General Introduction
Field Trips
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General introduction

Development economics is a wide and diverse area of study. The Virtual Developing Country aims to explore a number of development issues by a using a case study approach. The economy of Zambia has been chosen as the focus for the Virtual Field Trips. Zambia was chosen because its economy has gone through many changes and experienced many problems. These changes and problems are being experienced every day in many other countries around the world.

Teachers are encouraged to use Virtual Developing Country to help students make connections with other economic problems faced by other countries. Students will find that problems of land tenure, cash cropping, dependence on primary products, poverty and many more issues are global issues and are relevant to countries on every continent.

Teachers and students will find imaginative and thought-provoking ways of using the materials that can be found on the site. Students could perhaps even be encouraged to develop their own websites concentrating on other countries or other development issues.

Some schools take groups of students to other countries to work and interact with people in Less Developed Countries. Such opportunities provide excellent learning resources that can be the focus of studies on development within schools. These could be combined with ideas and materials found in the Virtual Developing Country to produce resources relevant to specific schools.

Many of the issues raised in the Virtual Developing Country are contentious and can be the source of great debate and discussion. Teachers are encouraged to use the materials and the data as stimulus material for provoking discussion and challenging ideas.

Increasingly assessment of economics around the world is including Development issues. Hopefully this site can also be used as a resource in the review of issues and theories relating to Development.