DUANGKAMOL KARPINSKI portrait
  • Assistant Professor (Lecturer), Economics Department

Current Courses

Spring 2025

  • ECON 3100-080
    Labor Economics
  • ECON 3200-080
    Money & Banking
  • ECON 4010-090
    Intermed Microecon
  • ECON 4010-290
    Intermed Microecon
  • ECON 6010-090
    Microeconomics

Fall 2024

Summer 2024

Teaching Philosophy

Teaching is my lifelong passion. I strive to help students build foundations of knowledge and develop their critical thinking skills in a diverse, equitable, and inclusive learning environment. To achieve these goals, I use various pedagogical methods shaped by my CARE approach, consisting of Clear explanations, Active learning, Real-world applications, and Effective assessments.

I believe that knowledge will be constructed and not simply absorbed when students fully understand course content. To ensure that students gain a deep understanding, I provide very clear explanations of the material with well-prepared examples and make excellent use of visual aids. In particular, my use of whiteboard is easy to follow. By drawing graphs one step at a time and then explaining them (rather than drawing and explaining them all at once), I allow students to understand the concepts easily. In addition, the information contained in my slide presentations of each lecture is always concise, organized, and clear, helping reinforce the subject matter. All of my teaching materials are posted online to facilitate students’ learning process. 

Despite efforts to engage students in constructing knowledge, I note that some of my students often memorize terms and graphs for an exam, without critically analyzing the material themselves. To support critical thinking, I incorporate active learning into my lesson plans.  For example, I always encourage discussion and group assignments in class. Discussion will not only engage students from diverse backgrounds and experiences in thinking critically about the material but also enable them to learn from one another, promoting a diversity of perspectives.

Additionally, I provide students with opportunities to explain the solution on the board in order to build problem-solving and communication skills. When responding to students, I am always respectful and positive, even when the student is incorrect. I believe this creates a safe and welcoming atmosphere where students are comfortable communicating while showing that I value their input and learning. As a result, this approach will promote student active participation and ultimately better understanding.

Another significant way to foster knowledge construction and critical thinking skills is by encouraging real-world applications. As every economic model is a simplified description of reality, it can be well observed in the real world. Therefore, my lessons combine issues of student interest, current events, case studies, and real-life situations, allowing students to apply course material to the real world. 

To motivate students to synthesize and demonstrate what they have learned, I use multiple avenues of effective assessments, including exams, individual and group assignments, impromptu quizzes, and self-tests. While the testing process is essential to measure student learning and ability to apply the material, questions that simply ask students to recall facts without assessing them critically are not helpful. I place an emphasis on short-answer and essay questions in exams. This format not only tests students’ knowledge but also encourages them to present their analytical and explanatory skills. 

The effort devoted to improving my teaching has been far more rewarding than exhausting. Throughout my teaching career, my students have responded well as I have provided them with equal learning opportunities and cared about their success. I pay personal attention to each student and give them every opportunity to be successful. 

However, there is always room for improvement when it comes to teaching. I look forward to continuing to use my CARE approach and real-world experience together with feedback from students to create a more engaged and effective learning environment for the benefit of all students.  

Courses I Teach

  • ECON 3200 - Money and Banking
    This course examines monetary and financial instruments, institutions, and markets from the perspectives of theory, practice, and policy. Major topics of the course include the history and evolution of the monetary and financial system; the modern financial system; banking, money, and finance in macroeconomic theory; and the conduct of monetary policy.
  • ECON 3500 - International Economics
    This course covers the history, institutions, and theories of international economic relations. You will be presented with alternative theories relating to international trade patterns, commercial policy, and international macroeconomics, i.e., the relationships between national income and international trade and payments, balance-of-payments adjustment, international monetary arrangements, and foreign investment.
  • ECON 3700 - Sports Economics
    A variety of economic methods can be applied to sports. The class begins with the introduction to sports economics and the illustration of how economic principles apply to the sports industry. We will then examine the industrial organization of the sports industry. This part covers the competitive landscape, the implications of monopoly power, profit maximization, and the impact of gambling. Following this, we will focus on the benefits and costs of providing public support for stadiums and events. We will discuss the economics of megaevents, including why nations strive to win the right to host them and why the benefits rarely outweigh the costs. Finally, the class will explore diversity, equity, and inclusion in sports.
  • ECON 4010 - Intermediate Microeconomic Analysis
    This course introduces you to a self-contained analysis of the major building blocks of neoclassical microeconomic theory and is purely theoretical in nature. We will explore the decision-making of economic agents (consumers and firms) and examine how different market mechanisms operate to allocate resources and thereby affect social welfare.
  • ECON 5520/6520 - Multinational Firms:International Trade&Investment
    This course covers the microeconomic and macroeconomic aspects of Multinational Enterprises (MNEs). It builds on real-world situations and addresses public policies in home and host countries. From the microeconomic perspective, the course examines the business objectives of MNEs, market conditions, and decision-making under different market structures. In terms of macroeconomics, we focus on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and the impact of FDI on income distribution. We will also explore the most recent developments in global trade and examine the relationship between MNEs and international trade and between MNEs and investment.
  • ECON 6610 - Microeconomics for Master's Students
    The purpose of this course is to refresh and deepen your understanding of microeconomic theory and models, with an emphasis on neoclassical theory. We will use intuition, diagrams, and calculus to understand the behavior of consumers, firms, and markets. We will explore the decision-making of economic agents and examine how different market mechanisms operate to allocate resources and thereby affect social welfare. In addition, we will relate the course material to real-world examples whenever possible.
  • QAMO/ECON 4011 - Intermediate Microeconomic Analysis For BEA
    This course introduces you to an analysis of the major building blocks of neoclassical microeconomic theory and is purely theoretical in nature. We will use intuition, diagrams, and calculus to understand the behavior of consumers, firms, and markets. We will explore the decision-making of economic agents (consumers and firms) and examine how different market mechanisms operate to allocate resources and thereby affect social welfare. In addition, we will relate the course material to real-world examples whenever possible.