Uganda became the fourth country in the world that joined Lithuania and started teaching economics using material provided in the award-winning economics textbook created by the Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI).
ECONOMICS IN 31 HOURS is an interactive methodical teaching and learning material. More than 80 percent of high school youth study from the textbook every year in Lithuania. LFMI has published seven editions since its launch in 2015. The textbook was adopted and published by our partners INESS in Slovakia, Bendukize Free Market Centre in Ukraine, and Georgia by New Economic School-Georgia.
LMFI is excited to announce that a new Entrepreneurship and Economics course was launched by Action for Liberty and Economic Development (ALED) in Entebbe Uganda. This Entrepreneurship and Economics course aims to help students learn about scarcity, trade, entrepreneurship, accounting, government, free market, and exchange in society.
Therefore, the LMFI textbook ECONOMICS IN 31 HOURS was adapted and translated to assist teachers at Entebbe Schools. Around 1000 students will benefit from this first course and if it is a success it is hoped that it may then be possible to repeat and expand it.
About the Textbook
The textbook is for upper secondary schools, for 15 to 17-year-old pupils. The textbook is written in a very attractive and user-friendly form. All materials, learning aids, and tasks directly relate economic laws and market forces to the reality and personal lives of 16- and 17-year olds.
Our main objective is to help late teenage youth grasp economics, not as a set of abstract processes or mechanisms but rather as a reflection of human action, individual choices and human cooperation.
The textbook relates fundamental economic principles and institutes of property, exchange, profit, money, and competition to people’s everyday lives and decisions. An important attribute of the textbook is its strong interdisciplinary approach.
All topics are discussed from social, civic and ethical perspectives, helping to grasp the important interrelationships at play and their impact on the advancement of societal well-being and personal fulfillment.
The content is applicable in any contexts, except that some chapters contain some country-specific information, as for example, the ax rates or the public expenditure breakdown and proportions or the legal forms of economic entities. It needs some adaptation for other countries but this adaptation is quite minor.
International Awards
In May 2016 LFMI’s Teacher’s Manual won the 2016 LOGIN People‘s Choice Award for the best online educational tool from the annual gathering of Lithuania’s Internet culture that celebrates the greatest and most innovative achievements of the Lithuanian tech community.
The same year, ECONOMICS IN 31 HOURS received a prestigious USD 100,000 Templeton Freedom Award. Awarded by Atlas Network and generously supported by the Templeton Religion Trust, the Templeton Freedom Award recognizes the most exceptional and innovative contributions to the understanding of free enterprise, and the public policies that encourage prosperity, innovation and human fulfillment via free competition.
In March 2017, textbook ECONOMICS IN 31 HOURS won the London Book Fair The Educational Learning Resources Award. This is the first time when Lithuania was awarded this prestigious Award.
Interdisciplinary and Interactive LFMI Educational Material
LMFI is continuing its mission to educate youth by offering integrated interdisciplinary education material. Therefore, a new learning platform CITIZEN IN 31 HOURS was launched in 2019. It consists of 31 lessons exploring real-life problems in economic, civic, and ethical disciplines for students in 9-12 grades.
Learning material is filled with videos, charts, group, and individual tasks to assist students in exploring economic and political situations. It uses real-life examples and situations important to specific age groups. According to the piloting results, 100 percent of teachers using the platform would recommend it to their colleagues.
In the future, LMFI is aiming to create an interactive interdisciplinary platform for younger 5-8 grade students. We see how important it is to educate the young generation about citizenship, social responsibilities, and economics. Therefore, we aim to create innovative and multidisciplinary solutions to adapt learning material to a fast-paced teaching environment.
