ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED!

 

 

Instructor:  Mehrdad Setayesh                                                                 Office:  Adjunct Faculty Office

Economics 2301 – 06996  &  07005                                            Office Hours:  30 min. before and after  

Principles of Macroeconomics                                                                  each class, and by appointment

Spring 2010 (16-Week Session)                                                              Home Phone:   (512) 837 - 1401

E-mail:  mehrdad_setayesh@dell.com

 

 

TEXT:   The Macro Economy Today, Bradley R. Schiller, McGraw-Hill Irwin Publishing Co., 11th Edition, 2008.

 

RECOMMENDED:   The Macro Economy Today (Study Guide), Schiller, McGraw-Hill Irwin Publishing Co., 11th Edition, 2008.

 

GRADE AFTER CURVE               EXAMS

A         90 - 100%                               Mid-Term 1     Chapters (1, 1A, 3, 5, 6, 7)                             33.3% 

B         80 - 89%                                 Mid-Term 2     Chapters (8, 9, 9A, 10, 12, 11, 13, 14)           33.3%

C         65 - 79%                                 Final Exam      Chapters (20, 18, 21, Lecture Notes)             33.3%

D         50 - 64%                                 Total:                                                                                    100.0%

F          Below 50%    

 

 

W        Last drop date:                      Monday, April 26, 2010 

(You will be dropped administratively for missing any of the exams.)

 

 

NOTE:  It is the student's responsibility to furnish a Scantron Form 882-ES, calculator, and #2 pencils for each exam.

 

TENTATIVE WEEKLY ASSIGNMENTS

Week of:                     Chapters:                                           Week of:                     Chapters:      

Jan      18                    Introduction, 1, 1A                            Apr       5                    Exam II         

            25                    3                                                                      12                    20, 18   

Feb        1                    5                                                                      19                    21                                  8                    6                                                                      26                    Lecture Notes           

15                    7                                                          May      3                    Final Exam   

            22                    Exam I                                                                       

Mar       1                    8, 9, 9A                                              

              8                    10, 12

            15                    Spring Break

            22                    11, 13

            29                    14

 

 

Final Exam:               Section  06996                        Wednesday, May 5, 2010

                                    Section  07005                        Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Homework Assignments:  Keep up with weekly assignments.  Do not wait until last minute to prepare for each exam.  Read each week’s materials before class.  Borrow notes from a classmate if miss any classes.  Ask questions, ask questions, and ask questions.

                       

Make-up Exams:  Make-up examination will be permitted only in the case of an emergency.  It must be taken in the testing center prior to the next class period.  It is the student responsibility to make arrangements with the instructor regarding the date of the make-up exam.

 

 

Course Description:  Principles of Macroeconomics deals with consumers as a whole, producers as a whole, the effects of government spending and taxation policies and the effects of the monetary policy carried out by the Federal Reserve Bank. Macroeconomics is concerned with unemployment, inflation, and the business cycle.

 

 

Course Rationale:  This course is meant to give students insight into the dynamics of our national economy. The knowledge gained in the course will make students more informed citizens and allow them to follow the debates over national economic policy reported in the news media. This course is also a foundation course that will prepare students to be successful in upper division finance, marketing, business administration, economics, government, and social work courses.

 

Instructional Methodology: Lecture and class discussions

 

Students who complete this course will be able to understand:

    • The meaning of unemployment and inflation data and how that data is collected and computed (Ch’s 6 & 7);
    • The meaning and components of the National Income Accounts, especially GDP (Ch. 5);
    • The meaning of the business cycle and its phases (Ch. 5);
    • and to manipulate the basic Aggregate Supply, Aggregate Demand model of the macro economy (Ch. 8);
    • How fiscal policy operates, its tools, and its advantages and drawbacks (Ch. 11);
    • How a fractional reserve banking system works (Ch. 13);
    • How monetary policy operates, its tools, and its advantages and drawbacks (Ch. 14).

 

Students with disabilities:  Each ACC campus offers support services for students with documented physical or psychological disabilities.  Students with disabilities must request reasonable accommodations through the Office for Students with Disabilities on the campus where they expect to take the majority of their classes.  Students are encouraged to do this three weeks before the start of the semester.

Scholastic dishonesty:  Acts prohibited by the college for which discipline may be administered include scholastic dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating on an exam or quiz, plagiarizing, and unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing outside work.  Academic work submitted by students shall be the result of their thought, research or self-expression.  Academic work is defined as, but not limited to tests, quizzes, whether taken electronically or on paper; projects, either individual or group; classroom presentations, and homework.

 

 

Absences:  Attendance at the lectures is required.  Your course performance depends on your attendance (if you do not attend it is very difficult to learn the material).  You are responsible for all materials, activities, assignments, or announcements covered in class, regardless of your reason for being absent.  If you do miss a class, get lecture notes from someone in the class and get handouts and assignments from me.  I will take role.

 

Academic Freedom:  "Institutions of higher education are conducted for the common good.  The common good depends upon a search for truth and upon free expression. In this course the professor and students shall strive to protect free inquiry and the open exchange of facts, ideas, and opinions. Students are free to take exception to views offered in this course and to reserve judgment about debatable issues.  Grades will not be affected by personal views.  With this freedom comes the responsibility of civility and a respect for a diversity of ideas and opinions.  This means that students must take turns speaking, listen to others speak without interruption, and refrain from name-calling or other personal attacks."

 

Withdrawal Policy:  The student is responsible for any decision to withdraw. Please feel free to discuss any problems with me before they become serious.  No incomplete will be given without satisfactory explanation and completion of at least 2/3 of the course work with a grade of C or higher. You should be aware of recent changes in state law.  Students who entered a Texas public college for the first time in or after the fall of 1999 are subject to a Texas statute that limits the number of courses a student may take for which the state will pay the college.   At the community college, the limit is 1.5 times the credits required for the two-year degree. Students who exceed the number of credits required for a degree by 50% may be charged additional fees.   Courses for which students receive a grade of W (withdrawal) are included in the total credits calculation. Developmental courses are not included in the total credits calculation.  This rule applies to university students and to community college students who transfer from ACC to Texas public colleges and universities.  Students who leave ACC with excess hours may have to take fewer courses at the Texas institution to which they transfer or pay higher tuition for the extra hours.

 

Incomplete Policy:  Incompletes are very uncommon.  No incomplete will be given without a compelling documented reason (emergency etc.) and completion of at least 2/3 of the course work with a grade of C or higher.  Furthermore, I will only give an incomplete if the emergency occurs after the withdrawal deadline or if withdrawal would impose a significant undue burden on the student (e.g., student visa, financial aid, etc.)