New Logo, New Articles

I wanted to take a moment to formally introduce the updated company logo:

I started working on a new company logo in early 2022, and was delighted with the final result courtesy of my graphic designer, Marisa Scaramella. The logo reflects the fact that Croecko sells economics books, and that at its most essential, an economy must ensure that food (represented by the stalks of wheat) and energy (represented by the sun

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More articles

I have written a couple of new articles, one on the crisis in Ukraine entitled ‘Why Ukraine should be barred from NATO” and another entitled “From Occupy to the Convoy.” You can find both at the bottom of the “Articles” page.

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Recent Articles

While I still have not developed any materials for the new I.B. syllabus (and, I have to admit, the prospect of doing so is increasingly unappealing given the abundance of quality resources now available) I have continued to write articles for the Postmedia chain of newspapers here in Canada. Please feel free to read my most recent articles, “Support our students,” “What Trudeau should know about money and banking,” and “Why I hate Bitcoin” by going to the bottom of the “Articles” page above.

All the best to everyone for the new academic year and to this year’s senior class as they prepare for the first examinations of the new syllabus this coming May.

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And so ends the 2011-2021 syllabus

Well, it had a good run (9 years!) but the syllabus which was first taught in August 2011 and which is due to be examined for the last time this coming November is coming to an end.

Due to a hectic teaching schedule, I have not yet created any materials for the new syllabus which was introduced to students this past August. However, I hope to create some specialized materials to support teachers and students in anticipation of the first exams due to be written in May 2022.

While I have not been able to write any educational materials, I have continued to write regular articles for the Postmedia Group of newspapers here in Canada. Feel free to read my most recent articles from this past December, “Money is not wealth” and “Renewing the social contract” in the Articles section.

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First Edition Books Still Available

While there are only a few dozen copies of the second edition workbook still available from Richard Heath’s IB Bookshop in the UK (and, as of today, a single copy available on Amazon.com), I still have about 500 copies of the first edition workbook available in my warehouse here in Canada.
If, as was the case in most schools, you fear that the move to distance learning made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in some important concepts and skills not being learnt adequately, I would recommend that you consider distributing the workbook to students as a learning and revision aid.

While the focus this year will understandably be on getting students in IB1 off to a good start under the new syllabus, don’t forget to ensure also that your IB2 students have everything they need to do well in their exams in May and November.

Orders of the book will come with a printed list of corrections as well as an electronic copy of the quantitative exercises

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Book availability and recent articles

As the current syllabus moves into its final year, I would like to invite students looking for an affordable revision book to consider purchasing a copy of the original “Workbook for the New I.B. Economics.” For $5 plus postage (which, within North America, will be $10 to $15 per copy), I am happy to send you a copy.

If you would like to purchase a copy of “Workbook for the New I.B. Economics, 2nd Edition, Exercises,” while I no longer have any books in stock, there are still a couple of copies available on Amazon.com and a few dozen copies at Richard Heath’s I.B. Bookshop in the U.K.

However, those interested in purchasing a 2nd edition teachers’ guide can do so either directly or via Amazon.com.

As we move into the summer holidays, meanwhile, I would invite you to read my most recent triad of articles:

“Understanding the affordability crisis”

“Destroying the Debt Bomb, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Deflation”

“Essential Work and B.S. Jobs”

As the old economics saying goes, “the solution to high prices is high prices.” This current crisis could be just what the global economy needs to liquidate debt and reset our economies to favour production and discourage speculation.

All the best for a great summer holiday.

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To the class of 2021

First of all, I hope you are all keeping well and staying out of the path of the coronavirus. Second of all, if you are in a school which has closed and moved to online learning in response to the coronavirus, I would like to take this opportunity to remind you of the free online lesson component of

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The Second Edition Workbook is SOLD OUT!

As you can see from the photo taken yesterday in the Croecko Publishing Warehouse (a.k.a. my father’s old barn), the pallet upon which sat

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Ordering books for next year (and recent articles)

First of all, I would like to thank you for making ‘Workbook for the New I.B. Economics’ a success over the past 7 and a half years. Of the 4000 first edition books printed in 2011, only 650 remain, while of the 3000 second edition books printed in 2013 less than a hundred copies remain with me, with an equivalent number held by Richard Heath’s IB Bookshop in the U.K.

While I expect the second edition to sell out in the coming months, I would like to encourage teachers looking for an accessible and inexpensive learning and revision resource to consider purchasing copies of the first edition for their students. As advertised below, I am happy to sell them at cost for $5 per copy plus shipping. Schools ordering class sets of the book will also receive a complimentary copy of both the second edition workbook and teachers’ guide to ensure that students have access to that book’s quantitative questions.

On a final note, I would also like to point your attention to my most recent articles, “Debt and War” and “Other People’s Money.” They deal with, respectively, the slide from currency wars to trade wars to shooting wars we are now witnessing around the world as countries try to reduce the burden of their debts, and the reasons why corruption is a pervasive feature of government contracts beyond the current scandal involving Canada’s SNC-Lavalin.

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If you got a postcard…

Welcome to the world of Workbook for the New I.B. Economics! While the current syllabus is in its last couple of years, the workbook’s comprehensive coverage and engaging and accessible style make it an excellent teaching resource and a superb revision tool for both you and your students.

The 2nd edition of the book offers full coverage of the current IBHL Economics syllabus, as outlined in the following document:

WBIBE 2nd Edition and IBDP Economics Syllabus Correspondence

I am always surprised when I hear from teachers who feel that if they have the Paper 3-style exercises and worked solutions (which were excerpted from the then yet-to-be-published second edition of the book and released electronically in March 2013 to help students sitting the May 2013 examinations) that they have the book. Be assured that there is a lot more to Workbook for the New I.B. Economics, 2nd Edition than its quantitative exercises.

First, there are its lessons, which can be downloaded (along with some sample pages from the printed workbook and teachers’ guide) from https://gumroad.com/bryce or saved to your desktop by clicking on the link below:

Workbook for the New I.B. Economics Second Edition Lessons March 2014

Second, there are the other exercises in the book, one set for each of the book’s 82 lessons and another set of thinking and review questions every 7 or 8 lessons.

Finally, there is the teachers’ guide, which contains the full solutions to all of the exercises in the book, suggestions for teaching approaches and learning resources and guidance to help students with their IB internal and external assessments.

After having looked at what the book has to offer, I invite you to order copies for your own use or for use with your students. I am happy to send orders worldwide from Canada via tracked surface mail. All I require is that you send me an email at bryceATbrycemcbride.com outlining your full postal address and the number of copies you would like.

Alternatively, if you are in the U.K. or Europe you may prefer to order copies from Richard Heath’s IB Bookshop. American customers may prefer to order copies from Amazon.com or IB Source. Distributors in India (Scholar Book Distributors and Parle Book Centre in Mumbai), China (China International Book Trading Corporation) and other countries have also proven reliable.

Finally, if you are interested in having your students do additional revision exercises on their own, I would invite you to order copies of the original Workbook for the New I.B. Economics. The book was published in 2011 with lessons and exercises bound together. However, despite the publication of the ‘new and improved’ second edition in 2013, the first edition still has its fans. As one teacher wrote to me last year:

“I love the first edition! I am now reminiscing over that book of yours with the orange and green cover!

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