Economic history and the future of pedagogy in economics

Economic history is an essential component of the study of economics and economies. It offers students a long-run perspective on the development of the modern world and fosters a deeper appreciation of the historical contingency of economic theory. Despite renewed interest in the field among economists, the provision of economic history teaching at the undergraduate level in the UK remains highly uneven. This article surveys the diverse approaches to undergraduate economic history education across UK universities, explores the underlying causes of this variation and proposes practical pathways for reform. We advocate for a model we term ‘Teaching Economics with Economic History’, in which economic history can be embedded within advanced undergraduate field courses rather than taught as stand-alone modules.