Macroeconomics Course Description (from College Board):

The purpose of an AP course in macroeconomics is to give students a thorough understanding of the principles of economics that apply to an economic system as a whole. Such a course places particular emphasis on the study of national income and price-level determination and also develops students’ familiarity with economic performance measures, the financial sector, stabilization policies, economic growth and international economics. There is no single approach that an AP Macroeconomics course is expected to follow. Whatever the approach, however, AP teachers are advised to take into account certain topics generally covered in college courses. The following is a brief discussion of these topics and some aspects of them that a teacher may choose to explore.

 
All students must take the AP Macroeconomics exam in May.

 

Community Service: All students must complete FIVE hours of community service as part of their Participation in Government education. 

Community Service Form
 
Objectives of AP Economics:

-master a broad body of macroeconomic knowledge
 
-apply economic principles to a variety of real world situations
 

-develop appropriate logical and mathematical skills to construct and analyze economic graphs
 
-work effectively with others to solve problems and produce a final product
 
-prepare for and pass the AP Macroeconomics Exam
 
-fulfill the state requirement for economics in order to graduate from high school

Grading

 

grading will be on a variety of assignments and projects, including: writing, notebooks, discussion questions, small group work, outside reading, tests, quizzes, presentations, and computer work. Grades will be weighted as follows: 

-Tests 55%

-projects, quizzes, presentations, etc.,35%

-daily grade (homework, participation), 10%

 
Absences and Make-ups:
If you are legitimately absent, it is still your responsibility to get any missed assignments, notes or homework from a classmate. I will try to have the week's assignments and readings posted on my website, so check those often. All assignments are due the day after you return fromschool.

If you legitimately miss a test or quiz, you must make time for the make-up. You have only one week to make up a test or quiz. 


Tests and Quizzes:

Tests will be a combination of objective multiple choice questions and free response questions (FRQ) on graphic analysis problems. Students will know of an upcoming major test at least a week in advance. Quizzes require no such advance notice, but are usually given on assigned reading or problem sets. 

 
Topic Outline:

Unit 1: Basic Economic Concepts 

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 1-5 

Chapter 1: The Nature and Method of Economics

Chapter 2: The Economizing Problem

Chapter 3: Individual Markets: Demand and Supply

Chapter 4: The Market System

Chapter 5: The U.S. Economy: Private and Public Sectors

Topics:
production possibilities curves, comparative advantage vs. absolute advantage, opportunity cost, specialization, and exchange; demand, supply, and market equilibrium; macroeconomic issues: business cycle, unemployment, inflation, growth, graphs – models and their meaning

Unit 2: Measurement of Economic Performance 

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 7-9

Chapter 7: Measuring domestic output, national income, and the price level

Chapter 8: Introduction to Economic Growth and Instability

Chapter 9: Building the Aggregate Expenditures Model 

Topics:
National Income Accounts, circular flow models, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) components of GDP, real vs. nominal GDP, inflation: its measurement, its
types and making adjustments for it; price indices, nominal and real values, costs of inflation, unemployment: definition and measurement; types of unemployment, the natural rate of unemployment 

Unit 3: National Income and Price Determination

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 10, 11, and 16

Chapter 10: Aggregate Expenditures: The Multiplier, Net Exports and Government

Chapter 11: Aggregate demand and Aggregate supply

Chapter 16: Extending the Analysis of Aggregate Supply

Topics:
aggregate demand, determinants of aggregate demand, multiplier and crowding-out effects, aggregate supply, short-run and long-run analyses, sticky vs. flexible wages and prices, determinants of aggregate supply, macroeconomic equilibrium, real output and price level, short and long run, actual vs. full-employment output; economic fluctuations. inflation and unemployment, types of inflation: demand-pull and cost-push, the Phillips curve: short run versus long run, role of expectations

Unit 4: Financial Sector

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 13 and 14 
 
Chapter 13: Money and Banking

Chapter 14: How Banks and Thrifts Create Money

Topics:
money,banking, and financial markets; definition of financial assets: money, stocks, bonds; time value of money (present and future value); measures of money supply, banks and creation of money; money demand; money market, loanable funds market; central banks and control of the money supply; tools of central bank policy; quantity theory of money; real versus nominal interest rates

Unit 5: Fiscal and Monetary Stabilization Policies 

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 12 and 15
 
Chapter 12: Fiscal Policy

Chapter 15: Monetary Policy

Topics:
fiscal and monetary policies; demand-side effects, supply-side effects, policy mix, government deficits and debt

Unit 6: Economic Growth and Productivity

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Economic Growth and the New Economy

Topics:
investment in human capital; investment in physical capital; research and development, technological progress; growth policy

 Unit 7: Open Economy: International Trade and Finance 

Readings from textbook: McConnell-Brue, Chapters 37 and 38
 
Chapter 37: International Trade

Chapter 38: Exchange Rates, the Balance of Power, and Trade Deficits

Topics:
balance of payments accounts, balance of trade, current account, capital account, foreign exchange market, demand for and supply of foreign exchange, exchange rate determination, currency appreciation and depreciation, net exports and capital flows, links to financial and goods markets