module specification

This module enables students to acquire a systematic understanding and knowledge of intermediate-level microeconomics. It provides appropriate tools of analysis to examine contemporary consumer and producer theory, market structures, competitive behaviour and market failure. It allows students to develop an appreciation of issues and problems facing policy makers and a capacity to apply economic reasoning in a critical manner.

Students are encouraged to reflect and draw on their diverse socio-cultural
backgrounds and experiences during class discussions and in module seminar
preparations.

Equality is promoted by treating everyone with equal dignity and worth, and raising aspirations and supporting achievement for those students with diverse requirements and backgrounds.

The module aims to develop students' employability skills, in particular research; written and oral communication; data and quantitative analysis; analytical; problem solving, and encourages self and peer assessment and reflection.

Individual consumer and market demand and consumer surplus - LO1/LO2
     Individual and market supply and producer surplus - LO1/LO2
     Market equilibrium, price determination and applications to different
     Markets - LO1/LO2

Consumer preferences, utility functions, indifference curve analysis, and income and substitution effects - LO1/LO2

     Producer theory, production, isoquants, isocost and costs of
     production - LO1/LO2

Competitive markets: Perfect competition - LO1/LO2

Market Structures: Monopoly, price discrimination and oligopoly - LO3/LO4

Market failure: Private and public goods, externalities and asymmetric information - LO3/LO4

Learning consists of ‘formal’ classroom learning directed by the teaching team, and reflective independent learning. The formal learning is structured around a two-hour lecture and a  one-hour seminar, while the independent learning consists of reading of the course material, working on weekly exercises and research. 

The lecture introduces key theoretical concepts and analysis and is interactive encouraging student participation. Seminars are student centred, enabling students to gain a deeper understanding of the key concepts, present their solutions to the problems set, contribute to discussion and raise questions on the lecture material.

Students are expected to carry out independent work and prepare for these seminars, solve problems using economic analysis, present answers to problems, follow and participate in discussion.

Both lecture and seminar activities are structured to enable students to initially develop basic knowledge and then to progress to develop higher order skills of synthesis and critical evaluation.

The students are expected to reflect on their learning in seminars and through tutor and peer feedback.

The virtual learning environment (WebLearn) supports the relevant learning and teaching materials such as lecture notes; seminar questions; coursework brief; assessment and grading criteria; assessment strategy; and other relevant online resources and links.

Students' employability and transferable skills in particular, subject research; communication; quantitative analysis; problem solving, self and peer assessment and reflection are developed during formal learning sessions, independent directed learning and a range of formative and summative assessment tasks.

On successful completion of this module students will be able to:

1. Analyse microeconomic concepts, principles and tools in consumer and producer theories and apply their knowledge in solving economic problems.
2. Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of theoretical knowledge, issues and problems of microeconomic policies and apply economic reasoning in a critical manner to areas such as consumer and producer choice and competitive markets
3. Apply theoretical knowledge, and analyse economic concepts and problems, and
4. Evaluate solutions in areas such as monopoly, price discrimination, oligopoly and market failure.

The formative and summative assessments and feedback practices encourage reflection and development of professional and subject-specific knowledge.

The summative assessment consists of an individual 2000-word coursework.

A feed-forward strategy is used to provide early feedback to students to improve their coursework before final submission. The feedforward strategy and class discussion of grading and assessment criteria create an opportunity for dialogue between students and staff to promote a shared understanding of the basis on which academic judgements are made.

All the information about the processes of marking and moderating marks, the timing of assessments and deadlines for feedback provision are clearly provided in the module handbook and communicated to students through Weblearn as well.

Core Textbook:

Pindyck, R. S. and Rubinfeld, D. L. (2018). Microeconomics, 9th edition, Harlow,
   Pearson. [This is an E-Book. Hard copies are available at Holloway Road 338.501 PIN ]

Additional Textbook:

McConnell, C. R., Brue, S. L. and Flynn, S M (2018). Microeconomics: principles,
   problems, and policies, 21st. ed., Dubuque, McGraw-Hill Education. [Hard copies are
   available at Holloway Road 338.5 MCC]

Nechyba T. J. (2017). Microeconomics: an intuitive approach with calculus, 2nd ed., 
    Australia, South-Western Cengage learning. [Hard copies are available at Holloway
    Road 338.5 NEC]

Perloff, J. M. (2018). Microeconomics, 8th ed., Boston, Pearson.
   [This is an E-book. Hard copies are available at Holloway Road 338.3 PER]

Perloff, J. M. (2013). Microeconomics with calculus, 3rd ed., Boston, Pearson.
    [Hard copies are available at Holloway Road 338.5 PER]

Non-Technical Textbooks with an emphasis on real world examples:

Frank, R H (2015). Microeconomics and behaviour, 9th ed., New York, McGraw-Hill.
   [Hard copies are available at Holloway Road 338.5 FRA]

Krugman, P and Wells R (2015).  Microeconomics, 4th ed. New York, NY Worth
    Publishers. [Hard copies are available at Holloway Road 339 KRU]

Electronic Databases and Journals:

Business Source Complete
Science Direct
World Bank e-library
ESDS (for international data)
Emerald Management e-journals
Sage Journal Online
Eurostat, IEA, IMF, OECD, UNIDO and World Bank
Passport
UK Data Service
Statista

Instructional videos on relevant microeconomics topics can be accessed via YouTube. Example links include:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9BkAGflT0o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJMwcP1pLEQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKlQAVsK7b8&feature=autoplay&list=PLB866467EE8D16137&index=48&playnext=2

Videos on Pollution
https://youtu.be/4cOFf962PDc
https://youtu.be/gs5mivSp4yo
https://youtu.be/9tUb3MDrgE