Econ 202Principles of Macroeconomics(3 Credits)Fall 2017
Econ 202Principles of Macroeconomics(3 Credits)Fall 2017
MW: 930 - 1020 AM
Barry Hall 140
Instructor: James Caton
Office Hours: Mon and Wed 1300-1400, Tue 1000-1100 or by appointment
Office: Barry Hall, 400C
Email:
Website:
Required Texts:
Cowen, T. and Tabarrok, H.R. 2015. Modern Principles: Macroeconomics, Third Edition. New York: Worth Publishers.
Course Prerequisites:
No prerequisite is required for this course. This course requires familiarity with microeconomics. Students will benefit if they have taken or are concurrently enrolled in Econ 201.
Catolog Description:
Aggregate income and employment analysis; business cycles, unemployment, inflation and economic growth; fiscal policy; money and monetary policy; the U.S. economy and the world economy.
Final Exam: Wednesday 12/11 at 8:00 AM
Grading:
Classroom Participation:10%
Quizzes:25%
Exams:40%
Final:25%
Be aware that there will be no special extra credit offered to help students to raise their grade. Only extra credit offered in this syllabus will be available during the semester.
Grades
Higher Than 90%A
Between 80% and 89.99%B
Between 70% and 79.99%C
60% and Less Than 69.99%D
Less Than 60% F
Exams:
Students will complete a midterm and a final exam. These exams must be taken at the scheduled time. Exceptions may be made in the case of an emergency – for example, a medical emergency or death in the family – and will be dealt with on a case by case basis. There are 3 exams held during the semester notincluding the final. The lowest grade from these 3 exams will be dropped. The exams whose scores are counted each comprise 20% of your final grade.
Exam Dates:
Friday October 13
Friday November 17
Wednesday December 6
Quizzes:
There will be three quizzes taken online on blackboard. Each quiz will be announced in class with 48 hours allowed for completion from the time it is announced.
Participation:
Students are expected to participate in discussion to develop and convey a fundamental understanding of macroeconomics. Each class, students will be allowed time to break into groups and spend several minutes clarifying material for one another. Each group will be responsible for answering questions that arise during lecture.
Attendance:
It is expected that each student will attend class regularly and participate in discussions. There will be no regular attendance as a substantial portion of each student’s grade will be dependent upon their regular contribution to discourse in the classroom.
Communication
Whenever necessary, I will email the class with announcements via blackboard. This requires that each student regularly check his or her Mason email account. It is the student’s responsibility to activate the Mason email account and employ it in communicating with their department and university administration whenever necessary.
Honor Code:
Students are expected to understand and comply with North Dakota State University’s Honor Code. Students may neither give nor receive help from other students or from sources not specifically condoned by the instructor during the exam. Students are obligated to report any violations observed.
Academic Honesty:
All students taking any course in the College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources are under the Honor System ( The Honor System is a system that is governed by the students and operates on the premise that most students are honest and work best when their honesty, and the honesty of others, is not in question. It functions to prevent cheating as well as penalize those who are dishonest. It is the responsibility of the students to report any violations of the honor pledge to the instructor, honor commission or the Dean of the College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources.
The academic community is operated on the basis of honesty, integrity, and fair play. NDSU Policy 335: Code of Academic Responsibility and Conduct applies to cases in which cheating, plagiarism, or other academic misconduct have occurred in an instructional context. Students found guilty of academic misconduct are subject to penalties, up to and possibly including suspension and/or expulsion. Student academic misconduct records are maintained by the Office of Registration and Records. Informational resources about academic honesty for students and instructional staff members can be found at
Students with special requirements: Any students with disabilities or other special needs, who need special accommodations in this course are invited to share these concerns or requests with the instructor as soon as possible. The instructor may ask for verification and that, plus other assistance, can be requested from Disability Services in Wallman Wellness Center 701 (231-8463).
Veterans and military personnel: Veterans or military personnel with special circumstances or who are activated are encouraged to notify the instructor as early as possible.
Important Dates
August 30Last day to add classes via Campus Connection
August 30Last day for no-record drop of classes @ 100% refund
August 30Last day to withdraw to 0 credits @ 100% refund
September 4Labor Day holiday (no classes/offices closed)
September 5Financial Aid applied to Student Accounts
September 11Last day to submit request to audit, pass/fail
September 15Undergraduate fall graduation application due
September 27Graduate student fall Intent to Graduate forms due
October 13Grades of Incomplete convert to F
October 30Spring registration begins
November 10Veteran’s Day (no classes/offices closed)
November 9Last day to withdraw to 0 credits
November 9Last day to drop classes with record (W)
November 23-24Thanksgiving (offices open on Friday)
December 1Fall commencement participation deadline
December 4-8 Dead Week
December 11-15Final Examinations
December 15Commencement
Aug 23-25: Microeconomics
No class Monday Aug 21:
Pretest
What Can a Pencil Teach Us about Economic Theory?:
“A Theory of Social Economy I: What is Theory?:
“A Brief Theory of Goods and Prices”:
Aug 28-Sept 1:Entrepreneurship
“The Role of the Entrepreneur: Coordination and Innovation”:
“Entrepreneurship, Rationality, and Human Action:
“Entrepreneurship: Language, Knowledge, and Networks”:
Sept 4-8: Microeconomic Principles I
No class Monday Sept 4: Labor Day
C and T: Chapters 2-3
“Prices, Information, and Coordination of Disparate Agents”:
Optional: “Uncertainty, Evolution, and Economic Theory” by Armen Alchian:
Sept 11-15: Microeconomic Principles II
C and T: Chapter 4-5
“Specialization and the Extended Order”:
Sept 18-22: Money
“The Evolution of Market Monetary Institutions in the Theory of Monetary Institutions by Lawrence White (Blackboard)
“The Emergence and Functions of Money”:
“The Island of Stone Money” by Milton Friedman:
Sept 25-29: The Equation of Exchange
C and T: Chapters 6 and 12
“The Equation of Exchange, Its Versions, and Its Elements”:
“Intuitive Sums: Making the Equation of Exchange Easy to Interpret”:
Oct 2-6: Aggregate Demand and Supply
C and T: Chapter 13
“Dynamics of Aggregate Demand”:
Oct 9-13: Say’s Principle and Monetary Disequilibrium
“Say’s Principle: What it Means and Doesn’t” by Axel Leijonhufvud and Robert Clower (Blackboard)
Say’s Principle and Macroeconomic Analysis:
Optional: “Of the Demand or Market for Products” by Jean Baptiste Say:
Friday Oct 13: Exam 1
Oct 16-20: Growth
C and T: Chapter 8
“So Close Yet So Different: The Economics of the Rio Grande” in Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson (Blackboard)
Oct 23-27: Savings, Investment, and Intermediation
C and T: Chapter 9
“Money and Credit: Origins, Instruments, and Dynamics”:
“The Nature and Role of the Interest Rate”:
“The Emergence of the Clearinghouse”:
Oct 30-Nov 3: Central Banking
C and T: Chapters 15 and 16
“Central Banking: The Basics”:
“Central Bank Control of Interest Rates: The Myth and the Reality” by Jeffrey Rogers Hummel
Nov 6-10: Unemployment and Expectations
No class Friday Nov 10: Veterans Day
C and T Chapter 11
Chapter 15 in Gwartney, James D., Stroup, Richard L., Sobel, Russell S., Macpherson, David A.,Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice: pp. 329-339 (Blackboard)
“Ex Ante, Ex Post: Making Sense of Rational Expectation and the Efficient Market Hypothesis”:
“Markets May Stumble or Skyrocket, But This Economist Says Hold On Tight”: (Audio)
Nov 13-17: Business Fluctuations
C and T: Chapter 14
“How The Credit Cycle Forms the Basis of the Business Cycle”:
“A Cash Balance Interpretation of Depression” by Leland Yeager (Blackboard)
Friday Nov 17: Exam 2
Nov 20-24: Austrian Macroeconomics
No Class Friday Nov 24: Thanksgiving Weekend
C and T: Chapters 17 and 18
Nov 27-Dec 1: International Macroeconomics and the Great Depression
C and T: Chapters 19 and 20
“The Yellow Brick Road to Ruin” by James Caton (Blackboard)
Gene Smiley, “What caused the Great Depression” in Rethinking the Great Depression: pp.31-70 (Blackboard)
Dec 4-8: Review
Wednesday Dec6: Exam 3
Optional Review Friday Dec 8
Final Exam: Wednesday Dec 11 at 8:00 AM