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ECO202: Economics in Historical Perspective
The Economics in Historical Perspective course introduces students to
economics as a social science in which ideas and issues grow out of a
historical context. Students examine the evolution of the
interrelationship between society, its institutions, and economic
forces from the tradition and command style approaches to the economic
problem, into the current predominant market system. The economic way
of thinking, with some of its principle tools, will be developed and
applied connecting economic history with an understanding of
contemporary economic and social issues.
The goals and objectives of this course are to teach students to:
- understand, and explain, the contemporary context of economic thinking through its historical evolution.
- understand and succinctly explain economic behavior in its
social context of pre-history and early history, and the basic
historical epochs of feudalism, mercantilism, and capitalism.
- develop a usable command of key economic concepts in order
to apply them effectively to historical (when applicable) and
contemporary issues. These concepts include types of economic systems,
scarcity & tradeoffs, surplus, property rights, economic and
non-economic behavior, supply and demand, trade & specialization
& absolute and comparative advantage, the role of money and
finance, inflation/deflation, economic growth, employment/unemployment,
business cycles, economic efficiency, income distribution, monetary
& fiscal policy and path dependency.
- be able to use economic tools to explain economic problems.
These tools include mathematical manipulations, functional
relationships, circular flow diagrams, supply and demand curves, and
the production possibilities curve.
- be able to understand and explain the role of government in the economic problem.
- further develop reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills.
This first course will introduce students to the language, ideas, and a
core set of tools that will be used in the second course:
ECO203: Principles of Micro and Macroeconomics.
Principles of Micro and Macroeconomics introduces the neoclassical
theories of consumer behavior and the firm. This covers utility, cost
and production, market structure and the allocation of resources. This
course will also examine aggregate economic behavior, including the
determination of national income, the causes of inflation and
unemployment, the banking system and the money supply process, fiscal
policy and monetary policy, and economic growth.
As noted above, the second course in our sequence will focus on
traditional economic analysis, after students have considered the
evolution of economics from a historical and cultural (social)
perspective. It will complete the foundations for understanding the
analysis of “market” based economic systems.
The goals and objectives of this course are to teach students to:
- understand and analyze the economic behavior of individuals, firms, markets, and national economies.
- develop the analysis of markets, their prices, and economic forces.
- develop the analysis of market structures with regard to inputs, output, and the distribution of income.
- develop the analysis of national income determination, why income changes, and what can or can’t be done about it.
- develop the analysis of market breakdowns and potential policy responses.
- be able to use economic tools to explain economic problems verbally, graphically, and mathematically.
Students who have completed these first two courses should be on par
with students taking the traditional two course introductory sequence.
ECO204: Alternative Economic Perspectives
This course will introduce students to non-traditional economic
analysis, after they have developed an understanding of the contextual
perspective for this analysis in our course sequence. Alternative
Economic Perspectives will examine the assumptions and limitations, of
the mainstream analysis through a study of alternative economic
viewpoints to economic policy issues and problems. It will compare the
values, theories, methods, analysis, and policies of these different
economic approaches using case studies of current economic problems.
This course will provide the analytical content under alternative
contexts for the intermediate level micro-macro course sequence, all
electives, and the capstone course. Formal writing will be an integral
part of this course.
The goals and objectives of this course are to teach students to:
- analyze and apply the tools of alternative economic approaches to contemporary economic problems and issues.
- develop the analysis of at least three alternative economic approaches.
- apply alternative economic analyses to contemporary economic problems and issues.
- provide students the opportunity to practice critical
thinking in addressing social issues that significantly involve
economic dimensions.
After completing the 3-course cycle (along with basic statistics &
calculus), students are ready to take upper level electives and the
intermediate level micro and macro courses. The latter are at the
center of our current discussion and we expect to start pilot
testing reformed versions in the 2007-8 academic year.
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Department of Economics
