Introduction to Macroeconomics (ECON 102 X51) Winter 2019 Course Outline University of Alberta - Department of Economics
Instructor: Alexander Gainer Class Schedule: Tuesday 6:00-9:00
Lecture Room: Tory BW 1
Office Hours: Monday, 12:00-12:50, and Wednesday, 10:00-10:50, or by appointment.
Office: Tory 7-14
Email: [email protected] (Please have “ECON 102” in the subject line)
Course Website: this course makes extensive use of eclass. The following course material will be posted on the e-class course website: past exams, marks, lecture notes, and videos of the lectures.
Course Description: Employment, inflation, international payments, monetary policy, and fiscal policy, all in the Canadian economy.
Prerequisite: ECON 101 or consent of the Department of Economics. Not open to students with credit in ECON 204.
Required Textbook: Macroeconomics, by Hubbard, O’Brien, Serletis, and Childs, Second Canadian Edition; more information at this link. This edition is preferred, however, older versions or international versions are acceptable.
Other resources:
Top Hat: this software is how students will answer questions in class for bonus marks.
FlipItEcon: this is where students will complete the weekly online assignments.
Packback: this platform will be used for online discussion about class topics.
Instructions on how to purchase and use Top Hat, FlipItEcon, and Packback are at the end of this document. Please contact me if you are interested in the no-cost alternatives for these resources.
Use your “@ualberta.ca” email when signing up for Top Hat, FlipItEcon, and Packback.
Outline of Topics and Required Readings
Topics Textbook Chapters Tentative Class Schedule
Introduction to Economics Chapter 1 Jan. 8
Chapters 2 and 3 Jan. 15 Introduction to
Macroeconomics
Chapter 4 Jan. 22
Chapter 5 Jan. 22 and Jan. 29
Chapter 6 Jan. 29 and Feb. 5
Chapter 7 Feb. 5
Chapter 9 (skip Chapter 8) Feb. 12 and Feb. 26
Government Policy Chapter 10 Feb. 26 and Mar. 5
Chapter 11 Mar. 5
Chapter 12 Mar. 12
Chapter 13 Mar. 12 and Mar. 19
Personal Finance Not in textbook Mar. 19 and Mar. 26 International Economics Chapter 14 Mar. 26 and Apr. 2
Chapter 15 Apr. 2
Exams and Assignments Date Location Weight
First mid-term exam, 1 hour, (Chapters 1-7)
February 11-15 LAC
(3-106 Ed. North)
22.5%
Second mid-term exam, 1 hour, (Chapters 9-12)
March 18-22 LAC
(3-106 Ed. North)
22.5%
Final exam, 3 hours, (Chapters 1-7, 9-15)
April 3-5 and 8-10 LAC
(3-106 Ed. North)
45%
FlipItEcon assignments (weekly) Mondays, 10pm, and Sundays, 10pm
Completed online 5%
Packback discussions (weekly) Mondays, 10pm Completed online 5%
Top Hat questions N/A Completed in class 4% (bonus)
Exams: The two midterm exams and the final exam will be written at the Learning Assessment Centre (LAC) which is located at 3-106 Education North (map). It is the student’s
responsibility to book their exam time using the LAC website. If you fail to book an exam time and there is no space in the LAC then you will receive zero marks on that exam.
If you have questions regarding the LAC you can contact them at [email protected] or 780-492-3563. This guide and FAQ is useful: https://lac.ualberta.ca/students
Missed Exams: If a student misses a midterm exam they must email me immediately to notify me and to apply to write the deferred midterm exam. The deferred midterm exam will be cumulative and will be held on March 27. If you miss a midterm and do not contact me you will receive a mark of zero on that exam. You will not be able to have the percentage weight of your missed exam added to the percentage weight allotted to the final exam
A student who has missed a final exam because of incapacitating illness, severe domestic affliction or other compelling reasons (including religious conviction) may apply for a deferred exam. The application is to be submitted to the undergraduate office of the applicant’s own faculty. The instructor does not have the authority to approve such applications. More information is available at this link. The deferred final is tentatively scheduled for April 26.
FlipItEcon Assignments: The assignments are done online withFlipItEcon. There are eight assignments; each week of prelecture, bridge and problem sets is one assignment. Pre-lectures and bridges are due Mondays, by 10pm, and problems are due Sundays, by 10pm. At the end of the semester I will drop your lowest assignment and use your seven best assignments.
Packback online discussions: participation is a requirement for this course, and the Packback Questions platform will be used for online discussion about class topics. In order to receive your participation mark each week, you must post one question and two answers per week relevant to our class subject matter per week. At the end of the semester I will drop your two lowest weeks and use your nine best weeks.
Before you start posting, be sure to read the Community Guidelines found in the tutorial on Packback. If your post doesn’t follow the Packback Community Guidelines, there is a chance it will be removed and you won’t receive points for that post.
There will be a Monday, 10 PM, deadline for submissions in your community each week.
Note: it takes 24 hours for the Packback team to moderate a post and send a coaching email. If by any reason your post is moderated because it does NOT meet the Community Guidelines, you will need to edit and re-publish your post to receive credit for the week. This is why it is important that you complete your Packback questions and responses far before the deadline in case your post is moderated
Top Hat questions: you will use the Top Hat platform to answer questions in class using an internet connected device, e.x., smartphone, tablet, laptop. When you answer a question, half the grade will be participation and half will be for correctness.
Tutor Centre (located at Tory 8-28):
The tutor centre will tentatively begin operation the third week of classes, and will close the last day of classes. Hours of operation, once set, will be posted on the course website. The tutors are third and fourth-year honours economics students. You are encouraged to visit the tutor centre with content questions. The tutors will help you with questions about the course material, textbook, and practice exams. Take your work with you so that the tutor can see what you have been doing and help you to identify problem areas. You must be able to demonstrate that you have been working on the problem in order for the tutor to help you. The tutors are not meant to be instructors. They will help you with something that you are having difficulty understanding.
Tutors will NOT provide answers to assignments before they are due. Access to individual assignments are not available in the tutor centre. The tutors will help you to understand the concept so you can do your own assignment later.
You are also encouraged to visit the tutor centre if you would simply like to talk with an economics student about the department and its course and program offerings. Tutors will be happy to provide you with some personal insight. Program and course information as well as a schedule of economics undergraduate advisors can be picked up in the tutor centre.
If you have any questions about, or encounter any problems with the tutor centre, please let me know immediately. The Economics Department is committed to a tutor centre that offers the assistance that students need. We need your help to ensure that this happens. You are invited to please fill out an evaluation form when you visit the tutor centre. Tell us what you liked; tell us what we can do better.
Grading: Students will be ranked according to the weighted sum of their assignments and exams. When assigning letter grades I look for breaks between pools of students.
From Section 23.4(4) of the University Calendar, “Grades reflect judgements of student achievement made by instructors. These judgements are based on a combination of absolute achievement and relative performance in a class.”
The following table will give a rough idea of how the grading system works in this class; the actual percentage cut-offs may be higher or lower.
Letter Grade Percentage Grade Point Value
A+ 95-100 4.0
A 90-95 4.0
A- 87-90 3.7
B+ 84-87 3.3
B 80-84 3.0
B- 75-80 2.7
C+ 70-75 2.3
C 65-70 2.0
C- 60-65 1.7
D+ 55-60 1.3
D 50-55 1.0
F 0-50 0.0
Students with special needs (University Calendar §25.2): Students with disabilities or special needs that might interfere with their performance should contact the professor at the beginning of the course with the appropriate documentation. Every effort will be made to accommodate such students, but in all cases prior arrangements must be made to ensure that any special needs can be met in a timely fashion and in such a way that the rest of the class is not put at an unfair disadvantage. Exam arrangements: Accessibility Resources (AR), formerly known as Student Accessibility Services, and the student, with the approval of the course instructor, determine exam accommodations. Assessments and/or documentation of the need for accommodation are required. At the beginning of each term, the student meets with
instructors to review the exam arrangements which will be used. The student provides a “Letter
of Introduction” from AR verifying the nature of the accommodations required due to the
disability. A few weeks before each exam, the student completes an “Exam Schedule” form, for AR, outlining scheduled exam dates, times, etc. The student then takes an “Exam Instructions and Authorization” form to the instructor. The instructor is asked to complete the form and enclose it with the exam and arrange to have it delivered or mailed to AR. In administering exams, AR follows university protocol and only makes accommodations as required due to the disability. Exams are usually set to overlap with the time the professor has set the in-class exams.
Academic Integrity
“The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty. Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behaviour (online at
https://www.ualberta.ca/current-students/academic-resources/academic-integrity) and avoid any behaviour which could potentially result in the suspicions of cheating, plagiarism,
misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University.” (General Faculties Council, 29 SEP 2003)
During exams you will NOT be permitted to communicate with your colleagues.
Note 1: Policy about course outlines can be found in §23.4(2) of the University Calendar. Note 2: The Code of Student Behaviour is published in the Calendar. Note 3: Check out Section 30.3.2 in the General Faculties Council Policy Manual (is posted on the course WebCT site).
Lecture Recording
Audio or video recording, digital or otherwise, of lectures, labs, seminars or any other teaching environment by students is allowed only with the prior written consent of the instructor or as part of an approved accommodation plan. Student or instructor content, digital or otherwise, created and/or used within the context of the course is to be used solely for personal study, and is not to be used or distributed for any other purpose without prior written consent from the content author(s).
Territorial Statement
“The University of Alberta acknowledges that we are located on Treaty 6 territory, and respects the histories, languages, and cultures of the First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and all First Peoples of Canada, whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant community.”
(from the beginning of the Calendar).
Learning and working environment: The Faculty of Arts is committed to ensuring that all students, faculty and staff are able to work and study in an environment that is safe and free
from discrimination and harassment. It does not tolerate behaviour that undermines that environment.
Resources for Students
The University of Alberta offers many resources to help students with academic and
non-academic challenges. The best all-purpose website for student services on campus is here:
https://www.ualberta.ca/current-students.
You need Four Resources for this Course: Textbook, TopHat, FlipItEcon, and Packback Make sure you sign up for Top Hat, FlipItEcon, and Packback with your “@ualberta.ca” email.
1. Textbook: Macroeconomics, by Hubbard, O’Brien, Serletis, and Childs, Second Canadian Edition. This edition is preferred, however, older versions or international versions are acceptable. You can buy the textbook or e-text at the University of Alberta bookstore, from the publisher, from Amazon, rent from VitalSource or other websites, or buy it used. This textbook is also available on reserve at the library.
2. Top Hat (used to answer questions in class for bonus marks).You can buy Top Hat at this website: https://app.tophat.com/e/821391 or from the University of Alberta
bookstore. This software allows you to submit answers to in-class questions using your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or through text message. You can visit the Top Hat Overview website at this link for answers to most questions.
Instructions: Make sure you sign up using your “@ualberta.ca” email address. An
invitation will be sent to you by email, but if you don’t receive this email, you can register by visiting the course website: https://app.tophat.com/e/821391. The course join code is:
“821391”. This website explains Top Hat prices: https://tophat.com/pricing/. If you have any questions or are experiencing problems with Top Hat contact their support team: 888-663-5491, [email protected], or live chat.
3. FlipItEcon (online homework) : There are two ways to purchase FlipItEcon access codes, however, it is recommended that you buy it though the bookstore (option a).
a. You can purchase a printed access card in the University of Alberta bookstore, then go to https://www.flipitecon.com/ and select REDEEM on your account page and enter the code.
b. If you wish to purchase access online, select PURCHASE on your FlipItEcon account page. Complete the billing and credit card information. Save your confirmation screen. Be aware that the online prices are in U.S. dollars, so it is usually cheaper to buy your access code at the bookstore.
Instructions:
1. To get started with FlipItEcon, start at this link: https://www.flipitecon.com/
2. Locate “Get access to FlipIt” and click “Student”.
3. Complete the Account Creation Page and click “Register”.
4. You’ll receive an email with a link to continue your registration and create a password.
5. Set up your profile and then choose the “Enrollments” tab.
6. Enroll in this course by entering in the Course Access Key: gainer102wi19 You will be given 21 days to access FlipIt before you are required to purchase access or redeem an access code.
If you need help with FlipItEcon you can contact them at 1-800-936-6899, submit a request through http://www.macmillanlearning.com/Catalog/techsupport, or read articles on their support website http://macmillanlearning.com/Catalog/support.aspx.
4. Packback (online discussions): The Packback Questions platform will be used for online discussion about class topics. Before you start posting, be sure to read the Community Guidelines found in the tutorial on Packback. If your post doesn’t follow the Packback Community Guidelines, there is a chance it will be removed and you won’t receive points for that post. For a brief introduction to Packback Questions and why we are using it in class, watch this video.
How to get started on Packback: You will receive a welcome email from
[email protected] prompting you to finish registration and payment. Packback has already created an account for you with your school email, all you need to do is reset your password. This email may be directed to spam or filtered out, so make sure you do a thorough scan of your inbox if you can't find the email.
Backup Registration Instructions: If you search your inbox and still can't find the
welcome email, or if you are new to the course, you may manually register by following the instructions below:
1. Navigate to https://Packback.co/questions and click “Register as a new student”.
Note: If you already have an account on Packback you can login with your credentials.
2. Make sure to register with your @ualberta.ca email address and real first name and last name.
3. Enter our class community’s Community Lookup Key into the “Join a new Community” module on your dashboard. Please note, the following Community Lookup Key is only for locating the community; it is NOT a coupon code or access code.
Our Community Lookup Code: 62f64921-912c-45c7-a971-0427c10d5263 4. Follow the instructions on your screen to finish your registration.
If you have ANY questions or concerns regarding Packback throughout the semester, please contact the customer support team at [email protected]!
