Torsten Heinrich - Teaching

Teaching Philosophy

I believe that the plurality of methods that characterizes research in economics should also be represented in teaching. Students have to be able to understand not only the application of the theories they are taught but also the mechanisms behind them and the alternatives to them. In particular, while the use of simplistic examples is sometimes necessary to explain a more complicated context, the illusion that the complexity of real economic systems could or should be removed in the process of modeling those systems is to be avoided. Students who are exposed to recent research and to unresolved questions in economics in particular and to the full complexity of socio-economic systems in general may develop a better understanding of the role of methods as tools to select from in order to be applied rather than categories to fit applications into. It is, in my view, the task and the challenge of teaching economics to accomplish this while making complicated issues understandable and pointing the students to applications in the real world.

Further, from my own experience as a student, I know that classes on the history of economic thought and on economic history are a very important part of curricula of economics. I have a strong interest in the fields and always include these aspects in my lectures.

Teaching Experience

Summer Term 2021	Regular courses at TU Chemnitz: Lectures ''Microeconomics'', ''Industrial organization'', Seminar ''Agent-based modeling and simulation'' (with Anja Janischewski)
Winter Term 2020/21	Regular courses at TU Chemnitz: Lectures ''Advanced microeconomics'', ''Innovation economics'', ''Econ 101'' (with Jochen Hartwig and Fritz Helmedag), ''Computational economics with Python'', Seminar ''Complexity and scaling laws in economics''
Summer Term 2020	Seminar ''Systemic Risk in Economics and Finance'', University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Summer School 2019	8-day course ''Complexity Economics'', Summer Academy ''Exploring Economics'', with Claudius Gräbner.
Summer Term 2019	Seminar ''Systemic Risk in Economics and Finance'', University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Summer School 2018	8-day course ''Complexity Economics'', Summer Academy ''Exploring Economics'', with Claudius Gräbner.
Summer Term 2018	Seminar ''Systemic Risk in Economics and Finance'', University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Summer School 2017	8-day course ''Complexity Economics'', Summer Academy ''Exploring Economics'', with Claudius Gräbner. Teaching material is available online.
Summer Term 2017	Seminar ''Systemic Risk in Economics and Finance'', University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Winter Term 2015/16	Seminar ''Simulation Models'', University of Bremen, 4 SWS (periods per week)
September 2015	Workshop ''Complexity Economics'', EAEPE Young Scholars Pre-Conference, Genoa, together with Claudius Gräbner and Wolfram Elsner
Winter Term 2014/15	Seminar ''Simulationsmodelle'' (Simulation Models), University of Bremen, 4 SWS (periods per week)
August 2014	Workshop ''Komplexitätsökonomik'' (Complexity Economics), IMK Workshop, Berlin, together with Claudius Gräbner and Wolfram Elsner
Winter Term 2013/14	Seminar ''Simulationsmodelle'' (Simulation Models), University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Winter Term 2013/14	Lecture ''Institutionelle und Evolutorische Ökonomie'' (Institutional and Evolutionary Economics), University of Bremen, together with Henning Schwardt, 4 SWS (periods per week)
First Semester 2013	Lecture ''Simulation Models'', part of a combined lecture on methods in economics (Prof. Dr. Philippe Burger)
November 2012	Workshop on ''Wachstumstheorie'' (Growth Theory), University of Erfurt, together with Henning Schwardt
Winter Term 2012/13	Seminar ''Simulationsmodelle'' (Simulation Models), University of Bremen, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Winter Term 2012/13	Lecture ''Institutionelle und Evolutorische Ökonomie'' (Institutional and Evolutionary Economics), University of Bremen, together with Henning Schwardt, 4 SWS (periods per week)
Winter Term 2010/11	Lecture ''Theorie der Innovation'' (Theory of Innovation), University of Bremen, together with Henning Schwardt and Wolfram Elsner, 2 SWS (periods per week)
Summer Term 2010	Lecture ''Innovationsökonomik'' (Innovation Economics), University of Bremen, together with Henning Schwardt and Wolfram Elsner, 2 SWS (periods per week)
2009 - 2016	TA Classes on various subjects: Microeconomics (Summer Terms 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016), Introduction to Economics (Winter Term 2009/10), Institutional and Evolutionary Economics (Winter Terms 2011/12, 2014/15, 2015/16), and Game Theory (Summer Term 2013), all at the University of Bremen.
2009 - 2016	Organization and Supervision of Student-Taught TA Classes on Microeconomics (Summer Terms 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016) and Institutional and Evolutionary Economics (Winter Terms 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15, 2015/16), all at the University of Bremen