Students

ECON8057 – Economic Development

2025 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Lisa Magnani
lisa.magnani@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
(Admission to MPH or MSusDev) or ECON6032 or ECON6033 or ECON6049 or ECON8091
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit is designed to give students a critical understanding of the inherent problems facing developing countries. The focus is on the research that provides insights into the constraints and decisions of the poor and the implications for practical and achievable policy interventions that improves the lives of the poor. The range of topics covered includes the poverty trap, nutrition, health, how families make decisions on issues such as fertility and gender; how the poor make decisions about education; and the general failure of the market and institutions including credit, savings and insurance markets in providing services to the poor and fostering economic development.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Evaluate the evidence on how economic agents make decisions, and the impact this has on their well-being.
  • ULO2: Assess the impact on the well-being of the poor arising from the institutions that govern their lives.
  • ULO3: Appraise policy interventions designed to improve the well-being of the poor.
  • ULO4: Critically analyse the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals in low-income countries.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty (written assessments)

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends).

After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted.

Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern. For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to apply for Special Consideration.

 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Case Study Report 40% No Week 13
Research Project 40% No Week 11
Weekly Discussion 20% No Week 5, Week 9 and Week 13

Case Study Report

Assessment Type 1: Case study/analysis
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 40%

 

The timed case study report takes place on iLearn over a 3-day period in Week 13.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Evaluate the evidence on how economic agents make decisions, and the impact this has on their well-being.
  • Assess the impact on the well-being of the poor arising from the institutions that govern their lives.
  • Appraise policy interventions designed to improve the well-being of the poor.
  • Critically analyse the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals in low-income countries.

Research Project

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 11
Weighting: 40%

 

This assessment involves students undertaking an individual research project chosen from a set of topics. This mid session project consists of a 1,500-word essay (excluding tables, diagrams and reference list).

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Evaluate the evidence on how economic agents make decisions, and the impact this has on their well-being.
  • Assess the impact on the well-being of the poor arising from the institutions that govern their lives.
  • Appraise policy interventions designed to improve the well-being of the poor.
  • Critically analyse the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals in low-income countries.

Weekly Discussion

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Week 5, Week 9 and Week 13
Weighting: 20%

 

Three times throughout the session, students will choose to prepare for an in-class discussion or submit a written discussion piece.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Evaluate the evidence on how economic agents make decisions, and the impact this has on their well-being.
  • Assess the impact on the well-being of the poor arising from the institutions that govern their lives.
  • Appraise policy interventions designed to improve the well-being of the poor.
  • Critically analyse the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals in low-income countries.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

We will meet weekly for 2 hours long seminars where we discuss the key concepts, theories, case studies and policy matters related to specific weekly topics (see Unit Schedule below). To faciliate in-class discussion Students are asked to engage with 1-hour recorded lecture posted in iLearn weekly. 

Apart from reviewing the key concepts, theories and issues discussed the recorded lecture and slides, we will have opportunities to learn together through group work and class discussion.

 

Unit Schedule

ECON8057 Schedule

Week 1: Economic Development and Sustainable Development Goals

Week 2: Development and Growth

Week 3: Human Development in the Context of Inequality, Poverty and Poverty Traps

Week 4: Demographic Change and Development

Week 5: The ecological dimensions of development

Week 6: Development and Globalization of Production

Week 7: Labour markets in developing countries

Week 8: Rural/urban labour markets, labour migration and effects

Week 9: The Role of the Informal Sector in Development

Week 10: Technological change in the context of development

Week 11: Technological change and the labour markets in the context of development

Week 12 and Week 13: Policy for development, and review

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2025.02 of the Handbook