Course Description: This course provides
a general introduction to economic analysis and its
applications for public policy. The course examines
the forces of supply and demand in competitive
markets, the determinants of the level of economic
activity, and the causes of unemployment and
inflation. Attention is focused on the way in which
monetary policy, tax policy, and the level of
government spending influence aggregate economic
activity.
Required Purchases: Please purchase the
following required texts:
1. Stiglitz, Joseph E., Principles of
Economics, Second Edition, W. W. Norton and
Company, (New York: 1996). Purchase
required.
2. Martin, Lawrence W. Study Guide for
Stiglitz Principles of Economics 2nd edition,
Purchase of the study guide, will give you access
to a password for the web site that accompanies the
Stiglitz textbook. Both the study guide and the web
site are useful. Purchase required.
3. Cole, Don (editor), Economics 01/02,
Annual Editions, McGraw-Hill / Dushkin Publishing
(Guilford, CT: 2001). Purchase required.
4. Wall Street Journal, Please purchase
your own copy, share with a friend, or make use of
any on-campus source for this newspaper. I will be
circulating a sign-up sheet for subscriptions.
Students are offered a discount. Purchase
required.
Reserve Resources: The following
collections of short readings are available on
reserve for this course at the Olin Library Reserve
Desk.
1. Albelda, Randy (editor) Real World
Micro, Eighth Edition, Dollars and Sense,
Economic Affairs Bureau, Inc. (Somerville, MA:
1999). Seven copies on reserve.
2. Rayack, In the News (A binder on
reserve at Olin Library) Five copies on reserve.
Coursework and Grades: There will be five
progress quizzes and one comprehensive final
examination. All students must take the final exam
at the scheduled time, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. on
Tuesday, May 15, 2001. Please plan accordingly.
The weights of the different course components
in your class grade are:
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Five Quizzes
|
75% (15 %
each)
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|
|
|
Final Exam
|
25 %
|
|
|
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Total
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100%
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Help Sessions: The teaching apprentices
will hold weekly help sessions and will provide
review sessions before the tests and final
exam.
Course Schedule, Course Links, and
Downloadable Course Documents: Once you are
enrolled in this course, you can obtain the course
schedule, view course links and print other
downloadable course documents by going to the
following web site: http://blackboard.wesleyan.edu.
All documents are saved in Adobe Acrobat Portable
Document Format (pdf); you will need to download
the free Adobe Reader from the Adobe site (http://www.adobe.com/proindex/acrobat)
if you do not already have it on your machine.
Computers in the PAC datalab and Science Center
labs should already have it downloaded.