World Economy · Learn with evidence
Teach this week’s article
A bigger paycheck can still buy less
25–35 minutes · Ages 11–16 with support as needed · No student account needed
Objective: distinguish reported facts, economic mechanisms and limits of historical comparison.
Read first: A bigger paycheck can still buy less
Reading: https://losttofound.org/articles/q3-2026-weekly-earnings-2021-purchasing-power
Words to know
- Nominal earnings
- Earnings measured in current dollars before adjusting for price changes.
- Real earnings
- Earnings adjusted for changes in prices.
- Median
- The midpoint of an ordered distribution.
- Composition effect
- A change in a group statistic resulting from changes in who is in the group.
Student worksheet
Name or initials: ____________________ Date: ____________________
1. If earnings grow 2% and prices grow 4%, what happens to purchasing power?
2. Does a rising median prove every worker received a raise?
3. What does the Q3 2023 comparison establish?
4. What evidence would show that purchasing power recovered, rather than merely stopped falling?
5. Name one difference between the historical event and the current event. Explain why it matters.
Sources for this pack
- BLS: Third-quarter 2026 usual weekly earnings, October 21, 2026https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/wkyeng_10212026.htm
- BLS: Third-quarter 2021 usual weekly earnings, October 19, 2021https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/wkyeng_10192021.htm
- BLS: Third-quarter 2023 usual weekly earnings, October 18, 2023https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/wkyeng_10182023.htm
- BLS: CPS earnings concepts and coveragehttps://www.bls.gov/cps/earnings.htm
- BLS: CPI frequently asked questionshttps://www.bls.gov/cpi/questions-and-answers.htm