Econ 101-introduction To Microeconomics - Course Syllabus

UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO Department of Economics Econ 101 - Introduction to Microeconomics Lec 001, Fall 2007 We meet 7:00 - 9:50 pm each Tuesday in DC 1351 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Instructor Usman Ali Hannan HH 131, Phone # 519-888-4567, Ext. 33635 My Office Hours: Monday and Tuesday 5.20-6.50 in the afternoon. Feel free to drop by. [email protected] Call me at my office only during the office hours, e-mail me otherwise. Required Text Michael Parkin and Robin Bade, Microeconomics: Canada in the Global Environment, 6th edition, (Addison Wesley). I will be following the textbook closely in this course. The textbook has a Study Guide by Avi J Cohen and Harvey B. King. If you find it helpful for practice and learning, then you are encouraged to use it. The same applies to the web-based learning tool MyEconLab that accompanies new textbooks. Course Objectives and Overview We will understand and learn the basic and important principles of microeconomics that have far ranging and important applications in business, industry, government as well as in our day to day life. It is primarily a theory course that gives an analytical understanding and insight into many of the choices we make as an individual, firm, government or other stakeholders. We will derive some powerful analytical tools and concepts out of this course that will enable us to assess and analyze the world around us from the perspective of an Economist. We will cover following topics: Chapter 1: What is Economics? Definition of Economics The Economic Way of Thinking Chapter 2: The Economic Problem. Chapter 3: Demand and Supply Chapter 4: Elasticity Chapter 6: Market in Action (Excluding “Market for Illegal Goods”) Chapter 7: Utility and Demand Chapter 10: Output and Costs

Chapter 11: Perfect Competition Chapter 12: Monopoly Chapter 13: Monopolistic Competition and Oligopoly You are expected to practice the analytical components (diagrams and maths) to get sufficiently confident on them to make inferences or solve problems based on them. Course Evaluation There will be two midterm tests (in class) worth 25% each. 1st Midterm: Tuesday, October 09, 2007, from 7.10-8.25 2nd Midterm: Tuesday, November 06, 2007 from 7.10-8.25 There will be an hour of class after each of these midterms. The final exam is worth 50% and is scheduled by the Registrar’s Office. I will announce more on the midterms and final exam in the class in due time. If you miss a midterm, you must provide me with appropriate documentation to shift the midterm weight to the final exam. It is assumed that students are aware of the University’s policies on Academic Offences and other issues concerning academic integrity. ************************************************************************ Note on avoidance of academic offenses: All students registered in the courses of the Faculty of Arts are expected to know what constitutes an academic offense, to avoid committing academic offenses, and to take responsibility for their academic actions. When the commission of an offense is established, it will be acknowledged by disciplinary penalties. For information on categories of offenses and types of penalties, students are directed to consult the summary of Policy #71 (Student Academic Discipline) which is supplied in the Undergraduate Calendar (p.1:11). If you need help in learning how to avoid offenses such as plagiarism, cheating, and double submission, or if you need clarification of aspects of the discipline policy, ask your course instructor for guidance. Other resources regarding the discipline policy are your academic advisor and the Undergraduate Associate Dean. Students who believe that they have been wrongfully or unjustly penalized have the right to grieve; refer to Policy #70, Student Grievance, http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infosec/Policies/policy70.html. “How to Avoid Plagiarism and Other Written Offences: A Guide for Students and Instructors - Go to http://watarts.uwaterloo.ca/~sager/plagiarism.html. Note for students with disabilities: The Office for Persons with Disabilities (OPD), located in Needles Hall, Room 1132, collaborates with all academic departments to

arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with the OPD at the beginning of each academic term.