Colorado School of Mines Spring 2014 Principles of Economics EBGN 201

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1 Colorado School of Mines Spring 2014 Principles of Economics EBGN 201 Instructor: Dr. Becky Lafrancois Office: 110 Engineering Hall Office Phone: Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 1:00-3:30; and by appointment Class Meetings: MW 11:00AM (Section A) or MW 12:00PM (Section B) Class Location: Green Center Metals Lecture Hall (Section A) or Coolbaugh Hall 209 (Section B) Course Web Pages: EconPortal Blackboard Teaching Assistant: Office Location/Hours: Phone: Instructional Activity: 3 hours lecture Semester Hours: 3 Course Designation: Common Core Course Description Introduction to microeconomics and macroeconomics. This course focuses on applying the economic way of thinking and basic tools of economic analysis. Economic effects of public policies. Analysis of markets for goods, services and resources. Tools of cost-benefit analysis. Measures of overall economic activity. Determinants of economic growth. Monetary and fiscal policy. Prerequisites: None. An understanding of basic economic principles will strengthen your ability to analyze problems, make decisions, and evaluate many of the issues confronting society today. In general, economists study how individuals, institutions, and societies make choices under conditions of scarcity. This course will provide an introduction to both microeconomics and macroeconomics. The first third of the course will introduce you to the economic way of thinking and spend time exploring some of the basic models used throughout economics. The second third of the course will cover microeconomics, the branch of economics concerned with individual units, such as a household, a firm, or an industry. We will examine how consumers and firms make economic decisions and interact within a free market system using basic models of supply and demand. We will also consider the role that the government plays within this framework, particularly under conditions of market failure. Macroeconomics is concerned with the economy as a whole. In the final third of the course, we will discuss the three primary goals of the U.S. economy- employment, low inflation, and economic growth. Underlying these economic goals is the framework of aggregate demand and aggregate supply, which is an extension of the microeconomic behavior studied in the first two-thirds of the course. Throughout the course, we will spend time discussing how the topics being studied apply to the events of today. Required Materials Textbook/ebook Economics in Modules (2 nd Edition) by Krugman and Wells, Worth Publishers Software/Materials EconPortal and iclicker

2 Student Learning Outcomes At the end of the course, students will: 1. Use economic models to analyze markets for goods, services, and resources. 2. Apply tools of cost-benefit analysis to decisions. 3. Understand the role of economic institutions in a market economy. 4. Analyze government policy with respect to efficiency criteria and equity considerations. 5. Explain and evaluate measures of macroeconomic activity. 6. List the determinants of economic growth and explain international differences in economic well-being. 7. Analyze current and economic policy issues using the tools of economics. Topics Covered additional detail in course calendar 1. General Economics Principles (Exam 1) 2. Microeconomics (Exam 2) 3. Macroeconomics (Exam 3) Grading Components 1. Midterm Exams (3) Dates: 2/12, 3/19, 4/23 30% 2. Comprehensive Final Exam Date: To be determined 25% 3. On-line Homework, Quizzes, and Other Assignments 25% 4. Assignments from Recitation Sessions 20% Grading and Grading Procedures Your grade in this class will be based on your overall percent average, using the following guidelines: A = % B- = 80-82% D+ = 66-69% A- = 90-92% C+ = 77-79% D = 63-65% B+ = 87-89% C = 73-76% D- = 60-62% B = 83-86% C- = 70-72% F = below 60% These guidelines are subject to change, but if you score in the stated range you are guaranteed at least the corresponding grade. Grades will be maintained and posted on the EconPortal website throughout the semester. Course Structure Lectures: Lecture sessions will be conducted under the assumption that you have read the assigned readings and completed the associated assignments before class. Lectures will focus on the complexities of the material and will assume that you have at least picked up the basics from the readings. We will spend time in lecture working on problems and examining real life examples of the course material. There will be optional icliker activities during many lectures and participation in these activities will earn you extra credit in the form of up to 10 points added to your lowest exam score. In

3 order to qualify for these points you must register your icliker online. Instructions will be made available online. There will be no makeup for iclicker activities. Online Homework, Quizzes, and Activities: An electronic version of the textbook, problem sets, quizzes and other assignments are found on the EconPortal site. These assignments will collectively count for 25% of your final grade. Recitation Sessions: Recitation sessions are conducted by graduate teaching assistants from the Mineral Economics program. These smaller class sections allow for more active participation by students than is possible in the large lecture sections. There will generally be an assignment each week in the recitation that will require attendance and participation and which will often involve work before and/or after the recitation. There will be recitations during weeks in which there is an exam, and there will be recitation assignments for those meetings. EconPortal Technical Problems Policy Sometimes technical problems arise with EconPortal. If you encounter a technical problem using EconPortal, you must call tech support As your Professor, I do not have the ability to help fix a technical issue with our online homework web site. Tech support can help to troubleshoot the issue(s) you encounter. If you are still unable to resolve your issue after calling tech support, then you can me with the details. However, you MUST provide me with the Tech Support ticket number from your phone call with tech support. I will not respond, unless the tech support ticket number is included. The typical wait time is less than 5 minutes. However, at times it may take up to minutes to get through to someone at tech support during high call volumes. It is best to call tech support. DO NOT tech support as this will be a very slow way to resolve your issue. TECH SUPPORT phone hours (MST) Monday-Thursday 7:00 AM 1:00 AM Friday 7:00 AM 9:00 PM Saturday 9:30 AM 7:00 PM Sunday 9:30 AM 9:00 PM Course Attendance Policy Please be familiar with the Attendance Policy for the Colorado School of Mines: Exams: The dates of exams are indicated on this syllabus. I generally do not offer make-up exams, unless there are extenuating circumstances. These circumstances include documented illness, family emergencies, and business/athletic/school related trips. Excused absences are required for make up exams to be scheduled. Lectures: Although I will not take attendance on a daily basis, I expect students to regularly attend and participate in class. If you miss a lecture, it is your responsibility to get any notes and assignments from that class. It is up to you to master the subject matter of the course and to demonstrate the ability to use the tools covered at an acceptable skill level.

4 Recitations: Recitation activities count toward 20% of your grade, and weekly attendance will be taken in recitation sessions. Coursework Return Policy Much of the work for this course is completed online through EconPortal which gives you immediate feedback. Any activities that are conducted in recitation sessions will be graded within one week and returned at the next recitation session. Exams will be graded within one week and will be available for review in your recitation session. Students with Disabilities Colorado School of Mines complies with all federal and state laws and regulations regarding discrimination, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of If you have a disability and need a reasonable accommodation for equal access to education or services at Colorado School of Mines, please contact the Disability Services Office at 1770 Elm St. Room 205, by calling , or ing Kristen Wiegers at kwiegers@mines.edu. If you have a disability that could affect your performance in this class or that requires an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please see me as soon as possible so that we can make appropriate arrangements. Disability Services Website: Policy on Academic Integrity/Misconduct The Colorado School of Mines affirms the principle that all individuals associated with the Mines academic community have a responsibility for establishing, maintaining an fostering an understanding and appreciation for academic integrity. In broad terms, this implies protecting the environment of mutual trust within which scholarly exchange occurs, supporting the ability of the faculty to fairly and effectively evaluate every student s academic achievements, and giving credence to the university s educational mission, its scholarly objectives and the substance of the degrees it awards. The protection of academic integrity requires there to be clear and consistent standards, as well as confrontation and sanctions when individuals violate those standards. The Colorado School of Mines desires an environment free of any and all forms of academic misconduct and expects students to act with integrity at all times. Academic misconduct is the intentional act of fraud, in which an individual seeks to claim credit for the work and efforts of another without authorization, or uses unauthorized materials or fabricated information in any academic exercise. Student Academic Misconduct arises when a student violates the principle of academic integrity. Such behavior erodes mutual trust, distorts the fair evaluation of academic achievements, violates the ethical code of behavior upon which education and scholarship rest, and undermines the credibility of the university. Because of the serious institutional and individual ramifications, student misconduct arising from violations of academic integrity is not tolerated at Mines. If a student is found to have engaged in such misconduct sanctions such as change of a grade, loss of institutional privileges, or academic suspension or dismissal may be imposed. The complete policy is online.

5 Detailed Course Schedule* Week Dates Topics Modules 1 1/8 1/10 Course Overview None 2 1/13 1/17 Economics Basics; Production Possibilities; 1, 3, 4 Comparative Advantage and Trade 3 1/20 1/24 Tools of Cost Benefit Analysis 24, add l readings 4 1/27 1/31 Cost Benefit Analysis, continued 5, 6, 7 Supply and Demand 5 2/3 2/7 Elasticity 46, 47, /10 2/14 Exam 1 2/12 7 2/17 2/21 Presidents Day No Class Monday 2/17 49, 50, 8, 9, 81 Market Efficiency 8 2/24 2/28 Extensions of Supply and Demand Model 50, 8, 9, /3 3/7 Market Failures: Externalities and Public Goods 74, 75, /10 3/14 Spring Break No Classes This Week 11 3/17 3/21 Exam 2 3/ /24 3/28 Market Structures and Strategic Behavior 57, 64, 65, /31 4/4 Macroeconomics Intro; GDP; Unemployment 2, 10, /7 4/11 Unemployment and Inflation 12, 13, 14, /14 4/18 Long Run Economic Growth 34, 37, /21 4/25 Exam 3 4/ /28 5/2 Macroeconomic Policy; Deficits and the Public 20, 27, 30 Finals Week Debt Final Exam Date to be announced * Course content subject to change. All changes will be announced in class and online.

6 Registration Information for EconPortal Welcome to Principles of Economics. The syllabus is posted in "Information" section of the online software. The textbook for the course is Economics in Modules by Paul Krugman and Robin Wells. You have two options for purchasing the textbook and access to the online resources: 1) purchase standalone access to EconPortal which includes an electronic version of the textbook; access to EconPortal costs appx. $100 and is available at the EconPortal website; or 2) purchase a hard copy of the textbook bundled with access to EconPortal at the Mines bookstore. To access the EconPortal, go to the following web address: Please use your CSM address as your user name when you register for an account. Click on either "Purchase" (if you are not purchasing the physical text) or "Register" (if you bought the book at the bookstore). Follow the prompts to find our course. You will need to register for the section corresponding to the recitation section for which you are registered on Trailhead. Be careful to sign up for the right section. Again, you will need to use your CSM address as your username. Enter your CSM address carefully and with all lowercase letters. That will help your TA manage your data. We had problems matching exam and other grading information to EconPortal when students used something other than their CSM address. If you are not sure whether the all online version is for you, you may purchase the standalone EconPortal access, try it out for a couple of weeks. If you then want to get the physical text, you may order the text from the publisher, or you may get a refund for your $70 and purchase the text from the bookstore. Please let me know if you have any problems.