ECONOMICS 2105 – 25H

FALL 2009

COURSE TITLE AND WEBSITE:

Principles of Macroeconomics (Honors Section).  Updates to the syllabus will be posted on the course website (www.westga.edu/~dboldt/ECON2105/F09210525H.htm). The class will meet in Adamson 115.

INSTRUCTOR:

David Boldt dboldt@westga.edu
Office Phone: 678-839-6477

OFFICE HOURS:

M-F 9:00-11:00 noon and on TTH from 5:00-5:30 pm.  I am available at other times by arrangement.

REQUIRED BOOKS and TEXTBOOK WEBSITE:

1) McEachern, William A., ECON Macro (1st ed.), Southwestern Cengage Learning, 2008-09.  Be sure to purchase the book costing approximately $56.  We will not be using APLIA in this class so you will not need an Aplia Access Card. The textbook website is located at http://4ltrpress.cengage.com/econ.  With the book purchase from the bookstore, you will get an access code for this website.  I will be assigning material from the website during the semester.  I do not recommend buying a used book for this class.

 

2) Miller, R. L. and Benjamin, D.K., The Economics of Macro Issues, 3rd edition. Pearson Ed., 2008.

 
PREREQUISITES: No course prerequisites but must have a 2.0 overall GPA.

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

The overall objective of this course is for you to learn basic economic concepts, specifically macroeconomics, and more about the economic system in which we live.  To this end, upon completion of the course you should be able to:

  • Be able to describe basic economic concepts such as scarcity and opportunity costs (LG4, LG7)
  • Be able to summarize in writing the key macroeconomic concepts contained in an article from a business periodical such as the Wall Street Journal or Business Week (LG1, LG4, LG7, LG8)
  • Demonstrate a basic knowledge of macroeconomic concepts such as gross domestic product, inflation, and unemployment (LG4, LG8)
  • Demonstrate a basic knowledge of international economics including concepts such as exchange rates and net exports (LG4, LG5, LG7, LG10)
  • Demonstrate a basic knowledge of the banking system, the impact of the Federal Reserve on the economy, and government taxation and spending policy (LG8)
  • Be able to analyze at a basic level the effectiveness of fiscal and monetary policy in combating inflation or unemployment (LG4, LG8, LG11)
  • BE able to apply macroeconomic models such as aggregate supply and demand to the analysis of current economic issues (LG4, LG8, LG10, LG11)

Note: A complete list of expected learning goals (LG) for the Economics Department can be found at the department web site (www.westga.edu/~econ/lg_assessments.html).

EVALUATION:

Grading in the course will be based on your performance on the four tests, on an oral presentation of a chapter from The Economics of Macro Issues, and on class participation. The examinations will be composed of short answer and multiple choice questions based on our class discussions, reading material (text and other readings), and textbook website material. Each of the tests will be worth 20 percent of your grade.

 

Oral Presentation- Each student will lead a discussion on one chapter in the book, The Economics of Macro Issues, 3rd ed.).   Chapters will be assigned on a “first-come, first-served” basis.  Using power point, present a brief overview of the key concepts discussed in the chapter.   Also discuss one other reference on the topic in your presentation.  The presentations should contain no more than 12 slides. The power point presentation must be emailed to me by 9:00 am on the day of presentation so I can load the presentation on the classroom computer. Fellow classmates are expected to have read the chapter prior to the presentation and to be prepared to contribute to a classroom discussion.  Factors impacting the grade include organization/content, knowledge/preparedness, quality of slides, and presentation flow/tone of voice/eye contact.  This presentation counts for 12 percent of the course grade.

 

Class Participation and Discussion--- This portion of your grade (8 percent) will be based on contributions to class discussion, class attendance, and short classroom assignments.

ASSIGNMENTS:  Readings and other assignments will be updated at: (www.westga.edu/~dboldt/ECON2105/F09210525H.htm).

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:

Cheating on any exam will result in a zero on the exam, an F in the course, and will be reported to Student Services for appropriate disciplinary action by the University.  Students not familiar with what constitutes academic dishonesty should refer to the Student Handbook.

 

 

 

ECON 2105-25H Course Outline, Examination and Assignment Schedule

Class 

TOPICS

Assignments

1 (8/13)

Ch. 1 Intro to Course and Economic Analysis

Complete the interactive quiz for Ch 1 (on book website)

2 (8/18)

Ch. 2. Economics Tools and Economic Systems

Complete the interactive quiz for Ch 2 (on book website)

3 (8/20)

Ch. 3 Economic Decision Makers

Complete the interactive quiz for Ch 3 (on book website)

4 (8/25)

Ch. 4 Demand, Supply and Markets

Complete the interactive quiz for Ch 4 (on book website).  Review the graphing tutorial for the chapter (under “See It”, 4-1, 4-2, 4-3 and 4-4)

5 (8/27)

Ch. 4 Demand, Supply and Markets (cont.)

 

6 (9/1)

Ch. 5 Introduction to Macroeconomics

Complete the interactive quiz for Ch 5 (on book website)

7 (9/3)

Ch. 5 Introduction to Macroeconomics (cont.)

 

8 (9/8)

Test I (Chapters 1-5)

 

9 (9/10)

Ch. 6 Productivity and Growth

 

10 (9/15)

Ch. 7 Tracking the U.S. Economy

 

11 (9/17)

Ch. 8 Unemployment and Inflation

 

12 (9/22)

Ch. 8 Unemployment and Inflation

 

13 (9/24)

Ch. 9 Aggregate Expenditure

 

14 (9/29)

Ch. 10 Aggregate Expenditure and Demand

 

15 (10/1)

Test II (Chapters 6-10)

 

16 (10/6)

Ch. 11 Aggregate Supply.  Note this is also the last day to withdraw with a grade of W.

 

17 (10/8)

Ch. 12 Fiscal Policy

 

18 (10/13)

Ch. 12 Fiscal Policy (cont.)

 

19 (10/20)

Ch. 13 Fiscal Budgets and Public Policy

 

20 (10/22)

Ch. 14 Money and Financial System

 

21 (10/27)

Ch. 14 Money and Financial System (cont.)

 

22 (10/29)

Ch. 15 Banking and Money Supply

 

23 (11/3)

Ch. 15 Banking and Money Supply (cont.)

 

24 (11/5)

Ch. 19 International Finance

 

25 (11/10)

Ch. 19 International Finance (cont.)

 

26 (11/12)

Test III (Chapters 11-15, 19)

 

27 (11/17)

Student Presentations (The Economics of Macro Issues)

 

28 (11/19)

Student Presentations (The Economics of Macro Issues)

 

29 (11/24)

Student Presentations (The Economics of Macro Issues)

 

30 (12/1)

Student Presentations (The Economics of Macro Issues)

 

12/8 11:00am

Final Examination (selected chapters, The Economics of Macro Issues)