Course Syllabus

Attention: You can download a pdf version of your course syllabus here: Microeconomics Syllabus – ECON&201 Sec. 2DL - Winter 2016.pdf

Course Information

• Course ID:                ECON& 201 - Macroeconomics
• Credits:                     5.0
• Item #:                       4626 Sec. 2DL
• Location & Hours:    Online

Course Description: This course covers broad economic principles, issues, structures, processes, and variables governing the dynamics of the United States and global economies. Problems of economic organization, market processes, role of government in the economy and society, money and banking processes and issues, measurement and determination of economic aggregates, fiscal and monetary policies, economic growth and development and international trade.

Prerequisite: ECON 101 or MATH 095 or consent of Instructional Unit.

Instructor Contact Information  

• Instructor:             Yusufu U. Kamara, PhD.
• Office Hours:        MW: 11:00am – 12:00 Noon
• Phone:                   (360) 992-2130
• E-mail address:     ykamara@clark.edu
• Mailstop:               SHL 116
• Office Location:    SHL 204                                                                                                                                

Required Text:Text & Materials Needed

Required Text: Economics, Custom W/EconPortal Access, Krugman/Wells, 4th Edition ISBN 1-4641-4384-6, Macmillan

Supplemental Material and Links: Economics Online, MRUniversity, Business News - Economy - NY Times, The Federal Reserve, Economy News - Wall Street Journal

 

Course Outcomes	Assessment of Course outcomes	Supported Program outcomes
1.       Understand and apply supply and demand concepts, including identification of factors influencing them to determine market equilibrium and analyze changes in each.	Students will take a class exam (Exam 1) and a final exam, complete homework problems, weekly quizzes and participate in an online discussion forums	Evaluate, analyze and explain events, behaviors, and institutions using perspectives and methods in the Social Sciences.
2.       Apply concepts of price, income, and cross-price elasticities.	Students will take a class exam (Exam 2) and a final exam, complete homework problems, weekly quizzes and participate in an online discussion forums	Evaluate, analyze and explain events, behaviors, and institutions using perspectives and methods in the Social Sciences.
3.       Calculate and apply the various production costs; fixed, variable, marginal, average costs, etc.	Students will take a class exam (Exam 3) and a final exam, complete homework problems, weekly quizzes and participate in an online discussion forums	Evaluate, analyze and explain events, behaviors, and institutions using perspectives and methods in the Social Sciences.
4.       Understand and apply the concept of Factor Productivity, Diminishing Marginal Return, and Income Determination, Comparative Advantage and Gains from Trade.	Students will take a class exam (Exam 3) and a final exam, complete homework problems, weekly quizzes and participate in an online discussion forums	Same as above, and Use micro- and macroeconomic concepts to analyze domestic and global business situations
5.       Understand and differentiate between the four major types of markets and apply their characteristics to pricing and output decisions.	Students will take a class exam (Exam 3) and a final exam, complete homework problems, weekly quizzes and participate in an online discussion forums	Use micro- and macroeconomic concepts to analyze domestic and global business situations.

            

 

GRADING SYSTEM 

Your final grade is based on a total of 1000 points allocated as follows:

A.   Homework Assignments (200 Points) – You will have a total of Five (5) homework sets. Each homework will be worth 40 points for a total of 200 points (20% of your overall grade). All homework assignments will be due online on the date indicated in the assignment column. If you experience any problems that may result to delays in submitting your homework please make sure to contact the IT Department (see below for contact information) and/or inform me as soon as possible. Do not wait until the last minute to report problems. You will not be excused for failing to turn in your homework on time if you failed to inform the instructor of any technical or other issues prior to the deadline. This applies for ALL assignments and, tests and exams.

B.   Midterm Exams/Tests (280 Points) – There will be a total of three (3) class exams designed to test your understanding of the main concepts we cover in class. The exams will be a combination of multiple choice, true/false and short answer questions, which will be distributed as follows: 40 multiple choice questions (3 points per question) and 4 short answer questions to answer only 2 (10 points per question). Thus each of the three midterm exams is worth 140 points for a total of 280 points (28% of your overall grade). You will be allowed to drop the lowest test score mid-term exam. The midterm exams are not necessarily comprehensive in the sense of the word, but because the course builds on itself, you may need background knowledge of previously covered material for subsequent exams.  All midterm exams are due online on the date indicated in parentheses.

C.   Quizzes (175 Points) – Part of your assessment will be based on weekly quizzes (except in weeks 3, 6, 10, & 11 when you have exams). Each weekly quiz will consist of 25-30 questions based on the material covered each week. The questions are strategically selected to test your understanding of basic economic concepts based on each week’s learning outcomes. All quizzes are due at 11:59 pm every Sunday in the weeks that you have quizzes.  Each quiz will be worth 25 points for a total of 175 points (i.e. 17.5% of your grade).

D.   Final Exam (140 Points) – You will take a comprehensive final at the end of the quarter. This exam will draw on material covered throughout the quarter. As with the midterm exams, this exam will be a combination of multiple choice, True/False and short answer questions distributed as follows: 50 multiple choice questions and answer 2 out of 4 short answer questions. The final exam is worth 140 points (14% of your overall grade)

E.    Discussion Forum (180 Points)  – To give you the opportunity to further understand the economic concepts covered each week, and to discuss their applications to real world economic issues, this class will include a weekly discussion section except in weeks 10 and 11. In this section you will have the chance to discuss the topics we cover through weekly forums with you colleagues. You are required to make three separate posts each week as follows:

• I will post articles, videos or a case studies from your text on one or more current economic issue/question related to the material covered during the week. Make your initial/first forum post after going through the posted material. Please provide examples (current or otherwise) in your discussion post. Your initial forum post should be made by 11:59 on Thursday. 
• Following the initial posts, you are required to make at least TWO follow-up posts responding to your colleagues’ posts. You responses should not merely be a restatement of the other person’s initial post, and it is not sufficient to just agree or disagree with the comments made in someone else’s post, make sure to address the points made in the other person’s post. You cannot make any follow-up posts until you have made your initial post. Each week’s forum is scored out of 20 points: 10 for the initial post and 5 for each follow-up post. The follow up posts must be made by 11:59 pm on Sundays.

 Evaluation

Your final grade (both lecture & lab grades) is based on the following scale: 

A     = 94-100%	B-    = 80-83.9%	D+  = 67-69.9%
A-    = 90-93.9%	C+  = 77-79.9%	D     = 63-66.9%
B+  = 87-89.9%	C     = 73-76.9%	D-    = 60-62.9%
B     = 84-86.9%	C-    = 70-72.9%	F      = Below 59.9%

 

Course Policies

• Academic Honesty and Plagiarism: Academic misconduct includes, but not limited to cheating, failing to properly credit information, plagiarism (i.e. representing such information, research or ideas as your own), the act of obtaining and/or submitting answers or responses to any graded material in a manner that is not approved by the instructor, or an attempt to influence an instructor or other faculty member with the purpose of affecting the grading or final outcome of an exam, homework or any graded work. In keeping up with the general expectations regarding academic integrity at Clark College, this class maintain a policy of zero tolerance on any act of academic dishonesty. Anyone caught manifesting any act of academic dishonesty in any class assignment will face disciplinary actions which could include receiving zero credit, suspension, dismissal from the course or from the school.

 

• Late Paper/Assignment Policy: I encourage you to start working on all assignments ahead of time, do not wait until the last minute. If for any reason you are experiencing technical issues that might cause delays in submitting your assignment, please make sure to contact Technical Support (see below) as soon as possible and make sure to also inform me of the problem. In the event that you submit your assignment late, you will lose 25% of the homework grade for everyday your homework is overdue, and your homework will not be accepted if it is overdue by more than two (2) days. (For example, if you homework is due on Jan. 10th, you lose 25% of the points you score if you submit it on Jan 11th, you lose half the points you score if you submit it on Jan 12th, and you will get zero credit if you fail to submit it by 5 pm on Jan. 12th.

 

• Important Information about Deadlines: The deadlines for all assignments are midnight on the due date, unless stated otherwise. No submission will be accepted after 11:59 pm on the due date. Remember also that deadlines for ALL assignments are based on the Pacific Standard Time (which is the time zone Clark College is in). Keep this in mind if you live in or are travelling to an area outside of this time zone. You will not be excused for any late submission or for missing a homework assignment or exam as a result of any time differences that result from being in a different time zone at the time the assignment is due.

 

• Missed Exam/Assignment Policy: There is absolutely zero tolerance for missing an exam or any other class assignment, and there will be absolutely NO make-up exam and NO retakes of any exam. All exam dates listed on this syllabus are final and will not change except in the event of an emergency closure of campus due to some unforeseen event. However, you will be allowed to drop the lowest score exam, and in the event that you miss an exam, it could count as your dropped exam. However, you are advised against missing any exam.

 

• Online Class Participation/Attendance: To satisfy the online participation requirement, you are required to complete all assigned weekly tasks on time. Other modes of participation include posting comments or questions on the “Questions to the Instructor” or “Muddiest Points” forums. Unless your question is personal, I encourage you to post it on one of these forum so that your class mates will benefit. You are strongly advised to not go more than 48 hours without logging in to check on your course shell for news, announcements or updates.

Support Services:

ADA Accommodations:  If you have emergency medical information which should be shared; or if you require assistance in case the building should be evacuated; please make an appointment to see me as soon as possible during the office hours indicated in this syllabus.  Any student with a disability who may require accommodation in order to fully participate in this class should contact the Disability Support Services Office at (360) 992-2314 or (360) 991-0901 (VP) or stop by GHL 137.

College-Wide Policies:

Non-discrimination Policy:  Clark College affirms a commitment to freedom from discrimination for all members of the college community.  The college expressly prohibits discrimination against any person on the basis of:  Race, color, national origin, disabled veteran status, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity, creed, gender expression, Vietnam-era veteran status, religion, marital status, and presence of physical, sensory or mental disability.  The responsibility for, and the protection of, this commitment extends to students, faculty, administration, staff, contractors, and those who develop or participate in college programs. It encompasses every aspect of employment and every student and community activity.

Additional Information:

Important College-Wide Student Information:  Visit www.clark.edu/cc/syllabi for important college-wide student information.

 

Tutoring:  There are several tutoring centers on campus: Visit the Tutoring/Writing Center website at http://www.clark.edu/campus-life/student-support/tutoring/accounting.php. Please check the Announcements Section on Canvas for updates on the tutoring schedule.

 

Technical Support: You can contact Technical Support by clicking on the “eLearning Tech Support” link on the left navigation links of the course shell, and then click on a link that will open a new page on the technical support webpage. You can also contact technical support by following http://www.clark.edu/academics/eLearning/GettingHelp.php  or by email: eLearning@clark.edu or call: (360) 992-2654.

COURSE OUTLINE/TIMETABLE – ECON 101 Sec. 2DL

Wk.	Dates	Topics	Assignments and Quizzes
1	01/04/16 – 01/10/16	Ch. 1: Basic Economics Principles Ch. 2: Economic Models: Trade-offs and Trade	Quiz One
2	01/11/16 – 01/17/16	Ch. 3: Supply and Demand Ch. 4: Consumer and producer Surplus	HW 1 Ch. 1, 2, 3 – Due 11:59 pm Sun.  01/17/16 Quiz two
3	01/18/16 – 01/24/16	Ch. 5: Price Control and Quotas: Meddling with Markets
		Exam 1: Ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5. (Due 11:59 pm, Sunday 01/24/2016)
4	01/25/16 – 01/31/16	Ch. 6: Elasticity	HW 2 Ch. 4, 5, 6 – Due 11:59 pm Sun.  01/31/16 Quiz Three
5	02/01/16 – 02/07/16	Ch. 7: Taxes Ch. 9: Decisions Making by Individuals and Firms	Quiz Four
6	02/08/16 – 02/14/16	Ch. 10 The Rational Consumer
		Exam 2: Ch. 6, 7, 9, & 10. (Due 11:59 pm, Sunday 02/14/2016)
7	02/15/16 – 02/21/16	Ch. 11: Behind the Supply Curve: Inputs and Costs	HW 3 – Ch. 7, 9, 10 – Due 11:59 pm Sun.  02/21/16 Quiz Five
8	02/22/16 – 02/28/16	Ch. 12: Perfect Competition and the Supply Curve Ch. 13: Monopoly	HW 4 – Ch. 11, 12, 13 – Due 11:59 pm Sun.  02/28/16 Quiz Six
9	02/29/16 – 03/06/16	Ch. 15: Monopolistic Competition	Quiz Seven
10	03/07/16 – 03/13/16	Ch. 14: Oligopoly	HW 5 – Ch. 14, 15 – Due 11:59 pm Fri.  03/11/16
		Exam 3:  Ch. 11, 12, 13, 14, & 15. (Due 11:59 pm, Sunday 03/13/2016)
11	**Finals Week** 03/14/16 – 03/17/16	Final Exam: Ch. 3, 5, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13, 15. (Due: 11:59 pm, Thursday 03/17/2016)