ECONOMICS 140
INTRODUCTION TO MACROECONOMICS
WINTER 2015
Course Objectives:
This is an introductory course in macroeconomics, which is the study of the behaviour and performance
of the economy as a whole. You will be introduced to the concepts, principles, and tools, which
economists use to understand the causes of both short-run economic fluctuations and long-run economic
growth and to analyze the macroeconomic problems and policy issues facing our economy.
Lecture Sections and Instructors:
Section
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
TR
MW
TR
TR
MW
MW
T
Time
8:30 – 9:50 a.m.
1:00 – 2.20 p.m.
11:30 – 12:50 p.m.
10:00 – 11.20 a.m.
10:00 – 11.20 a.m.
11:30 – 12.50 p.m.
7:00 – 9.50 p.m.
Location
1E1
P1025/27
1E1
1E1
1E1
1E1
1E1
Instructor and Office
Christos Shiamptanis
Justin Smith
Justin Smith
Christos Shiamptanis
Rizwan Tahir
Rizwan Tahir
Robert Jefferson
Instructor Office Hours and Contact Information:
Instructor
Robert Jefferson
Christos Shiamptanis
Justin Smith
Rizwan Tahir
Email
rjefferson@wlu.ca
cshiamptanis@wlu.ca
jusmith@wlu.ca
rtahir@wlu.ca
Extension
2301
4554
Office
P2045
SBE3261
P3090
P2045
Office Hours
R 5:00-6:30pm
W 2:30-4:30pm
R 3:00-5:00pm
MW 1:00-2:00pm
Course Website:
The course website is https://mylearningspace.wlu.ca. Lecture notes, course announcements, grades,
and other important information will be posted there. We expect students to check the website regularly.
Textbook & Course Materials:
1) Michael Parkin and Robin Bade, Macroeconomics: Canada in the Global Environment, 8th Edition
2) MyEconLab (Access Code Card packaged with above)
3) iClicker
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The textbooks available in the bookstore will come packaged with MyEconLab access (see below), but
you can also purchase a stand-alone copy if you choose not to use MyEconLab.
MyEconLab is an online assessment tool that will be used for optional weekly quizzes. It also contains
various functionalities that will help students learn the material. You can purchase a copy of the
textbook packaged with MyEconLab, or you can purchase access separately.
The iClicker will be used for optional in-class quizzes in each lecture. Students without an iclicker
remote can purchase one from the Laurier Bookstore.
Evaluation:
The final grade is assigned based on the scheme outlined in the table below.
Component of Evaluation
Best 15 clicker scores (optional)
Best 8 of 9 MyEconLab Quizzes (optional)
Term Test 1
Term Test 2
Final Exam
Weight
5%*
5%*
20%
25%
45%
* If the percent score of the clicker component and/or the MyEconLab component is lower than
the percent score of the final exam, we will automatically transfer its weight to the final exam.
Course Topics and Textbook Readings:
TOPIC
TEXT CHAPTER
Measuring GDP and Economic Growth
Ch. 20 (p.467-483)
Monitoring Jobs and Inflation
Ch. 21
The Keynesian Fixed-Prices Macro Model
Ch. 27 (p.647-660, 666-671)
Midterm 1 Covers Chapters 20, 21, 27 (p.647-660, 666-671)
Aggregate Supply and Aggregate Demand
Ch. 26, Ch. 27 (p.661-665)
Finance, Saving, and Investment
Ch. 23
Money, the Price Level, and Inflation
Ch. 24
Midterm 2 Covers Chapters 26, 27 (all), 23, 24
Monetary Policy
Ch. 30
Fiscal Policy
Ch. 29
The Exchange Rate and the Balance of Payments
Ch. 25
Economic Growth
Ch. 22
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Schedule:
Assessment
Quiz 1
Quiz 2
Quiz 3
Midterm 1
Quiz 4
Quiz 5
Quiz 6
Midterm 2
Quiz 7
Quiz 8
Quiz 9
Due Date
Tuesday, January 20 at 9:00 p.m.
Friday, January 23 at 9:00 p.m.
Friday, January 30 at 9:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 7 at 5:00 – 6:30 p.m.
Friday, February 13 at 9:00 p.m.
Friday, February 27 at 9:00 p.m.
Friday, March 6 at 9:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 14 at 2:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Friday, March 20 at 9:00 p.m.
Friday, March 27 at 9:00 p.m.
Monday, April 6 at 9:00 p.m.
Missed Tests, Exams, Clickers, and MyEconLab Quizzes:
1. Term Tests: There are no deferred term tests. Students who cannot write either (or both) of the term
tests and have an acceptable excuse will have the corresponding weight(s) moved to their final exam.
Students must submit documentation of illness, family emergency or other unavoidable & legitimate
conflict to Helen Kaluzny in the Economics Office (P3082). Students who miss a term test without an
acceptable excuse and documentation will be assigned a mark of zero for that test.
2. The Final Exam: Students who are unable to write the scheduled final exam for valid cause must
submit a petition with supporting documentation to Lee Leeman in the SBE Petitions Office (SBE1256).
Note that the Petitions Committee will not grant appeals from students who write a final exam and
subsequently claim to have been ill or indisposed at the time of writing.
3. Clickers and MyEconLab: Only the best 15 clicker scores, and only the best 8 MyEconLab scores,
count towards your final grade. They are structured this way to allow for student absence or illness
without needing to provide a note. There will be no deferrals, extensions, or grade reweighting for these
items. A grade of zero will be applied for missed clicker scores and missed MyEconLab quizzes.
Class Participation with iClickers
•
•
•
Students earn optional participation marks through the classroom use of iClickers and are
responsible for bringing a clicker to each class, ensuring that the batteries work and that the clicker is
tuned to the correct frequency.
Graded class participation will begin in the first class of week 2 (the week of January 12th) and
continue over the term.
In each lecture is scored out of 5 points. Your score is determined by a participation component and
a performance component. For the participation component, you will earn 3 points for answering at
least 75% of the questions (whether correct or not), and 0 points otherwise. For the performance
component, you will earn 1 point for each question answered correctly, and 0 points for each
question answered incorrectly. Your grade for each lecture is the sum of the participation and
performance component, to a maximum of 5 points.
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•
•
•
Your final participation grade, optionally worth 5% of your final course grade, will be the average of
the best 15 scores. The lowest scores will not count to allow for absences from class due to illness,
forgotten clickers, dead batteries etc.
If your percent grade on the clicker component is lower than your percent score on the final exam,
we will automatically transfer its weight to the final exam.
Your clicker grades will count if you attend a lecture section other than your own, but students will
only receive credit for one lecture topic per week (i.e. you cannot attend Smith’s Monday lecture and
Shiamptanis’ Tuesday lecture and get credit for both). We discourage students from attending
sections other than your own, as space is often limited and it becomes difficult to track clicker
scores. If the lecture halls fill to capacity, students who are not registered in that section will be
asked to leave.
MyEcobLab Quizzes
•
•
•
•
•
Students can complete optional weekly quizzes using the software MyEconLab.
Students are allowed three (3) attempts at each of the MyEconLab quizzes. Your grade on each quiz
is the best of the three attempts.
We count only the best 8 of 9 quizzes.
If your percent grade on the MyEconLab component is lower than your percent score on the final
exam, we will automatically transfer its weight to the final exam.
If you opt not to register for MyEconLab, the weight will transfer automatically to the final exam.
Assistance with Course Material:
Teaching Assistants:
Teaching assistants (TAs) will be available to answer student questions regarding course material
during their office hours, which will be held in P3117A. Office hour times will be posted outside
P3117A and on the course website.
Accessible Learning
Students with disabilities or special needs are advised to contact Laurier’s Accessible Learning
Centre for information regarding its services and resources. Students are encouraged to review the
Calendar for information regarding all services available on campus.
Supplemental Instruction
This course is not SI-supported.
Other Important Information
Academic Misconduct
You are reminded that the University will levy sanctions on students who are found to have
committed, or have attempted to commit, acts of academic or research misconduct. You are expected
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to know what constitutes an academic offense, to avoid committing such offenses, and to take
responsibility for your academic actions. For information on categories of offenses and types of
penalty, please consult the relevant section of the Undergraduate Academic Calendar. If you need
clarification of aspects of University policy on Academic and Research Misconduct, please consult
your instructor.
Plagiarism
Wilfrid Laurier University uses software that can check for plagiarism. Students may be required to
submit their written work in electronic form and have it checked for plagiarism.
Electronic Devices
Your instructor may allow you to use mobile devices, specifically laptops and tablets, in this course
for educational purposes only (i.e., learning directed related to the course). At times your instructor
may allow you to use your mobile device to complete an activity or task. At other times, your
instructor may ask you to close your laptop or turn off your tablet to focus your attention on other
course related tasks. Your instructor may also disallow mobile devices entirely. Failure to comply
may result in you being asked to leave your device in your bag or at the front of the room for all or
part of the class/course, or being asked to leave the classroom.
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Clicker Registration
•
•
•
•
You are responsible for purchasing your clicker from the Laurier Bookstore.
You are required to register your clicker online via MyLearningSpace
(https://mylearningspace.wlu.ca). When you login you will see a course called “Clicker Registration
for Winter 2015”. To register your clicker, follow these steps:
1. Enter the “Clicker Registration for Winter 2015” course by clicking on the title
2. From the homepage, click on the “Click here to register your clicker” link
3. Enter your clicker serial Remote ID in the box provided.
4. Click on the ‘Register’ button.
Please note: Failure to register your clicker in this way may result in loss of clicker marks. You
MUST complete the registration to have your clicker marks assigned to you. If you registered your
clicker in Fall 2014, you may not need to register again, but please CONFIRM that your clicker is
registered in the registration area in MyLearningSpace. If you registered your clicker in previous
years, you MUST register it again for this term.
Please direct any questions about this process or about clickers in general to clickers@wlu.ca.
A clicker troubleshooting station is available at the help desk in the concourse (Waterloo) or in the
BRAC (Brantford).
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Registering for MyEconLab
•
•
Students must register for the software by following the instructions below. Note that all sections of
the course register using the same course ID.
Register using the same name that WLU has in its official records (i.e. no nicknames, etc.). This is
to ensure that we can accurately match your MyEconLab scores to our classlist.
MyLab & Mastering
Student Registration Instructions
To register for EC140 Winter 2015:
1. Go to pearsonmylabandmastering.com.
2. Under Register, click Student.
3. Enter your instructor’s course ID: smith18353, and click Continue.
4. Sign in with an existing Pearson account or create an account:
· If you have used a Pearson website (for example, MyITLab, Mastering, MyMathLab, or
MyPsychLab), enter your Pearson username and password. Click Sign in.
· If you do not have a Pearson account, click Create. Write down your new Pearson username and
password to help you remember them.
5. Select an option to access your instructor’s online course:
· Use the access code that came with your textbook or that you purchased separately from the
bookstore.
· Buy access using a credit card or PayPal.
· If available, get 14 days of temporary access. (Look for a link near the bottom of the page.)
6. Click Go To Your Course on the Confirmation page. Under MyLab & Mastering New Design on the
left, click EC140 Winter 2015 to start your work.
Retaking or continuing a course?
If you are retaking this course or enrolling in another course with the same book, be sure to use your
existing Pearson username and password. You will not need to pay again.
To sign in later:
1. Go to pearsonmylabandmastering.com.
2. Click Sign in.
3. Enter your Pearson account username and password. Click Sign in.
4. Under MyLab & Mastering New Design on the left, click EC140 Winter 2015 to start your
work.
Additional Information
See Students > Get Started on the website for detailed instructions on registering with an access code,
credit card, PayPal, or temporary access.
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