SYLLABUS: ECONOMICS 220 (Macroeconomics), Fall 2012
Section 0790, Mondays 6:40-9:30 PM, LA 201
Instructor: Wendy Williams
Office Hours: Monday 4:00-5:00 PM; Wednesday 4:00-5:00; 6:30-7:00 PM
Office: LA 17; phone: (510) 235-7800 x-4336
Best method to contact me is e-mail: wendy.williams@sonoma.edu (put Econ Student in subject line and which class you’re in)
CCC Econ Web Site: http://www.contracosta.edu/websites/socialsciences/economics/Shared Documents/default.aspx
Text: Macroeconomics, McConnell and Brue, McGraw Hill
Attending Class is Necessary but not Sufficient.
Prepare to spend time learning the material—approximately 6 hours per week.
Course Schedule (subject to change)
date
Topic
Chapters
8/20
Introduction, Key Concepts, Graphing
Chapters 1, 2
8/27
Production Possibilities Frontier
Chapter 3
9/3
No Class
9/10
Gross Domestic Product, Unemployment
Chapter 6
9/17
Unemployment, Inflation
Chapter 6
9/24
Graphing, basic supply and demand
Chapter 4
10/1
Exam 1
10/8
Aggregate Supply and Demand, Gaps
Chapter 7, 9, 10
10/15
Stabilization Policies
Chapters 9, 10
10/22
Stagflation, Self-Correcting
Chapter 11, video
10/29
11/5
Notes
Chapters 10, 11
Money, Banking and the “Fed”
Exam 2
Chapter 12
11/12
No Class
11/19
Monetary Policy
Chapters 13, 14
11/26
Trade Policy, Comparative Advantage
Chapter17
12/3
Exam 3
12/10
The Debt and the Deficit
12/17
Note time is 7:10-9:00 PM
Chapter 15
Final Exam
Last day to add: August 30
Last day to drop: August 31 (with no W on your transcript)
Last day to sign up for Pass/No Pass: Sept 14
Last day to drop with a “W” grade: Nov 16. If you don’t withdraw and just stop coming to class you will get an F.
Please use classroom etiquette and show respect for others.
Be on time. Don’t leave in the middle of the lecture. If you have a question, ask me not your neighbor.
Don’t forget to turn off your cell phone and put it in your backpack or out of sight.
No cell phones. You will need a simple calculator. No cell phone calculators.
If you want to pass the course you need to come to class, pay attention to the lecture and take good notes.
Current Events –start with these:
Market Place (radio and web): KQED (88.5FM), 4-4:30 PM, 6:30-7 PM; www.marketplace.org
The News Hour (radio, TV and web): KQED, 88.5FM, 3-4PM; ch 9TV, 6-7PM; www.pbs.org/newshour/
Democracy Now (radio, TV, web): KPFA, 94.1FM, 6-7AM and 9-10AM; www.democracynow.org
Living on Earth (radio, web) KQED (88.5 FM), Sat. 4-5PM, KALW, 91.7FM Mon. 1-2PM, http://www.loe.org
Wall Street Journal (newspaper and web) any library, www.wsj.com
The Economist (magazine and web) any library, www.economist.com
One definition of economics:
Economics is a study of mankind in the ordinary business of life; it examines that part of individual and social action
which is most closely connected with the attainment and with the use of the material requisites of well-being.
Alfred Marshall, Principles of Economics (one of the first introductory textbooks), 1890.
Goals of this course:
In general, the goal of any economics course is to provide students with a basic understanding of how individuals, societies and
governments provide for their material well-being. In today’s economy, market transactions play a key role and one of the basic
tools used by economists to understand market transactions is the supply-and-demand model (graph). One specific objective of
this course (whether Macro or Micro), therefore, is to develop your proficiency in the use of the supply-and-demand model. This
will help you understand how “markets” allocate society’s limited resources.
In addition, the specific goals for the Macro are outlined below:
by the end of this course you will be conversant with the following concepts that relate to the overall health of our economy:
a) the business cycle, unemployment and inflation,
b) fiscal and monetary policy,
c) economic growth and development,
d) government budgets and the national debt, and
e) the trade policy debate (free-trade vs. trade protection).
This will enable you to understand the discussion in the news by journalist, economist, politicians and political analysts about the
state of our economy.
The specific Student Learning Outcomes for Macroeconomics are:
1. Students will predict how certain events might affect the state of the economy and, interpreting a series of economic
indicators, assess the state of the economy.
2. For a variety of economic conditions, students will evaluate different fiscal and/or monetary policy actions that could be
taken to improve the situation.
3. Students will evaluate arguments both for and against free trade.
4. Students will explain how the macroeconomic environment and fiscal/monetary actions affect them personally.
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) are defined as the knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes that a student will have attained at
the end (or as a result) of his or her engagement in a particular set of collegiate experiences.
Grades: The course grade will be based on 2 midterms and the final, each worth 100 points for a total of 300 points. One of the 3
midterms will be dropped (the one with the lowest score).
Your grade is based on the point system below:
270-300 points: A
240-269 points: B
210-239 points: C
180-209 points: D
0-179 points: F
If you score an A on the final I will give you an A for the course as long as you have taken 2 of the 3 midterms and have been
coming to class. Everyone must take the final. Make-up exams allowed only with a written note from your doctor, boss,
funeral or wedding director, etc. (A written note from your mom does not count.) I will call to verify. Otherwise, a missed
midterm will be your dropped midterm. Make-up exams are for emergencies only. There will be an extra credit assignment that is
due at the time of your final. You must turn it in at that time. I will not accept late or e-mailed assignments.
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504, requires Contra Costa College to make all programs accessible to qualified
individuals with learning, physical or psychological disabilities. Students who would like to receive accommodations for their
learning, physical, or psychological disabilities should contact the Disabled Students Programs & Services (DSPS) .