832-2725 (Economics Department secretary)
Econ 200: Principles of Economics I: Macroeconomics
Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 11:00 - 11:45 a.m. ; 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. Other times by appointment.
Course Objectives:
To provide students with a comprehensive study of basic macroeconomic principles
and concepts.
To help students learn how to apply economic decision-making skills to analyze
macroeconomic problems and issues.
To stimulate students’ awareness of, and a lasting interest in, important macroeconomic issues.
Required Text:
Campbell R. McConnell and Stanley L. Brue, MACROECONOMICS (paperback), 17th Edition, McGraw‑Hill/Irwin, 2008.
Study Guide (Highly Recommended):
Campbell R. McConnell, Stanley L. Brue, and William B. Walstad, Study Guide for use with MACROECONOMICS (paperback), 17th Edition, McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2008.
Students with Special Needs:
If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible.
Assignments:
Reading and written assignments will be announced each class period. Written assignments will include end-of-chapter questions from the text, student exercises and quizzes that consist of problems and essay questions, and Web-based research. It is expected that all reading and written assignments will be done on a timely basis.
Class Participation:
Students are encouraged to participate in class discussions. Class discussions will focus on material in the text, student handouts and assignments, and current macroeconomic issues. Class participation will be considered in determining your final grade.
Class Attendance Policy:
No specific penalties will be assessed for missing class. However, students will be responsible for all material covered in class if they are absent. Recent experience indicates that students who regularly attend class and complete the reading and written assignments on a timely basis, earn higher grades.
Examinations: There will be three (3) examinations during the semester and a
final examination.
Examination Make-up Policy:
You are expected to take all examinations on the scheduled dates. If you know in advance that you will not be able to attend class on the date of a scheduled exam, please speak with me before the exam.
If you miss an examination due to illness or an unforeseen event, please speak with me on the telephone on the day of the exam or as soon as possible. A voice mail or email message alone is not acceptable.
A make-up exam will not be given for a scheduled examination unless arrangements are made in advance. Subject to my discretion, you may have to provide written validation to be excused from the examination. Failure to take an examination will result in a grade of zero.
Course Grades will be determined as follows:
Three (3) semester examinations 75%
Final Examination 25%
Class Participation Extra Credit
Limits, Alternatives, and Choices Chapter 1
- The Economic Perspective pp. 3-5, # 1, 2, 3, HO
- Individuals’ Economizing Problem pp. 7-10
- Review: Graphs and Their Meaning Appendix to Chapter 1, # 1, 2, 3
- Theories, Principles, and Models pp. 5-6, # 4, HO
- Macroeconomics and Microeconomics pp. 6-7, # 5, 6, HO
- Last Word: Pitfalls to Sound Economic Reasoning pp. 16-17, HO
- Society’s Economizing Problem pp. 10-11, # 8, 9, HO
- Production Possibilities Model pp. 11‑18, # 10, 12, 13, 14, HO
The Market System and the Circular Flow Chapter 2
- Economic Systems pp. 29
- The Circular Flow Model pp. 38‑39 and 41, # 14
Demand, Supply, and Market Equilibrium Chapter 3
- Markets, and Demand pp. 44-50, # 1, 2, 3, HO
- Supply pp. 50-53, # 4, 5, 6, HO
- Market Equilibrium pp. 53‑56, # 8,
- Changes in Demand, Supply and Equilibrium pp. 56‑57, # 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, HO
(Note: Omit “Complex Cases” and Table 3.7 on pages 56-57.)
- Application: Government-Set Prices** pp. 57-61, # 14, 15
- Last Word: A Legal Market for Human Organs? pp. 60-61, # 17
TOPIC ASSIGNMENT
Measuring Domestic Output and National Income Chapter 6
- Assessing the Economy’s Performance pp. 105‑108, # 1, 3
- The Expenditures Approach pp. 108-111, # 5, 6, 7, 8(a), 9(a), 13, HO
- The Income Approach** pp. 111-112
- Nominal GDP versus Real GDP pp. 116-118, # 10, 12, HO
- Shortcomings of GDP pp. 118-121
Introduction to Economic Growth and Instability Chapter 7
- Economic Growth and the Business Cycle pp. 124-128, # 1, 2, 4
- Unemployment pp. 129-134, # 6, 7
- Inflation pp. 134-141, # 9, 10, 11, 14, HO
- Last Word: The Stock Market and the Economy pp. 142
Basic Macroeconomic Relationships Chapter 8
- The Income-Consumption and pp. 146-153, # 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, HO
Income-Saving Relationships
- The Interest-Rate—Investment Relationship pp. 153-158, # 6, 7, 8, HO
- The Multiplier Effect pp. 158-162, # 9, 10
The Aggregate Expenditures Model Chapter 9
- Simplifications, Consumption and Investment pp. 166-170, # 2, HO
Schedules, and Equilibrium GDP
- Other Features of Equilibrium GDP pp. 170-171
- Changes in Equilibrium GDP and the Multiplier pp. 172 # 5, 6, 8, HO
- Adding the Public Sector pp. 175-179, # 11, 12, HO
- Equilibrium versus Full‑Employment GDP pp. 179-181, # 13, HO
- Last Word: Say’s Law, the Great Depression, pp. 182
and Keynes
- Limitations of the Model pp. 183
Fiscal Policy, Deficits, and Debt Chapter 11
- Discretionary Fiscal Policy (See Handout: Review Notes.) pp. 208-211, # 3, 4, HO
- Built-in Stability pp. 212-213, # 5, 7
- Evaluating Fiscal Policy** pp. 213-216
- Problems, Criticisms, and Complications pp. 216-218, # 8
- The Public Debt pp. 218-222
- Last Word: The Leading Indicators pp. 223, # 15
- The Functions of Money, and The Components pp. 228-232, # 1, 2, HO
of the Money Supply
- What “Backs” the Money Supply? pp. 232-234, # 4, 5, 6
- The Federal Reserve and the Banking System pp. 234‑238, # 7, 8, 9
- Recent Developments in Money and Banking pp. 238-240, # 10, 11
- Last Word: The Global Greenback pp. 241, # 12
EXAM # 3
Money Creation Chapter 13
- The Fractional Reserve System pp. 244-245, HO
- A Single Commercial Bank (or Thrift)
o Creating a Bank, Acquiring Property, pp. 245-249, # 1, 2, 3
Accepting Deposits, Depositing Reserves in a
Federal Reserve Bank, and Clearing a Check
o Money-Creating Transactions of a pp. 249-251, # 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, HO
Commercial Bank
Interest Rates and Monetary Policy Chapter 14
- Introduction pp. 258
- Interest Rates** pp. 259‑261, # 1, 2, 3
- Balance Sheet of the Federal Reserve Banks pp. 261-263
- Tools of Monetary Policy (See Handout: Review Notes.) pp. 263-267, # 4, HO
- Targeting the Federal Funds Rate pp. 267-269, # 7, 8
- Monetary Policy, Real GDP, and the Price Level pp. 273 (See Table 14.3), #10
(Note: Omit references to Figure 14.5 on pages 271-273.)
- Monetary Policy: Evaluation and Issues pp. 274-275 and 278-279, # 6, 11
(Note: Omit Figure 14.6 on pages 276-277.)
- Last Word: For the Fed, Life is a Metaphor pp. 278-279
**: Material that will be examined only if time permits.
#: End-of-chapter review questions in the McConnell and Brue text.
#: The end-of-chapter questions that have been selected by the text authors as “key questions” appear in bold print on this syllabus. The answers to these questions can be found at the McConnell/Brue textbook website.
Website address: www.mcconnell17.com