ECONOMICS 2020 MACROECONOMICS Dunbar Hall: 3208, Monday, Wednesday and Friday 2:00 – 2:50 pm Instructor: Johanna Retana Attoh OFFICE: 5409 Friedmann Hall PHONE: (269) 387-­‐5559 EMAIL: johanna.r.attoh@wmich.edu OFFICE HOURS: Monday and Wednesday, 1:00-­‐2:00 pm, 3:00-­‐4:00pm and by appointment REQUIRED PURCHASES 1. Principles of Macroeconomics, Brief Edition, 2e, by Robert Frank and Ben Bernanke. 2. i>clicker. i>clickers are available at the WMU bookstore. If your clicker is not already registered, you must register it at www.iclicker.com. COURSE OBJECTIVES This course will provide an introduction to the principles of macroeconomics. Macroeconomics is the study of the performance of national economies and the policies that governments use to try to improve that performance. The topics we will cover include: national output, economic growth, productivity, unemployment, wages, inflation, interest rates, fiscal policy, and monetary policy. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Upon successful completion of this course, students will understand the definitions of major macroeconomic concepts. Included in these definitions are unemployment and the unemployment rate, price level, inflation rate, money supply, real and nominal interest rates, and gross domestic product (output). Students will also understand how the level of employment, the level of output, the interest rate, and the inflation rate are determined. Finally, students will understand the definitions of monetary and fiscal policy and how changes in monetary and fiscal policy impact employment, output, inflation, and interest rates. COURSE EXPECTATIONS When you come to class, (1) Arrive on time at the beginning of class. (2) Prepare for class by reading assignments in advance of class. (3) Bring a calculator (4) Turn off your cell phone. (5) No iPods or earphones. (6) This is not a social meeting, if you want to engage conversations with your classmates do it BEFORE or AFTER class If any items such as these become a recurring problem, you will be asked to leave the class. You can use your laptop for taking notes. You cannot use your laptop for non-­‐class related activities. Attendance at each class is expected, but attendance is not mandatory. However, consistent attendance is strongly recommended for good performance in this course. Failure to attend class regularly affects your performance. Class participation will be tracked with your i-­‐
clicker. Much of this course is cumulative, with each period's lesson being dependent on comprehension of what was covered in the classes before. Falling behind will make this a much more difficult course. There are several ways to keep up: 1. Make sure you read each assignment prior to coming to class. 2. Spend five or ten minutes directly prior to the start of each class looking over the material from the previous class. 3. The course website (e-­‐learning) contains PowerPoint slides for each lecture. Be sure to print the relevant slides prior to coming to class. If you find yourself falling behind, please see me. My posted office hours list the times that you are guaranteed to find me in my office. However, if you have a conflict, you may arrange a meeting time outside office hours. If an emergency arises and I cannot be there during my office hours, you will be notified. QUIZZES The quizzes are designed to help you understand the concepts covered in class. They also prepare you for the exams. There are no make-­‐ups for quizzes and a grade of zero is given for each missed quiz. Everything presented in class and in the assigned reading is considered "fair game" on quizzes. 1. Each quiz will be unannounced. 2. There will be a minimum of twelve quizzes. Your ten highest quiz scores will count toward your final grade. All other quiz scores will be dropped. 3. The use of electronic devices is not permitted during quizzes. PARTICIPATION 1. Your class participation will be tracked with your i>clicker. 2. You will receive both participation points (for answering questions) and performance points (getting these questions correct). EXAMINATIONS All exams are closed book and notes; you may use only a simple calculator (No cell phones, or any other electronic devices). There will be NO MAKE-­‐ UP EXAMS, NO EXCEPTIONS. In the event that you miss an examination, your absence will be excused only if you can provide a documented and verifiable excuse of illness or other hardship. (A vacation, or family trip, is not considered a hardship.) The excuse for the absence will be accepted at the discretion of the instructor. If an absence from an examination is excused, the final will count for both the final and the missed exam. An unapproved absence from an examination will result in a zero for that examination. No examination grades will be dropped. If you miss two or more exams you will get ZERO credit. You are requested to show a picture ID every time you take a test in this class. With the exception of the final examination, which is already determined, the date of each examination will be announced at least one class period in advance. The date of each examination will also be posted on e-­‐ learning. Bring a number two (2) pencil and eraser to each examination. Hats, other head coverings, and headphones are prohibited during examination periods. MORE NOTES ON EXAMINATIONS 1) There will be four (4) examinations. The last examination will be a comprehensive final examination. Each examination will be worth 20% of your grade. 2) The comprehensive final examination will be held on Monday April 22th, 12:30pm – 2:30pm SPECIAL NEEDS If you are a student who needs special assistance in the administration of examinations, please notify me in writing by January 24th, 2013. EXTRA CREDIT Extra credit opportunities may or may not be available throughout the semester. Extra credit will not be assigned on an individual basis, I reserve the right to offer extra credit to the class as a whole. This decision will be largely based on overall class performance. Also, no extra credit will be assigned after final grades are posted GRADING Your grade will be based on class participation, quizzes, and examinations. Examinations will be worth 80% of your grade. Quizzes will be worth 10% of your grade; class participation will be worth 10% of your grade. GRADING SCALE The tentative grading scale is: A(90-­‐100%), BA(86-­‐89.9%), B(80-­‐85.9%), CB(76-­‐79.9%), C(70-­‐75.9%), DC(66-­‐69.9%), D(60-­‐65.9%), E (<60%). ACADEMIC INTEGRITY You are responsible for making yourself aware of and understanding the policies and procedures in the Undergraduate Catalog that pertain to Academic Honesty. These policies include cheating, fabrication, falsification and forgery, multiple submission, plagiarism, complicity and computer misuse. [The policies can be found at http://catalog.wmich.edu under Academic Policies, Student Rights and Responsibilities.] If there is reason to believe you have been involved in academic dishonesty, you will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. You will be given the opportunity to review the charge(s). If you believe you are not responsible, you will have the opportunity for a hearing. You should consult with your instructor if you are uncertain about an issue of academic honesty prior to the submission of an assignment or test. PRELIMINARY COURSE OUTLINE Below is the preliminary outline of the topics covered in this course. Please be aware that we might diverge from this a little bit just based on the pace of the course. Under no circumstances will you be tested on material that we haven’t covered in class. Topic Part I. Introduction Working with Equations, Graphs, and Tables Supply and Demand Part II. Macroeconomics: Data and Issues Spending, Income, and GDP Inflation and the Price Level Wages and Unemployment Exam I Required Reading Appendix to Chapter 1 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Part III. The Economy in the Long Run Economic Growth Saving, Capital Formation, and Financial Markets Money, Prices, and the Financial System Exam II Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Part IV. The Economy in the Short Run Short-­‐Term Economic Fluctuations Spending, Output Fiscal Policy Monetary Policy and the Federal Reserve Exam III Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Aggregate Demand, Aggregate Supply Final Exam Chapter 13