Notice
As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group learning activities on campus for the second half-year, while keeping an online version available for those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.
To check the availability of face to face activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.
Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
Dr Sunny Shin
Contact via email
Teaching Staff
Dr Craig MacMillan
Contact via email
Teaching Staff
Dr Danielle Kent
Contact via email
Teaching Assistant
Mr Dylan Thompson
Contact via email
Aditya Srivastava
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Credit points |
Credit points
10
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
This unit provides an introduction to the main ideas and concepts involved in modern economics, and attempts to provide students with an understanding of how the economy works, what type of problems economists attempt to solve, and how they set about trying to solve them. The unit is primarily concerned with the analysis of individual decision-making agents, the behaviour of firms and industries in the economy (microeconomics), and on the economy as a whole (macroeconomics). Topics can include: consumer choice and demand analysis, the firm and its production and costs, market structures and performance, monetary policy, unemployment and fiscal policy. |
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:
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
---|---|---|---|
Weekly online participation | 10% | No | Weekly |
Online quizzes | 10% | No | Weeks 5 & 10 |
Assignment | 30% | No | 2pm, Friday, 2/10/2020 |
Online final examination | 50% | No | University Exam Period |
Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 13 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 10%
Online participation is expected throughout the session. Each week, you are expected to make two posts in the relevant forum thread based on the lecture/tutorial content. Your participation will be recorded each week based on the number and the quality of your posts. In order to get full marks for this component, you need to demonstrate active participation in at least 10 weeks throughout the session.
Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 2 hours
Due: Weeks 5 & 10
Weighting: 10%
There will be two online quizzes conducted throughout the session. The first online quiz will cover lecture material from weeks 1-4; the second online quiz will cover lecture material from weeks 5-9. The quizzes are of equal value (5% each).
Assessment Type 1: Problem set
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: 2pm, Friday, 2/10/2020
Weighting: 30%
There will be one individual assignment to be completed during the session. The assignment will be in the form of written short and long answer questions (2,000 words in total).
Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 33 hours
Due: University Exam Period
Weighting: 50%
A two-hour open-book examination, consisting of descriptive short and long answer questions, will be held during the University Examination Period. The examination will be administered online.
1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:
2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation
Prescribed textbook:
Students will need to consult this textbook:
This text is produced by the CORE ECON team and is available free online at https://www.core-econ.org/project/core-the-economy/. You will need to register on the site as a student. It is possible to obtain hard copies if desired.
Note that the CORE ECON project site contains significant additional resources that you should aim to make use of in aiding your learning.
Additional References (in alphabetical order):
Apart from the textbook above, students may find the following resources useful as well. Most reputable microeconomics textbooks cover the same economic theories, but perhaps you may want to refer to supplementary chapters from these texts for topics that you need extra help on. Note that the CORE ECON approach can differ substantially from standard texts, so it will be necessary to consider alternatives judiciously:
Students interested in a very readable and non-technical account of where many of the economic ideas studied in this course come from are encouraged to consult:
Technology Used and Required
The unit uses the learning management system (iLearn) that can be accessed via iLearn.mq.edu.au. All of the learning materials and important information related to ECON1020 will be provided and can be accessed via iLearn. Students are expected to check the ECON1020 iLearn site regularly. It also allows students to put questions to an Online-Tutor. The Online-Tutor will attempt to answer your questions in a timely manner.
This unit uses Zoom for all online meetings which include live tutorial sessions, consultations, and extra webinars. See iLearn for details.
This unit provides a platform on Microsoft Teams for peer-to-peer communication. See iLearn for details.
Learning and Teaching Activities
This unit is taught as a mix of lectures and tutorials. The lectures are designed to provide the tools which can then be applied in tutorials. ECON1020 relies heavily on independent learning where students read the relevant chapter(s), revise lecture notes, and prepare answers to the tutorial questions.
Lectures (2 hours for each topic)
Lectures are intended to provide an overview of the key concepts explored in the unit. Students are expected to read the relevant chapter(s) and watch pre-recorded lectures provided on iLearn.
Tutorials (1 hour for each topic)
Tutorials constitute a critical learning experience of this unit. Students are expected to attempt tutorial questions prior to engaging in tutorial activities (see iLearn for details). Brief tutorial solutions will be posted on iLearn at the end of each teaching week.
PAL, Peer Assisted Learning (1 hour for each topic)
Revision of the material from both lectures and tutorials via Zoom.
Lecture Topic | CORE Unit Number | Assessment Task Due | |
Week 1 | The capitalist revolution | 1 | |
Week 2 | Technology, population, and growth | 2 | |
Week 3 | Scarcity, work, and choice | 3 | |
Week 4 | Scarcity, work, and choice | 3 | |
Week 5 | Social interactions | 4 | Online quiz 1 (5%) |
Week 6 | Property and power: Mutual gains and conflict | 5 | |
Week 7 | The firm: Owners, managers, and employees | 6 | |
Week 8 | The firm and its customers | 7 | Assignment (30%) |
Week 9 | Supply and demand: Price-taking and competitive markets | 8 | |
Week 10 | Supply and demand: Price-taking and competitive markets | 8 | Online quiz 2 (5%) |
Week 11 | The labour market: Wages, profits, and unemployment | 9 | |
Week 12 | Economic inequality | 19 | |
Week 13 | Revision | ||
Exam Period | Final exam (50%) |
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