COURSE OUTCOMES
ECONOMICS
(SECONDARY)
(July 2015)
Economics provides a logical framework for students to think about decisions at every level personal, family, organizational, business, and governmental - and what these decisions mean
for society.
Economics is divided into five essential units and two selective units. Since Essential Unit 1
includes an investment process, it is designed to meet one day per week with Units 2, 3, 4,
and 5 meeting four days weekly. Each period is approximately 45 minutes in length. Students
normally engage in this course in their third or fourth secondary year.
The normal pace for the course leads to mastery of the 5 essential units in half a school year.
Mastery of these Essential Units is a graduation requirement for the QSI Academic Diploma.
The traditions of QSI teaching and its philosophy of mastery learning are applied to the
instruction of this course. This course supports and aligns to the success orientations,
competencies and knowledge noted in the QSI English Program Exit Outcomes.
An outline of the five essential along with the two selective units and suggested materials
follows. The nine essential units are designed to be engaged in the given order, although one
is not a prerequisite for another:
Essential Units:
E01 – Stock Investment Project & Economic Principles
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” First Principles, Chapters 1;
E02 – Economic Models: Economic Models: Trade-offs & Trade Models
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” Economic Models: Trade-offs and Trade, Chapters 2 +
Chapter 2 Appendix;
E03 – Supply & Demand, Price Controls
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” Supply and Demand, Price Controls, Chapter 3, 4;
E04 – Macroeconomics Basics
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” Macroeconomics: The Big Picture, GDP and the CPI:
Tracking the Macro economy, Unemployment and Inflation Chapters 10, 11, 12;
E05 – Economic Growth & the AD/AS Model
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” Long-Run Economic Growth, Aggregate Demand and
Aggregate Supply, Chapters 13 & 14;
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QSI ECONOMICS SEC E01
Copyright © 1988-2015
The following Selective Units are also available:
Selective Units:
S01 – Crises & Consequences
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” Crises &Consequences, Chapters 18;
S02 – International Trade and Exchange Rates
Materials:
“Essentials of Economics” International Trade & Exchange Rates, Chapters 19;
Course Teaching and Assessments: QSI follows the mastery model of education. Preassessment gauges the knowledge students possess before beginning each unit. Group
instruction with differentiation is applied to teach the unit’s outcomes. Ongoing formative
assessment is used to gauge teaching; informing the instructor on when students are ready for
assessment. Suggested rubrics are provided for unit assessments. Students that do not achieve
at least a ‘B’ grade in each TSW must continue to work toward mastery after re-teaching in
those particular TSWs. If a student cannot master the unit or particular TSW’s, their unit can
be placed on Hold (‘H’), until they are able to master the skill. Re-teaching, correctives, and
parent notification must be applied before a student can be deemed deficient in effort and
assessed with a ‘D’ (consult QSI policy). Proper behavioral and skill interventions along with
re-teaching are continued; assisting the student toward mastery. All students can succeed.
Suggested Course Materials:
Paul Krugman, Robin Wells, Kathryn Graddy. Essentials of Economics (2014). Worth
Publishers.
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QSI ECONOMICS SEC E01
Copyright © 1988-2015