Economics
341: Monetary and Fiscal Policy
Jeffrey Parker, Reed College
Spring 2009
Course Information
Instructor
Information and Office Hours
Course Outline
and Reading List
Course News
This course presents a broad examination of the economic literature on monetary, budget, and financial regulatory policies that governments can use to pursue macroeconomic goals such as steady growth, high employment, low inflation, and a stable financial system. The fields of monetary theory, macroeconomics, public finance, and political economy/public choice all contribute significantly to its content. The current economic situation demands that we
COURSE FORMAT
Most of the course is structured as a student-participation conference. The instructor will lecture when the material demands it. Students are expected to participate actively in class.
PREREQUISITES
The formal prerequisite for this course is Economics 201: Introduction to Economic Analysis. Those who have taken Economics 304: Intermediate Macroeconomics or Economics 314: Macroeconomic Theory will find that preparation useful, though it is not essential. Students will be expected to have some basic understanding of macroeconomic principles; supplementary readings will be available for those whose preparation may be inadequate. There is no mathematics prerequisite. Most of the analysis will be performed graphically though fundamental methods of calculus, statistics, and econometrics will appear from time to time, especially in the readings. A few readings are quite mathematical in nature, but students should be able to "read between the equations" to get a basic understanding of these models.
PRINCIPAL TEXTS
Most of the readings for this class will be journal articles and chapters from books. To the extent that there is a "textbook," we will use Lawrence H. White's The Theory of Monetary Institutions, which provides a comprehensive and contemporary, if somewhat idiosyncratic, view of monetary theory. We will read most of this book. All readings will be on reserve in the Reed Library. Most are available over the Internet. Use the online reading list to access these readings.
REQUIRED WORK AND EVALUATION
Reading and Conference Participation. Students are responsible for the required reading on the reading list. In order to achieve a successful conference, reading must be done in a timely manner. While some classes may be more lecture-oriented, most will include periods of class discussion. All students should participate in the class discussion every day. If oral participation is not natural for you, it might help to think of a few questions or comments ahead of time as you do the reading. Then inject them at the appropriate moment in class.
In addition to regular participation in conference sessions, class members are expected to contribute to an ongoing online discussion forum on moodle.reed.edu. Class time is precious and there is much more to say about these issues than we will have time to say in class. There are currently two forums on the Moodle site, one relating to the current U.S. and world economic situation and its policy implications and the other relating to class readings. More will be added if they seem to be useful. To post a discussion topic to one of these forums, log into Moodle, find our class in the HSS section, click on the forum, and then on the button that says "Add a new discussion topic." When you find (or think of) something that you think the class might be interested in, please post your thoughts along with a link to anything that you are citing. You are also strongly encouraged to comment on my posts or those of your classmates. I will monitor these forums regularly, post comments when it seems appropriate, and note the exchange of ideas among students for use in determining a participation grade for the course.
Exams. There will be a mid-term exam roughly halfway through the course and a final exam at the end. Part or all of these exams may be take-home.
Fed Symposium. We are scheduled to participate in a symposium organized by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco on the afternoon of Thursday, February 26 at Portland State University. All members of the class should plan to attend. During the first week of the semester, three groups will be formed. Each group is responsible for preparing a monetary-policy recommendation to be presented at a mock Open-Market Committee meeting during the symposium.
Writing Assignments. In lieu of a formal paper, there will be several (3 or so) policy-related writing assignments during the semester. Each of these will require a short policy memo on an assigned topic.
Evaluation. All evidence of knowledge of the subject matter will be weighed in determining student grades. This includes exams and written assignments, but also contributions to class discussion both in class and on Moodle, performance in the Fed symposium exercise, conversations with the instructor outside of class, etc. Evidence of productive engagement with the issues of the course in whatever form will be rewarded.
Professor Jeffrey Parker
Office: Vollum 229
Phone: Extension 7308 (503-517-7308 from off campus)
Email: parker@reed.edu.
Office Hours: Monday and Tuesdays, 2:30 to 4:00. If these hours are not convenient for you, I am available at other times, though my schedule varies from week to week. You can usually catch me before or after class.