FE4056 - Principles of Microeconomics (2021/22)
| Module specification | Module approved to run in 2021/22 | ||||||||||
| Module title | Principles of Microeconomics | ||||||||||
| Module level | Certificate (04) | ||||||||||
| Credit rating for module | 15 | ||||||||||
| School | Guildhall School of Business and Law | ||||||||||
| Total study hours | 150 | ||||||||||
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| Assessment components |
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| Running in 2021/22(Please note that module timeslots are subject to change) |
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Module summary
The module introduces students to key principles of microeconomics, providing a secure foundation for students pursuing specialist degrees in Economics, Business Economics, Banking and Finance, Economics and Finance; Economics, Finance and International Business.
The module covers the central concepts of microeconomic theory and explores the relevance of these to the operations of businesses including financial services firms. The main themes are the role of markets, individual consumer behaviour, and the operations of individual firms.
The module also aims to develop a number of transferrable skills of students, e.g. communication skills, teamwork, numeracy, analytical, decision-making and problem-solving skills.
Syllabus
Micro-Economic concepts and related issues
Key concepts relating to resource allocation, economic systems and economic analysis.
Demand and supply analysis, markets and elasticity.
Utility maximisation and the theory of consumer behaviour.
Production and costs in the short and long run; factor efficiency; economies of scale.
Revenue and profit maximisation; break even analysis, economic vs accounting profit.
Competitive environment and market structures.
Application of the above-mentioned microeconomic concepts to real life financial and business situations.
Learning Outcomes LO 1 - 3
Balance of independent study and scheduled teaching activity
Teaching is structured around a lecture (2 hours) and a seminar (1 hour) session per week. Lecture topics are designed to progress from basic concepts and issues onto more complex ones. Each lecture session will be given a clear context and will then introduce new economic concepts, ideas and applications. This is an effective way for students to discover the operation and the interactive nature of economic theory and to develop their ability to explore economic concepts in real world issues and problems. Lectures are designed to be lively and interactive. Students are encouraged to take part in thought-provoking debates and discussions. Participating in debates, in conjunction with note taking, reinforces students’ understanding of economics and help improve their oral and analytical skills.
For each seminar session students are given a set of questions and other activities. Students are expected to prepare the answers to these questions before attending their seminar. The seminars will provide an opportunity for students to discuss the topics covered in the lecture session and to work in groups. These activities will help develop students’ comprehension of the economic concepts as well as skills in relation to academic writing, quantitative analysis and team working.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the main concepts and principles of micro-economic theory
2. Explore competitive environments and market structures.
3. Apply microeconomic concepts to real life financial and business situations.
Assessment strategy
There will be one piece of summative assessment for this module comprising an unseen exam (2 hours) at the end of the semester. This will assess the knowledge and understanding of key microeconomic concepts and theories.
As well as the summative assessment described above, there will be a number of formative assessments with instant formative feedback to monitor student progress and to help students prepare for the summative assessment.
Bibliography
Books
Core Texts
Sloman, J., Guest, J. and Garratt, D. (2018) Economics, 10th Edition, Harlow, Pearson
Other Texts
Case K. E., Fair R.C. and Oster S. E. (2019) Principles of Economics, 13th Edition, Harlowe, Pearson
Mankiw, N. G. and Taylor, M. P. (2017) Economics, Andover, Cengage Learning.
Parkin, M., Powell M. and Mathews K. (2017) Economics, 10th European ed., Harlowe, Pearson
Sloman, J., and Garratt, D. (2019) Essentials of Economics, 8th Edition, Harlow, Pearson
Sloman, J., Garratt, D., Guest, J. and Jones, E. (2019) Economics for Business, 8th Edition, Harlow, Pearson
Professional Journals/Newspapers
Financial Times
The Economist
Websites
www.core-econ.org
http://veconlab.econ.virginia.edu games / experiments
www.projects.exeter.ac.uk/feele games / experiments
www.dirkmateer.com film clips
serc.carleton.edu/econ
Other online resources at www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk