Economics
304: Intermediate Macroeconomics
Fall 2007
Reed College -- Professor Jeffrey
Parker
This course is a detailed, but non-mathematical, examination of modern macroeconomics. Its central subject matter concerns the relationships among major aggregate economic variables such as national output, the interest rate, unemployment, and inflation. Emphasis will be placed both on theory and on empirical tests using contemporary and historical data.
This course is offered as an alternative to Economics 314: Macroeconomic Theory. Students who have a strong quantitative orientation should take Econ 314.
This class meets for three 50-minute lecture/conference sessions per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 9:00am in Vollum 116. The format of class sessions will vary, including components of lecture, discussion, and sometimes other participatory activities.
Economics: You should have completed Economics 201: Introduction to Economic Analysis prior to taking this course. Because Econ 201 now includes little analysis of macroeconomics, there will be no presumption of familiarity with macroeconomics. We will, however, assume that you are comfortable with basic economic concepts such as supply and demand, elasticity, the theories of the consumer and the firm, competitive equilibrium, and imperfect competition.
The instructor will hold office hours in Vollum 229 on Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:30 to 2:30 and Tuesdays from 10 to 11. Students for whom these hours are inconvenient may make appointments at other times by contacting the instructor at extension 7308 or by email to parker@reed.edu.
Exams: There will be two mid-term exams, which may include both take-home and in-class components. The final exam will consist of two parts: a "third mid-term" covering the final section of the course and a comprehensive section that stresses applications of the general concepts of the entire course.
Homework: There will be weekly homework assignments for this course. Most of these will consist of problems from the textbook. Some will also include hands-on projects using statistical or econometric tools to examine macroeconomic behavior. No prior econometric background is assumed, though those who have taken Math 141, Econ 311, or Econ 312 will find these skills handy at times. These parts of the homework assignments will require the use of Excel, Stata, or EViews, which are available on Reed computers located in the PPW, the IRCs, and the library. Homework problems and projects will mostly be due at the beginning of class on Fridays. They will be returned on Monday, at which time we may discuss specific points from the assignment. Late work will be penalized. No homework will be accepted after 5:00pm Fridays without a documented medical or similar excuse.
Final project: The final project, which is due on the last day of classes (December 5), is a research proposal on a subject related to macroeconomics. A draft outline of your proposal is due about three weeks before the final deadline (November 12). After these are submitted, each draft will be reviewed by the instructor and by two fellow class members. These comments should be useful in revising your proposal for the final deadline.
As you progress through the course, you should be thinking about interesting research topics related to the theories that we discuss. The research proposal should include a clear description of the question that the research would aim to answer, a review of existing literature that is related to the question, and a discussion of how you would propose to undertake research to answer the question. You don't actually have to do the research you propose, although it could form the basis for a senior thesis or other actual research project. It is likely that you will lack some of the theoretical and econometric tools that you would need to execute the research that you propose. This is fine, but you should assess the feasibility of the proposed project and discuss how it could be done and what tools you would need.
Grades will be based on all information the instructor has about your level of understanding of macroeconomics. This includes evidence from exams, homework, projects, class participation, and individual discussions.
The principal text is Olivier Blanchard's Macroeconomics, 4th edition. We will cover the entirety of this text, as well as supplementary readings as assigned on the reading list. Readings from sources other than Blanchard will be on reserve in the Reed Library or linked from the reading list to an available online source. In cases where a published book is cited, the entire book is on reserve; articles from journals with no book reference are in folders if there is no Internet link. Successful class conferences depend on all students being adequately familiar with the assigned readings. Students who come to class unprepared to discuss the assigned materials not only diminish their own involvement with the course but unfairly "free-ride" on the preparation of others. If it is beneficial to conference interaction, the instructor may call on individual students to answer questions during class. Evidence of preparation will count heavily in the class participation component of your grade.