Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Economics Week 4 Agenda 1/5/10

Economics Week 4 Agenda

Journals

Monday
Should the Government spend more or less on the military? Why does the United States spend so much more on the military than education?

Tuesday
If the government had to spend 1 trillion dollars on a system that would garunteee we could never get bombed but it might not work should they spend the money?

Wednesday
What do you think is the best way to spend government money? (Military, Education, health care) Explain.

Thursday

Friday
Would you ever want to open your own business why or why not?

Main topics covered
Government Spending
Government Choices
Creating alternatives
Individual Business decisions

In Class Labs
Born on Third Base
Cost Benefit Analysis: Three Gorges Dam

Assignments

Curent Event 2 G.M. is on Road to profit
Assigned 1/8/10
1/2 page summary
1/4 page how will G.M. making money help the state of Michigan
1/4 page should Michigan give tax breaks to G.M. if they create more jobs in Michigan

Assignment 3
The Three Gorges Dam

The Three Gorges Dam is a very controversial dam in China the purpose of this dam is to regulate the flow of water during the spring. The benefit of the dam is that floods will be regulated hopefully ending devastating floods during the spring. The Dam will also create a tremendous amount of electricity. The problem with the dam is that it is taking away valuable farm land, and destroying a area that is essential to the history of the area, which contain priceless artifacts. Assume the role of: economist, sociologist, environmentalist, anthropologist, and a civil engineer. And write the paper pretending that you are one of the previously mentioned roles.


Part 1 5pts ½ a page

What are the benefits of the dam who does the dam benefit. How does the government benefit from the dam and how do you rationalize the billions of dollars spent of the dam


Part 2 5pts ½ a page

What are the costs of building the dam are the costs worth the dam being built. Does the dam make economical sense to you? Should the dam have been built and will the dam benefit the people? the government? Or both?

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Current Event 12/18/09

You can find the current event on the right hand side under Current Event 12/18/09

1/2 page summarize article
1/4 page should the national government help Michigan
1/4 Page how does some job loss create more job loss, and how does job ctreation create more jobs

Monday, December 14, 2009

Economics Week 2 Agenda

Economics Week 2 Agenda

Journals

Monday
Economists have really changed the course of time, please explain how the course of the world has been influenced by Adam Smith and Karl Marx.

Tuesday
Hong Kong Used to be part of the British Empire. When Hong Kong was to be passed over the Chinese several rich people in Hong Kong left the country what would you do?

Wednesday
Many African Governments are in transition from one form of economy to another (Traditional to something else) should the United States help these countries, or stay out of it? Why

Thursday

Friday
Should the United States let people travel to Cuba? Should we also losen the trade embargo on Cuba

Main Topics covered
Transitional economies
4 basic economic questions
China buying American debt
African imperialism

Assignments (assigned 12/15/09) due 12/17/09

Assignment 2 Economics (Build A Economic System)

10 points

You have just landed in a new island that no one else has ever been. On your sail boat there are 500 people and they all decide that you are going to be the new leader of this new land. You decide that before you decide what sort of government and economic system you will have you should survey the land to see what resources that land has.

Part 1 (3pts)

Draw a map of the island and make sure to include what natural resources are where, what part of the world your island is located, as well as where your town is located.


Part 2 (3pts) ½ a page

Please describe the pluses and minuses of each type of economic system.

Part 3 (4pts) ½ a page

What type of economic system did you decide to go with? Why is this economic system the best for your island, and how are you going to make sure your government does not get thrown over (how do you keep everyone happy)

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Economics week 1 agenda

Economics week 1 Agenda

Journals

Monday
If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be and why? What are the advantages and disadvantages of living there?

Tuesday
One of the main ideas of Communism is that everyone shares everything, is this a good or bad idea, and why?

Wednesday
Would you be willing to give more of your paycheck to help other people? Does it matter how much money you make

Thursday

Friday
Do you think it is possible to overthrow a economic system without a war? Why or why not?

Main topics covered
Major economic systems
Command economy
Traditional economy
Mixed economy
Adam Smith (the Wealth of Nations)
Karl Marx (The Communist Manifesto)

Readings
Parts of (The Communist Manifesto) (the Wealth of Nations)
480-495 Roger

Assignments

In 1776, Adam Smith wrote a classic economics book entitled An Inquiry into the Wealth of Nations. In this rather long, rather tedious, but amazing book, he observed that:


“As every individual endeavors as much as he can to maximize his own economic well-being, every individual necessarily labors to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can. He generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it… he intends only his own gain, and he is in this… led by an invisible hand to promote and end which was no part of his intention.” [Emphasis added.]

Please give me 10 examples of how helping yourself will help the whole economy. Please use complete sentences.

Example: If I make lots of money that means I can buy lots of goods, someone has to make those goods which provides jobs.

Economics

2008 – 2009
Instructor Information: Contact Information:
Instructor: Mr. Brent Jandron Office Phone: (231) 720 – 2935
Class Room: A220 Muskegon High School Email: bjandron@mpsk12.net
Office Hours: 2:45 – 3:24 m-thur
Course Philosophy:
“Freedom is not Free” – F. Roosevelt
“An unexamined life is one not worth living”- Plato
“An educated mind will not allow the chains of enslavement”- Jacobs

Course Information: This course is designed to facilitate real life skills so you can be participating citizens in your community. The course begins by analyzing the social contract and the importance of a governing body. The Government section of the course concludes with an in-depth analysis of the US’s governmental structure and policies that are born from that structure. You will be able to demonstrate your understanding of the course though examinations, debates, simulations, presentations, and writing persuasive arguments. Moreover, the Economic portion of the course is designed to develop a greater understanding of basic economic theory. When the course concludes in June, you will have a solid foundation of the basic economic concepts.

Course Guidelines and Procedures:
Student learning is the first priority of the class.
I mark students tardy when they are not sitting in their assigned seat when the bell rings.
I explain procedures once.
I respect students
I listen and speak to students who behave and treat me with respect.
I call on students after they raise their hand, and I speak to only one student at a time.
I write hall passes when I am not giving instruction.
I am required to follow all MHS Student handbook procedures.

Course Grading Policy: Grading will include every facet of your involvement. I grade on behavior, assignments, quizzes, and tests. Some of the factors determining a grade include: neatness, following instructions, spelling, grammar, content, and effort.


Grade Percent Scale: School grading scale

Semester Grade Weights: Semester grades are calculated by weights of the following: trimester grade 80%, and Final Exam 20%.

Assignments: I accept late work within the first week it was due. Late work will be reduced by 50% and it will be graded after it is completed.

Absent Work: I am not responsibility for absent work. Former students have found it helpful to ask me before or after class, or they will look in the assignment folder for the assignment(s). Work that was due the day you were absent is due before class the day you return.

Absent Work Procedure: Turn in before the same number of day(s) you were absent.

Attendance: Is required classroom participation will be taken for lack of attendance

Course Materials: Former students have found it helpful to bring a three ring binder / class folder, paper, pencil/pen, Grade Matrix, Transaction Register, class book and any assignments everyday to class.





Extra Credit:
Will be assigned once per semester

Classroom participation Each student will be given 40 points at the beginning of the trimester, points will be taken away for: Being sent to RTC, sleeping in class, taking more than two bathroom passes, general bad behavior, or failure to cooperate.

Economics pacing Guide
Week 1,2
Economic systems

3.1.1 Major Economic Systems – Give examples of and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of major economic systems (command, market and mixed), including their philosophical and historical foundations (e.g., Marx and the Communist Manifesto, Adam Smith and the Wealth of Nations).(National Geography Standard 11, p. 206)
3.1.5 Comparing Economic Systems – Using the three basic economic questions (e.g., what to produce, how to produce, and for whom to produce), compare and contrast a socialist (command) economy (such as North Korea or Cuba) with the Capitalist as a mixed, free market system of the United States.(National Geography Standard 11, p. 206)
3.1.6 Impact of Transitional Economies – Analyze the impact of transitional economies, such as in China and India, on the global economy in general and the American economy in particular. (National Geography Standard 11, p. 206)

Week 3,4
Wants vs. Needs Individual Business, Government choices

1.1.1 Scarcity, Choice, Opportunity Costs, and Comparative Advantage – Using examples, explain how scarcity, choice, opportunity costs affect decisions that households, businesses, and governments make in the market place and explain how comparative advantage creates gains from trade.
4.1.1 Scarcity and Opportunity Costs – Apply concepts of scarcity and opportunity costs to personal financial decision making.
4.1.5 Personal Decisions – Use a decision-making model (e.g., stating a problem, listing alternatives, establishing criteria, weighing options, making the decision, and evaluating the result) to evaluate the different aspects of personal finance including careers, savings and investing tools, and different forms of income generation.

Week 5,6
Price, Supply and Demand

1.3.1 Law of Supply – Explain the law of supply and analyze the likely change in supply when there are changes in prices of the productive resources (e.g., labor, land, capital including technology), or the profit opportunities available to producers by selling other goods or services, or the number of sellers in a market.
1.3.2 Law of Demand – Explain the law of demand and analyze the likely change in demand when there are changes in prices of the goods or services, availability of alternative (substitute or complementary) goods or services, or changes in the number of buyers in a market created by such things as change in income or availability of credit.
1.3.3 Price, Equilibrium, Elasticity, and Incentives – Analyze how prices change through the interaction of buyers and sellers in a market including the role of supply, demand, equilibrium, elasticity, and explain how incentives (monetary and non-monetary) affect choices of households and economic organizations.
4.1.2 Marginal Benefit and Cost – Use examples and case studies to explain and evaluate the impact of marginal benefit and marginal cost of an activity on choices and decisions.


Week 7,8
Understanding National Markets and Business

2.1.1 Income – Describe how individuals and businesses earn income by selling productive resources.
2.1.2 Circular Flow and the National Economy – Using the concept of circular flow, analyze the roles of and the relationships between households, business firms, financial institutions, and government and nongovernmental agencies in the economy of the United States.
2.1.3 Financial Institutions and Money Supply – Analyze how decisions by the Federal Reserve and actions by financial institutions (e.g., commercial banks, credit unions) regarding deposits and loans, impact the expansion and contraction of the money supply.
2.1.4 Money Supply, Inflation, and Recession – Explain the relationships between money supply, inflation, and recessions.
2.1.5 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Economic Growth – Use GDP data to measure the rate of economic growth in the United States and identify factors that have contributed to this economic growth
2.1.6 Unemployment – Analyze the character of different types of unemployment including frictional, structural, and cyclical.
2.1.7 Economic Indicators – Using a number of indicators, such as GDP, per capita GDP, unemployment rates, and Consumer Price Index, analyze the characteristics of business cycles, including the characteristics of peaks, recessions, and expansions.
2.1.8 Relationship Between Expenditures and Revenue (Circular Flow) – Using the circular flow model, explain how spending on consumption, investment, government and net exports determines national income; explain how a decrease in total expenditures affects the value of a nation’s output of final goods and services.
2.1.9 American Economy in the World – Analyze the changing relationship between the American economy and the global economy including, but not limited to, the increasing complexity of American economic activity (e.g., outsourcing, off-shoring, and supply-chaining) generated by the expansion of the global economy. (National Geography Standard 11, p. 206)

Week 9
Decision making/ Personal finance

4.1.3 Personal Finance Strategy – Develop a personal finance strategy for earning, spending, saving and investing resources.
4.1.4 Key Components of Personal Finance – Evaluate key components of personal finance including, money management, saving and investment, spending and credit, income, mortgages, retirement, investing (e.g., 401K, IRAs), and insurance.
1.1.2 Entrepreneurship – Identify the risks, returns and other characteristics of entrepreneurship that bear on its attractiveness as a career.
1.4.1 Public Policy and the Market – Analyze the impact of a change in public policy (such as an increase in the minimum wage, a new tax policy, or a change in interest rates) on consumers, producers, workers, savers, and investors.
1.4.5 Economic Incentives and Government – Identify and explain how monetary and non-monetary incentives affect government officials and voters and explain how government policies affect the behavior of various people including consumers, savers, investors, workers, and producers.
2.2.5 Government Revenue and Services – Analyze the ways in which governments generate revenue on consumption, income and wealth and use that revenue for public services (e.g., parks and highways) and social welfare (e.g., social security, Medicaid, Medicare).

Week 10,11,12
Competitive Markets

1.2.1 Business Structures – Compare and contrast the functions and constraints facing economic institutions including small and large businesses, labor unions, banks, and households.
2.1.3 Financial Institutions and Money Supply – Analyze how decisions by the Federal Reserve and actions by financial institutions (e.g., commercial banks, credit unions) regarding deposits and loans, impact the expansion and contraction of the money supply.
2.2.4 Federal Reserve and Monetary Policy – Explain the roles and responsibilities of the Federal Reserve System and compare and contrast the consequences – intended and unintended – of different monetary policy actions of the Federal Reserve Board as a means to achieve macroeconomic goals of stable prices, low unemployment, and economic growth.
3.2.4 Monetary Policy and International Trade – Analyze how the decisions made by a country’s central bank (or the Federal Reserve) impact a nation’s international trade. (National Geography Standard 13, p. 210)
3.2.2 Domestic Activity and World Trade – Assess the impact of trade policies (i.e. tariffs, quotas, export subsidies, product standards and other barriers), monetary policy, exchange rates, and interest rates on domestic activity and world trade. (National Geography Standard 11, p. 206)