| Spring 2002 Instructor: Chuck Sicotte OFFICE: CL I-201 PHONE: 921-3515 Fax: 815-636-6351 E-mail: chucks@ednet.rvc.cc.il.us OFFICE HOURS: By Appointment |
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| Course
Description | Course Objectives
| Textbook | Online Student Web Site |
|Class Format| Grades | Policies |
Brief Outline|
Weekly Schedule |
ECO 111: Principles of Microeconomics, studies the following areas:
- The basic methods of economic analysis
- The market system model of supply and demand
- The efficiency of the market system
- Problem areas for the market
- Government policies to deal with market failure
- Competition, monopoly, and the organization of industry
- The markets for economic resources
- The distribution of income
- Improve economic literacy.
- Improve critical thinking and problem solving skills by using economic models to explain and predict economic relationships.
- Improve student’s abilities to evaluate views and opinions related to economics and develop their own perspectives based on sound reasoning.
- Improve student’s understanding of economic issues and events.
Principles of Economics, Second Edition, N. Gregory Mankiw, Dryden Press,
2001.
This book is required for the class and can be purchased at the Rock Valley
College Bookstore.
Study Guide to accompany Principles of Economics by Mankiw, by David R. Hakes
and Robert B Harris.
This book is required for this class and can be purchased at the Rock Valley
College Bookstore.
The class will combine student self-study of the material with online class discussions and weekly writing assignments. Each week the student will read the designated textbook chapter. Students will access the online student web site to complete chapter quizzes for feedback. All students will be required to participate in weekly online discussions. The discussion occur asynchronously; I will post chapter discussion questions and students will respond to the questions at their convenience during the week. Each week there will be be a writing assignment based on topics covered in the chapter. Students will use a software product that Rock Valley College has licensed to participate in the online discussions and to submit writing assignments. Students will receive this software during the EdNet training session that they schedule at their convenience. There will be a midterm exam and a final exam. Students will have one week to come to the Rock Valley campus and take the exam at the testing center located on the second floor of the college's library.
Your final grade will be based on:
| Online Discussions | 10% |
| Writing Assignments | 20% |
| Midterm Exam | 35% |
| Final Exam | 35% |
- Online Discussions: Each week we will discuss questions and issues pertaining to concepts and principles in the chapter. The discussions will take place online using software you receive during the Ednet training session (or from the Personalized Learning Center). The discussion will occur asynchronously; I will post chapter discussion questions and students will respond to the questions at their convenience during the week. Students can earn up to 2 points per week based on their responses to questions, reading and comments to other student's responses, and by raising issues and questions about the material covered in the chapter. Students must be involved in the online discussions throughout the week.
- Writing Assignments: Each week there will be a short writing assignment based on applications of chapter concepts and principles. These assignments will be submitted using the EdNet software. Grades on writing assignments will be based on the student addressing the question(s) or issue(s) I state in the assignment, using the concepts and principles covered in the chapter. Points will be deducted for excessive grammatical or spelling errors.
- Midterm and Final Exam: The midterm and final exam will consist of multiple-choice (about 80%) and short-answer (about 20%) questions. The final exam will be comprehensive, but will primarily focus on material covered after the midterm exam. Students will have one week to come to the Rock Valley campus and take the exam at the testing center located on the second floor of the college's library. To do well on these exams students must read the textbook; fully participate in the weekly online discussions; complete all writing assignments; complete the online quizzes found at the online student website; and study and write out answers to the short-answer questions on the midterm and final exam study guides that I will make available. While completing these activities will not guarantee success on the exams, your chances for a higher grade will be greatly enhanced by the efforts you put forth on all these activities.
Grades will be determined according to the following scale:
90% & Above A
80% - 89% B
70% - 79% C
55% - 69% D
Below 55% F
The grading scale will not be revised upward, but may be revised downward at the discretion of the instructor.
POLICY FOR MAKE-UP EXAMS AND WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Make-up exams will be given only under extraordinary conditions at the discretion of the instructor. Late writing assignments will not be accepted.
Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated. If I determine that you have cheated on an exam you will automatically receive a grade of zero on the exam. Plagiarism on the writing assignments results in a grade of zero for that assignment.
| Introduction to Economics | Chapters 2,4,5 |
| Economic Welfare, Externalities, and Government Policy | Chapters 6-8, 10,11 |
| Trade and Production Cost | Chapters 3, 9, 13 |
| Firm Behavior and the Organization of Industry | Chapters 14-17 |
| Resource Markets and the Distribution of Income | Chapters 18-20 |
| January 14 | Ednet Training (mandatory for students who have not used this software) |
| January 21 | Chapter 2: Thinking Like an Economist |
| January 28 | Chapter 4: The Market Forces of Supply and Demand |
| February 4 | Chapter 5: Elasticity and Its Applications |
| February 11 | Chapter 7:
Consumers, Producers, and the Efficiency of Markets Chapter 6: Supply, Demand, and Government Policies |
| February 18 | Chapter 8: Application: The Costs of Taxation |
| February 25 | Chapter 10:
Externalities Chapter 11: Public Goods and Common Resources |
| March 4 | Midterm Exam |
| March 11 | Spring Break |
| March 18 | Chapter 3:
Interdependence and the Gains from Trade Chapter 9: Application: International Trade |
| March 25 | Chapter 13: The Cost of Production |
| April 1 | Chapter 14: Firms in Competitive Markets |
| April 8 | Chapter 15: Monopoly |
| April 15 | Chapter 16:
Oligopoly Chapter 17: Monopolistic Competition |
| April 22 | Chapter 18: The Markets for the Factors of Production |
| April 29 | Chapter 19:
Earnings and Discrimination Chapter 20: Income Inequality and Poverty |
| May 6 | Final Exam |