Intermediate Macroeconomics
Fall 2014
Jeffrey Parker
Course Information
Course Content
Class Format
Prerequisites
Office Hours
Exams and Other Assignments
Grading
Texts and Readings
Course Content
This course is a detailed, but non-mathematical, examination of modern macroeconomics. Its central subject matter concerns the relationships among major aggregate economic variables such as national output, the interest rate, unemployment, and inflation. Emphasis will be placed both on theory and on empirical tests using contemporary and historical data.
This course is offered as an alternative to Economics 314: Macroeconomic Theory. Students who have a strong quantitative orientation should take Econ 314 instead. It is not generally a good idea to take both 304 and 314.
Class Format
This class meets for three 50-minute lecture/conference sessions per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 9:00am in Vollum 116. The format of class sessions will vary, including components of lecture, discussion, and sometimes other participatory activities.
Prerequisites
You should have completed Economics 201: Introduction to Economic Analysis prior to taking this course. Because Econ 201 now includes relatively little analysis of macroeconomics, there will be minimal presumption of familiarity with macroeconomics. We will, however, assume that you are comfortable with basic economic concepts such as supply and demand, elasticity, the theories of the consumer and the firm, competitive equilibrium, and imperfect competition.
Office Hours
The instructor will hold office hours in Vollum 229 on Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3:00pm.
Students for whom these hours are inconvenient may make appointments at other times by contacting the instructor at extension 7308 or by email to parker@reed.edu.Exams and Other Assignments
Exams: There will be one mid-term exam, which may include both take-home and in-class components. The final exam will be comprehensive, but will cover the second half of the course more intensively. Please note that the registrar has tentatively scheduled the final exam in the latest time slot: Thursday afternoon, December 18. Do not schedule a flight earlier than Thursday evening!
Country-Analysis Project: Each student will complete a semester-long project analyzing the macroeconomy of one country. The assignment will be divided into ten parts, with each part having a written report to be submitted by a scheduled due date, usually at the beginning of class on Wednesdays. At the end of the semester you will edit your reports and assemble them into a comprehensive final report summarizing your historical and statistical analysis of the country's economy.
Homework: There will be a few homework assignments scattered through this course. The semester project will be a major, ongoing workload throughout the semester, so the homework assignments will be kept to the minimum necessary to complement your learning of the basic theories. Homework problems will usually be due at the beginning of class on Fridays. They will be returned on Monday, at which time we may discuss specific points from the assignment. Work received later in the day will be penalized, and no homework will be accepted after 3:00pm of the due date without a documented medical or similar excuse.
Grading
Grades will be based on all information the instructor has about your level of understanding of macroeconomics. This includes evidence from exams, homework, project assignments, class participation, and individual discussions.