Fall 2006
PMBA 0608: Economics/Statistics Foundation
Course Contract
|
Dr. Jacqueline Khorassani Email: khorassj@marietta.edu Web: http://www.marietta.edu/~khorassj Fax: (740) 376-7501 Work Phone: (740) 376-4621 Home Phone: (740) 376-2636 |
Objective
This course is designed to prepare
you for the upper level courses in the MBA program that require a basic
understanding of topics in economics and statistics.
Materials
1. N. Gregory Mankiw, “Principles of Economics”, Fourth Edition, Thomson/South-Western Publishers (You will be using this book in other courses later.)
2. Mendenhall, Beaver and Beaver, “A Brief Course in Business Statistics”, Second Edition, Thomson/South-Western Publishers (Keep this book as a reference for other courses.)
3. The Wall Street Journal (I am told that you are required to purchase a subscription to the journal anyway.)
4. PowerPoint slides will be posted on the web.
5. Additional material will be posted on the web.
6. Microsoft Excel & Microsoft Word
7. Check out both books’ websites for additional learning tools.
Means of Communication
Our main means of communication is the classroom. You are expected to attend classes on a regular basis and take notes on the upcoming assignments. I will post each class session’s PowerPoint slides on the web. I will also post your grades on the web and update them frequently. I may also communicate information to you via the internet and intranet when necessary. Similarly, please feel free to use any of the available means of communication to share your concerns and questions with me.
I am a firm believer in the system of checks and balances. I will try to give you feedback on how you are doing in class as frequently as possible. If your performance in class does not meet your expectation, please feel free to ask me for help. Together, we should be able to find ways to increase your productivity. Similarly, I am asking you to give me feedback on how I am doing as your instructor. To make it easier for you to share your concerns with me, I have made it possible for you to send your comments to me anonymously via my web page. I will read your comments and respond to them on my web page.
The following table shows the weight of different
assignments in your final grade.<div
align="center">
|
Two Exams (100 points each) |
200 pts. |
|
Five Assignments
(20 points each) |
100 pts. |
|
Total |
300 pts. |
</div>The students will be evaluated as follows:<div align="center"></div><div align="center">
|
Total
Points |
Grade |
Total Points |
Grade |
|
290-300 |
A+ |
230-239 |
C+ |
|
280-289 |
A |
220-229 |
C |
|
270-279 |
A- |
210-219 |
C- |
|
260-269 |
B+ |
200-209 |
D+ |
|
250-259 |
B |
190-199 |
D |
|
240-249 |
B- |
180-189 |
D- |
|
|
|
Below 180 |
F |
</div>You are responsible to keep track of your points. To help you out with this task, I will post your grades on my web page.
Exams
You will be given two exams according to the following schedule.
|
Exam 1 |
Exam 2 |
|
Saturday, September
30 14:00-16:00 |
Saturday, December 2
9:00-11:00 |
Exams consist of multiple choice questions, short analytical questions, and graphical or numerical problems. Exam 2 covers only the topics discussed after exam 1.
Make-up Policy
If you miss an exam and have an excused absence, I will discuss your options with you individually. If you miss an exam because of an unexcused absence, you will receive a grade of zero on that exam.
Assignments
In this class you will be given six assignments according to the following table. Each assignment carries 20 points. I will grade these assignments, both for content and the disposition of the content. When calculating your course grade, I will drop your lowest assignment grade. Together, the remaining five assignments account for one-third of your course grade.
|
Assignment |
Will be given on |
Due on or before |
|
1 |
Saturday, August 26 |
Saturday, September 2 |
|
2 |
Wednesday, September 6 |
Saturday, September 16 |
|
3 |
Saturday, September 30 |
Saturday, October 14 |
|
4 |
Wednesday, October 18 |
Wednesday, October 25 |
|
5 |
Saturday, October 28 |
Saturday, November 4 |
|
6 |
Wednesday, November 8 |
Saturday, November 25 |
Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty such as cheating on exams or submitting some one else’s work as your own (plagiarism) will not be tolerated in this class. These types of activities will result in penalties ranging from receiving a failing grade on one assignment or exam to failing this course or even expulsion from the University.
Have A Disability?
If you need accommodations due to documented disability, please feel free to contact me. I will do my best to meet your special needs.
Tentative Course Schedule
|
Session |
Date |
Time |
Topics |
|
1 |
Friday, August 25 |
17:00-19:00 |
Course Contract Ten principles of economics (Mankiw, Chapter 1) What is statistics? (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 1) |
|
2 |
Saturday, August 26 |
9:00-11:00 |
Thinking like an economist (Mankiw, Chapter 2) Describing sets of data (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 2) |
|
3 |
Saturday, August 26 |
11:00 -13:00 |
Gains from trade (Mankiw, Chapter 3) Assignment 1 (due on or before September 2) |
|
4 |
Wednesday, September 6 |
19:30-22:45 |
Discussion of Assignment 1 Supply and demand (Mankiw, Chapter 4) Probability (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 3) Assignment 2 (due on or before September 16) |
|
5 |
Wednesday, September 20 |
19:30-22:45 |
Discussion of Assignment 2 Elasticity and its applications (Mankiw, Chapter 5) Discrete probability distributions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 3) |
|
6 |
Saturday, September 30 |
14:00-16:00 |
Exam 1 |
|
7 |
Saturday, September 30 |
16:00-18:00 |
Measuring a nation’s income ((Mankiw, Chapter 23) Discrete probability distributions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 4) Assignment 3 (due on or before October 14) |
|
8 |
Wednesday, October 18 |
19:30-22:45 |
Discussion of Assignment 3 Measuring a nation’s income (Mankiw, Chapter 23) Discrete Probability Distributions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 4) Assignment 4 (due on or before October 25) |
|
9 |
Saturday, October 28 |
9:00-11:00 |
Discussion of Assignment 4 Measuring the cost of living (Mankiw, Chapter 24) |
|
10 |
Saturday, October 28 |
11:00-13:00 |
The normal and other continuous probability distributions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 5) Assignment 5 (due on or before November 4) |
|
11 |
Wednesday, November 8 |
19:30-22:45 |
Discussion of Assignment 5 Production and growth (Mankiw, Chapter 25) Sampling distributions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 6) Assignment 6 (due on or before November 25) |
|
12 |
Wednesday, November 29 |
19:30-21:00 |
Discussion of Assignment 6 Unemployment (Mankiw, Chapter 28) Estimation of means and proportions (Mendenhall, Beaver & Beaver Chapter 7) |
|
13 |
Saturday, December 2 |
9:00-11:00 |
Exam 2 (covers everything after exam 1.) |