Syllabus for ECN 212 – Principles of Microeconomics – Spring,
2008
Last update: January 14, 2008
Instructor: Scott Gustafson, Adjunct Faculty
Section 7448: M 5:30 p.m. – 8:10 p.m.
Room: SB
167
E-mail: scott.gustafson@sccmail.maricopa.edu
Web Page: http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/~sgustafson/
Course Description: Microeconomic Principles - Microeconomic analysis including the theory of consumer choice, price determination, resource allocation and income distribution. Includes non-competitive market structures such as monopoly and oligopoly; and the effects of government regulation. Prerequisites: None.
Course Objectives: At the end of the course the student will
be able to:
1. Define the major concepts in economics, and describe and analyze major economic
systems.
2. Describe the determinants of supply and demand and their effect on equilibrium
price.
3. Describe utility theory and the underpinnings of demand.
4. Describe the relation of price elasticity to revenue.
5. Define market structures and business organization and provide examples.
6. Define the production function, marginal and average product, and their
relationship to costs.
7. Describe the relation between short-run cost and supply.
8. Describe the determinants of scale economics.
9. Describe the relation between long-run cost and supply.
10. Describe the nature of supply and demand in competitive markets.
11. Describe monopoly behavior and why it has resulted in regulation and antitrust
legislation.
12. Describe other forms of imperfect competition including oligopoly, monopolistic
competition, and price discrimination.
13. Compare perfectly and imperfectly competitive industries from the buyer's
and seller's perspectives.
14. Describe the unique features of resource markets.
Required Text: Foundations of Microeconomics, 3rd Edition by Bade & Parkin
Additional Reading: Business pages of the Arizona Republic (print or on-line) and business news web sites.
About the Book and Publisher's Web Site: If you purchase the book new, it comes with access to the publisher's web site. The site includes the entire text, an interactive presentation of the material, a study guide and various practice questions and tests. A new book runs about $133. A used book costs about $100 and does not include access to the publisher's web site. Access to the publisher's web site may be purchased separately for about $30.
The publisher's web site includes a study guide that is well done and useful. The practice problems and test questions come from the same test bank I use for the exams. Hence, it’s your best indication of what my tests look like.
Note that we're using the third edition. If you really want to save money on the book, buy a first or second edition on the internet. They go for a few dollars. There are a few changes between the editions, but you'll be albe to follow along since the lecture notes I give you are an outline of the third edition of the book.
Grading: Your grade will be determined by your performance in four areas, exams, online quizzes, short quizzes and written assignments.
Two types of exams will be offered. The first option is a 30 question multiple choice exam with two short answer questions. The second option is a 10 short answer question exam. You’ll get to pick one or the other on the day of the exam. The first four exams will be worth 100 points each. The fifth exam is worth 50 points. Exams are open book and open note.
During finals week, a comprehensive final exam will be offered. It replaces your lowest exam grade. If it is your lowest exam grade it gets tossed so you can't get hurt taking the final. Alternately, if you are satisfied with your grade after the fifth exam, you need not take the final.
There is an online quiz for each chapter consisting of 10 multiple choice questions pulled randomly from a larger set of questions. You get an unlimited number of attempts at each quiz. Your last score is the one that counts. The online quiz for each chapter should be completed prior to the exam covering those chapters.
To access the quizzes you'll need an SCC Blackboard ID and password. That will allow you to log into Blackboard and get to the online portion of the course. In addition to the quizzes, grades will be kept online so you can see where you stand at any point in time.
Short Quizzes will be multiple choice and short answer questions based on the reading assignments. Note that the reading includes keeping up with current events as they relate to the economy. There will be 3-5 quizzes, generally given at the beginning of class and take a few minutes each. Don’t be late to class, there are no make-up quizzes.
Written assignments will be short written papers that show that you understand and can apply what we’re learning. There will be 4 of these at about 25 points each. Assignments will be posted on the course web page and my faculty web page.
At the end of the semester, consideration will also be given to class participation and attendance.
The grading scale will be:
A 90% and above
B 80% to 89.9%
C 70% to 79.9%
D 60% to 69.9%
Failing – below 60%
Attendance: This is an economics class. I expect that you will weigh the marginal cost against the marginal benefit of attending class and make a rational choice. Although there is no attendance requirement, experience demonstrates that those that attend and participate do better than those that don't.
Withdrawl Policy: I will withdraw you at your request with a W at any time up to and including the day of the final. I didn't register you for the class so I'm not inclinded to drop or withdraw you on my own. That is your responsibility. Note that if you sign up for this class and you don't drop within the first week, prior to January 21, you will get charged for it.
Teaching Style: I tend to lecture and provide lots of examples. I will need to know which industries you intend to work in so that I can bring in examples that are meaningful to you. I expect you to read and use the book. I will lecture from other sources.
Lecture notes will be provided. These will have all the words but few of the graphs. You’ll need to supplement the notes provided with your own notes of the graphs I put up on the board. A number of my students have found it useful to draw the graphs in at least two colors. That is because most of them have a starting position and an ending position. If you only use one color, it is difficult to tell later on which position was which.
Reading Assignments: You will be expected to have read the chapter prior to class. See the course schedule at the end of the syllabus to determine the reading assignments. We'll be going through 18 of the 20 chapters in the book.
Online Resources: We will be using BlackBoard for this course, primarily to give you access to the chapter quizzes. The assignments will also be posted online. They may be turned in electronically or via hardcopy. The course BlackBoard site also includes internal email for the class, a discussion area, all of the lecture notes and an online gradebook. My faculty web page includes the assignments and some other useful links. If you don’t have internet access at home, be sure to use the computers available on campus.
Requesting Accomodations: It is a college policy to provide reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities. If you would like to request accommodations due to a physical, mental, or learning disability, please contact the Disability Resources & Services office.
Other Student Responsibilities: You are responsible for understanding the information included in this syllabus. You are also responsible for adhering to the college policies included in the college catalog and the student handbook.
Contacting Scott: As I am Adjunct Faculty, I am not resident on campus and can be difficult to find. It is best to contact me via e-mail. As part of my job, I have e-mail up most of the day and evening. However, I also get a lot of e-mail. I also suspect that I’ll get e-mail from your campus account, home account and perhaps business account. Hence, to help me sort it out and get you an answer sooner rather than later, include the course and section number in the subject line. Include your name in the first line of the message so I know who I’m conversing with. (It also reduces the questions from my wife about what I’ve been up to when I start getting e-mail from some of your more creative e-mail addresses.)
Alternately, you could use the course email (via BlackBoard.) Since it is fully contained within the course web site, things tend to be simpler, more secure and less prone to error.
Generally when I reply to email, I will “reply to all.” That means that if you want to ask a question from one account (example – business e-mail) and receive a reply at another (example – home or campus) then CC: your other account. That way my reply will go to both places. If you don’t do this, don’t expect it to happen.
Changes: All of the above is subject to change if deemed necessary by the instructor in order to meet the course objectives.