Economic Growth - White Plains Middle School

Economic Growth In this lesson, students will be able to identify factors which lead to macroeconomic growth. Students will be able to identify and/or define the following terms: Real GDP per capita Capital Deepening

Savings Rate Technological Progress E. Napp Our worlds population has increased greatly in the last 200 years. E. Napp

Population and the Economy A nations population tends to grow. Gross Domestic Product must keep up with the population growth rate. If the economy does not continue to grow as population grows, unemployment and hunger will increase. E. Napp

The economy is like a pie. The bigger the pie, the more people can be fed. E. Napp Real GDP Per Capita It is important to remember that real GDP is GDP that has been adjusted for inflation.

Per capita means per person. Therefore, real GDP per capita is a way of determining how much money each person in a society would receive if wealth from GDP was divided equally among the people of that nation. E. Napp A country with a high standard of living has

a high real GDP per capita. E. Napp Capital Deepening One way to increase economic productivity is through capital deepening. Capital deepening is the process of increasing the amount of capital per

worker. Better educated workers can produce more output per hour of work. E. Napp Better educated workers are more productive workers. Education helps the economy to grow. E. Napp

Savings Rate Money that is saved is available for investment. The savings rate is the portion of disposable income spent to the portion of disposable income saved. A country with a higher savings rate will be more likely to experience economic growth because

more money will be available to invest in businesses. E. Napp The more money citizens of a country save, the more money is available for businesses to expand. E. Napp

When education rates and savings rates increase, the economy grows. And when the economy grows, people have jobs, shelter, food, and the comforts of life. E. Napp Technological Progress

Another key source of economic growth is technological progress. This is an increase in efficiency gained by producing more output. Email replacing slower snail mail is an example of technological progress. E. Napp

Technological progress like email greatly increases business efficiency. Greater efficiency means greater profits. E. Napp Questions for Reflection: Why must the economy continue to grow as population increases?

Why is it important for economists to calculate real GDP per capita? What is capital deepening and how does it affect economic growth? How does the savings rate help the economy to grow? Why is technological progress important? E. Napp