Course Syllabus

ECO2023: Principles of Microeconomics

Prof. Badi Sabet

Image of Prof. Badi Sabet

Contact Information

  • Contact Me via Canvas Inbox or email  sabetb@fiu.edu
  • Phone: 954-288-0175
    (No calls after 10 pm eastern time)
  • Virtual Office: Adobe Connect
  • Office Hours: By Appointment; Use Canvas Inbox to request an appointment.
  • Tutoring Center: VH-136 (MMC)
  • Teaching Assistant: Maryam Aljahani

Course Time Zone | Eastern Standard Time (EST). Course due dates are according to this time zone.

General Information Section


Course Description and Purpose

The course deals with the nature and overall understanding of the detailed analysis of our aggregate economy which includes international trade, supply and demand, elasticity, efficient markets, externalities, public good, tax system, production cost, and competitive markets such as monopoly, oligopoly, and monopolistic competition, and finally, factors of production will be discussed.


Course Objectives

Students should be able to articulate on the following subject matter after completing this course successfully:

  • Identify how the micro-economy operates in relation to human decision-making and the production of goods and services [Module 1]
  • Explain the operation of market forces, such as supply and demand, elasticities, and identify major economic theories, hypotheses, analyses and general equilibrium [Module 1]
  • Identify the trade-offs model and comparative advantage [Module 1]
  • Identify externalities and environmental issues [Module 2]
  • Identify consumer choice, utility, and the role of the government in economic decision making [Module 2]
  • Identify a firm, its varieties in each of the four market structures: purely competitive, monopoly, monopolistic competitive, oligopolistic market, and the role of marginality [Module 2] 
  • Articulate the economics of the health care system and the role of the government [Module 2]
  • Successfully interpret international economy and sovereign regulations [Module 2]
  • Identify the indifference curve and consumer budget lines as they relate to utility maximization [Module 3]
  • Distinguish profit maximization, loss minimization and shutdown cases in four market structures [Module 4]
  • Explain pricing policies and discrimination in general, and in the four market structures [Module 4]

 


Importation Information Section


Policies

Please check this section carefully before you proceed to read the rest of the syllabus:

  1. This is a fully online course which provides flexibility within limits.
  2. If you take a vacation or business trip, you still need to fulfill your responsibilities with regard to assignments (essays or cases) and exam deadlines.
  3. Only medical emergencies, with documentation, will be accepted for exam make-ups.
  4. I will not elevate the final average to the next highest decimal, even if it is a minuscule amount.
  5. Please read the Syllabus carefully, line by line and ensure that you submit assignments timely and allow sufficient time to take your exams (do not start your exam at 11:00 pm, or submit your assignment at 11:29 pm).

You should also review the following pages:


Course Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for this course.

Textbook and Course Materials

Textbook Table
Cover of Textbook

Principles of Microeconomics

Steven A. Greenlaw, David Shapiro
Openstax, 2nd Edition, 2017
Print ISBN: 1947172344
Digital ISBN: 1947172352

Good news:
your textbook for this class is available for free online, in web view and PDF format! You can also order a print version, if you prefer, from OpenStax on Amazon.com.

You can view all book details on Openstax's website. From there you can view the textbook online, view a PDF of the textbook, and/or order a print copy of your textbook.

You can use whichever formats you want. Web view is recommended -- the responsive design works seamlessly on any device. If you buy on Amazon, make sure you use the link on your book page on openstax.org so you get the official OpenStax print version. (Simple printouts sold by third parties on Amazon are not verifiable and not as high-quality.)

Recommended Articles

Students are encouraged to go online or visit the library of their choice and read recent economic journals and articles in the Wall Street Journal related to economic matters.


Expectations of this Course

This is an online course, which means most (if not all) of the course work will be conducted online. Expectations for performance in an online course are the same for a traditional course. In fact, online courses require a degree of self-motivation, self-discipline, and technology skills which can make these courses more demanding for some students.

Students are expected to:

  • Review the Learn to Use Canvas module if needed
  • Post your Studio Bio during the first week in the appropriate discussion forum
  • Take the practice quiz to ensure that your computer is compatible with Canvas
  • Interact online with your instructor and peers
  • Review and follow the course calendar
  • Log in to the course daily
  • Respond to messages daily
  • Submit assignments and exams by the corresponding deadline

The instructor will:

  • Log in to the course daily
  • Respond to messages daily, otherwise, students will be notified
  • Grade assignments within 3-7 days of the assignment deadline, based on the number of enrollees


Course Detail Section


Course Communication

Communication in this course will take place via the Canvas Inbox. Check out the Canvas Conversations Tutorial or Canvas Guide to learn how to communicate with your instructor and peers using Announcements, Discussions, and the Inbox. I will respond to all correspondences daily, otherwise, students will be notified.

Discussion Forums

Student Bio Activity

During the first week of class, every student should create his/her own student bio using the course's Discussion Forum, which can be accessed from the left-hand navigation menu (No longer than 500 words).

You are encouraged to include following in your bio: name, status (freshman/sophomore/junior/senior), your reason for taking this course, your expectation of this course, your experience with any aspect of online learning (do you love it? hate it? why?), career plans (it's ok to be unsure!), favorite hobby. You also have a choice of attaching your photo (optional but recommended).

 Successful Online Student Activity

The following articles can help you decide:Think about important factors that contribute to being successful in an online course. List the five most important factors from your perspective and explain how those factors can help you to be successful in this course.

These activities will be posted on the Discussion Forum, which can be accessed from the left-hand navigation menu.


Assignments

 Essay Assignments

You're expected to complete these essays on your own. There will be a total of two (2) essay assignments (12 points of total grade - 6 points each).

The purpose of selecting particular essay topics is to create a learning environment and allow students to enhance their knowledge of the principles of microeconomics. Essay topics are designed to enhance the student’s knowledge by researching the topic, reading, and extrapolating the knowledge in writing and formatting it for grading purposes.

You need to format your answers according to the instructions (exactly) given below. Any violation will result in a point deduction.

Directions:

  • Use Times New Roman, 12pt font, double-spaced, 1-inch margins.
  • Do not repeat the questions in your submission; just provided responses.
  • Provide three (3) references in APA format.
  • Use your own wording.
  • Must be submitted as a word document (doc, docx) -- Canvas will not accept other filetypes.
  • Must be independently researched.
  • Must be completely free of grammatical, punctuation and spelling errors.
  • One point will be deducted for each violation (please take it seriously).
  • Essays will be checked for plagiarism using Turnitin.com's plagiarism framework. You will be able to see the percentage of your essay that has been matched to other sources on the web and make the necessary adjustments to resubmit before the due date. Keep this percentage as low as possible! 

Find the due dates in the Course Summary at the end of the syllabus.

Essay topics, questions, and point values.
Essay Topics Points

Essay #1:

Elaborate Malthusian economic theory emphasizing the graphical Principle of Population. (300 words)
6

Essay #2:

Elaborate David Ricardo’s Comparative Advantage model and give a relevant example of trade (product) between U.S and Iran. (300 words)
6

Total

12


Essay Rubric

Essay grading rubric.
Criteria Excellent Satisfactory  Unsatisfactory 
Content All questions have been answered thoroughly and met the word count criteria  All questions have been answered but have less than the word count minimum criteria  One or more questions were not answered and have less than word count minimum criteria
References Provided three (3) references formatted properly  Provided less than 3 references or references are not formatted properly Provided less than 3 references and the references are not formatted properly 
Originality The essay is an original work and all works by other authors are cited
The essay is an original work and most works by other authors are cited The essay has numerous instances of works by other authors who were not cited


 Exams

There will be four exams (88 points of the total grade, 22 points each). All exams are fully online.

All exams consist of 50 multiple-choice questions. Each exam will be available for one day from 12:00 am to 11:30 pm, eastern time. Once you open an exam, you will have 90 minutes to complete and submit it.

IMPORTANT: Although you will be allowed to begin your exam at any time before 11:30 pm, it will be automatically submitted by the system at 11:30 pm. To get the full 90 minutes for the exam, you must begin by 10:00 pm.

List of exams, point values, and chapters covered. 
Exams Points Chapters Covered
Exam 1 22 points Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4
Exam 2 22 points Chapters 5, 6, 7, 8
Exam 3 22 points Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12
Exam 4
22 points  Chapters 13, 14, 15, 16

Exams are not cumulative. Students are to work alone; collaboration is not allowed. Questions will be randomized and taken from a pool. To successfully complete the exam on a timely basis, be familiar with the content. If you want to review your results, you must make an appointment with the professor. No exam results will be available online.

In order to mitigate any issues with your computer and online assessments, it is very important that you take the "Practice Quiz" from each computer you will be using to take your exams. It is your responsibility to make sure your computer meets the minimum hardware requirements.

Missed Exams Policy

Please let me know before taking exam if you have any questions about how the exam is structured.

Exams missed for medical reasons must have valid medical documentation submitted to the professor within 72 hours of the missed exam window. 

Any requests for a make-up exam that is not due to medical reasons must be brought to the professor's attention within 24 hours of the missed exam. Regardless of the excuse for missing an exam, it will be up to the professor to determine whether or not a make-up exam will be allowed, and the manner and location in which the exam will be administered (make up exams will not be given online). 


Grading

Course Grades Distribution Table
Total 100
Course Requirements Points
Exam 1 22
Exam 2 22
Exam 3 22
Exam 4 22
Essay 1 6
Essay 2 6

 

Letter Grade Distribution Table
Letter Range (%) Letter Range (%) Letter Range (%)
A 90 - 100 B 77 - 80 C 66 - 68
A- 86 - 89 B- 73 - 76 D 60 - 65
B+ 81 - 85 C+ 69 - 72 F 0 - 59

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due