Chapter 6: What is an Economic Life?: Black Feminist Economics and Empathy in a High School Economics Class

This study presents the results of a unit plan designed to teach Black social economics (BSE) in a 12th grade economics class. Drawing on perspectives of Black feminism and BSE, we use self-study to reflect on our plan and approach. After illustrating our unit plan, approach, and syllabus we find that BSE offers great utility to speak into the racial silences found in traditional economics approaches as well as an opportunity to utilize asset-oriented approaches to supplement economic communal networks. These findings challenge traditional assumptions about economics education and promote a more inclusive approach for social studies teachers and teacher educators that truly builds on students’ economic lives.