Economics 201: Microeconomic Principles

Sections 007 and 008
Fall Semester, 2008
Monday-Wednesday, 2:00-3:15 - Stephens 310
Towson University

Purpose / Description / Attendance and Preparation / Online logistics  
Grading / Requirements / Academic integrity / Course outline

Instructor: Howard Baetjer, Jr., Lecturer, Department of Economics
Office: Stephens 123H
Phone: Office: (410)-704-2585
             Home: (410)-435-2664 (No calls after 9:00 p.m.)
Email: hbaetjer@towson.edu
Website: http://pages.towson.edu/baetjer/

Office hours: Monday 3:45-5:15, Thursday 11:00-12:30, and by appointment
Required Texts:

  1. James D. Gwartney, Richard L. Stroup, and Russell S. Sobel, and David A. Macpherson, Microeconomics: Private and Public Choice, 11th edition, Orlando, Florida: Harcourt College Publishers (2006).  Please note that our publisher has printed for us a special version of this text containing only the chapters assigned in this course, and including the corresponding Coursebook chapters also.  This text is referred to in this syllabus as "GSSM."
  2. Coursebook to Microeconomics: Private and Public Choice.  The assigned chapters from this Coursebook are bundled into the special text available for this course at the university bookstore.
  3. Instructional material on Aplia.com (described below)

Additional readings will be distributed in class or made available through our Blackboard and Aplia sites.

Recommended Reading:  

Economics in One Lesson, by Henry Hazlitt.  In my opinion, this is the single best book with which to begin studying economics. 
The Invisible Heart, by Russell Roberts.  This is a romance (yes, it's true) that teaches a lot of good economics.  Highly recommended, especially for the romantics among you.
The Wall Street Journal. A great way to keep up with current economic news and to improve your ability to apply economic theory to the real world.

Other Resources -- The textbook website: http://websites.swlearning.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&flag=student&product_isbn_issn=9780324320367&discipline_number=413.  This website has interactive quizzes, flashcards, and key terms.  Some of you might find it worth a look.  The Economics Department’s Web Site: The economics department has an excellent web site. Its internet address is http://www.towson.edu/econ/.  In particular, note the "Resources" entry, which contains links to a wide variety of economic data and news sources.  You will not need to use such data in the course, but if you'd like to look something up, you can probably find it here.  

Purpose of the Course: The course has two purposes. The main goal is to help students appreciate the immense value of the market economy to mankind. Outside of a relatively free market economy, most people live poorly.  Within a relatively free economy, most people live well, and their lot improves dramatically as time passes. The main goal of the course, then, is to help students understand why and how economic freedom fosters human well-being.  The related, second goal of this course is for students to learn the economic way of thinking and begin to use it to make sense of the social world.

Course Description: Economics has been aptly described as "the study of mankind in the ordinary business of life." That is our topic for the term. More particularly, this is a course in microeconomics, also called "price theory." We will study the behavior of individual people and organizations, in both the private and public sectors, as they make their decisions and interact with one another. An essential part of human interaction through markets is the price system. Prices -- prices set freely on the market -- are precious. We'll study how prices are determined and how ever-changing prices allow the world's people to coordinate our activities very well, even though we are all pursuing different goals and nobody is in charge.

We will also discuss the role of the essential underlying institutions of the market economy: private property and freedom of contract.

Class time will be spent on roughly equal amounts of lecturing by the instructor, small group problem solving and discussions, and whole-group discussions. In class, if you don't understand (or if you disagree with) a particular point,  speak up so that we can discuss it, or email me or see me about it.

Course Catalog Description, and Goals and Objectives Common to All Econ 201 Sections:

Course Catalog Description: Economic reasoning of individual choice in household and market decisions.  Behavior of firms in competitive and noncompetitive markets, functioning of labor and capital markets, role of the entrepreneur and effects of government policies. GenEd II.C.2.

Fulfillment of General Education Requirement:  Economics 201/203, which satisfies the Category II.C.2 (Western Heritage: Social and Behavioral Sciences) General Education Requirement, builds on the logic of individual choice, using concepts like value and cost, to promote understanding of social institutions that arise from perceptions of mutual gain. These institutions include domestic and international markets for goods and resources, nonmarket arrangements like families and clubs, and political processes.

Although microeconomics is applicable even to non-Western cultures like isolated tribes, historically the science emerged to explain the undesigned coordination achieved by the extensive markets that result from Western political and philosophical heritage. Its most important role is still to provide a framework for understanding and critically assessing the markets that largely characterize Western civilization.

Learning Objectives: After successful completion of Microeconomic Principles, you will be able to (1) demonstrate an understanding of the factors that determine demand and supply, (2) demonstrate an understanding of the factors that cause a change in quantity demanded or supplied versus a change in demand or supply, (3) illustrate, by properly interpreting standard economic graphs, how markets (interactions of demand and supply) determine prices and the way in which resources are used, (4) understand and be able to explain the significance of the concept of “opportunity cost,” and (5) illustrate the use of the concept of “comparative advantage” and how it serves as the foundation for international trade.

Program Learning Goals: Achievement of one or more of the following College of Business and Economics “Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes” will be assessed in this course: “Use problem-solving techniques” (KSA 2a), “Use adaptable, flexible thinking” (KSA 2b), and/or “Know, apply, and integrate the content in one's major” (KSA 5a). A short in-class quiz, covering the KSAs from this list that are to be assessed this semester, will be administered to the class late in the semester.

Some Applicable University Policies:

Writing quality: Students are expected to write at a college level.  Those who cannot should learn to do so.  I recommend the university's Writing Lab.

Students with disabilities: If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact me at the beginning of the semester and when given an assignment for which an accommodation is required. Please verify your eligibility through the Office of Disability Support Services (AD 232).

Repeating the course: According to University policy, all students may repeat any course once. If repeating, you are advised to inform the instructor. For a third attempt, the student must obtain prior written approval from the Academic Standards Committee. If students enroll for a third attempt without permission, they do so at their own risk.

Withdrawing from the course: Please note that the last day to drop the course is noted in the online Academic Calendar.  Students who drop on or before this date will receive a "W" on their official transcript.  Those who drop afterwards must receive a regular letter grade.

Attendance and Preparation:  Students are expected to have studied all assigned readings by the class meeting for which they are assigned, and be prepared to discuss those readings.  Prepare carefully.  Doing so will greatly increase the amount you learn.

Students are expected to attend every class meeting.  I take roll at every class.  If for some good reason you must miss a class, I appreciate the courtesy of your letting me know why at your first reasonable convenience (preferably before the class you miss).

Though I earnestly want you to attend every class, attendance does not count toward your grade; no credit is given for perfect attendance, and no deduction is made for never showing up.  Attendance counts only indirectly in that by regular attendance you learn more and therefore score better than you otherwise would on the exams (not to mention the unannounced in-class quizzes).

Online logistics:  This course makes use of two different online systems, the course Blackboard site at learnonline.towson.edu and Aplia.com.  Use of these is a course requirement.  All students must get started in these right away:

Blackboard: We will make occasional use of Blackboard, a web-based system for facilitating academic course delivery. Absolutely as soon as possible, enroll in this course's Blackboard site.  When you enroll in Blackboard please:

To enroll, follow the instructions on the internet at http://www.towson.edu/learnonline/Documents/Version8/Stu_Enroll_Student.pdf.  Once you have logged in, please read my "Announcements" and explore the system.  Note that in "Student Tools" there is a student manual that describes the system.  Check "Announcements" frequently throughout the term for additional web-based reading assignments, schedule adjustments, etc.

Aplia: We will use the online service Aplia.com, in lieu of a workbook.  Aplia has made a deal with our textbook publisher to bundle Aplia access with our specially-printed textbook at a reduced price.  Look for the Aplia information shrink-wrapped in with your textbook and enroll on Aplia as soon as possible.  You may pay Aplia later, so don't delay enrolling.

The Aplia offerings I have chosen for you include tutorials, readings, practice problems sets, and graded problem sets.  The graded problem sets on Aplia (there are more than twenty scheduled) are the assignments on which your online quiz grade is based, and the exercises and tutorials on Aplia are an excellent way to deepen your understanding of economics.  Absolutely as soon as possible, register for this course's corresponding course on Aplia, even if you cannot pay yet.  Enroll in Aplia now, even if you have not bought your textbook-and-Aplia bundle yet, because you have a three week grace period in which to pay for Aplia, while your first graded assignments on Aplia are due just a day or two after the first class meeting.  Check the schedule on Aplia immediately for details.  

To get started in Aplia, please do the following:  

1.      Connect to http://www.aplia.com.

2.      On the sign in page, click the "System Configuration Test"; this takes just a few seconds and provides detailed information on how to update your system if necessary.

3.      Return to the Sign In page and click the "New Student" button under "New Users."

4.      You will then be asked to enter your course key.  The course key for this course is as follows:
   9285-A9GB-CJ4Q.

5.      From there on follow Aplia's instructions.

You will need to register in Aplia only once. After the registration process is complete, you will not need to enter the course key again.  For technical problems or problems signing in, please contact Aplia by sending e-mail to support@aplia.com, or by clicking the Aplia Support link at the top right and bottom right of any Aplia page.

Grading Procedures: Grades for this course will be based on students’ scores on (1) online quizzes on the assigned readings (2) occasional in-class quizzes and writing assignments, both in-class and out-of-class, (3) two hourly examinations, and (4) a cumulative final examination.
 

Online quizzes
In-class quizzes and papers
1st hourly exam
2nd hourly exam
Final exam
Total

  11%
    6%
  25%
  25%
  33%
 100%

Grades are based exclusively on these quizzes, papers, and exams.  No extra credit work is assigned or accepted.  Final grades are determined strictly by the numbers, with no curve.  I do my best to determine all final grades without knowing what students have earned what grades.

The grading scale is as follows:

93 - 100
90 - 93
87 - 90
83 - 87
80 - 83
77 - 80
70 - 77
67 - 70
60 - 70
  0 - 60

 A
 A-
 B+
 B
 B-
 C+
 C
 D+
 D
 F

Grades in the A range are awarded only for excellent work, work that shows mastery of the subject.

Grades in the B range indicate good work, work that shows significant grasp of the subject.

Grades in the C range indicate satisfactory work.

We all know what D and F mean.

Course Requirements: Online quizzes: You will take these on Aplia.com.  These quizzes are meant to motivate you to prepare well for class and to check that you have done the assigned reading.  Accordingly, the deadlines for many of these quizzes fall before the classes in which we will go over the corresponding readings.

Every online quiz counts the same toward the course grade, no matter how many questions it might have.  At the end of the term, your online quiz grade will be your online quiz average; it counts for eleven percent of the course grade.  Because sometimes unavoidable problems arise (computer problems, network problems, illness, car problems, deaths in the family, late enrollment in the course etc.), in calculating this grade I will drop your four lowest scores.  This gives you four "free passes" to cover unavoidable emergencies that prevent you from taking the online quizzes by their deadlines.  Note that sometimes more than one quiz will be due on the same day.  Accordingly allow for possible emergencies by completing some of those quizzes in advance of the deadline.

In-class quizzes and short papers done at home:  In-class quizzes will be explained when I give them.  Assignments for short papers done at home will be posted in the "Assignments" section of the course Blackboard site. On all, please try to remember to put your name only on the bottom of the back of the last page.  (This is so that I don't know who you are as I grade your work.  Not knowing who has written a paper helps me avoid any unconscious bias.)

Expect pop quizzes in class any time. Their purpose is to motivate you to study all reading assignments carefully as well as to check your understanding.

All take-home quizzes and papers should meet the following requirements:

Writing quality: Papers must be clearly written and use correct grammar and spelling. They should be organized, edited, and proofread.  Grammar, punctuation, spelling and the like count for half the paper's grade.
Hard copy submission:  Papers must be paper--hard copy.  Do not submit by email. 
Lateness: Do not submit late papers by email, nor email me a copy to show me that you have drafted it; only hard copy counts.  Please deliver any late papers to my faculty mailbox or the slot on my office door as soon as you can.  Please write the day and time of delivery on the paper. You will be penalized 5% per 24-hour period (including weekend days), beginning at class time the day the paper is due, except in extraordinary circumstances.  (Minor illnesses, printer problems, car problems, etc. are not extraordinary circumstances.) 
Format:

·         Print from a word processor or type; double-space; format neatly.

·         Use a normal-sized font.

·         Staple multiple sheets together.

Late or missed quizzes or exams:  Quizzes and exams must be taken at their scheduled times except in extraordinary circumstances, with the instructor's specific permission.  If some emergency prevents you from taking a quiz or exam on schedule, you must present a written (email is okay) explanation of the problem before the quiz or exam, or as soon as possible afterwards, so that we can make alternative arrangements.

Academic Integrity:  This should go without saying, but let us say it anyway:  Be honest. Present as your own work only your own work. Your character development is far more important than your grade.  Practice integrity in your actions and you will build it in yourself.

I encourage you to work together. We all learn from talking over ideas with others. So feel free to work on problems together and to have classmates read your written work and make comments on it. BUT any work you submit must be your own. This requirement applies notably to take-home papers: feel free to talk the questions over with others all you want, but let the answers you submit be your own words. Others' contributions to your thinking should be identified as such.

I will deal severely with any sloppiness in this respect. Anyone who cheats will fail the course.

Cell phones and laptops: Use good judgment with these.  Make sure you don't disturb your classmates.  I request that cell phones be turned to silent or off during tests, because the just-barely-audible drone of phones set to "vibrate" can be very distracting.  Feel free to use a laptop during class to take notes, but please use it only for work in this course.

Recommendations for how to succeed (learn a lot and get a good grade) in this course:  Do #1 right now and #2 - #7 in sequence every week. Do #8 as necessary.

    1. Make up your mind to think. If you try to get by in this course by memorizing, you'll probably get a lousy grade and have no fun. If you aim really to understand the principles, you will probably get a good grade and enjoy yourself. What we are studying is great stuff with tremendous explanatory power in almost every area of life.
    2. Get plenty of sleep. It is remarkable how much better our minds work when they are rested.
    3. Study the required readings thoroughly. Do so while you are rested, in a quiet place, in a nice long block of uninterrupted time. Read actively: Underline and make marginal notes of key ideas, questions, useful illustrations and the like.
    4. Do every exercise and problem set on Aplia.  Their interactive nature will help you learn more deeply than just reading allows.
    5. Answer a liberal sampling of the "Critical Analysis Questions" at the end of every chapter of the text. These are good questions for helping you get below the surface of the ideas and understand them in practical application. We'll discuss some of these in class.  Yes, doing all this work is time-consuming. But you'll learn thoroughly, and get a much better grade, if you work with and practice applying the concepts you'll be learning.
    6. Speak up in class. Ask questions whenever you don't understand something. Take a shot at answering my questions as often as you can, within the bounds of courtesy to others. Articulating your thoughts helps you develop them. Learn actively.
    7. Answer lots of questions in the Coursebook to the text for every chapter we study.  (Chapters from the Coursebook corresponding to the chapters assigned in the text are physically bound into the back of the volume specially printed for this course.) Do this promptly after studying the textbook readings for the week if you can, but definitely before the test on those chapters. Check your answers against the explanations given. Whenever there is a question whose answers you don't understand, ask a classmate about it, or ask me in class.  My students in past runs of the course have found this Coursebook particularly helpful in preparing for tests. 
    8. As much as you can, read the newspapers, especially The Wall Street Journal, and practice applying what you are learning by making sense of articles on business and public policy.
    9. Come see me during office hours on anything that has you stumped. I love teaching this stuff. You won't be a burden; I'll be glad to see you.

Course Outline

The readings for each week are given in the table below.  In addition to these readings, additional handouts and web readings will be assigned from time to time, and tutorials and practice problem sets on Aplia will be assigned frequently. See the course Blackboard site for announcements about these.  "GSSM" stands for our textbook, by Gwartney, Stroup, Sobel, and Macpherson.

Week of 

Reading and Writing Assignments

Sep.1

Syllabus; "I, Pencil" (handouts) 

Sep. 8

Gwartney, Stroup, Sobel, and Macpherson (GSSM), Chapter 1, "The Economic Approach," and Chapter 2, "Some Tools of the Economist"

Sep. 15

Online readings by Dwight Lee on marginal thinking

Sep. 22

GSSM, Chapter 3, "Supply, Demand, and the Market Process."

Sep. 29

GSSM, Chapter 3, "Supply, Demand, and the Market Process," thoroughly study it again.
First hourly test, Wednesday, October 1. Please bring a pencil.

Oct. 6

Study closely one more time GSSM pp. 78-80. 
     for Wednesday, October 8, Do online reading and short paper assignment on Fred I. Kent's "Letter to His Grandson."  Also read GSSM, Chapter 14, "Investment, the Capital Market, and the Wealth of Nations," pp. 294-6, 304-9; also review carefully GSSM pp. 42-48.
     for Wednesday, March 5,

Oct. 13

Aplia online experiment Sunday night, Oct. 12, 9:00 p.m.
GSSM, Chapter 4, "Supply and Demand: Applications and Extensions," pp. 83-94.

Oct. 20

Aplia online experiment Sunday night, Oct. 19, 9:00 p.m. 
GSSM, Chapter 4, "Supply and Demand: Applications and Extensions," pp. 94-105.
     for Wednesday, October 22, do short paper on Holcombe's "The Drug Problem" assigned on Blackboard (in Assignments).

Oct. 27

GSSM, Chapter 5, "The Economic Role of Government" and Chapter 6, "The Economics of Collective Decision Making"

Nov. 3

Second hourly test, Monday, November 3.  Please bring a pencil.
     for Wednesday, Nov. 5, do online reading and short paper assignment on Cox and Alm's "Time Well Spent."

Nov. 10

GSSM, Special Topic 9, "How Does Government Regulation Affect Your Life?"; Special Topic 10, "Natural Resources and the Future"; and Special Topic 11, "Economics and the Environment"

Nov. 17

GSSM, Chapter 16, "Gaining from International Trade." 
     for Wednesday, April 16, do online reading and short paper assignment on Frederic Bastiat's "A Petition."

Nov. 24

Do online reading and short paper assignment on "Something Else," by Frederic Bastiat
     no class November 26, Happy Thanksgiving

Dec. 1

Do online reading and short paper assignment on Glenn Garvin's "View From the Garment Factory."
     for Wednesday, December 3, GSSM, Special Topic 3, "The Economics of Social Security"

Dec. 8

Review; practice questions in class

Dec. 15

Review; final lecture in class

Final Exam, Thursday, December 18, 12:30-2:30.  Please bring a pencil, and please double-check me on this date and time against the university calendar.