Learning and Teaching in Economics and International Business @ Aston University

In this episode, Dr Karishma Patel (Aston University) is joined by Dr Shafaq Malik (Aston University) to explore the thoughtful redesign of assessment in a final-year undergraduate finance module. Faced with the challenge of maintaining an open-book format while navigating the growing presence of generative AI and the risk of collusion, Shafaq shares how she reimagined the assessment to better ref...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) catches up with Erkan Demirbas (University of Lincoln), who previously joined the podcast to share insights into his development of analogy-based cartoons to enhance teaching in economics, statistics and finance. In this episode, Erkan returns to share how the project has evolved into the Cartoon Creation Centre (CCC), an international network of...

In this episode, Dr Karishma Patel (Aston University) speaks with Dr Yaprak Tavman (University of York) about her experience developing a problem-based learning module in economics in partnership with students. Problem based learning is a student-centred approach in which students can work on authentic real-world problems through group workand self-directed learning. Dr Tim Burnett (Aston Universi...

In this second part of a two-part special, Karishma Patel (Teaching Fellow in Economics, Aston University) reflects on the recent Aston University Learning and Teaching Festival, held on campus on 1st April 2025. The festival brought together staff and students to share ideas, explore innovative practice, and discuss some of the key challenges in higher education today. In this episode, the focus...

In this first of a two-part special, Karishma Patel (Teaching Fellow in Economics, Aston University) reflects on the recent Aston University Learning and Teaching Festival, held oncampus on 1st April 2025. The festival brought together staff and students to share ideas, explore innovative practice, and discuss some of the key challenges in higher education today. In this episode, the focus is on t...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Erkan Demirbas, Davina Bird, Jane Charlesworth, and Abdul Haque from the University of Lincoln to share insights into their project, which focuses on creating analogy-based cartoons to enhance teaching in economics, statistics,and finance. James Burlison, a student at the University of Lincoln, also joins the discussion to share his views...

In this episode, Dr Karishma Patel from Aston University speaks with Dr Alexandra Arntsen (Nottingham Business School) about her innovative approach to embedding sustainability into the curriculum. Alex talks us through her use of a negotiation role-playing game that she has used to engage students from various disciplines in discussions around climate change. She shares her thoughts on the import...

In this episode, Dr Karishma Patel from Aston University is joined by Dr Sofia Izquierdo Sanchez (University of Manchester) and Dr William Tayler (Lancaster University) to discuss their innovative use of Instagram in economics education. Together, they made the account dailylifeecon , where they create content designed to complement their teaching by connecting economic concepts to everyday life....

Join us for an engaging live recording of the Learning and Teaching in Economics podcast, hosted by Dr Karishma Patel, a Teaching Fellow at Aston University. This episode covers all you need to know about placements for Aston's economics students! Second-year BSc Economics student Alex Taylor, currently applying for placements, leads the discussion and poses questions to our panel, including Place...

In this episode, Dr. Karishma Patel from Aston University welcomes three colleagues from Newcastle University Business School: Joanne Parker (Lecturer in Accounting), Dr. Ana Bogdanovic (Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Director of Education), and Dr. Yulia Dzenkovska (Lecturer in Marketing). Together, they share their experience of using the design thinking framework to enhance student engagement...

In this episode, Dr. Karishma Patel (Aston University) is joined by Tony Morgan, an Associate Professor in Innovation Management Practice at Leeds University Business School. Tony is one of the founders of the University of Leeds' design thinking community. Design thinking is a problem-solving framework that focuses empathy and a user-centred approach to deeply understand issues and create eff...

In this episode, Dr Karishma Patel (Aston University) is joined by Dr Alex Squires (The University of Manchester), who recently presented at one of the Birmingham Economics Education Seminars (BEES). Alex shares examples of his use of technology in the classroom, and reflects on his journey towards finding a more balanced approach to integrating technology in teaching to improve student engagement...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) is in conversation with Aston students Sumedha Sharma (BSc Economics) and Luc Burns (BSc Economics and Management) who have recently completed their final year assessments. They share their experiences on making friends in the first year, navigating placement applications and managing their time during the final year. Whether you're a current...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Sam McLoughlin (Senior Campaign Manager at Discover Economics), Dr Tim Burnett (Senior Teaching Fellow at Aston University and Academic Champion for Discover Economics), and Amy East (Student at Aston University and Student Champion for Discover Economics), to share insights into their collaborative efforts with Discover Economics to incre...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Dr Maria Psyllou from the University of Birmingham, who recently presented at one of the Birmingham Economics Education Seminars (BEES), to discuss an escape room style game that she introduced into an introductory mathematics course for undergraduate economics students. Maria shares valuable insights into her approach, and provides useful...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Dr Annika Johnson from the University of Bristol to discuss how the role of A-levels affects students' assessment expectations at university. Drawing on her experience of teaching A-Level economics, and her present role teaching economics at university, Annika provides valuable insights into how our students' approaches to assessme...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Dr Panagiotis Giannarakis, Dr Emanuela Lotti and Dr Jana Sadeh from the University of Southampton, who recently presented at one of the Birmingham Economics Education Seminars (BEES), to share insights from their ongoing research into whether we can improve student grades and reduce submission times by 'nudging' their procrastinati...

In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) invites Dr Annika Johnson, Dr Anastasia Papadopoulou and Dr Stefania Simion from the University of Bristol, who recently presented at one of the Birmingham Economic Education Seminars (BEES), to share insights from a workshop which they ran with an aim to introduce students to the basics of Python using an approach known as pair programming. They...

This is part 2 of a special conference episode based on the 12th Developments in Economics Education (DEE) Conference, organised by the Economics Network, which took place at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh on the 4th and 5th of September 2023. In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) speaks to (in order of appearance): Caroline Elliott (University of Warwick), Gail Hoyt (University of...

This is part 1 of a special conference episode based on the 12th Developments in Economics Education (DEE) Conference, organised by the Economics Network, which took place at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh on the 4th and 5th of September 2023. In this episode, Karishma Patel (Aston University) speaks to (in order of appearance): Dimitra Petropoulou (London School of Economics), Tisha Emerson (E...

In this episode Karishma Patel is joined by Professor Chris Jones from the Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship department at Aston University who shares insights from his experiences of large group teaching. Chris discusses some of the challenges that may be associated with teaching large class sizes, and suggests ways in which we can increase engagement in the classroom. Chris also shares som...

In this episode, Karishma Patel invites Dr Robert Riegler , a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship department at Aston University to share some insights from his co-authored paper on students' feedback experiences and expectations pre- and post-university entry. Robert reflects on the findings of his research in order to provide suggestions on feedback design a...

In this episode Karishma Patel is joined by Dr Maria Kozlovskaya , a Senior Lecturer from the Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship department at Aston University. Maria draws on her expertise in using games and experiments in teaching Behavioural Economics, to provide practical advice for lecturers who are looking to use games and experiments in their own teaching. For further insight, refer to...

In this episode Karishma Patel invites Dr Tim Burnett , a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship department at Aston University, to share his approach to experiential learning on statistics based modules. Tim presents a vision for using this approach to enable students to become active learners and provides some advice for implementation across a range of modules. Fo...

In this episode Karishma Patel welcomes Dr Dean Garratt , a Senior Teaching Fellow from the Economics, Finance and Entrepreneurship department at Aston University, to share his vision for bridging the gap between academic and professional economics. Motivated by his own experiences in professional economics, including his work at the Government Economic Service (GES), Dean talks about how he has e...