So I closed the semester with a short essay assignment–in less than 800 words, tell me what you got from the class.  I seriously wanted to know that, and I figured doing that would help them crystallize some of the course’s abstraction into something useful for non-majors.
What follows is one student’s submission.  With her permission, here is proof that I did everything this semester a good professor should do.  Even the last part.

What have I learned in ECO 201?

            Before the tax multiplier and comparative advantage, the most important thing that I have learned in Principles of Economics is to always read the assigned chapters before class!  Not only for the sake of my grade on pop quizzes, but also because it is impossible to understand what is going on during lectures without having some sort basic knowledge about the course material.  Too many times in the first half of the semester did I think I could skip out on the reading before class as if it would not matter.  Well, the two times it took me to learn my lesson were the two times Bomani decided to give pop quizzes.  Even worse, because I did not study as the semester progressed I had to cram right before the mid-term.   I am hoping that my study and preparation habits have changed significantly since and studying for the final will be comparably less stressful.  And because of my negligence, my final grade is probably going to suffer. 

            In addition to reading the book and preparing for class, I learned that it is crucial to pay attention in class!  Making my notes look pretty is the last thing I should be worrying about during a lecture.  Being legible is all that really matters.  In reference to paying attention in class, Bomani CAN tell when a student is text messaging, regardless of how slick he or she thinks they are. 

            Finally, I learned that I want nothing to do with economics after this course is complete.  Even though I understand more about supply and demand and how prices are determined, I think I will stick to my communications major.

What can I say, I’m an educational genius!