With a generous grant from the John Templeton Foundation, the Foundation for Teaching Economics is creating a high-school unit addressing the question: Is Capitalism Good for the Poor? The curriculum materials use economic reasoning in analyzing the impact—both real and potential—of capitalist institutions on the well-being of the world’s poor. Lesson topics addressed include:

• What is poverty and who are the poor?
• What is capitalism?
• Degrees of market competition
• Property rights and the rule of law
• Incentives that generate invention and innovation
• Incentives that promote social cooperation

The international focus of the lessons is enhanced by case studies drawn from such diverse locations as China, Vietnam, Peru, Argentina, and Uganda. In the interactive tradition of the FTE, the lessons employ a variety of teaching strategies from direct instruction to out-of-your-seat simulations.