Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
Dr Alison Vicary
Contact via Via iLearn
E4A437
TBA
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Credit points |
Credit points
3
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
(PSY122 or STAT150 or STAT170) and 6cp at 200 level including (ECON200 or ECON201 or ECON203 or ECON204 or ECON214 or ECON215)
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
Despite robust economic growth across the globe in the last decades, around one billion people in the world still suffer from the effects of underdevelopment and poverty. This unit will give students a critical understanding of the inherent problems facing underdeveloped and developing countries. It will provide an in-depth analysis of the different explanations and measures that may be taken to foster economic development and to relax the constraints that slow it down. An integral component of the unit is discussion of the most recent research by economists who work in the field, testing and devising cheap and feasible policy solutions to improve outcomes for the global poor. Focusing on specific examples, such as the prevalence of diseases such as malaria or the schooling outcomes of children in poor households, we will investigate and critically evaluate the effectiveness of existing policy measures and discuss ways to improve our policy response to enduring development challenges.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
1. All individual assessment tasks are to be submitted electronically via the ECON336 ilearn site.
2. No extensions will be granted for any of the assessment tasks. There will be a deduction of 10% of the total available marks for each 24 hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for example, 25 hours late = 20% penalty). This penalty does not apply, for cases in which an application for special consideration is made and approved.
4. You must complete all pieces of assessment to pass the course.
If you have a problem fulfilling the requirements of the course, see the following:
https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
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Lessons on iLearn | 0% | Yes | Most Weeks |
Design and Evaluate a Project | 60% | No | Various Weeks |
Critiquing Foolish Ideas | 40% | No | Final Week |
Due: Most Weeks
Weighting: 0%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)
Most weeks you will be expected to complete a multimedia Lesson, which you can access in the relevant folder on iLearn. These Lessons include reading the relevant chapter from the 'textbook', reading short articles, watching some videos and answering some simple questions.
Due: Various Weeks
Weighting: 60%
Some of the literature addressed in the course examines the impact of small relatively cheap projects intended to improve the lives of the poor. This assessment asks you to use this literature to design and evaluate your own small policy intervention. There are a number of components to the assessment task including a component for peer assessment that builds to your final submission. You will be provided with additional information about these tasks and the due dates in class.
Due: Final Week
Weighting: 40%
Watch the following video that purports to explore what it means to live on one dollar a day in a low-income country.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on-0PYf-m9s
Critique the authors' views using the ideas presented in the course. This assessment involves participating in an online discussion forum, where you will be on graded on your capacity to present your ideas and respond to the critiques of others in the class. The discussion forum will be open for a limited time period. More information will be provided in class.
There will be one three-hour session each week. Students are advised to attend all classes as important components of the assessment will be addressed in class. If you can not participate in classes, you should not enrol in this course as you will not be able to complete all of the assessment tasks.
Time: Friday 9 am - 12 pm
Location: 11 Wally's Walk 110 Tutorial Room
For most topics, there will be an online lesson which you must complete before coming to class. These Lessons will be available in the relevant topic folder. The lessons are designed to guide through some of the course content for the week. Embedded in the lessons will be a series of simple questions to assist you with the learning process. You must complete all of the Lessons.
Abhijit Banerjee & Esther Duflo (2012) "Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty," USA, Perseus Books Group.
This book is available in hard copy from the coop bookshop.
This book is also available as an ebook and in audible format.
This book is written by two well-known development economists from MIT, one of the world's best universities for economics. It is a great read, summarising the latest research on the lives of the poor, their problems, how they make decisions, and the environment in which these decisions are made.
The book introduces you to some of the more recent ideas and approaches in economics. The aim of much of the research is to assist in the design of policy to improve the lives of the poor. Many of the findings are surprising and the book offers no grand solutions or answers to poverty or other problems associated with development. It instead argues that the research provides information on how to improve the lives of the poor one small well thought out policy intervention after another. Most of these policy interventions are small and not particularly glamorous.
You may also wish to avail yourself of the relevant resources available at the following website
It is a good resource designed to assist students and educators.
4. ECON336 iLearn Site
Additional important materials including the readings, Lessons and assessment tasks will be placed on the ilearn site. In addition to attending classes, it is your responsibility to access the website each week to ensure you keep up with the requirements of the course.
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TOPIC |
Required Reading Prior to Lecture |
PART 1: PRIVATE LIVES |
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1 |
Introduction: The Aid Debate & the Poverty Trap |
Poor Economics, pp.1-16, pp20-22 |
2 |
Malnourished People: Not Taking Care of Nutrition |
Poor Economics, pp.19-40 |
3 |
The Easy Health Problems have not been Fixed. Are there any New Solutions to an Old Problem? |
Poor Economics, pp.41-70 |
4 |
Why Poor School Students Learn so Little? Are there any Cheap Solutions? |
Poor Economics, pp.71-102 |
5 |
Fertility, Gender Discrimination: How do families really make decisions about these issues? |
Poor Economics, pp.103-132 |
PART 2: INSTITUTIONS |
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6 |
More Risk, Little Insurance Cause Catastrophic Outcomes for the Poor |
Poor Economics, pp.133-156 |
7 |
The Poor and Getting Access to Credit |
Poor Economics, pp.157-182 |
8 |
Do the Poor find it Harder to Save? |
Poor Economics, pp.183-204 |
9 |
A Billion Unhappy Poor Entrepreneurs |
Poor Economics, pp.205-234 |
10 |
What About the Lousy Institutions and the Awful Politics? |
Poor Economics, pp.235-265 |
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