ECON 7071 - Intermediate Macroeconomics IID

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2021

Macroeconomics is concerned with the behaviour of the economy as a whole. In particular it addresses the big issues which affect us on a day to day basis. As macroeconomists we want to know why some countries grow more quickly than others, why some experience high rates of unemployment and why all countries experience recessions and booms. Furthermore, we want to know if government policy can have an impact on these factors. The aim of this course is to provide these tools and give a deeper understanding of these issues.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code ECON 7071
    Course Intermediate Macroeconomics IID
    Coordinating Unit Economics
    Term Semester 1
    Level Postgraduate Coursework
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 3 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Incompatible ECON 2507
    Assumed Knowledge Introductory level Macroeconomics, ECON 1005 or equivalent
    Restrictions Available to MFin&BusEc, GCertAppEc, GDipAppEc & MAppEc students only
    Course Description Macroeconomics is concerned with the behaviour of the economy as a whole. In particular it addresses the big issues which affect us on a day to day basis. As macroeconomists we want to know why some countries grow more quickly than others, why some experience high rates of unemployment and why all countries experience recessions and booms. Furthermore, we want to know if government policy can have an impact on these factors. The aim of this course is to provide these tools and give a deeper understanding of these issues.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Jacob Wong

    Office hours: See MyUni

    Office location: Nexus 10, Level 3, Room 3.28

    Telephone: 08 83135500

    Preferred method of contact: E-mail.
    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

    1. Relate basic macroeconomic theory and principles to current macroeconomic issues.
    2. Apply basic macroeconomic theory to analyse macroeconomic policies.
    3. Understand the use and some limitations of economic models used by economists.
    4. Present an argument by applying theoretical concepts that economists use in their deliberations.
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    1-3
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    3,4
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    1,3,4
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    1-4
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    None - Class notes to be provided.
    Recommended Resources

    N. Gregory Mankiw - Macroeconomics (Worth Publishers). Recent edition(s).
    Blanchard & Sheen - Macroeconomics, Australasian Edition (Pearson). 4th edition

    Online Learning
    All additional material will be posted on the course MyUni website.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes

    Reading Material:
    Required reading will be posted on MyUni to detail the concepts that are complemented by the lecture videos. You are expected to have read and understood the material BEFORE attending tutorials so that time can allocated most efficiently when exploring the concepts.

    Lectures:
    Lectures videos will work alongside the required reding to provide you with the necessary understanding of the material needed to solve the exercises you will be given for assignments or exams. Examples will be used to illustrate the concepts presented in this course.

    Tutorials:
    Tutorials will cover additional exercises which address similar problems as discussed in lectures. It will clarify the expectations set for exams and assignments.

    Assignments:
    These problem sets will reinforce key concepts covered in course lectures, and will give a good indication of how the mid-term and the final exam are constructed.

    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    Students in this course are expected to attend all one-hour lectures throughout the semester plus one tutorial class each week. Students are also expected to commit approximately 8 to 10 hours to private study, that is, study outside of your regular classes.

    Learning Activities Summary
    Teaching & Learning Activities Related Learning Outcomes
    Lectures 1,2,3
    Tutorials 1,2,3

    Lecture Schedule**

    Part 1 — The Short Run
    1) Constructing a Simple Model of Aggregate Supply
    1a) Wages, Employment, Inflation and Income
    2) Constructing a Simple Model of Aggregate Demand
    2a) Interest Rates, Inflation and Income
    3) Putting Supply and Demand Together

    Part 2 - The Long Run
    1) An Overview of Long-Run Economic Growth
    2) A Model of Production
    3) The Solow Growth Model

    Part 3 — Dynamics and Expectations

    ** Order of material to be covered in class is tentative and subject to change.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task Due Date/ Week Weight Length(Word,Time) Learning Outcomes
    Assignments/Tutorial Quizzes See MyUni 40% 1 to 2 hours 1,2,3
    Final Exam Exam Period 60% 2 hours 1,2,3
    Total 100%
    Assessment Detail

    The exact date of tutorial quizzes or assignments will depend on material covered in lectures.

    It is expected that there will be between 2 to 3 quizzes.  Those who miss a tutorial quiz or assignment must obtain documentation that satisfies university regulations in order to avoid a grade of zero on the tutorial quiz or assignment. For those who miss a quiz and obtain appropriate documentation, an alternative assessment will be provided.

    The length of assessments will be announced on the course website.  The final exam is expected to be approximately two hours in duration.

    Legible hand-writing and the quality of English expression are considered to be integral parts of the assessment process, and may affect marks. Marks cannot be awarded for answers that cannot be read or understood.

    Please note that, following University policy, dictionaries are not allowed in School of Economics exam.

    See MyUni for further information on assessment details.

    Submission

    See MyUni for further details on submission.

    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

    Additional Assessment
    If a student receives 45-49 for their final mark for the course they will automatically be granted an additional assessment. This will most likely be in the form of a new exam (Additional Assessment) and will have the same weight as the original exam unless an alternative requirement (for example a hurdle requirement) is stated in this semester’s Course Outline. If, after replacing the original exam mark with the new exam mark, it is calculated that the student has passed the course, they will receive 50 Pass as their final result for the course (no higher) but if the calculation totals less than 50, their grade will be Fail and the higher of the original mark or the mark following the Additional Assessment will be recorded as the final result.
  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
  • Fraud Awareness

    Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

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