Students enrolled in ECON104: Introductory Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy were tasked with creating a piece of artwork that reflects an economic principle. The assignment titled, "Visualizing Macroeconomics Through Art," pillars a greater research endeavor that analyzes how visual media enhances classroom learning, according to Subhadra Ganguli, assistant professor of business at Penn State Lehigh Valley.
Led by Ganguli, the goal of the assignment was to "help students connect their theoretical understanding of macroeconomics from the classroom with real world photos and art," she said, explaining that this teaching method was initially inspired by Gen Z behaviors, including the obsession for constant communication through reels and photos on social media. Ganguli said she recognized the important role that visual media plays in students' lives and sought to translate this observation into an effective teaching strategy. "Visual art can help students see more palpably how macroeconomics and macro policies - such as monetary and fiscal exchange rate policies or international trade - affect people, societies, institutions and countries."
Acrylic paint, watercolor paint, pencils and magazine clippings were among the tools students used to create their assignment, followed by an explanation of both the artistic and economic perspectives of their work to the class.
Ann Lalik, gallery director and arts coordinator at Penn State Lehigh Valley, said she appreciated the critical thinking aspect behind this learning model.
"For this assignment, I provided the technical framework," Lalik said. "I taught students how to decode 'visual language' by analyzing design elements and principles of order. By understanding these tools, they can see how an image is specifically engineered to trigger a certain reaction."
Harry Dimopoulos, a student in ECON 104, described the assignment as a unique classroom experience.
"Creating this piece for my economics class was far different from anything I had experienced in class before," Dimopoulos said. "I had to sit with my thoughts and creatively find a path forward for my class work," Dimopoulos said.
ECON 104 student, Taylor Heller, enjoyed the challenging behind the assignment.
"As a student who is used to formulas and following instructions to find the right answers, it was exciting to force my brain to create something artistic from concepts I already know," Heller said.
Ganguli's research, outlined in her paper, "Visual- Spatial Pedagogies in Introductory Macroeconomics: A Mixed Methods Study of Student Learning Through Photo-Based Assignments" was co-authored by Laura Cruz, research professor at the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence. The research paper defines an analysis of student learning from Lehigh Valley-based courses ECON 104 through visual arts such as photos, paintings or cartoons since fall 2023.
The nationally recognized research was selected by the 2026 Southern Economic Association conference to be featured in one of their National Association of Economic Educators presidential sessions, Activities and Experiments for Macroeconomics, this fall. The paper is also eligible for nomination for two National Endowment for Financial Education awards. Additionally, Ganguli and Cruz's research has been invited by the Federal Reserve of Philadelphia for submission to the American Economic Association annual conference in January 2027.
Ganguli and Cruz said they are among the first few researchers analyzing the effects that photos and art have on student learning through direct, empirical measures.
"Our research highlights how visual learning can serve as a key bridge in enabling students to better grasp abstract concepts," Cruz said. "We are excited by the assessment survey we developed which uses images to measure conceptual understanding."
Ganguli said she believes sharing this research at the national level would prompt increased financial literacy within the Penn State Lehigh Valley community and beyond.
"Financial education can have a huge impact on the economic prosperity of the nation," Ganguli said. "Our ECON 104 course could serve as an introduction to financial literacy, and our visual learning pedagogy could serve as an anchor for future courses in financial education."
