to current global questions about industrial policy, competitiveness and the movement of value through international supply chains. The day concludes by introducing the idea of degrowth, asking students to reflect on whether continual economic expansion should always be treated as the goal, and what a sustainable economy might require instead.

10.00 – 10.15 Morning Recap

The day opens with a brief review of the previous day’s discussion on trade, growth and sustainability. Students revisit how exports, industrial policy and inequality between nations are connected, setting up today’s focus on inequality within economies and how firms operate.

10.15 – 12.30 Inequality and Distribution

The fourth day begins by asking a difficult but important question: even when economies grow, who actually benefits? Students explore different forms of income and wealth inequality, considering how economic gains are distributed within societies and how this affects opportunity, aspiration and political life. The discussion moves beyond the simple idea that growth automatically improves living standards for everyone, and instead examines the possibility that prosperity can be unevenly shared.

As the morning develops, students are introduced to some of the main tools economists use to measure inequality, including the Gini coefficient and the Lorenz curve. They consider why some countries are more unequal than others, and how taxation, education, inheritance and wider political choices can shape long-term outcomes. The morning also opens up broader questions about wealth concentration, fairness and social stability, encouraging students to think seriously about the relationship between economics and political judgment.

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch

1.30 – 3.30 Firms, Competition and Behaviour

In the afternoon, the focus shifts from inequality between people to the role of firms within the economy. Students explore why firms exist in the first place, how they differ from markets, and how economists have tried to explain their behaviour. This includes discussion of different theories of the firm, as well as the ways businesses make decisions about production, pricing and organisation.

The later part of the afternoon turns to market structures and strategic behaviour. Students examine the differences between competitive markets, monopolies and oligopolies, and consider how firms respond to incentives, costs and rivals. They are also introduced to ideas from game theory and behavioural economics, which challenge the assumption that economic actors always behave in perfectly rational ways. By the end of the day, students have a richer sense of how businesses operate in practice, and of how economic reasoning can be used to analyse both competition and human decision-making.

10.00 – 10.15 Morning Recap

Students begin with a short review of the week’s central ideas – from scarcity and opportunity cost to inequality and market structures. The tutor encourages reflection on how these ideas connect and how economic reasoning can be used to understand problems that reach beyond traditional markets.

10.15 – 12.30 Financial Markets, Shares and Bonds

The final day introduces students to financial markets and the ways in which money is raised, invested and moved through the wider economy. The morning begins by asking what financial markets actually are, and why they matter. From there, students explore different kinds of financial products, before focusing in particular on stocks and shares – what it means to own part of a company, why firms issue shares, and how investors might make money through dividends, capital gains and voting rights. The idea of the initial public offering (IPO) is also introduced, giving students a sense of how companies move from private ownership to public trading.

The second half of the morning turns to the stock market more broadly, including different ways people invest and the factors that shape financial decision-making. Students consider the differences between direct investing, mutual funds, hedge funds and value investing, and reflect on how risk, time horizon and expectations influence investor behaviour. The morning then moves on to bonds, helping students understand how governments and companies borrow money, how bond prices and yields work, and why bonds can rise or fall in value as economic conditions change. By this point in the course, students are beginning to see financial markets not as something entirely separate from economics, but as one of the key ways economic expectations, incentives and institutions interact.

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch

1.30 – 3.10 Risk, Crisis and Market Behaviour

In the afternoon, students are introduced to more complex financial instruments and to the risks that can build up inside modern financial systems. They begin with derivatives, exploring how these contracts derive their value from underlying assets and how they can be used both to manage risk and to speculate on future price movements. This is followed by discussion of commodities and the role they play in global markets, helping students see how financial systems connect to real goods such as oil, gold and agricultural products.

The final part of the course brings these ideas together through the study of the 2008 global financial crisis, showing how leverage, subprime mortgages and mortgage-backed securities contributed to instability across the international financial system. Students then move on to currencies and foreign exchange markets, before ending with the mechanics of short-selling and the GameStop episode, which raises wider questions about speculation, risk and the behaviour of markets under pressure. The course closes by encouraging students to reflect on what financial markets do well, where they create problems, and how far they serve the wider economy.

3.10 – 3.30 Course Wrap-Up and Reflection

The course concludes with an open discussion reflecting on what students have learned over the five days. They are encouraged to share which ideas or debates they found most surprising and how economics might influence their understanding of the world. The tutor summarises the key themes – scarcity, choice, systems, and values – and invites students to think about where economic reasoning can take them next.

This outline provides a detailed view of the themes, ideas, and topics explored during the online Introduction to Economics course. The programme is designed to introduce students to the key concepts and questions that shape economics, combining discussion, analysis, and applied activities to show how economic reasoning can be used to understand decisions, markets, and the wider economy.

You can also return to the main online Introduction to Economics course page for full details about the course and how to apply.