Unit 1 Seminar topic -- Course Syllabus

The course syllabus is the core document around which the course is structured. It is located both in web form under Course Home, and additionally as a downloadable file in the DocSharing area.

Course description: This course is an introduction to the principles of macroeconomics. Students will analyze the purpose and functions of national income accounting, the components of Gross Domestic Product, the determinants of long run economic growth, and the causes and costs of inflation and unemployment. Students will be introduced to money, banking, and financial institutions. In addition, this course will cover the economic impacts of fiscal and monetary policies and the differences between short run (Keynesian) and long run (Classical) macroeconomic aspects of the economy. Particular attention will be given to integrating economic principles with the study of “real-world” problems.

Course Objectives: By the end of this course, you should be able to: Use graphs to interpret economic outcomes

Use graphs to interpret economic outcomes Determine how markets allocate resources Analyze the components of Gross Domestic

Product Summarize conditions required to promote long

term economic growth Analyze the relationship between inflation and

unemployment Analyze business cycles Evaluate the role of money in the Macroeconomy

About Your Textbook: Your textbook for this course is a digital version of a print book called an eBook. To read your eBook, make sure you first have the latest version (9) of Adobe Reader.  If not, you may download it for free at www.adobe.com

eBook Options: The eBook has been divided into chapters, each as one pdf file. You may open or download the files from the Reading area under the Unit, or from Doc Sharing.

Note on the page numbering: The page numbers listed for your readings are the page numbers of the textbook, not the page numbers of the PDF document.

• Gradebook: The grading scheme is detailed in the syllabus Gradebook chart, followed by the KU Grading Scale.

• Your semester letter grade is based on where your total course points fall within the university Grading Scale.

• The assignments from Units 1-9 are worth a total of 700 points, and the Final Exam (in Unit 10) counts for 300 points, for a total of 1000 course points.

• For example, it takes a minimum of 600 points to earn a “D” and pass the course, while 930 total points or more will earn you a solid “A”.

• Tutoring: We offer many different types of tutoring for ALL Kaplan University students. 

• There is a Writing Center where you can receive live tutoring for such topics as APA format and sentence structure, or even submit a paper to be reviewed by a composition instructor.  However, there are no papers in this course done in essay style or requiring APA format.

• The only assignment done as a Word .doc is the Homework, consisting of word problems from the chapters, so you should have little or no need to call upon the Writing Center for help with your assignments in this course.

• On the other hand, economics Homework may involve math. The university offers a Math Center with support for many math topics.  You can locate the Writing and Math Centers by visiting the Academic Success Center link, which is located under the Academic Support tab of your KU Campus home page. For anyone needing help with the math in Homework assignments, making use of the Math Center is a valuable but free resource.

• Finally, consider an additional tutoring service called SMARTHINKING tutoring. It provides individualized tutoring with an e-instructor in many subject areas, including economics.

• You can access SMARTHINKING for free for a limited number of hours via a link on your remote control. If you need additional assistance beyond the time that Kaplan provides, you can purchase more time directly from SMARTHINKING.

• Remember – the free Math Center and SMARTHINKING tutoring are there to help you. All you have to do is ask!

• If you have any questions regarding our tutoring services, please contact our Academic Advising department at (866) 522-7747, option 1, and then option 2. Our Academic Advisors will be able to guide you toward the appropriate tutoring for your needs.

• School of Business Policies: Following are details of the Undergraduate School of Business policies.

• Instructor’s Grading Criteria/Timetable: All on-time course projects (this includes homework) will be graded within one week of their due date.

• Late homework will be graded no later than one week after the student emails the instructor notifying him/her that the student submitted it.

• Discussion grades will be updated each week no later than Saturday of the week following the Unit’s completion.

• Next we will address the: Course Policies

Naming Conventions: In order to facilitate the tracking of assignments and correspondence with the instructor, please use the following naming conventions (username is your Kaplan username, # is the unit number for the activity).

• Projects: There are no Projects in this course.

• Homework: username-homework-unit#.doc

• Email Subject Lines: Please start your subject lines in email correspondence with Course & section username: SUBJECT_OF_MESSAGE.

• For example, if I were a student emailing the instructor about the seminar, the subject line might read: AB224-01 dhayfer: seminar

• Bear in mind that just as many students are taking various courses and this is not the only class they are in, likewise the instructor is teaching multiple courses and whichever class you are emailing about is not the only one. So when emailing the instructor it is especially important to identify which class you are talking about -- that is what lets the instructor know which course to log into to look up your information or whatever you are referring to.

• Extenuating Circumstances: If you have extenuating circumstances that prevent you from completing homework, quizzes or participating in the unit discussion, please contact the instructor.

• The possibility of alternative arrangements is at the discretion of the instructor, but when justified I typically approve requests for extensions on the Homework assignments.

• The Discussions and online quizzes on the other hand are automatically locked out by the system after the unit ends and normally cannot be done late. In rare, extreme circumstances I may opt allow some form of alternative submission, on a case by case basis.

• In any event active communication is the key to overcoming any hurdles you may encounter during the term. If you are unable to contact your instructor, contact your academic advisor.

• Grading Rubric – Discussion Board: Discussion Questions provide a forum for students to seek clarification and answer important questions about the course material. The discussion also allows students to receive feedback from the instructor and other students in the class. A discussion question grade will be posted to the grade sheet for each Unit using the “Discussion Grading Criteria” chart in the syllabus.

• Grading Rubric – Homework: A Homework grade will be posted to the grade sheet for each Unit using the “Project Grading Criteria” chart in the syllabus. There is not a separate grading rubric for the Homework. Generally, the left and middle collumns of the Project Grading Criteria will most apply to Homework assignments. APA will not be assigned.

• Online Communications Guidelines: Interactions in an online classroom are in written form. Your comfort level with expressing ideas and feelings in writing will add to your success in an online course. The ability to write is necessary, but you also need to understand what is considered appropriate when communicating online.

•

The word "netiquette" is short for "Internet etiquette." Rules of netiquette have grown organically with the growth of the Internet to help users act responsibly when they access or transmit information online. As a Kaplan University student, you should be aware of the common rules of netiquette for the Web and employ a communication style that follows these guidelines.

• Participating in Threaded Discussions: • You will communicate with your professor and

classmates using the threaded discussion areas. This is where you must post:1. 1 answer to the Discussion question, by

Saturday2. At least 2 replies to classmates.

All 3 posts must be on separate days of the week. For example, Wed-Fri-Mon.

During discussions, you must demonstrate not only that you understand the subject matter but also that you can apply what you have learned, analyze it, integrate it with knowledge you already have, and evaluate it critically.

1. Your postings should be appropriate and timely contributions that add value to the discussion.

2. I will provide you more information via course announcements, emails or in the seminars about requirements and grading related to participation in discussions.

• Discussion Guidelines: To ensure your success as a contributor to discussions and as a student in this class, we suggest the following guidelines for posting:

• Be clear about which message you're responding to. Refer to specific passages or ideas in the course or text that have sparked your interest or apply to the topics at hand.

• Make sure your contribution adds something new to the discussion. Think about how you can take the conversation to the next level.

Make your posting clear and easy to follow by dividing longer messages into paragraphs. Do NOT enter lengthy answers in a single long, run-on paragraph. A good writing rule of thumb is for each paragraph to be not more than about 5-7 sentences long.

Pithy (concise but meaningful) answers are best, and more likely to be read and responded to.

• Remember that you are writing for your audience, and for their benefit should make your post relatively fast and easy to read.

• Posts consisting of a single long, run-on paragraph make for slow, tedious reading and your audience may opt to simply pass it by.

• Classmates only have to reply to 2 answers. So they may not chose to take the time and trouble to compose replies to time consuming, difficult to read, verbose answers when they can instead pick the succinct ones that are better reads.

• Address classmates by name name, and “sign” your posts. That way, classmates know which replies are addressed to them, and what name you prefer to be addressed by.

• Use correct spelling, capitalization, grammar, syntax, and punctuation. Remember that it is not an Internet chat room, blog or that sort of thing. It is an academic discussion being graded for college credit, and your work should reflect that.

• If you plan on posting a lengthy response, it is a good idea to type your response in Word, then copy and paste it into the post. This way you'll always have a record of your communication if for some reason you lose your connection to the course.

• And in particular, it enables you to run Word’s built-in Grammar and Spell Check and Word Count on your work prior to posting.

• The Different Kinds of Assignments: Assignments are intended to help you master the content, and most of them counts for points towards your course grade, so you should do your best to complete them all. This course includes the following types of assignments:

• Readings-- Each Unit 1-9 has chapter(s) to read from the eBook.

• Homework-- Homework assignments require you to submit coursework to the instructor via the dropbox, and are graded assignments.

• Reviews-- Reviews in this course are graded online quizes used to help check your understanding of the content, and incorporated into your final course grade.

• Discussion Questions-- Discussion Questions are answered in the class discussion areas and form the core of class communication. Discussion Questions may ask you to apply course concepts to your own circumstances, provide your opinion about course content, or share your experiences completing course Exercises. Participation in discussions is required. Each of the first 9 units has a discussion question thread in which you are to post 1 answer plus a minimum of 2 replies to classmates’ answers, for a total of 3 posts minimum per unit discussion each week.

Final Exam-- During Unit 10, there are no Homework, Discussion, or Review assignments, and the only graded assignment is the Final Exam. As the time comes, course announcements and emails will provide further information on the Final Exam, which is worth 300 points or 30% of the course grade.

Paper Submissions-- There are no essay, APA style papers in this course. I do not require students to format the Homework documents in APA, as it is not applicable since they consist solely of word problems from the eBook chapters.

• Late Work Policy: In order to move quickly and successfully, specific deadlines for all assignments are clearly stated in the course syllabus.

• Should a student be unable to meet a deadline, it is expected the student will make arrangements in advance with the instructor to turn work in late. A penalty may or may not be assigned, at the discretion of the faculty member.

• If a student does not have genuinely extenuating circumstances, the following penalties apply:

• Work up to one week (1-7 calendar days) late: 20% reduction in points.

• After one week (8-14 calendar days) late: 30% reduction in points.

• No work will be accepted more than two (2) weeks after the due date.

Threaded Discussions are designed for maximum student participation and engagement. The system automatically locks out Discussions at the end of each Unit and will not allow further posts after that, so it is critical for you to complete each Discussion by the weekly deadline before it locks you out.

• Plagiarism Policy: The syllabus contains lenthy, detailed information on the plagiarism policy, which all students should read and heed.

• Remember that plagiarism includes using another person's words, ideas, or results without giving proper credit to that person, or giving the impression that it is your own work.

• Given the nature of this course, that especially applies to Discussion answers. Copying and pasting, or otherwise incorporating the wording of other students’ posts in your own answers as if it is your own work constitutes plagiarism.

• Whether a student copies verbatim or simply rephrases the ideas of another without properly acknowledging the source, it is still plagiarism. Students must take great care to distinguish their own ideas and language from information derived from other sources.

• Information on Procedures for Processing Plagiarism Offenses, and disputing plagiarism charges, is outlined in the syllabus.

That concludes our coverage of the syllabus for tonight. Before we move on, do any of you have questions about the syllabus?