This interview is translated by UiOGPT
Which teaching program do you want to highlight to your colleagues at the faculty right now?
I have just finished a new semester of Monetary Policy (ECON4325). The course is twofold. In the first part, I present the theory on monetary policy and monetary policy models. In the second part, Birger Vikøren, who, among other things, was previously the director of the monetary policy at Norges Bank, covers monetary policy in practice. Here I am certainly not impartial, but I believe this course is the best one you can take if you are interested in understanding how monetary policy is conducted in Norway.
What I like the most is that I can use the theory to understand much of what has happened in recent years. In lecture 7, for example, I start with a relatively simple framework that I can modify according to various discussions and viewpoints central to the debate over the past few years. Then we look at how this affects the formulation of monetary policy.
I think it's a great way to illustrate what really matters for the interest rate decision, and what doesn't.
Who do you collaborate with?
I collaborate with other lecturers in the same courses, Birger Vikøren and Karl Harmenberg, and the seminar teachers.
Which, do you think, are the three most important factors for achieving good teaching in the field?
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Motivate the subject. Economics has long been criticized for its excessive use of mathematical models. To some extent, this has been justified because the subject can appear to the students as a collection of unrelated models. As someone who believes these models are not just useful, but absolutely necessary, it has been important for me to address this criticism directly by spending more time discussing the role of models in the subject - before we even introduce the models. That means it's important to actively use the model by adapting them to discuss current issues. And it also means that one can spend time on some current discussions where the absence of models, and therefore clarifying arguments, is completely absent, for instance, the debate about greedflation.
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Make it relevant. Economics is a social science and there are always examples that can make the relevant theory or presentation current. An example is when we discuss a central but abstract concept like elasticities of substitution in production. In Germany, there was a lot of discussion throughout 2022 about the consequences of stopping gas imports from Russia for Germany's production. It's a perfect example to clarify how a conclusion relies on an implicit assumption about elasticities of substitution. For example, it was argued that cutting off gas imports would send Germany into a deep recession. But this argument rests on the assumption that there were no substitution possibilities. However, if there are some substitution possibilities, even very small ones, the effect becomes much smaller - which it turned out to be.
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Care about the students. You have to care about the students. Teaching is communication and depends on a relationship of trust between lecturer and students. If you don’t care, it shows.
If you were to give one piece of advice to new teachers at the SV faculty, what would it be?
You have to take your place and do it your way. For me, it is impossible to take over a course from a previous lecturer without making significant changes, simply because I have to tell it in my own way. But this is something I’ve learned over time. In the beginning, it’s okay to adapt gradually.