Azim Premji University
Introduction to Climate Change Economics. [Syllabus]
This course is designed as elective for advanced UG and PG Economics students, to introduce the science and economics of climate change. It aims to develop economic thinking and intuition applied to policy challenges associated with climate change. The course will examine the role of economics and policy to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change, assess the national and international policy design and issues with current implementation, survey the economic tools needed to evaluate current and future climate change policies.
Introduction to Statistics and Programming. [Syllabus]
The objective of this course is to provide an introduction of the use and statistics in the study and application of economics and equip students to use computer programs to understand and implement these statistical techniques. Modern economic theory has developed a well-suited set of formal analytical techniques that require mathematical comprehension and a set of tools of scientific discovery that requires sophisticated understandings of statistics, including analyses of causality. We will approach mathematics as a language that helps elucidate economic intuitions and make these precise. Statistical methods will be introduced as a way to demonstrate how to quantitatively understand and define economic relationships. These two tasks are, of course complementary: theories must be tested against empirical data, but statistical analysis requires economic theories to direct the research question. Students finishing this course successfully will have the skills to go on to further advanced courses (for example econometrics or advanced microeconomics) as well as knowledge the basic formal toolkit that underlies economic theory
Understanding India 4: How India Works, Spends and Earns. [Syllabus]
This course is the fourth in a set of five compulsory courses in the Understanding India (UI) component of the common curriculum in the UG Economics Programme. Through this course, students will be exposed to the basic structure of the Indian Economy, compare and contrast the two post-independence economic regimes, analyse quantitive economic data for India and understand the employment, spending and earning patterns across regions and identities.
Statistics and Society [Syllabus]
The focus of this course is on grasping the foundations of statistical analysis and how it gets used in understanding and addressing human issues of our times. It is designed to inculcate specific quantitative capabilities in students, who can then engage with various forms of data representation and analysis with confidence. Beginning from data collection, aggregation, graphs, histograms and moving to ratios, percentages, pie charts, and correlations, students will focus on developing quantitative skills and reasoning. Students will engage with basic research that gets published newspaper articles. In addition, it is necessary to develop a critical and reflective stance towards the use (and abuse) of quantitative analysis to fit certain preconceived notions of right and wrong public policy. Students will be sensitised to the confirmation biases and theoretical assumptions that empirical data can be force fitted into. Thus, the course will attempt in engaging with the four components of factual, procedural, conceptual, and meta- cognitive aspects of learning statistical analysis for humanities research. This course is designed for students majoring in Humanities