MEBn5035 Introduction to Economics

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2020
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Vladan Hodulák, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Filip Černoch, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Filip Černoch, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Timetable
Thu 8. 10. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 15. 10. 16:00–17:40 U42, Thu 22. 10. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 29. 10. 16:00–17:40 U42, Thu 5. 11. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 12. 11. 16:00–17:40 U42, Thu 19. 11. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 26. 11. 16:00–17:40 U42, Thu 3. 12. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 10. 12. 16:00–17:40 U42, Thu 17. 12. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 7. 1. 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 14. 1. 16:00–17:40 U42
Prerequisites
! MEB435 Introduction to Economics && !NOW( MEB435 Introduction to Economics )
None
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 24 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/24, only registered: 0/24
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 9 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The course introduces students to the basic tools of analysis of the real world economic processes. The first part of the course focuses on the specifics of human conduct in the economy. By understanding basic human economic behavior we will have laid the solid foundation for introducing both the basic economic concepts for analyzing economic behavior on the individual level (microeconomics) and behavior of the economy as a whole (macroeconomics). Analyzing modern real world economic processes is not possible without understanding the role of money in our society and there is enough attention given to this phenomena in the course. The last lectures reveal that there is some plurality in economic thinking and the students are encouraged to consider perspectives from several schools of economic thought.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, students should acquire basic skills as well as tools for analysis of relevant real world economics processes. Students should understand the most important concepts of analysis used in economic science. This will be complemented by their understanding of the main differences between the most important economic schools. Altogether, information in this course should also give students an ability to easily recognize the essence of the economic problems their encounter in their future study or work and quickly look up and more easily understand the more complicated concepts and tools required for their solution.
Syllabus
  • 1) Introduction: what is economics?
  • 2) Humans in the economy
  • 3) Humans in the economy (seminar)
  • 4) Microeconomics I
  • 5) Microeconomics II
  • 6) Microeconomics (seminar)
  • 7) Macroeconomics I
  • 8) Macroeconomics II
  • 9) Macroeconomics (seminar)
  • 10) Money and finance
  • 11) Money and finance (seminar)
  • 12) Economic schools
  • 13) Economic schools (seminar)
Literature
    required literature
  • CHANG, Ha-Joon. Economics : the user's guide : a Pelican introduction. First published. London: Pelican, 2014, xiii, 502. ISBN 9780718197032. info
  • MANKIW, Gregory N. Principles of Economics. 7th ed. Cengage Learning, 2014. ISBN 978-1-285-16587-5. info
Teaching methods
Lectures and seminars. Online in Microsoft Teams.
Assessment methods
Seminars (30 points): 2 points for participation per seminar, 4 more points for active contribution to the discussion in the class. Written exam (20 points): two open questions (5 points each), and a short essay on one of two topics (15 points).
Grades: A 46-50 points B 42-45 points C 38-41 points D 34-37 points E 30-33 points F less than 30 points
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
WARNING

Plagiarism constitutes the intentional copying of another author's text and the representation and publication of such a test as one's own original work, careless or inaccurate citation of source literature and/or the omission of required bibliographical information (however unintentional). In order to be able to write specialized texts during the course of one's studies, it is essential to understand citation norms and publishing ethics.

Sanctions for plagiarism are determined by the Copyright Act. With respect to studies and the production of Bachelor's, Master's and Doctoral final theses or other works produced during the course of studies, plagiarism constitutes a violation of core academic ethics and as such is included among misdemeanours in all faculty disciplinary codes.

The following sanctions may be inflicted for disciplinary misdemeanours: admonition, exclusion from studies on probation and – in cases where a misdemeanour has been carried out intentionally – unconditional exclusion from studies.

The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2019, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2020, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2020/MEBn5035