Department of Economics/Philosophy/Jewish Studies

Session: Fall 2016

Course Syllabus

Principles of Macroeconomics

Economics 2

Instructor:

Wesley Oliphant, Ph.D.

Office: CC 219

Office Hours: MW 11:05am-12:05pm; TTh 12:45-1:50pm; by appointment

Email: (please allow at least 24 hours for a response)

Phone: (818) 947-2450

Course Description:

A macroeconomics course which is a continuation of the introductory principles of economics. Topics include the following: circular flow model, PPF, GDP,economic growth, unemployment, cost of living, inflation, money, open economy and aggregate demand and aggregate supply.

Course Goals:

This course will provide you with the basic economic literacy to be informed citizens in today’s world. At the end of the course, you will have a set of tools with which you will be able to understand, interpret, and analyze macroeconomic issues and problems that you encounter.

Additional course goals are the following:

  1. Define the terms and phrases unique to Economics.
  2. State and graph the principles or relationships explored in the course, i.e., PPF, supply and demand, money market, Keynesian Cross, Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply.
  3. Predict how changes in fiscal policy will influence the economy, i.e., changes in GDP, employment, and the price level.
  4. Predict how changes in monetary policy will influence the economy, i.e., changes in GDP, employment, and the price level.
  5. Compare the consequences of various exchange rate systems.

Course Student Level Outcome:

Analyze national economic issues (and current events) with respect to inflation, unemployment, and economic growth.

Required Text:

McConnell, Campbell R., Stanley L. Brue, and Sean M. Flynn, Economics. Principles, Problems, and Policies. 20th edition, McGraw-Hill Irwin. 2015.

Please remember you have different ways to obtain the book – e.g., renting the book.

Student Conduct:

Cheating and plagiarism is unacceptable under any circumstances and will be met with severe consequences. For further information concerning academic integrity, please see the following website:

Students with Disabilities:

If you are a student with a disability and require classroom accommodations, and have not contacted the Services for Students with Disabilities Office (SSD), do so in a timely manner. SSD is located in the Student Services Annex, Room 175 or call SSD at (818) 947-2681 or TTD (818) 947-2680, to meet with an SSD counselor. If SSD has already sent the memo to instructor confirming accommodations required by the student for this class, please meet with me to discuss arrangements.

Withdrawal Policy:

Please note that if you want to withdraw from the course without a grade of “W”, you need to do so online bySunday,September 11th. The deadline to drop the course with a grade of “W” is online by Sunday,November 20th. Please see

Feedback:

I welcome your feedback as to how I can improve the course (e.g., need to speak more loudly or slowly, write larger, provide more examples). Please feel free to email me at any time, come to my office hours or talk to me after class - it will not affect your grade either positively or negatively. I particularly encourage you to do so after the midterms.

Grading:

This course must be taken for a grade – not Pass/No Pass. Course grades will be based on the following:

Total Points for the Course: 600

Assignment/Exam # of Points

Homework 1 40

Homework 2 40

Homework 3 40

Homework 4 40

Homework 5 40

Midterm 1 100

Midterm 2 100

Final 200

Aside from the first three weeks, attendance will not be required for this course. The first midterm will cover the material for roughly the first third of the course. The second midterm will cover both the first and second thirds of the course but concentrate on material from the second third. The final will be comprehensive and so, cover all concepts. You will not be allowed to use books, notes, cell phones or classmates to answer questions. Anyone found cheating will fail the particular assignment/test.

If you cannot attend the first midterm due to an unforeseen event and you have sufficient documentation (e.g., doctor’s note), the second midterm will be worth 200 points. If you cannot attend the second and you have sufficient documentation, the final exam will be worth 300 points. No make-up final exam will be given. If you cannot make the scheduled final exam time, you should withdraw from this course.

Homework is due at the beginning of lecture. Please note that answers to the homework are graded on effort as well. If you make a reasonable attempt at the questions even if you get them wrong, you should receive some credit. However, answers like “Yes”, “True” or “Don’t know” will not receive credit. The solutions will be posted soon after they are turned in so late homework will not be accepted. To count, the homework must be physically turned in and not emailed.

To do well in this course will require commitment. Economics is not a subject whose concepts can be learned the first time you are exposed to them. You will need to review your notes (and possibly read the book) a few times to thoroughly understand the material.Also, I strongly advise you not to wait for the night before the exams to start studying. All grades are final when filed by the instructor.

Course Outline

Date / Lecture Topics / Readings / Exams and HomeworkDue Dates
Week 1
8/29 / Intro;
Seven Principles of Economics;
Two Basic Models; / Chapter 2
Week 2
9/5 / Two Basic Models (cont.) / Chapter 2
Week 3
9/12 / Supply and Demand / Chapter3 / Homework 1 due
Week 4
9/19 / Effects of Government Policies;
GDP / Chapters5 and 25 / Homework 2 due
Week 5
9/26 / Review for Midterm 1;
Midterm 1
Week 6
10/3 / Economic Growth / Chapter 26
Week 7
10/10 / Cost of Living / Chapter 27
Week 8
10/17 / Cost of Living; Unemployment / Chapter 27
Week 9
10/24 / Unemployment / Chapter 27 / Homework 3 due;
Practice Problems
Week 10
10/31 / Money / Chapters 32 and 34
Week 11
11/7 / Review for Midterm 2;
Midterm 2 / Midterm 2
Week 12
11/14 / Open Economy / Chapter 38
Week 13
11/21 / Keynesian Cross / Chapter 29
Week 14
11/28 / Aggregate Demand and
Aggregate Supply / Chapter30 / Homework 4 due
Week 15
12/5 / Catch up / Review / Homework 5 due
Week 16
12/12 / FINAL / FINAL / FINAL

Course Syllabus Subject to Update by the Instructor

Note: Sometimes students who are disappointed with their grade ask whether they can do additional work to increase their grade. The answer is no because to do so would be completely unfair to other students in the class.

Good luck with the fall term!

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