THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO
Joseph M. Bryan School of Business and Economics
Department of Economics
Econ101: Introduction to Economics
Spring 2011
I.
Meeting Time and Place
Monday, Wednesday and Friday 12:00 – 12:50 p.m.
Room 122 Bryan Bldg.
II. Instructor:
Steven H Wagner
Office: 473 Bryan Bldg.
Phone: 336-256-8594
Email: shwagner@uncg.edu (best way to contact me)
Blackboard: http://blackboard.uncg.edu
III. Office Hours:
Wednesday and Friday: 10:00 - 11:30 am
-orBy appointment
-orStop in: I am in my office most mornings and early afternoons.
IV. Prerequisites:
GPA of 2.0
V.
Credit Hours:
This is a 3 credit hour course.
Note: No credit will be given for ECO 101 if simultaneously enrolled in ECO 201 or 202 or
an equivalent non-UNCG course.
VI. Required Course Materials:
Text: Moomaw and Olson, Economics & Contemporary Issues (Thomson
South-Western, 2007, 8th edition: note 7th edition is acceptable also)
Calculator
VII. Course Description and Learning Objectives:
ECO 101 provides an introduction to basic economic concepts and their application to policy
issues facing the contemporary U.S. economy. This course will enhance students’ ability to interpret
and evaluate economic developments and policies.
Specific learning objectives include a demonstrated understanding of and ability to apply :
1) The concepts of scarcity and opportunity costs and their relation to the necessity for
economic choices that individuals and society must make.
2) An economy’s production possibilities and trade-offs between current consumption and
future growth.
3) Supply and Demand and the role of the price system in organizing economic activity.
4) The economist’s notions of efficiency and its’ use in economic analysis of public policy.
5) The types of market failures (externalities, public goods and monopoly power) and
appropriate policy intervention.
6) The meaning and of rates of return and present values and their application to investment
analysis.
7) Economic dimensions of Educational, Environmental, Health, Crime prevention and
Science/technology policy issues facing the U.S..
8) The measurement of such macroeconomic data as: nominal and real GDP; price indexes
such as the CPI and the GDP price deflator; the rate of economic growth and inflation;
and the unemployment rate.
9) The role, effect and limitations of monetary policy on aggregate economic activity
10) The role, effect and limitations of fiscal policy on aggregate economic activity
VIII.
Class Organization, Procedures and Expectations:
Class time will be largely devoted to lecture and discussion based on the text. The
basic structure of the course will be as follows:
•
I will review and clarify and reinforce key economic principles from the assigned
chapters.
•
Other Economics Department faculty will lead discussions of policy areas based on
their areas of research interest. These discussions will based on the policy areas in the
text but will extend material from the book.
•
At the beginning of each “section”, I will assign “study guides” to reinforce your
studies for that section. At the end of each course “section” there will be a short, inclass quiz.
•
Midterms will be based on reading, study guides, quizzes and material presented in
class.
To be successful, you should and I will expect you to:
1) Read assigned chapters before class.
2) Attend class and participate as appropriate.
3) Work through study-guide assignments during that section of the course.
2
4) Use the discussion board on the course blackboard site, http://blackboard.uncg.edu ,
to ask questions on your reading, homework and class material. (I will check daily
for questions)
5) Use my office hours or schedule an appointment if you are having trouble or have
any questions.
You should expect me to:
1)
Present course material in an organized and helpful manner.
2)
Start class on time and conduct a full class.
3)
Encourage questions and appropriate discussion.
4) Be available for out of class assistance and respond promptly to questions on the
blackboard discussion board.
5) Write exams and assignments that fairly reflect course content and learning
objectives.
6) Provide appropriate and timely feedback on all assignments, quizzes and exams.
IX.
Grading of Exams, Quizzes and Study Guides:
Grades: The course grade will be determined by weighting your numeric grades as follows:
Item
Weight
Study Guides
10%
Quizzes (after dropping the lowest)
20%
1st Midterm Exam:
20%
2nd Midterm Exam
20%
3rd Midterm Exam
20%
Final Examination:
30%
TOTAL (After dropping one midterm)
100%
Study Guides:
There will be 6 study guide assignments. Study guide assignments will consist of 30 to
60 true/false, multiple choice and short answer questions or problems. Study guide
assignments that are submitted when due will earn 100 points each and contribute
10% to your final grade.
Quizzes:
3
Questions on the 5 in-class quizzes will be drawn primarily from study guide
problems. These quizzes will be graded and the average of the highest 4 of 5 quiz
grades will be used to calculate your average quiz grade. The average quiz grade will
contribute 20% to your final course grade. No make-up quizzes will be given.
Midterm Examinations:
Three midterms will be given. Each of the two highest grades will contribute 20% to
the final course grade. No make-up midterm exams will be given. A missed midterm
will count as a 0. Students may elect to use the average of all three midterm scores as
the final exam grade. In this case, the student will not take the final exam.
The general format of midterm exams will be definitions, multiple-choice
questions and short answer problems. Study guide items and quiz questions will be
very helpful as exam preparation.
Final Exam:
The final exam will cumulative and, in accordance will the University’s Final Exam
Schedule, will be given on Friday, April 29th from 12:00 to 3:00pm. Students who
are unable or choose not to take the final exam will be given a final exam grade equal
to the average of their 3 midterm grades.
Students with more than two final examinations within 24 hours may apply to
the Registrar's office for permission to change. You will need to show me a note from
the registrar's office or from the advising office (Room 232) to reschedule the final
exam. The usual policy is to change the middle final examination in a sequence of
three. All requests for changes in final examinations must be filed with the Registrar's
Office by Reading Day.
Missed exams and quizzes:
There are no makeup exams or quizzes. If you know you will miss an exam, please
contact me as soon as practical before the scheduled exam date in order that alternate
arrangements can be made.
Weather Policy:
If the University closes on a day when a study guide assignment is due or a quiz or an
exam is scheduled, then the assignment, quiz or exam will be due or given on the next
day that class is scheduled and the University is open.
X. Course Grading
The course grading scale is as follows:
Letter
Grade
A
AB+
B
BC+
Numerical
Score
≥ 92.0
90 - 91.9
88 - 89.9
82 - 87.9
80 - 81.9
78 - 79.9
Letter
Grade
C
CD+
D
DF
Numerical scores for the final grade will be determined as follows:
4
Numerical
Score
72-77.9
70-71.9
68-69.9
62-67.9
60-61.9
< 60
I. For students taking the final,
10% times the average of the 5 highest study guide scores
+ 20 % times the average of the 4 highest quiz scores
+ 20% times the highest midterm score
+ 20% times the second highest midterm score
+ 30% times the Final Exam Score
II. For student opting to not take the final,
10% times the average of the 5 highest study guide scores
+ 20 % times the average of the 4 highest quiz scores
+ 20% times the highest midterm score
+ 20% times the second highest midterm score
+ 30% times the average of the three midterm scores
The resultant numerical score will be rounded to the nearest tenth to determine your letter
grade. Though I will not regularly take class attendance, class participation and class
attendance may also be considered in the determination of your final grade.
One or two grades of an A+ may be given in recognition of exceptional performance on exams
and quizzes combined with in-class contributions to the learning experience of the entire class.
Once final grades are submitted, I will not change grades based on subjective considerations or
re-grade old exams or assignments.
XI. Class Conduct, Honor Policy and Services for Disabled Students
Civility and respect for others will govern the class. Students not adhering to these guidelines
will be withdrawn from class, see studentconduct.uncg.edu/policy for polices and procedures.
The University’s Honor Policy governs all work in the course. Violations of the Honor Code
will be prosecuted. It is the responsibility of each student to understand and uphold the Honor Code.
If you have a disability and wish an accommodation, you should make arrangements through the
Office of Disability Services (ODS) and notify me as soon as practical.
If you need to familiarize yourself with the content of the honor, conduct and disability
policies, the URLs are, respectively,
*
http://www.uncg.edu/bae/faculty_student_guidelines_sp07.pdf
*
http://academicintegrity.uncg.edu/complete/
*
http://ods.dept.uncg.edu/policies/#S1
XII. Schedule:
5
Below is fairly detailed schedule. Scheduling of topics may change as the course progresses.
Quiz and Exam dates, however, will not change.
ECO 101 WORKING SCHEDULE FOR SPRING 2011: DATE 12/24/10
Week of
Monday
Wednesday
10-Jan
Into: Econ Growth,Scarcity & Choice
Opportunity cost , Resources
17-Jan
MLK Day
Economic Systems/Div of labor
Friday
Growth & Production Possibilites
Science and Technology: Link
24-Jan
Quiz 1 & Intro to Market Economy
Demand and Supply
Demand and Supply
31-Jan
Supply, Demand & the role of prices
Demand and supply anaylsis
Market Equilibrium and adjustment
7-Feb
Demand and Supply: Farm Policy
Quiz 2 & Review
14-Feb
Review Exam 1 and Intro to Efficiency
Efficiency and Competitive markets
Market failure: government
21-Feb
Market Failure: Private sector
Intro to Pollution
Environmental Policy: Holland
28-Feb
Monoplies and Market power
Quiz 3 and Efficiency & market power Health Care policy: intro
7-Mar
Spring Break
Spring Break
Exam 1
Text
Chapters
1
1&2
2
2&3
3
4
4&6
7
Spring Break
14-Mar
Heath Care Policy : Courtemanche
Evaluating an investment
Is College Worth the Cost ?
7&9
21-Mar
Is College Worth the Cost ?
Public goods
Optimal crime rates
7 & 11
28-Mar
Quiz 4 & Review
Intro to Macro - Measurement
11 & 12
4-Apr
Measuring & intro to Ag Demand
Aggregate Supply and Demand
11-Apr
Unemployment and Inflation
Inflation and the Quantity of Money Quiz 5 and Intro to Monetary Policy
13 & 14
18-Apr
Monetary Policy:
Budget Deficits: Allen
14 & 15
25-Apr
Macro Review
Exam 2
Exam 3: Macro (Tuesday, 26th)
6
AD/AS and Fiscal Policy
Spring Holiday
Final Exam 12:00–3:00 P.M (29th)
12