OUTLINE ECO100Y

ECO 100 Introduction to Economics Fall 2018, Winter 2019 Department of Economics, University of Toronto Mississauga Instructor: Tenzin Yindok Email: tenzin.yindok@utoronto.ca Office: KN 3212 Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 12:30 to 2 pm in KN 114, or by appointment Course Preliminaries This course introduces students to key concepts and applications of economics, and introduces potential majors to the tools frequently employed by economists. The first half of the course covers concepts in microeconomics, such as opportunity cost, market allocation of resources, and market failure. The second half of the course covers topics in macroeconomics, such as national income, inflation, unemployment, business cycles, economic growth and macroeconomic policies. This course fulfills accreditation requirements for the CPA Ontario Professional Education Program and the CFA learning objectives for economics. A grade of 63% with CGPA 2.5, or 67% is required in this course if you wish to continue your studies in Economics. Prerequisites are strictly checked and enforced and must be completed before taking a course. By taking this course you acknowledge that you will be removed from the course at anytime if you do no meet all requirements set by the Department of Economics. Further information can be found in the 2018-2019 Courses Calendar, available from the Registrars Office or online at https://student.utm.utoronto.ca/calendar//calendar.pl. Required Textbooks: The textbooks for this course are by Karlan, Morduch, Alam & Wong (1st Cdn edition, Microeconomics and Macroeconomics). Access to Connect, the publisher’s online resource associated with the books, is mandatory. You should purchase ONE of the following options. Hard copies of the textbooks plus Connect; ISBN 978-1-260-30592-0 Access codes for Connect (which should include electronic versions of the textbooks); ISBN 978-1-260-30704-7 Course Organization: IMPORTANT: During the first few days of classes, students should log in to the course page on Quercus (U. of T.’s online learning management system) at https://q.utoronto.ca. All course related communication will be delivered through Quercus. You will also find instructions on how to get access to Connect there. OPTIONAL: Socrative (www.socrative.com), a classroom response system, will be used from time to time to elicit participation during lectures. An app version can also be downloaded on smart phones. The use of this website or app is not mandatory, but is strongly recommended. This class meets for lectures once a week, in a two-hour block. Missing one lecture amounts to missing an entire week’s curriculum. Tutorials will begin in the first week of class and are held on Fridays between 1 and 2 pm. We will move across topics relatively quickly during the lectures and tutorials. Students are expected to review outside of class and use office hours for extra study support. Connect has various innovative features that help students review the textbook. The Economics Aid Centre (KN 114) is staffed by instructors and TAs, and is typically open Monday through Thursday. The lectures will generally follow the textbook, but may contain material in addition to what is included in the textbook, and may include sections from later chapters. If you miss a lecture or a tutorial, please make sure you get the notes from a classmate. Assessment Component Percent Final exam 40% Term tests 40% Online assignments 10% Tutorial teamwork 8% Warm-up exercise/survey 2% Total 100% Final Exam (40%): The two-hour final exam will take place in April. All material covered during the year is examinable. The time and location of the exam will be announced by the Registrar. Only basic calculators are allowed. T-cards are required. Term Tests (40%): There will be eight equally weighted tests scheduled on the following dates - Sept 28, Oct 19, Nov 9, Nov 30, Jan 25, Feb 15, March 15, April 5. The tests are 45-minutes long and are held during tutorials. Please do not leave early, as it is disruptive to your classmates. Only basic calculators are allowed. T-cards are required. You can use pencils, provided that they are dark enough to be visible in scans. Participation and Assignments (20%): 20% of your grade will be based on assignments and participation. 8% of your grade will be based on tutorial teamwork, where you work in groups to complete a short assignment. 10% of your grade will be based on weekly online assignments, to be completed on Connect. You should expect one such assignment every week, except for the weeks of term tests. The online assignments are divided into four groups or modules. Group 1 contains assignments 1 to 4.  Group 2 contains assignments 5 to 7. Group 3 contains assignments 8 to 10. Group 4 contains assignments 11 to 14. The lowest score within each group of assignments will be dropped automatically. You cannot use assignments from one group to make up for or substitute for assignments from another group.  The remaining 2% of your grade is based on the completion of the following exercise: 1% of grade: Complete the Warm-up Exercise (an online exercise for the first week of class), which involves answering questions about personality traits or study goals and should take about 1 hour. Its purpose is to learn more about how to help promote academic and personal success. 1% of grade: A follow-up second survey to the warm-up exercise that should take about 15 minutes to complete. Detailed emails will be sent to the class regarding this exercise. Policies regarding missed exams or missed/ late assignments are on the next page. Chapter Coverage Lecture Topics Chapters Test date Micro (Fall) 1-3 Markets 1-6 Sept 28 4-5 Consumers 7, 8 Oct 19 6-8 Firms 12, 13 Nov 9 9-12 Market failure 14, 18, 19, 20, 21 Nov 30 Macro (Winter) 1-2 GDP, Income Inequality, Inflation, Unemployment 7, 8, 10 Jan 25 3-5 AS-AD Model, Fiscal Policy 11, 12 Feb 15 6-8 Monetary Policy, Financial Systems 14, 15, 16 Mar 15 9-12 International Economics, Economic Growth 17, 18, 9 Apr 5 Chapter coverage may change a bit as the term progresses. Policies I expect students will engage in proper classroom etiquette. Laptops and similar devices should only be used for course-related activities. If I observe disruptive behavior in lectures and tutorials, I reserve the right to deduct participation points. NO CAMERAS PLEASE. Please do not record or photograph lecture presentations. If a student wishes to record, photograph, or otherwise reproduce lecture presentations, course notes or other materials provided by the instructors, he or she must obtain the instructor’s written consent beforehand. Otherwise all such reproduction is an infringement of copyright and is prohibited. In the case of private use by students with disabilities, the instructor’s consent will not be unreasonably withheld. Communication Policy: For email queries, you can expect a response within 24 hours on working days. Students should use their utoronto.ca email addresses, and write ECO 100 in the subject line. Please do not email the teaching assistants. If you have a question that requires detailed discussion, please speak to me in person during office hours or after the lecture. Late or Missed Assignments: It is each student’s responsibility to ensure that any online submission of assignments is submitted successfully by the due date. Accommodations will not be made for unsuccessful submissions due to, but not limited to, i) the system timing out ii) submitting the incorrect document(s) iii) poor or no internet connection etc. Accommodations due to late registration into the course will not be approved. Since students are allowed to drop four online assignments (according to the rules described previously), late submissions and time extensions will not be granted. Missed tutorial activities cannot be made up. Missed Term Tests: Please note that students cannot petition to rewrite a test once they start writing the test. If you are feeling ill, please do not start the test. If all of the requirements described below are met, you will be excused from the test, and your grade will be proxied using material from the corresponding section of the final exam. Please note that the written explanation and documentation that you submit represents an appeal from you. If an appeal is not received, or if the appeal is deemed unacceptable, you will receive a grade of zero for the item you missed. Under all circumstances, you must write at least six of the term tests. In accordance with the guidelines in the Academic Calendar, complete the following steps in order to be considered for academic accommodation for up to TWO missed tests due to extenuating circumstances. Declare your absence on the day of or day after your absence on ACORN. Within 48 hours, complete an online Special Consideration Request at https://utmapp.utm.utoronto.ca/SpecialRequest. Late requests will not be considered without a "letter of explanation" as to why the request is late. Please note that the system only supports Microsoft Internet Explorer and Firefox for the time being. Within one week of submitting the online request, submit original supporting documentation (e.g. Verification of Student Illness or Injury form, accident report, etc.) to the DROP BOX located outside Room 3274, Innovation Complex Building. Do not email the documents to the instructor or the TA’s. The Verification of Student Illness or Injury forms (available on the Registrar’s webpage) must show that the physician was consulted within ONE day of the test date. A statement merely confirming a report of illness made by the student is NOT acceptable (such as, “This patient tells me that he was feeling ill on that day.”). If support was obtained from someone other than a practitioner listed on the U of T Verification of Student Illness or Injury form, then a Verification of Extenuating Circumstances form is acceptable. If you missed your test for a reason connected to your registered disability, the department will accept documentation supplied by the UTM AccessAbility Resource Centre. ROSI declarations are not accepted as supporting documentation. If your reason for absence is due to a last-minute flight change due to a family emergency (illness/death etc.) you must provide your flight itinerary INCLUDING the date the flight was purchased as well as boarding passes in addition to proof of death/illness/accident. Other documentation can include, but is not limited to, letter of support from AccessAbility, automobile collision or police reports, death certificate, and supporting documentation from employers, lawyers and other related personnel. It is your responsibility to ensure that your email account is working and able to receive emails. Claims that a Departmental decision was not received will not be considered as a reason for further consideration. Pre-purchased plane tickets, family plans, weddings, or busy schedules are not acceptable reasons for academic accommodation. Missed Final Exam: Refer to the Deferred Exam instructions on the Registrar’s webpage. Re-grading: Written requests for re-grading of term tests MUST BE SUBMITTED within one month of the test to the DROP BOX located outside Room 3274, Innovation Complex Building. The request must clearly explain where extra marks are warranted. Re-grading involves the whole test. Please note that while rare, your grade can potentially be lowered if a mistake in grading is found. Also note that the teaching assistants who lead your weekly tutorials do not grade your term tests. Re-grading concerns should not be directed to them. Equity Statement and Academic Rights: The University of Toronto is committed to equity and respect for diversity. All members of the learning environment in this course should strive to create an atmosphere of mutual respect. As a course instructor, I will neither condone nor tolerate behaviour that undermines the dignity or self-esteem of any individual in this course and wish to be alerted to any attempt to create an intimidating or hostile environment. It is our collective responsibility to create a space that is inclusive and welcomes discussion. Discrimination, harassment and hate speech will not be tolerated. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns you may contact the UTM Equity and Diversity officer at edo.utm@utoronto.ca or the University of Toronto Mississauga Students’ Union Vice President Equity at vpequity@utmsu.ca. Academic Rights: You, as a student at UTM, have the right to the following. Receive a syllabus by the first day of class. Rely upon a syllabus once a course is started. An instructor may only change marks’ assignments by following the University Assessment and Grading Practices Policy provision 1.3. Refuse to use turnitin.com (you must be offered an alternative form of submission). Have access to your instructor for consultation during a course or follow up with the department chair if the instructor is unavailable. Ask the person who marked your term work for a re-evaluation if you feel it was not fairly graded. You have up to one month from the date of return of the item to inquire about the mark. If you are not satisfied with a re-evaluation, you may appeal to the instructor in charge of the course if the instructor did not mark the work. If your work is remarked, you must accept the resulting mark. You may only appeal a mark beyond the instructor if the term work was worth at least 20% of the course mark. Receive at least one significant mark (15% for H courses, 25% for Y courses) before the last day you can drop a course for H courses, and the last day of classes in the first week of January for Y courses taught in the Fall/Winter terms. Submit handwritten essays so long as they are neatly written. Have no assignment worth 100% of your final grade. Not have a term test worth 25% or more in the last two weeks of class. Retain intellectual property rights to your research. Receive all your assignments once graded. View your final exams. To see a final exam, you must submit an online Exam Reproduction Request within 6 months of the exam. There is a small non-refundable fee. Privacy of your final grades. Arrange for representation from Downtown Legal Services (DLS), a representative from the UTM Students’ Union (UTMSU), and/or other forms of support if you are charged with an academic offence. Academic Integrity/Honesty or Academic Offenses: It is your responsibility as a student at the University of Toronto to familiarize yourself with, and adhere to, both the Code of Student Conduct and the Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters. This means, first and foremost, that you should read them carefully. The Code of Student Conduct is available from the U of T Mississauga website (Registrar > Academic Calendar > Codes and Policies) or in your print version of the Academic Calendar. The Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters is available from the U of T Mississauga website (Registrar > Academic Calendar > Codes and Policies) or in your print version of the Academic Calendar. Another helpful document that you should read is How Not to Plagiarize, by M. Proctor. Accessibility: U of T Mississauga and the AccessAbility Resource Centre are committed to the full participation of students with disabilities in all aspects of campus life. The AccessAbility Resource Centre provides academic accommodations and services to students who have a physical, sensory, or learning disability, mental health condition, acquired brain injury, or chronic health condition, be it visible or hidden. Students who have temporary disabilities (e.g., broken dominant arm) are also eligible to receive services. All interested students must have an intake interview with an advisor to discuss their individual needs. Students who require accommodation are advised to visit the AccessAbility Resource Centre as early as possible to have their needs assessed, as it may take some time to process the application. The centre is located in Room 2047, South Bldg., and can be contacted via phone (905-569-4699) and email (access.utm@utoronto.ca). Find more information at www.utm.utoronto.ca/access. Policy on Religious Observances: Under the Policy on Scheduling of Classes and Examinations and Other Accommodations for Religious Observances, students observing relgious holidays can expect reasonable accommodation. With respect to minimum advance notice, the Policy provides that "Students have a responsibility to alert members of the teaching staff in a timely fashion to upcoming religious observances and anticipated absences." Since students would normally be aware of upcoming religious observances as well as examination schedules in advance, a minimum of three weeks advance notice will be considered sufficient. As with any academic accommodation request, students must submit an on-line Special Consideration Request at https://utmapp.utm.utoronto.ca/SpecialRequest.