ECONOMICS LEVEL 8

Achievement Standard 3.1

Subject Reference / Economics 3.1
Title / Describe the efficiency of market equilibrium
Level / 3 / Credits / 4 / Assessment / External

This achievement standard involves the description of the efficiency of market equilibrium.

Achievement Criteria
Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence
  • Describe the efficiency of market equilibrium
/
  • Explain the efficiency of market equilibrium.
/
  • Fully explain the efficiency of market equilibrium.

Explanatory Notes

1This achievement standard is related to Level 8 Social Sciences, The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media Limited, Ministry of Education, 2007.

2Definitions:

Describe means to give basic definitions, details about, an account of, relate, demonstrate knowledge of. Students may give descriptions in words, diagrams, flow charts, graphs or other similar devices.

Explain means to identify a key idea and to say why or how, give reasons for, predict, interpret, compare, distinguish in the context given.

Fully explain means to explain in depth

  1. The description of the efficiency of market equilibrium, will involve a selection from:
  • use marginal utility to derive an individual demand curve
  • use diminishing returns to explain the shape of a firms supply curve
  • market forces will lead to a market equilibrium
  • market equilibrium is allocatively efficient (i.e. the sum of consumers’ and producers’ surplus are maximised)
  • recognise that markets respond to real world changes and the impact on consumer surplus and producer surplus
  • how countries gain from international trade
  • how changes imposed on market equilibrium result in a loss of allocative efficiency (deadweight loss) e.g. sales tax, subsidy, tariff
  • define and calculate price elasticity of demand, cross elasticity of demand, income elasticity of demand and price elasticity of supply
  • reasons for differing elasticities for different goods and services
  • significance for firms in their pricing decisions
  • supply responsiveness in the long term compared with the short term
  • the incidence of a sales tax and a subsidy (elastic demand versus an inelastic demand)
  • how prices and incentives impact on the allocation of resources

ECONOMICS LEVEL 8

Achievement Standard 3.2

Subject Reference / Economics 3.2
Title / Describe efficiency in different markets
Level / 3 / Credits / 4 / Assessment / External

This achievement standard involves describing the efficiency of perfectly competitive and monopoly markets.

Achievement Criteria

Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence
  • Describe efficiency in different markets.
/
  • Explain efficiency in different markets.
/
  • Fully efficiency in different markets

Explanatory Notes

  1. This achievement standard is related to Level 8 Social Sciences, The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media Limited, Ministry of Education, 2007.
  1. Definitions:

Describe means to give basic definitions, details about, an account of, relate, demonstrate knowledge of. Students may give descriptions in words, diagrams, flow charts, graphs or other similar devices.

Explain means to identify a key idea and to say why or how, give reasons for, predict, interpret, compare, distinguish in the context given.

Fully explain means to explain in depth

  1. The description of the efficiency of in different marketswill involve a selection from:
  • features of perfect competition and monopoly
  • accounting and economic profit
  • thelaw of diminishing returns to show its relationship to increasing costs and the shape of the marginal cost curve
  • short-run average, marginal and total cost concepts and their relationships.
  • average and marginal revenue and their relationships
  • marginal analysis to determine output and pricing decisions
  • short- or long-run equilibrium positions.
  • perfectly competitive firms operate at the profit maximising output where P(=MR)=MC and are allocatively efficient
  • monopoly firms operate at the profit maximising output where MR=MC and are allocatively inefficient

ECONOMICS LEVEL 8

Achievement Standard 3.3

Subject Reference / Economics 3.3
Title / Describe micro-economic concepts by completing economic inquiries
Level / 3 / Credits / 5 / Assessment / Internal

This achievement standard involves describing micro-economic concepts by completing economic inquiries.

Achievement Criteria

Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence
  • Describe micro-economic concepts by completing economic inquiries
/
  • Explain micro-economic concepts by completing economic inquiries
/
  • Fully explain micro-economic concepts by completing economic inquiries

Explanatory Notes

  1. This achievement standard is related to Level 8 Social Sciences, The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media Limited, Ministry of Education, 2007.

2 Definitions:

Describe means to give basic definitions, give details about, an account of, relate, demonstrate knowledge of. Students may give descriptions in words, diagrams, flow charts, graphs or other similar devices.

Explain means to identify a key idea and to say why or how, give reasons for, predict, interpret, compare, distinguish in the context given.

Fully explain means to explain in depth

Micro-economic concepts are to be taken from EN3 in 3.1 and 3.2

Economic inquiriesinvolve students carrying out simulations/activities to test microeconomic theory

Assessment Conditions

  1. A portfolio approach would be a suitable method of assessing this standard. This would involve collecting assessment evidence from students on selected microeconomic concepts after the relevant teaching and learning episode has occurred for that concept.
  1. A portfolio approach allows for a variety of teaching and learning experiences to be used as the basis for collecting assessment evidence. In addition it allows the Key Competencies and real applications of economic concepts to be interwoven into teaching programmes.
  1. Assessment evidence must be valid and reliable
  1. Possible inquiries
  • students surveying consumers to determine their marginal utilities for different quantities consumed of a single product, the plotting of results to derive individual and market demand curves
  • classroom simulations to show how fixed resources inputs result in diminishing marginal returns, link to marginal cost curves and the upward sloping supply curve
  • conducting student surveys to provide advice to businesses about pricing decisions’ of products with different elasticities
  • from given data students in groups calculate / construct cost and revenue curves for firms to advise clients on pricing and output decisions

ECONOMICS LEVEL 8

Achievement Standard 3.4

Subject Reference / Economics 3.4
Title / Describe government interventions to correct market failure
Level / 3 / Credits / 5 / Assessment / Internal

This achievement standard involves describing government interventions to correct market failure

Achievement Criteria

Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence
  • Describe government interventions to correct market failure.
/
  • Explain government interventions to correct market failure.
/
  • Fully explain government interventions to correct market failure

Explanatory Notes

  1. This achievement standard is related to Level 8 Social Sciences, The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media Limited, Ministry of Education, 2007.
  1. Definitions:

Describe means to give basic definitions, details about, an account of, relate, demonstrate knowledge of. Students may give descriptions in words, diagrams, flow charts, graphs or other similar devices.

Explain means to identify a key idea and to say why or how, give reasons for, predict, interpret, compare, distinguish in the context given.

Fully explain means to assess/judge the impact of each intervention and could include prioritising, making recommendations and/or justifying them in terms of their efficiency and / or equity

  1. Economic models should be used to identify and compare the social equilibrium with the private market equilibrium and to show the effects of allocation via the public sector. Models may include: supply and demand, social marginal cost and benefit; Lorenz curve, and cost curves.
  1. The description of government interventions to correct market failurewill involve a selection from:
  2. Externalities

–define and give examples of positive and negative externalities

–understand the significance of property rights

–derive social marginal cost curves and social marginal benefit curves.

-explain how subsidies, taxes, regulations, property rights and public provision can be used to internalise positive and negative externalities.

  • Merit/demerit goods

–distinguish between social and private preferences for certain goods

–give examples of merit and demerit goods.

–explain alternative means of increasing (decreasing) the consumption of merit (demerit) goods.

  • Public goods

–distinguish between public goods and private goods

–identify examples of public goods

–explain why public goods are not normally provided by the market.

–discuss the collective provision of public goods.

  • Natural monopolies

–identify examples of natural monopolies

–explain how economies of scale can lead to natural monopolies

–discuss reasons why natural monopolies may or may not operate for the good of society.

–demonstrate how natural monopolies can be influenced by the use of subsidies, regulations or public ownership

  • Income distribution

–distinguish between equity and equality

–explain why the free market solution is not always equitable.

- identify the means by which the state can attempt to achieve equity

–show how governments may intervene for equity at the cost of efficiency and discuss the equity/efficiency trade off.

Assessment Conditions

  1. Activities to collect evidence of achievement might include: students individually preparing powerpoints explaining specific examples of market failures of interest to them, groups completing of graphic organisers designed to arrange the case for and against specific market failures by evaluating their impacts on equity and/or efficiency, individual student presentations using appropriate technologies the “best” solution to current (market failure) issues
  1. Assessment evidence must be valid and reliable

ECONOMICS LEVEL 8

Achievement Standard 3.5

Subject Reference / Economics 3.5
Title / Describe the influences on the New Zealand economy
Level / 3 / Credits / 6 / Assessment / External

This achievement standard involves describing the internal and external influences on the New Zealand economy.

Achievement Criteria

Achievement / Achievement with Merit / Achievement with Excellence
  • Describe the influences on the New Zealand economy.
/
  • Explain the influences on the New Zealand economy.
/
  • Fully explain the influences on the New Zealand economy.

Explanatory Notes

  1. This achievement standard is related to Level 8 Social Sciences, The New Zealand Curriculum, Learning Media Limited, Ministry of Education, 2007.
  1. Definitions:

Describe means to give basic definitions, details about, an account of, relate, demonstrate knowledge of. Students may give descriptions in words, diagrams, flow charts, graphs or other similar devices.

Explain means to identify a key idea and to say why or how, give reasons for, predict, interpret, compare, distinguish in the context given.

Fully explain means to explain in depth

3.The description of the influences on the New Zealand economywill involve a selection from:

  • use relevant macroeconomic indicators to describe the current situation of the New Zealand economy
  • identify New Zealand’s current position on the business (trade) cycle
  • use the aggregate demand and aggregate supply model to illustrate and analyse the New Zealand economy;
  • the impacts on the macroeconomy of internal / domestic influences, including:
  • government actions
  • changes in consumption, and savings and investment;
  • the impacts on the macroeconomy of external influences, including:
  • changes in terms of trade, exchange rates, trade agreements, and the world economy;
  • identify the government economic goals, which include:
  • maintaining price stability, improving the current account balance, increasing the rate of economic growth, and achieving full employment;
  • recognise there may be conflicts between the government’s economic goals;
  • analyse the appropriateness of government policies that relate to stabilisation and development, including:
  • Monetary Policy
  • the roles of the Reserve Bank (Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act 1989 and
    the Policy Target Agreement)
  • the effect of a change in the official cash rate on market interest rates
  • effects of interest rate changes on consumption, investment, exchange rates and net exports.
  • Fiscal Policy
  • changes in tax rates (direct or indirect)
  • government revenue and expenditure, and the operating balance
  • major components of the government’s budget (reference: Current Economic Fiscal Updates)
  • constraints imposed on government by the Public Finance Amendment Act 2004.
  • Other govt policies eg. supply-side policies, FTA’s

NZCETA Economics Alignment – NZC Level 8 (Level 3) Draft Achievement Standards