The Macro Economy Today

Brad Schiller's text, The Macro Economy Today, 11e, is noted for three great strengths: readability, policy orientation, and pedagogy. His accessible writing style engages students and brings some of the excitement of domestic and global economic news into the classroom. Schiller emphasizes how policymakers must choose between government intervention and market reliance to resolve the core issues of what, how, and for whom to produce. This strategic choice is highlighted throughout the full range of micro, macro, and international issues. Every chapter ends with a policy issue that emphasizes the markets vs. government dilemma. And Schiller packs his chapters with the facts of economic life—real stories and applications. This is a book that teaches economics in a relevant context with careful pedagogy. It is also the only principles text that presents all macro theory in the single consistent context of the AS/AD framework.

Schiller, 11e is for students motivated by real-world policy issues who want to become economically literate. This is a book students actually READ. Schiller is also known for its cutting-edge and current coverage of today’s issues.

Internet integration. Internet applications pop up everywhere in this edition. The new marginal CyberNotes are descriptively enhanced URLs that extend the in-text discussion by directing students to relevant web sites. Most "News" and "World View" boxes include related URLs. Internet exercises, two at the end of each chapter, reinforce the book's emphasis on teaching economic concepts by relating them to the real world.
Expanded Global Coverage: Beginning with the significantly revised Chapter 2, "The U.S. Economy: A Global View," Schiller's eighth edition examines how the United States in its global economic policies addresses the fundamental economic questions-WHAT, HOW, and FOR WHOM-in the new global market place. Schiller has added many more global comparisons and examples throughout the book.
Striking New Design: Effective design with revised figures, contemporary color palette, and recent cartoons give the book a more modern look. The more contemporary pedagogically sound design will help to draw students into the text.
AS/AD Focus: The core macroeconomics coverage uses the Aggregate Supply /Aggregate Demand framework more often and consistently in this edition than in previous editions to present macro theory.
Budget Surpluses: Chapter 12, Deficits and Debt, is expanded to assess the nature and impact of federal budget issues. For the first time in years, there is a surplus in the Federal budget, and Chapter 12's expanded coverage on the topic will not only interest students for its timeliness but also increase their understanding of the issues involved.
Schiller focuses on the core questions of economics: WHAT, HOW, and FOR WHOM. (WHAT goods and services does the United States produce? HOW is that output produced? FOR WHOM is the output produced?) The author asks "Who best answers these questions-the market or the government?" "To intervene or not" is then the central policy question raised in Chapter 1 and revisited in every chapter. This theme underscores the policy emphasis of the text.
Schiller's text contains more real-world applications than most Principles texts. THE MACROECONOMY TODAY uses economic policy to show the student the reality and relevance of economics; every chapter starts and ends with policy issues.
Schiller not only interests students but also teaches them carefully by using extensive pedagogical aids. Graphs and tables are synchronized; i.e., they appear together in a single illustration to help students visualize the transition of tabular data to graphic representation. All tables, graphs, boxes, and cartoons are annotated and referenced in the text. This is significant because students can look at the graph, read the annotation, and understand why it's important. The running glossary in the margins not only defines a term when first introduced but repeats the term in subsequent chapters, thereby reinforcing learning. Every key concept is developed step by step.
This text is a learning tool that contains built-in, easy-to-grade, problem sets with numerical and graphing assignments. These detachable problem sets are located at the end of the text.