Schooling and Scarcity: The Economics of Education
Fall Semester 2002
Professor: Wendy L. Rayack Office: 327 PAC E-mail: wrayack@wesleyan.edu Phone: 685-2358 Office hours: M/F 3:30-4:00; Walk in whenever door is open, or call for an appointment.
Course Description: Choice amidst scarcity is central to the field of economics. When economists study schooling, both individual choice and societal choice are at issue. The purpose of this course is two-fold; it investigates pressing problems in education policy, and it introduces concepts that are crucial to a wide range of applications in economic analysis. Topics include the following: education of the economically disadvantaged, school choice and vouchers for education, the relative returns to a college education, public versus private schools, educational expenditures and outcomes, equal opportunity and compensatory education, international differences in the funding of education, and differences in the return to schooling by ethnicity, gender, and race.Prerequisites: None
Required purchases: To be announced.
Course Mechanics: Regular and consistent class attendance is expected. You will need the lecture material in order to write several short (3-page) papers on the assigned readings and in order to successfully complete the term paper (20-25 pages). In calculating the semester grade, assignments will be weighted approximately as follows: GRADE = .30(Class participation.) + .40(Short Papers) + .30(Term Paper). The quality of class participation matters more than the number of times that you speak! Quality of participation is based on how consistently you ask insightful questions, provide relevant and informed evaluations of the material, and offer constructive responses to other students during class discussions. Papers will be graded on the basis of both writing style and content. Stylistic sophistication along with analytical strength will matter when I calculate your grade. Close attention to the material along with frequent reference to the required readings will be primary factors in constructing a strong paper.
Class participation
30%
Short Papers
40%
Term Paper
30%
Total
100%
Assignment are due by 1 p.m. on Wednesdays. Place your completed papers in the lock box for the economics department. This lock box is located in the alcove next to the economics department office. Be sure to place your paper in the slot marked "Economics 122." Assignments handed in late will be subject to a grade penalty unless an agreement is made ahead of time with me. Graded assignments that are not picked up in class will be filed by last name in the alphabetical slots in the alcove.
Honor Code: All work handed in must be your own.
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.