PPPA 6085 -- Intermediate Microeconomics

PPPA 6085 -- Intermediate Microeconomics Public Policy 6085 -- Intermediate Microeconomics

George Washington University
Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration
Fall 2014

syllabus available at http://home.gwu.edu/~lfbrooks/leahweb/teaching/pppa6007/pppa6007.html

Contents

Course Description and Learning Objectives
Contact and Office Hours
Announcements
Course Logistics
Readings
Course Overview
Course Content
Evaluation
Handouts
Course Policies

Course Description and Objectives

This course presents intermediate microeconomics, with a focus on policy-relevant topics and examples.

As a result of completing this course you should be able to

Understand micro economic theory at an intermediate level
Conduct graphical and algebraic quantitative analyses
Apply supply and demand logic to policy problems
Apply theories of public goods and tax incidence to policy problems
Critically evaluate economic arguments in media and policy sources

Contact and Office Hours

Prof. Leah Brooks
Media and Public Affairs Building, Room 601F
Office Hours: Mondays, 3 to 5 pm
Sign up in advance with the scheduler
lfbrooks at gwu.edu
202-994-4703 for emergencies

I will do my best to answer emails within 24 hours during weekdays, or within 24 hours on the soonest non-holiday weekday if you email on the weekend. If you do not hear from me within this time frame, you should assume that your email has been lost and you should re-send.

If you have missed a class, please contact another student to ask what you have missed.

Our grader is Yelena Tsliker
781-267-5690, ytsilker at gwu.edu
Office Hours: Wednesdays 7 to 9 pm, Gelman 211.

Announcements

Class announcements will be posted here.

Course Logistics

Section 10: Tuesdays, 3:30 to 5:20 pm, Monroe 251
Section 11: Tuesdays, 6:10 to 8 pm, Monroe 353
Final exam is Tuesday December 16, 5:30 pm, Monroe 353.

Prerequisites

None. If you have already taken Intermediate Microeconomics, I suggest that you skip this class and enroll directly in 6014, Economics in Policy Analysis.

Readings

Required textbook: Goolsbee, Levitt and Syverson, Microeconomics.
Required reading packet: Selected chapters from Gruber, Public Finance and Public Policy, Second Edition.

Both are on order at the campus bookstore. Please let me know if you have difficulties obtaining any of the readings, or have issues with or links. Readings are subject to change, given the pace at which we move through the material.

Course Overview

Class	Date	Topic	Textbook Chapters	Due
1	August 26	Intro, Supply and Demand	GLS, Chapters 1 and 2
2	September 2	Supply and Demand and Policy	GLS, Chapter 3	Problem Set 1
3	September 9	Consumer Behavior	GLS, Chapter 4	Problem Set 2
4	September 16	Individual and Market Demand	GLS, Chapter 5	Problem Set 3
5	September 23	Producer Behavior	GLS, Chapter 6	Problem Set 4
6	September 30	Costs	GLS, Chapter 7	Problem Set 5
7	October 7	Midterm		Problem Set 6
8	October 14	Supply in a Competitive Market	GLS, Chapter 8
9	October 21	Market Power and Monopoly	GLS, Chapter 9	Problem Set 7
10	October 28	Imperfect Competition	GLS, Chapter 11	Problem Set 8
11	November 4	Externalities and Public Goods	GLS, Chapter 16	Problem Set 9
12	November 11	Tax Incidence	Gruber, Chapters 18 and 19	Problem Set 10
13	November 18	Social Insurance	Gruber, Chapter 12	Problem Set 11
14	November 25	Review		Back-of-the-envelope Memo

Course Content

Outline is preliminary and subject to change.

Intro, Supply and Demand
- GLS, Chapters 1 and 2
Supply and Demand and Policy
- GLS, Chapter 3
Consumer Behavior
- GLS, Chapter 4
Individual and Market Demand
- GLS, Chapter 5
Producer Behavior
- GLS, Chapter 6
Costs
- GLS, Chapter 7
Midterm
Supply in a Competitive Market
- GLS, Chapter 8
Market Power and Monopoly
- GLS, Chapter 9
Imperfect Competition
- GLS, Chapter 11
Externalities and Public Goods
- GLS, Chapter 16
Tax Incidence
- Gruber, Chapters 18 and 19
Social Insurance
- Gruber, Chapter 12
Leftovers
- notes

Evaluation

Problem Sets (10%)
- Problem sets are designed to practice the skills we learn in class and prepare you for the exams
- Turn them in in class at the beginning of class that they are due, or to my mailbox before class
- There are 11 problem sets due during the semester. Nine will count toward your grade; you can choose to either skip two problem sets, or drop the lowest two grades.
- I do not accept late assignments
- We will grade problem sets on a a check-plus, check, and check-minus system
- You're welcome to work with others, but you should each turn in your own work, in your own words
Back-of-the-envelope Memo (25%)
- Paper is due at the final class, in class
- Extensions will be given only the case of illness
- Any essays submitted late will decline by ten points for each twelve hours the essay is late, e.g. if the essay is due on Friday and is received Monday, if it would have received 70%, it now receives 30%
- Economists often do “back of the envelope” calculations. For example, suppose an economist wants to think about how much primary case visits will increase after the advent of Obamacare, and he needs an estimate in 2 weeks. The economist will make a quick calculation based on the current number of visits and the how much we think visits will change given a change in price -- a concept called the price elasticity of demand.
- Your goal in this paper is to think of a policy topic of interest, for which an as-yet-known number would be helpful information, and then generate such a number doing a back-of-the-envelope calculation.
- The paper should be no more than five pages.
- I will hand out detailed instructions for this paper during our third class.
Midterm Exam (20%)
- This is a closed book exam covering all material in the course through this point.
- You are free to use a calculator for the exam, but you are not allowed to use the programming function if your calculator has one.
- Do not plan to use your mobile as a calculator
Final Exam (30%)
- This is a closed book exam covering all material in the course through this point, but with an emphasis on the latter half of the class.
- You are free to use a calculator for the exam, but you are not allowed to use the programming function if your calculator has one.
- Do not plan to use your mobile as a calculator
Class Participation (10%)
- I expect that you will come to class having read the case study and ripped from the headlines material and prepared to engage with me and other students in discussing the material we are covering
Ripped from the Headlines (5%)
- One to three students (depending on course size) chooses an article related to the topic of the week
- Student must email me the link to the article by Friday at noon (for the class the following Tuesday); earlier than this is, of course, ok.
- One to three (depending on course size) students prepare short presentations (5 mins or less) on how the article supports or rejects hypotheses we've learned in class
- More details on this when we know the number of students registered for the class

Handouts

Ripped from the Headlines instructions
- Assignments
  - Afternoon session (10)
  - Evening session (11)
- Article finders' articles and presentations
  - Afternoon session (10)
    1. First week
    2. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    3. Article 1, Presentation 1
    4. Article 1, Presentation 1
    5. Article 1 (pdf if needed), Presentation 1
    6. Article 1, Presentation 1
    7. Midterm
    8. Article 1, Presentation 1
    9. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    10. Article 1, Presentation 1
    11. Article 1, Presentation 1
    12. Article 1; Presentation 1
    13. Article 1, Presentation 1
    14. Article 1, Presentation 1
  - Evening session (11)
    1. First week
    2. Article 1, Presentation 1
    3. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    4. Article 1 (pdf if needed), Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    5. Article 1 (pdf if needed), Presentation 1; Article 2 (pdf if needed),Presentation 2
    6. Article 1 (pdf if needed), Presentation 1; Article 2 (pdf if needed), Presentation 2
    7. Midterm
    8. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    9. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    10. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    11. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2; Article 3, Presentation 3
    12. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    13. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
    14. Article 1, Presentation 1; Article 2, Presentation 2
Problem Sets
- Problem Set 1
  - problem set
  - answers [updated 9/9/2014, 3 pm]
- Problem Set 2
  - problem set
  - answers
- Problem Set 3
  - problem set
  - answers, and the xls for pictures [xls updated 9/25/14 10:30 am]
- Problem Set 4
  - problem set
  - answers
- Problem Set 5
  - problem set
  - answers
- Problem Set 6
  - problem set [updated 9/31/14 11:03 am]
  - answers
- Problem Set 7
  - problem set
  - answers
- Problem Set 8
  - problem set [updated 10/22/14 11:19 am]
  - answers [updated 11/04/2014, 12:30 pm]
- Problem Set 9
  - problem set
  - answers [updated 11/17/2014, 12:04 pm]
- Problem Set 10
  - problem set
  - answers, excel worksheet
- Problem Set 11
  - problem set
  - answers
- Problem Set 12
  - problem set
  - answers
Back-of-the-envelope Memo
- Instructions
- General Comments
Midterm

Course Policies

The Syllabus
This syllabus is your guide to the course. If any questions arise, please check the syllabus before contacting me or the TA. Sound educational practice requires flexibility and I may revise content and requirements during the semester.
Late or Missed Class
If you are late or absent from class, it is your responsibility to obtain all announcements, assignments, and handouts from Blackboard or from your classmates.
Exam Dates
Please notify me in the first two weeks of class if you are aware of a pre-existing conflict, such as a religious holiday you observe, that will preclude you from taking either the midterm or final at the assigned time. To the extent possible, we will work together to reschedule the exam as close to the original date as possible.
Submission of Written Work Products Outside of the Classroom
It is your responsibility to ensure that I receive your assignment on time. It is not permissible to submit assignments on the digital dropbox of Blackboard unless I tell you so.
Collaboration on Assignments
You are welcome to work in groups; however, you are expected to write up your answers individually. This means that no phrases on your assignment should mimic phrases on any other student's work.
Submission of Written Work Products after Due Date
All work must be submitted by the assigned due date in order to receive full credit. Only extreme circumstances warrant exceptions. Late assignments will be marked down for each day that they are late.
Academic Honesty
All examinations and other graded work products are to be completed in conformance with the George Washington University Code of Academic Integrity. Note especially the definition of plagiarism: �intentionally representing the words, ideas, or sequence of ideas of another as one�s own in any academic exercise; failure to attribute any of the following: quotations, paraphrases, or borrowed information.�
Incompletes
You must consult with me to obtain an incomplete no later than the last day of classes in the semester. At that time, we will both sign the CCAS contract for incompletes and submit a copy to the School Director. Please consult the TSPPPA Student Handbook or visit this link for the complete CCAS policy on incompletes.
Changing Grades After Completion of Course
No changes can be made in grades after the conclusion of the semester, other than in cases of clerical error.
Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
If you need extra time on exams or assignments due to a disability, let me know in the first week of class. In order to receive accommodations on the basis of disability, you�ll need to provide proper documentation to the Office of Disability Support Services, Marvin Center 436, 202-994-8250. Accommodations will be made based upon the recommendations of the DSS Office.
University Counseling Center
The University Counseling Center (UCC), 202-994-5300, offers 24/7 assistance and referral to address students' personal, social, career, and study skills problems. Services for students include: crisis and emergency mental health consultations; confidential assessment, counseling services (individual and small group), and referrals
Religious Holidays
If you need to miss a class to observe a religious holiday, please notify me the first week of classes about any conflict; we will arrange an absence without penality.