Economics & Business · Year 12

Active learning ideas

Competition Policy and Regulation

Active learning turns abstract competition concepts into concrete experiences that stick. Students move from reading about the ACCC to arguing like commissioners, modeling market behavior, and feeling the real-world stakes of regulation. These activities make invisible market forces visible and help students own their economic reasoning.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• ACARA Australian Curriculum v9: Economics 11-12, Unit 1, The role of government in addressing market failure and the advantages and disadvantages of government intervention in markets, including regulation and market-based policies (AC9EC010)
• ACARA Australian Curriculum v9: Economics 11-12, Unit 2, The nature and purpose of microeconomic reform as a policy to influence aggregate supply (AC9EC018)
• ACARA Australian Curriculum v9: Economics 11-12, Unit 2, Evaluate the role of competition policy in promoting efficiency and protecting consumer interests

• 35–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Expert Panel
• 50 min · Small Groups

Role-Play: ACCC Merger Hearing

Assign roles as company executives, ACCC regulators, and consumer advocates. Groups prepare 3-minute arguments for or against a fictional supermarket merger, then present to a 'panel' for cross-examination. Conclude with a class vote on approval and predicted price effects.

Analyze the rationale for government intervention in highly concentrated markets.

Facilitation Tip

In the ACCC role-play, assign student roles before the hearing so participants prepare with official guidelines and evidence, not just opinions.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Should the government regulate the price of essential services like electricity or water?' Ask students to take a stance and support their argument with at least two economic principles discussed in class, referencing potential impacts on consumers and firms.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Case Study Analysis
• 40 min · Pairs

Case Study Analysis: Real-World Mergers

Provide ACCC reports on past mergers like Qantas-Jetstar. In pairs, students chart pre- and post-merger market shares, prices, and competition levels, then write a one-page evaluation of regulatory effectiveness.

Evaluate the effectiveness of different regulatory tools in controlling monopoly power.

Facilitation Tip

For case studies, provide each group with one real merger document and a checklist: market share, consumer complaints, and ACCC ruling date. This keeps analysis focused.

What to look for

Provide students with a brief scenario describing a proposed merger between two firms in the same industry. Ask them to identify the market structure before and after the merger and list two potential consequences for consumers.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

Activity 03

• Expert Panel
• 45 min · Small Groups

Market Simulation: Monopoly vs Regulation

Use online tools or paper models for students to run a market as a monopoly, then apply price caps or entry incentives. Track consumer surplus changes over 5 simulated rounds and discuss outcomes in whole class debrief.

Predict the impact of a merger on market competition and consumer prices.

Facilitation Tip

In the monopoly simulation, give teams identical cost data but different regulatory constraints to create apples-to-apples comparisons of outcomes.

What to look for

On a slip of paper, have students define one key vocabulary term in their own words and provide one specific example of a regulatory tool used by the ACCC.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Expert Panel
• 35 min · Pairs

Debate Carousel: Regulatory Tools

Set up stations for tools like divestitures, fines, and access regimes. Pairs rotate, adding pros/cons to posters, then defend one tool in a 10-minute class debate on best monopoly control.

Analyze the rationale for government intervention in highly concentrated markets.

Facilitation Tip

During the debate carousel, rotate groups every 4 minutes and require each new group to build on the previous argument with a new point or rebuttal.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Should the government regulate the price of essential services like electricity or water?' Ask students to take a stance and support their argument with at least two economic principles discussed in class, referencing potential impacts on consumers and firms.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Experienced teachers anchor this topic in students' lived experiences by starting with everyday markets like streaming services or supermarkets. Avoid launching straight into theory—begin with a familiar market failure students recognize, then introduce regulation as the tool that fixes it. Research shows that when students grapple with a real ACCC case first, they better understand the rationale behind price controls or merger blocks later. Use the jigsaw structure for case studies so each student contributes a piece to the full picture.

By the end of these tasks, students will justify regulatory decisions using evidence, critique merger outcomes with supply and demand models, and explain how policy tools balance firm behavior and consumer welfare. Success looks like students moving from saying 'regulation is bad' to 'this regulation works because...'.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Role-Play: ACCC Merger Hearing, watch for students claiming all regulations reduce business efficiency.

  During the role-play, provide each team with ACCC guidelines that cite efficiency gains from merger blocks when competition is harmed. After the hearing, have students tally arguments that mention 'dynamic efficiency' or 'barriers to entry' to confront this myth directly.

• During Case Study Analysis: Real-World Mergers, watch for students assuming all mergers raise prices.

  During the case study, give each group a different merger outcome (price increase, price decrease, no change). Require them to present the evidence that led to their merger’s impact, forcing them to distinguish between efficiency gains and anti-competitive harm.

• During Market Simulation: Monopoly vs Regulation, watch for students thinking competition policy only affects big companies.

  During the simulation, assign roles to include small businesses or consumers and require students to track how regulation changes their access to markets or prices. After the simulation, debrief with a quick write: 'Name one way this policy affected a small business or consumer in our model.'

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Methods used in this brief

• Expert Panel
• Case Study Analysis