Teaching economic statistics in the internet era

For decades, the course on economic statistics has been a vital part of the curriculum at the University of Ljubljana’s Faculty of Economics. The course aims (1) to deepen students’ understanding of the use of statistical information in decision-making processes at all society levels, and (2) to teach students how to find relevant statistical data and to use them appropriately in the statistical analysis of economic, business and social problems. Implementation of these objectives relies heavily on the use of real-life data, mostly available from official statistics. The advent of electronic data media (particularly Internet) opened new perspectives and approaches to realisation of the course objectives. The paper outlines and evaluates the evolution of teaching methods used in the course in the last decade, ranging from the use of a stand-alone CD-ROM ten years ago, to integration of Internet as an inherent part of the course through diverse applications (an on-line textbook, e-research seminars, e-assignments, etc.). Based on this experience, the purpose of the paper is to discuss the current position of economic statistics as a university course, and its potential role in the knowledge society.