Spotlight on our Faculty
James Brown, Professor of Economics
Research Interests: Measurement error in spline estimating equations, multiparty
bargaining strikes and wages in the printing industry, and substance abuse among
adolescents
Long recognized as one of Rice’s best teachers, Professor James N. Brown received two
highly prestigious teaching awards this year. Last spring, he was awarded the George R.
Brown Certificate of Highest Merit for lifetime achievement in teaching at Rice, a fitting
capstone to an exceptional career that has included George R. Brown Awards for Superior
Teaching in 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2013, the Sarah Burnett Teaching Prize in the Social
Sciences in 2010, and the ultimate prize of the George R. Brown Award for Excellence
in Teaching in 2009 and again in 2017. Subsequently Brown was honored by the Minnie
Piper Stevens Foundation, which named him a Piper Professor, one of ten outstanding
teachers at the college/university level so honored in the state.
How have all of these teaching awards
over the years impacted your approach
to teaching?
These awards haven’t really changed
how I approach teaching. An unchanging
thing for me has been that in each class
I’ve taught, I’ve met so many great people
who have been eager to learn. When you
have such students, you want to do all you
can for them. Everything else follows from
that. At a broader level, though, Rice’s
commitment to excellence in teaching
has fostered an environment in which I’ve
been encouraged each semester to try to
improve on what I’ve done before. I know
that many other members of the Rice
faculty have been impacted similarly.
How did you first get interested in
economics?
I’ve always been interested in issues
that social scientists study. My interest
in economics was sparked when I first
realized that economic theory gave me
the tools to think for myself and to think
more effectively about important social
issues. I was lucky enough to encounter
Gary Becker’s work early on, and that
changed everything for me; my interest
in economics quickly became a love of
economics. A few semesters later, I was
asked to help a student who was having
trouble understanding demand functions,
and I was able to help her. This moment
was a real revelation for me, because
I saw how rewarding it can be to help
another person understand something.
So, knowing that I would love teaching,
and knowing already that I loved studying
economics and applications of economics
in research, it was an easy decision for me
to go on to graduate school in economics
Not knowing what would follow from that
decision, I just figured that I would stick
with it as long as I loved it. Happily, I love
it more and more each year and never get
tired of it!
You’ve been teaching at Rice for a while
now. What are some of the noticeable
changes in the typical undergraduate
student that you’ve observed over the
years?
It’s a little difficult to tell, because I’ve
taught different courses over the years,
and my classes now are more likely
to include students in their first few
semesters at Rice. I think some students
nowadays may be accustomed to a
more-structured and guided approach at
each step of the learning process. If this
is a trend, however, it is comparatively
mild at Rice and not specific to Rice. With
reference to my own experience at Rice,
a much more distinct change has been
the increased presence of international
students, who have added so much
to my courses, both as students and
subsequently as teaching assistants.
What are some of your favorite parts of
teaching? What are some of the hardest
parts of teaching?
The favorite part for me is when the
light bulb goes on. Even though I’m
lecturing to a group, I’m still teaching
individuals, and the greatest thing is to
be there when a student finally figures
something out after having struggled
with it. The most challenging thing for
me lies in finding ways to make complex
material more understandable – ideally,
so understandable that it can never be
forgotten – and in finding the content
and presentation that best serves
students who may differ substantially
in preparation and interests. Because
lectures cannot be tailored to each
student, individualized (and typically
more effective) teaching generally
happens outside of class. For this reason,
I always encourage students to talk to
me outside of class, whether or not they
are having trouble understanding course
material. It is in these one-on-one settings
that light-bulb moments most often
occur.
Do you have any advice for current
freshmen and sophomores just
beginning their studies in economics?
I always urge students to try to find
something they love and that really
interests them. If you don’t love
something, you’re not going to want
to spend enough time on it to become
really good at it. It’s also important to
realize that it’s perfectly okay to be in a
constant state of confusion when you’re
learning something new and difficult.
But you should remember to enjoy the
pursuit of knowledge and learn how to
ask questions that will take you a little
bit closer to a better understanding. I
typically advise students to take classes
that can equip them with more tools,
such as coursework in mathematics and
statistics, in addition to economics. It’s
also a really good thing for students
to make an effort to reach out to their
professors, more advanced students, and
TAs. One of the great things about Rice is
that we’re all co-learners and are here to
help you.
For more information on Professor Brown’s
research projects, including his current working
papers and his C.V., see the Faculty Page on the
Economics Department website.
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