Competition Policy and RegulationActivities & Teaching Strategies
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.
Learning Objectives
- 1Analyze the market structures of oligopoly and monopoly, identifying characteristics that justify government intervention.
- 2Evaluate the effectiveness of specific regulatory tools, such as price caps or divestiture, used by the ACCC to control monopoly power.
- 3Predict the impact of a proposed merger between two major Australian supermarkets on market concentration and consumer prices, using economic models.
- 4Compare and contrast the economic arguments for and against government regulation in concentrated markets.
- 5Explain the role of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in enforcing competition policy.
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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.
Prepare & details
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.
Setup: Panel table at front, audience seating for class
Materials: Expert research packets, Name placards for panelists, Question preparation worksheet for audience
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.
Prepare & details
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.
Setup: Groups at tables with case materials
Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template
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.
Prepare & details
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.
Setup: Panel table at front, audience seating for class
Materials: Expert research packets, Name placards for panelists, Question preparation worksheet for audience
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.
Prepare & details
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.
Setup: Panel table at front, audience seating for class
Materials: Expert research packets, Name placards for panelists, Question preparation worksheet for audience
Teaching This Topic
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.
What to Expect
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...'.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Role-Play: ACCC Merger Hearing, watch for students claiming all regulations reduce business efficiency.
What to Teach Instead
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.
Common MisconceptionDuring Case Study Analysis: Real-World Mergers, watch for students assuming all mergers raise prices.
What to Teach Instead
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.
Common MisconceptionDuring Market Simulation: Monopoly vs Regulation, watch for students thinking competition policy only affects big companies.
What to Teach Instead
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.'
Assessment Ideas
After Role-Play: ACCC Merger Hearing, 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.
During Case Study Analysis: Real-World Mergers, 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.
After Market Simulation: Monopoly vs Regulation, 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.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Ask students to design a new regulatory tool for a proposed merger not yet reviewed by the ACCC, using economic models to predict outcomes.
- Scaffolding: Provide a partially completed supply-demand graph for the monopoly simulation with key points labeled for students to connect to their results.
- Deeper exploration: Have students research a non-Australian merger case, compare the regulatory approach to Australia’s, and present findings on cultural differences in competition policy.
Key Vocabulary
| Monopoly | A market structure where a single seller or producer dominates the entire market, facing little to no competition. |
| Oligopoly | A market structure characterized by a small number of large firms that dominate the market, often leading to interdependent decision-making. |
| Market Concentration | A measure of the number and size of firms in a market, indicating the degree of competition present. |
| Antitrust Laws | Legislation designed to promote competition and prevent monopolies or cartels that could harm consumers or the economy. |
| Price Discrimination | The practice of selling the same good or service to different consumers at different prices, where the price difference is not justified by cost differences. |
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