Course Description:

BUECO5903 Business Economics

School/Portfolio: School of Business

Course Code/ID:

BUECO5903

Course Title:

Business Economics

Teaching Location:

Sino College, Hong Kong

Program(s):

Master of Business Administration

Level:

Introductory

Semester:

Semester One, 2011

Prerequisite(s):

Nil

Co requisite(s):

Nil

Exclusion(s):

Nil

Credit Points/ Progress Units:

15

ASCED Code:

080399

Semester 1, 2011 BUECO 5903 Page 1

Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

Contents
1 COURSE ORGANISATION: ............................................................................................ 3 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 2 3 4 5 Student Responsibility ....................................................................................................... 3 Attendance and Participation ............................................................................................. 3 Handbook/s ....................................................................................................................... 3 Staff ................................................................................................................................... 3 Prescribed Text ................................................................................................................. 3 Plagiarism.......................................................................................................................... 3 Copyright ........................................................................................................................... 4 Special Consideration ........................................................................................................ 4 Late Submission of Assessment Tasks.............................................................................. 4 Presentation of Academic Work ......................................................................................... 5 Assignment Cover Sheets ................................................................................................. 5 Submission and Return of Student Work ........................................................................... 5 Appeals ............................................................................................................................. 5 Academic Progress Committee ......................................................................................... 5 Grading.............................................................................................................................. 6 Use of Dictionaries ............................................................................................................ 6 . 6

OBJECTIVES...................................................................................................

CONTENT: ...................................................................................................................... 7 LEARNING TASKS AND ASSESSMENT: ....................................................................... 7 SCHEDULE: .................................................................................................................... 8

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

COURSE ORGANISATION:

1.1 Student Responsibility It is your responsibility to be aware of the requirements for this course, and understand the specific details included in this document. 1.2 Attendance and Participation It is in your best interest to make every effort to attend all the classes for this course and to complete all preparatory and assessment tasks. It is our experience that those students who do not attend class or carry out the associated activities are more likely to do poorly or to fail the course completely. 1.3 Handbook/s For full details of programs and school procedures, please refer to the University of Ballarat handbook (http://www.ballarat.edu.au/ubhandbook-2011) and the School of Business Programs Handbooks available at http://www.ballarat.edu.au/business/handbooks Please note that any reference to the Programs Handbook within this document indicates the abovementioned handbook, not your partner-specific handbook (i.e. for those studying off-campus with other providers). 1.4 Staff The most appropriate person for you to contact is the person who teaches you. If necessary they will contact the Course Coordinator at the University of Ballarat.
Lecturer Name: Dr. Laurel Myers Phone: 61 3 5561 7571 Email: laureld@hotkey.net.au

Course Coordinator:

Name: Paul McPhee Phone: (03) 5327 9415 Email: p.mcphee@ballarat.edu.au

1.5 Classes Classes will be held in the Sino College, Fourseas Building, 208-212 Nathan Road, Jordan, Kowloon, during 4.5 days 21-22 May, 23 May, and 28-29 May, 2011.

1.6 Prescribed Text Layton, Robinson and Tucker, Economics for Today, 2007, Third Asia Pacific Edition 2009 (or even second edition), Cengage Learning. NB It is important that all students have the 3rd edition of the textbook. 1.7 Plagiarism Of necessity, most academic work is heavily dependent on the findings or ideas of others (i.e. authors, scholars). Indeed, one of the main aims of academic assessment tasks is to encourage you to research widely and develop research skills. In presenting your work for assessment you Semester 1 BUECO 5903 Page 3

Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

must show the assessor that you have read widely, and the only way you can do this is to properly cite your sources in the body of your assignment. As a matter of intellectual honesty and scholarly integrity you must say where ideas, information, arguments, diagrams or other theoretical models come from, regardless of whether you are quoting directly, paraphrasing, or simply mentioning or using data from that source. To do otherwise amounts to plagiarism, and is a serious academic offence. Plagiarism goes further than the failure to acknowledge quotations, paraphrases or information from published sources - it also includes copying or using other students work and downloading material from the internet and passing it off as your own. Any cases of plagiarism, cheating or copying, will be dealt with by the Course Co-ordinator in accordance with the Universitys regulations, and may result in a zero mark for the piece of assessment, failure of the whole course or exclusion from the program. Make sure you are aware of the University's Regulation 6.1.1 Student Plagiarism, available at http://www.ballarat.edu.au/legislation/6.1.1-plagiarism 1.8 Copyright Copyright is different to Plagiarism. Plagiarism is the use of another person's work, and passing it off as your own, without acknowledgement of the author. Copyright is the restriction which defines fair use of another's work. As a student, you will make use of other people's copyright material during your study. The Copyright Act has provisions for students and researchers to copy and communicate electronic, audiovisual and hardcopy material, although limits do apply. It is your responsibility to comply with the Fair Dealing Provisions of the Copyright Act which, combined with an agreement with the Copyright Agency Ltd, provides students with legal use of a vast amount of copyright material related to their research and study. However, there are limitations, such as only copying one chapter or 10% of a book or one journal article. Further information on these limitations and other Relevant material is available on the University web site at http://www.ballarat.edu.au/aasp/copyright/. 1.9 Special Consideration If you believe that you are eligible for special consideration, due to illness or other cause, you need to complete the Application for Special Consideration form available from http://www.ballarat.edu.au/resources-special-consideration-form, your School or Partner Provider office. For further information please refer to the Information for Students Applying for Special Consideration (Including Deferral of an Examination) Guidelines available from http://policy.ballarat.edu.au/university/special_consideration/chol/php Extension of Assessment Due Date - In the first instance, discuss requests for an extension with your lecturer, or you may formally request an extension by completing the Special Consideration form. Supplementary Assessment may only be granted as an outcome of an application for Special Consideration. 1.10 Late Submission of Assessment Tasks Late submission of work may incur a penalty for each week day of up to 10% of the available marks. Unless with prior arrangement with the lecturer, papers submitted two weeks (i.e. 14 calendar days) after the due date will not be marked. Semester 1 BUECO 5903 Page 4

Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

1.11 Presentation of Academic Work All work presented for assessment in this course must comply with the format outlined in the University's General Guide to the Presentation of Academic Work publication, available from the University bookshop or online at: http://www.ballarat.edu.au/generalguide. Use the Harvard (name-date) referencing style to cite any source you use. Marks may be deducted for poor citation. Do not just quote large amounts from textbooks. Try to express your answer in your own words. You may draw any diagrams by using the computer or by drawing them hand. Hand drawn diagrams will have to be scanned first and then uploaded to your computer so that the file can be inserted into an email message

1.12

Submission and Return of Student Work

All student work submitted for assessment is to be sent to the lecturer as an email attachment (MS Word) with your name and title of the work in the subject of the email. Email address: laureld@hotkey.net.au The file must be named in the following format: Student name_unit code_Title of work Example: Hao Chang_BUECO5903_Assignment 1

1.13

Appeals

You may appeal about administrative issues, final grades or other academic decisions. With regard to grades or academic decisions, discuss your concerns with your lecturer in the first instance and then your Academic Co-ordinator to access the required form to lodge your appeal. For full details about the appeals process please refer to University Regulation 5.3 Assessment http://www.ballarat.edu.au/legislation-5.3-Assessment. 1.14 Academic Progress Committee

The Academic Progress Committee is a sub-committee of the Programs Committee, and is responsible for applying the University's Monitoring Course Progression Procedure (http://policy.ballarat.edu.au/esos/standard_10/ch02.php) and complying with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship International Student Reporting Requirements. Students who do not perform to a satisfactory level within their program or course may be asked for an explanation by the Committee, which has the power to warn and exclude students who demonstrate unsatisfactory progress.

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

1.15

Grading

The University observes the following grading scheme HD D C P MF F XF AD TD 1.16 High Distinction 80 - 100% Distinction 70 - 79% Credit 60 - 69% Pass 50 - 59% Marginal Fail 40 - 49% Fail 0 - 39% Non-assessed Fail Assessment Deferred up to 3 months Assessment Deferred up to 12 months

Use of Dictionaries

The Universitys Guidelines (http://www.ballarat.edu.au/policy/special-provisions-non-englishspeaking) make provisions for students who are from a non-English speaking background to use an approved unmarked hard copy bilingual dictionary in an examination.

OBJECTIVES:

The objective of this course is to introduce students to the fundamental principles of microeconomics (i.e. the study of individual markets, firms and consumers) and help them develop an understanding of their applications. The course is designed to assist students to develop skills in microeconomic research, analytical writing and presentation. Students completing this course should have developed the following knowledge, skills and values: Knowledge of the microeconomic business decision making environment y y y y Understand the price mechanism via the market supply and demand forces Identify the non-market forces that affect the price mechanism Identify the profit maximising behaviour of the firm Analyse the different market structures in the economy

Knowledge of the macroeconomic business decision making environment y Appreciate the nature and use of GDP growth, inflation rate, unemployment rate, interest rate, and exchange rage in identifying economic problems Understand the causes of economic problems according to Classical Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply, Keynesian and Monetary theories Understand the role of government in the economy using fiscal and monetary policy Understand basic international trade and finance theories

y y

Skills y y y y y To develop basic research skills in collecting and collating macro and micro economic data To identify and analyse economic trends and issues To critically evaluate various policy options To apply economic skills in analysing business and social problems To develop the oral and written communication skills required for successful commentary on economic issues and problems

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

Values

y Value the role of economic theory as a way of thinking and analysing economic problems and y y y y
issues Value learning as a life-long activity for self development Foster an analytical and critical approach to business issues Have the capacity to make decisions on business problems Develop a sustained interest in economics

CONTENT:

Specific topics and sub-topics are listed in the schedule in Section 5.

LEARNING TASKS AND ASSESSMENT:

4.1 Summary It is emphasised that this course requires a significant commitment outside of formal class contact. Students are required to complete pre-reading before the course commences. Written answers to the pre-reading questions are to be submitted to the lecturer before the course begins. In addition, two assignments are to be completed and there is a final examination.

Learning task Assignment 1 (Microeconomics) Assignment 2 (Macroeconomics) A closed book examination

Assessment Written assignment Written assignment Final Examination

Weighting 15 % 15 % 70 %

In order to pass this course, students must accumulate a minimum of 50% of the total marks available. You are strongly advised to attempt ALL assessment tasks. 4.2 Notes on Assessment (School Policy)

All assignment work must be typed and referenced in accordance with sections 1.7 and 1.8 accordingly so that plagiarism and breach of copyright is avoided. 4.3 Assessment Details

Assignments: y Each assignment consists of a set of questions to answer and problems to solve. Assignment 1 is concerned with Microeconomics; Assignment 2 is concerned with Macroeconomics. The assignments will be distributed to students at the first class. The assignments provide individual students with the opportunity to study and understand microeconomics and macroeconomics in a way that prepares them for the final exam. The assignments contribute towards 30 % of the final grade (15 % per assignment). Each assignment must be typed and submitted to the lecturer as an email attachment.

y y y

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

Final Examination: y y y y y Will be of three (3) hours duration Will ask students to provide written answers to a number of questions, under strict examination conditions. Closed book examination. Will contribute 70 % towards the final grade. Will contain questions similar to the questions at the end of each chapter in the text book, or will be based on those questions. Will contain no multiple choice questions.

5.

SCHEDULE:

Date

Topics Covered

Reading (Layton chapter)

Tutorial Questions (SQP Study questions and problems MCQ Multiple choice questions)

PRE-READING
17/5 18/5 The problem of scarcity, scarcity and choice, scarce resources and production. Introduction to the economic way of thinking: methodology, models and hazards. Applying graphs to economics. 1, plus Appendix Ch1:SQP: Answer all questions Ch1:MCQ: Answer all questions APPCh1: MCQ; Answer all questions.

Answers to the pre-reading tutorial questions are to be submitted to the lecturer before the course commences. Send your answers to the pre-reading questions to the lecturer, as an attachment to an email, as soon as possible. method of submission on Page 5. Final date for submission of these answers is 18th May, 2011. Note

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

Date

Topics covered

Reading (Layton Chapters)

Tutorial Questions SQP Study Questions & Problems MCQ Multiple Choice Questions

MICROECONOMICS
2 21/5 Fundamental economic questions. Opportunity cost. possibility frontier & scarcity Production 3, 4 Ch 2: SQP: 1, 2, 8, 9, 13 Ch 2: MCQ: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 Ch3: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6: Ch 3: MCQ: 2, 3, 4, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18. Ch4: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10; Ch4: MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 10. Ch5: SQP: 1, 4, 6, 7, 11, 14; Ch5MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 9 6 21/5 Production & cost behaviour The theory of the firm and perfect competition 7 Ch6:SQP: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9; Ch6: MCQ: 1, 3, 4 Ch7: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11; Ch7: MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11; 22/5 Market structures: monopoly 8 Ch8: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12; Ch8: MCQ: 1, 2, 3. 22/5 22/5 Monopolistic competition and oligopoly 9 Ch9: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11; Ch9: MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 15. Microeconomic reform 10 Ch10: SQP 1, 2, 4, 5, 7 Ch 10: MCQ 3, 4, 10, 11,

21/5

The market mechanism: demand & supply, action & role of markets, minimum & maximum prices, market failure

21/5

Elasticity of demand & supply: other measures of elasticity and revenue projections

22/5

ASSIGNMENT 1 MICROECONOMICS Due date 29 May, 2011

th

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

Date

Topics Covered

Reading (Layton chapter)

Tutorial Questions (SQP Study questions and problems MCQ Multiple choice questions)

MACROECONOMICS
Introduction to macroeconomics, national accounts, Gross Domestic Product, business cycles, inflation and unemployment. (Omit pp. 330338 inclusive on long term growth theory). Goals of macroeconomic policy 11, 13 12,
Ch11: SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12 Ch11: MCQ: 1, 2, 4 Ch 12: SQP: 1, 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11 Ch 12: MCQ: 1, 2, 8 Ch 13: SQP: 1-13 inclusive CH 13: MCQ1, 2, 3

28/5

28/5 29/5

The aggregate demand- aggregate supply model. The Monetary System

14 15

Ch 14: SQP: 1,2,4,5,6,8,9,10,11,13

Ch14: MCQ: 1,2 Ch 15: SQP: 1,2,3,4,5,7,8,10,11,13

Ch 15: MCQ: 1, 4, 10, 11

16, 17 29/5 Monetary & Fiscal Policy

Ch16:SQP: 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10; Ch16:MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8; Ch17:SQP: 1, 2, 4, 8; Ch17:MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9;

International trade theory, balance of payments, exchange rates 29/5

18

Ch18:SQP: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10; Ch18: MCQ: 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 11, 12.

ASSIGNMENT 2 MACROECONOMICS Due Date 5 June, 2011

th

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Course Description: BUECO5903 Business Economics

6.
6.1 (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v)

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
How to Study BUECO5903 Have unhindered textbook access as the whole course and the exam questions are built around it; Attend all lectures and read all recommended materials as this will give you a broad understanding of the topic and where it fits into the subject; Prepare answers to all tutorial questions as you may be asked to present and explain a solution in class; Understand the arguments for and against a policy option so that you can present your own reasoned case whilst also understanding alternative points of view; Lectures, tutorials and readings are complementary;

(vi) Some interactive discussion and participation will be expected in tutorials; (vii) For assignment and exam preparation, extra reading may be required and you will be advised what to read in advance;

6.2

Additional References

Some useful pre-reading as an entre into the world of economics: Stephen Levitt (2005) Freakonomics, Penguin. Tim Harford (2006) The Undercover Economist, Penguin. (or see the respective web sites for each of these best sellers) Additional References on Business Economics: Griffiths, A and S. Wall (2005), Economics for Business and Management, London Financial Times and Prentice Hall. Rivers G., and I. Ward, (2002), Economics in the Business Environment, Prentice Hall. Additional References on the basic Principles of Economics: Gans, J., King, S., Stonecash, R. & Mankiw, N. G. (2005) Principles of Economics, Third Edition, Melbourne: Thomson. Jackson, J., McIver, R., Bajada, C. & Hettihewa, S. (2004) Economic Principles, Sydney: McGraw-Hill Australia. McTaggart, D., Findlay, C. & Parkin, M. (2003) Economics, Fourth Edition, Sydney: Addison-Wesley. Sloman, J. & Norris, K. (2005) Principles of Economics, Sydney: Pearson Education Australia.

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