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ECONOMICS 4600 -- ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Spring, 2012
Professor Michael McPherson
Office: 220G Hickory Hall
Office Phone: 565-2270
Office Hours: TWR 9:00 - 11:00
email:
Blackboard: https://ecampus.unt.edu/webct/entryPage.dowebct
Course Description
Economics 4600 is a course involving the problems and policies of those countries that have not yet reached the level of economic well being observed in the western world. At the completion of this course, students will have a better idea of what is meant by "development". Students will also be familiar with several theories of development, and what implications they have for this important part of the world. Finally, students will have a better understanding of a number of topics that shed light on the development process, including education, international trade, the role of the government, and population issues.
Prerequisites
It is required that students in 4600 have completed Principles of Microeconomics (ECON 1100) and Principles of Macroeconomics (ECON 1110). Since some basic algebra and graphing will be used in this course, it is also expected that students have a firm grasp of these as well.
Course Materials
Texts and printed materials: This course will use a single textbook: the 11th edition of Economic Development by Todaro and Smith. Students who wish to purchase the 9th or 10th editions may do so, but are encouraged to see Prof. McPherson regarding subtle differences in the editions.
Other resources: Finally, the text has an excellent web site that includes practice quizzes and other helpful items. It can be found at http://wps.aw.com/aw_todarosmit_econdevelp_11/
Grading Policies
85% of a student’s grade will be based on his or her performance on two midterm examinations and a final. The final 15% of the grade will come from the writing of a paper. In summary:
Paper 15%
Midterm Exam I 25%
Midterm Exam II 25%
Final Exam 35%
Graded assignments will be graded with a numerical grade. These translate into letter grades as follows:
ADJUSTED SCORE LETTER GRADE
90+ A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
0-59 F
.5 will be rounded up, so that for example, 79.5 = B, but 79.4999 = C.
Descriptions of Assignments
Examinations:
Examinations will be of the multiple choice, short answer, and essay variety. There will be no make-up exams. With a documented university-acceptable excuse, the student will be allowed to count his or her final exam more heavily. However, if a student misses an exam without a university excuse he or she will be given a grade of zero. Also, documentation justifying the absence must be provided within two weeks of the missed exam. I would appreciate greatly being informed before the exam if you cannot attend.
Paper:
The paper will be a short analysis (approximately 10 pages) of a particular developing country. Details regarding procedures for writing the paper and for choosing a topic are attached to this syllabus. The paper is due on April 26, no later than 4:00PM. Papers will be accepted late; however, there is a 10 percent penalty for each day or partial day the assignment is late. Also, please note that your paper is due in electronic form (i.e., by email or disk). Even if you have submitted your paper in hard copy form, it will be considered late if it is not turned in electronically by April 26.
Attendance Policy
To master course material attendance at every class meeting is crucial. Unless you attend class, you will not master the material and your grade will reflect that fact. If you cannot attend every class, I urge you to reconsider taking this course. To encourage your attendance, several times during the semester an in-class exercise will be assigned. Those in attendance on those days will receive as much as three additional points on their final course grade. Those not in attendance will receive no extra credit, regardless of the reason for their absence.
Also, please note that in accordance with university policy I will drop students for non-attendance beginning on February 27. This applies only to students who have missed 50% or more of the scheduled classes.
Pagers and Cell Phones
If you must bring a pager or a cell phone with you to class, please make sure that it is turned off or put on “vibrate” mode. I will extend to you the same courtesy. It is unspeakably rude for any student’s phone or pager to go off during class. Similarly, texting or checking email during class is distracting to other students, disrespectful to me, and obviously means that you are not learning the material. For your own sake and for the sake of your classmates and professor, save yourself the embarrassment of such foolishness.
Office Hours
I encourage students who need additional help to visit with me during my office hours.
I can meet with students during the following times:
Tuesday: 9:00 – 11:00
Wednesday: 9:00 – 11:00
Thursday: 9:00 – 11:00
In addition, whenever possible I can make appointments at other times.
Tentative Course Outline
Week Beginning / Topic / ReadingsJanuary 16 / What Is Development? / Ch. 1
January 23 / Characteristics of LDCs / Ch. 2
January 30 / Classic Theories of Development / Ch. 3
February 6 / Contemporary Models of Development / Ch. 4
February 13 / Poverty and Inequality / Ch. 5
FEBRUARY 21: MIDTERM I (CHS. 1-5)
February 27 / Population Issues / Ch. 6
March 5 / Urbanization and Migration / Ch. 7
March 12 / Human Capital Formation; Microenterprises / Ch. 8
MARCH 18-23: SPRING BREAK
March 26 / Trade Theory / Ch. 12
APRIL 5: MIDTERM II (CHS. 6 - 8)
April 9 / Trade Policy / Ch 12
April 16 / Debt and Stabilization / Ch. 13
April 23 / Debt and Stabilization; Foreign Investment and Foreign Aid / Chs.13, 14
APRIL 26: PAPER DUE IN ELECTRONIC FORM BY 4:00PM
April 30 / Finance and Fiscal Policy; Review / Ch. 15MAY 10: FINAL EXAMINATION (10:30 – 12:30); HICKORY HALL 252
A Final Sermon...
Your instructor does not give grades. Instead, each student is assigned a grade based on the rules described above. In other words, the student earns his or her own grade. This means that if you need a certain grade for some reason, you need to see to it that you do what is necessary during the semester to earn the grade. The fastest way to hear the word "no" is to ask the instructor to adjust your grade upward simply because it will help you achieve some goal.
How can you succeed in this course? This is a course that requires learning how to think as an economist. To achieve this goal, it will be necessary to read and study the material and attend class on a regular basis. Memorization and "cramming" will generally be wastes of time. What specific steps can you take to do as well as possible in this course? Consider the following strategy as a place to start:
· Attend class regularly. Attendance is required, and it is very difficult to master the material for this class if you miss much class. If you can’t attend regularly, don’t take this class!
· Read the assignments, preferably prior to the lecture in which these will be discussed. This is a class that revolves around reading and discussing – if you aren’t reading you won’t get much out of the class.
· Take advantage of the textbook’s website: http://wps.aw.com/aw_todarosmit_econdevelp_11/
· Communicate with me when you don’t understand something. Don’t wait until just before the exam! I am easy to reach; visit with me during my office hours or make an appointment to see me, send questions via email or call me on the phone.
Remember that your grade is in your hands. My job is to help you learn, but I cannot make you learn. That is your job.
Information on the ECON 4600 Short Paper
15% of the final grade in this course comes from your score on a short paper. The following presents some details about this assignment:
1. The paper should be a description and analysis of a developing economy of your choosing. I will distribute a sign-up list early in the semester in order to ensure that no students are researching the same country. If you are a native of a developing country, or if you have lived in a developing country for an extended period, please do not choose that country for your paper.
2. The paper is due by 4:00 PM on April 26th. Please note that your paper has not been submitted until I have it in electronic form (preferably by email). Papers submitted in hard copy but not electronically will be counted as late until this requirement is met. The late penalty is 10 points per day or partial day.
3. Your paper should include general information about the country, and should be written assuming that the reader knows nothing about the country. It therefore should include general information about the country (e.g., location, political structure, colonial history, etc.). The bulk of the paper, however, should involve information specific to the state of the economy. What do the basic indicators tell us about the state of this country? What are the major industries? What sorts of things are exported/imported? How important is agriculture in this society? Is the country dependent on other countries and if so how? Has political instability or internal or external strife affected the economy? What measures are currently being undertaken to develop this country? Is the country involved in some sort of structural adjustment plan? If so, how is it working and how do the citizens feel about it? These and similar questions should be addressed. NOTE: If there is some particular topic regarding a developing country about which you wish to write instead of or in addition to the above, please discuss the topic with me.
4. This paper should be approximately twelve (10) typed pages long, double-spaced. Remember that quality is more important that quantity. Margins, top, bottom, and sides, should each be 1 inch. Page numbering is standard for all college-level papers.
5. Proofread your paper carefully, or better yet have someone proofread it for you. If you aren't particularly good at writing, ask someone who is to read over it and give suggestions as to phrasing and style. Although this is not an English composition course, style problems, misspelled words, and other grammatical shortcomings will certainly lead to a lower grade. Note that sometimes these problems are so glaring that the argument being made is obscured. If I don't know what you're point is, or can't wade through your sentence structure, you will get a bad grade. In short, you are responsible for turning in a paper without typographical, grammatical or spelling errors. Inattention to these important details will lead to a lower score.
6. All good papers have the following general structure: (1) an introductory section in which the reader is told what the problems or issues to be addressed are; (2) the body of the paper, where evidence and arguments are presented and analyzed; and (3) concluding remarks, which sum up the arguments presented and answer the questions posed in part (1). You may structure your paper as you wish, but include at least the above.
7. All students must submit their paper in paper and in electronic form. Failure to do so will lead to the paper being treated as incomplete assignment and subject to late penalties.
8. The sources you can use are almost limitless. Newspapers, magazines, books, the internet, etc. are all OK. You should not rely on a small number of sources. Be very careful about the use of internet sources. While books, newspapers, journal articles, etc. all go through an editorial process of one sort or another, anybody can put anything on a web page. Simply because it is published in a web page doesn’t mean that it is true or accurate! Wherever possible, try to crosscheck any facts or statistics you glean from web pages. Internet sources that are unimpeachable, such as the World Bank, the IMF, Penn World Tables, the CIA Factbook, etc. are acceptable. These and other potentially useful links can be found by visiting my web page at http://www.econ.unt.edu/mcpher/mcpher.htm.Wikipedia is not acceptable - do not use this! If you have any doubts about the validity of an internet site you might find, please let me know. Also, if you stumble across some good sites, please let me know. I will share them with the class.
9. It is important that you cite all sources of information you use. A reference page or bibliography is necessary, but is not enough! Any idea or piece of information that is not your own you must cite in the text. I am not picky about the way you do your cites: any of the standard ways will do. Some people choose to cite sources in footnotes, while others use a parenthetic phrase in the text. An example of the latter might be:
Small enterprises in southern Africa are an important part of the rural economy (McPherson 1992, p. 24).
The parenthetic phrase alerts the reader that this statement originated in another work. The full citation would be listed in the reference section. An important purpose of citing sources is so that the reader can check your facts. Make it easy for the reader to do so. Remember: failure to cite all sources may be plagiarism, and I take such failings very seriously!
Also regarding plagiarism, some students have the odd idea that cutting bits from one or more sources and pasting them together to form a paper is acceptable. This is plagiarism – you are taking someone else’s work and putting your name on it. Other students simply paraphrase other works and call it their own. This is also plagiarism. If you are uncertain as to what constitutes plagiarism, please see me. As noted above, I treat plagiarism as an extremely serious breach of ethics.