ECON201 - Principles of Microeconomics - California State University, Fullerton - Dr Toche
GENERAL
The aim of this course is to introduce students to the principles of microeconomics. This course is intended for students of the California State University at Fullerton. Material for the course will be uploaded here as it becomes available. This page is available on Canvas at https://csufullerton.instructure.com/courses (requires login) and on Google sites: https://sites.google.com/view/econ-201/ (public access).
SYLLABUS & SCHEDULE
Available on Canvas.
TEXTBOOK
N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, Cengage, 10th edition.
I will be following Greg Mankiw's textbook closely. There are other editions with slightly different titles: N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Microeconomics contains fewer chapters with otherwise identical content. Homework and Midterms are managed vial the Cangage/MindTap platform, which requires registration.
LECTURES
The lecture notes are made available in PDF format only. The "slides" are for viewing on horizontal screens. The "handouts" have been stripped of many illustrations and images and are therefore significantly smaller in size. The slides will be used during class. The handouts may be used for more details. Model answers for selected problems are available on Canvas. Chapters marked by a star may be omitted. See the Syllabus for details.
1-3. Introduction to Economics
Mankiw, Chapters 1-3
1. Principles of Economics
Mankiw, Chapter 1
2. Thinking Like an Economist
Mankiw, Chapter 2
3. The Gains from Trade
Mankiw, Chapter 3
4. Supply & Demand & Equilibrium
Mankiw, Chapter 4
5. Supply & Demand & Elasticity
Mankiw, Chapter 5
6. Supply & Demand & Policy
Mankiw, Chapter 6
Tax Liability Equivalence
7. Consumer Welfare & Production Efficiency
[Handout] [Slides] [Animation]
Mankiw, Chapter 7
8. Tax Incidence
[Handout] [Slides] [Animation]
Mankiw, Chapter 8
Tax Elasticity Formula (not included)
9. International Trade
Mankiw, Chapter 9
10. Policy & Externalities
[Handout] [Slides] [Animation]
Mankiw, Chapter 10
11. Public Goods & Common Resources
Mankiw, Chapter 11
12. Economics of Health Care*
Mankiw, Chapter 12
13. Design of the Tax System
Mankiw, Chapter 13
14. Production Costs
Mankiw, Chapter 14
15. Competitive Firms
Mankiw, Chapter 15
16. Monopoly
Mankiw, Chapter 16
Price Discrimination
Mankiw, Chapter 16
17. Monopolistic Competition
Mankiw, Chapters 17
18. Oligopoly
Mankiw, Chapters 18
ASSESSMENT
Any Date changes will be announced on Canvas
1. Homework [20%]
Assignments are managed via the Cengage/MindTap platform available via Canvas.
2. Project [20%]
Instructions, Rubrics, and a list of suggested Topics are available on Canvas.
3. Midterm [30%]
Midterms are managed via the Cengage/MindTap platform available via Canvas. Examinable topics are listed in the Diary.
4. Final [30%]
Closed book. No smartphones. No internet access. No calculators. All topics covered in class are examinable. The full list of topics is listed in the Diary. Refer to end-of-chapter problems and to the model answers for examples of problems.
GRADES
Course grades are letter grades from the following categories: A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D, F. Component grades are percentage grades. When added up, component grades are mapped to the letter grades according to a standard equivalence scale. The syllabus contains details of the conversion rules.
Typically a very small percentage of students fail the course. This usually happens if students give up in the middle of the semester and stop participating and submitting assignments. If you choose to drop out of the course, do it by the deadline. On rare occasions students have failed because their performance in the final examination was very poor. While most students should be able to pass the course, getting a B is not automatic and getting an A is very demanding.
EXTRA
Videos
Pandemic Redux
Maps
Economists
Financial Crises
Finance and Politics
TIME MANAGEMENT FOR EVENING CLASSES
19:00 - 21:45 Sessions
19:00 Start
19:50 Break 1
20:00 Re-start
20:50 Break 2
21:00 Re-start
21:45 Stop
The information contained on this page may be updated. You will be informed in class of any changes.