Contemporary Problems in Economics

Contemporary Problems in Economics
Syllabus for ECON 3438W for Summer 2009

This syllabus is continually updated.

The following texts are useful for those who will continue to graduate school or make writing a major part of their careers::

This course considers an array of leading contemporary economic problems, with specific topics chosen from current and recent policy debates. The idea is to help you learn to think critically about pressing issues, utilizing economic reasoning, theory, and principles. Because the course focuses on current economic issues, students will be asked to supplement the textbook with readings from newspapers, magazines, and the internet.

Two lectures per week. Grades are based upon a mid-term and a final exam (20% each), a term paper (50%), and a variety of homework assignments and quizzes (10%). This is a “W” course, which means heavy emphasis on writing. It also means that the writing component of the course must count for (at least) half the grade, and one cannot pass the course without passing the writing component. For this course, the writing component is a policy paper in which you evaluate the leading arguments surrounding a major economic problem and present a recommendation.

POSSIBLE TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
Below is a proposed list of topics. I do not want to make this a formal schedule because I want us to be able to introduce topics as they arise in the news. This may mean introducing new topics or shifting the order of the topics we have already chosen.

This is a "W" course. Half of your grade must depend on a writing assignment graded for writing style as well as content. We are also required to go through a series of drafts so that you can get direction on your writing from me. This is a good deal more than just saying this is a course in which you write a paper. Your assignment will be a publication length policy paper. That is, it will be a long research paper--20 or more pages, typed, double-spaced, 10-12 point type. Drafts of the paper will be due over the course of the semester.

You will select a policy issue according to your interests. Presented to me as a proposal, this topic must be approved by me. Your one-page proposal will explain your interest in the topic and your perspective on the question.

You will submit subsequent drafts according to the schedule given below. I will return each draft with comments. I would expect that you will revise your drafts to take advantage of my comments. At the end of the semester, you will put all the pieces together and turn in a finished paper on the last day of class. You should also keep a running bibliography, to which you can add with each succeeding section. I expect to see the bibliography with each section submitted.

I expect extensive references, with at least half coming from sources other than internet web pages. That is to say, at least half the references should come from print publications, including books. You may find out about these sources online, but I expect you to read articles that were published as print publications and give their proper citations in your paper.

Date	Due	Comments.
June 8	Proposal	One page, including your personal perspective on the topic. Include references, sources, and your angle on the topic.
June 15	Literature Review	This section should lay out the competing views on the subject, identifying the people whose ideas you present, citing their writings on the topic. This should be organized according to points of view on the subject.
June 22	Analysis	In this section you will consider the ideas presented in the literature review. You will use economic reasoning to support or refute the ideas and cite supporting evidence.
June 29	Conclusions and Recommendations	In this section, you offer your conclusions and recommendations after considering the ideas and evidence.
Day of exam	Introduction Final version (entire paper)	Written last, this is the first section in your paper. It summarizes what is to follow, the organization of the paper, and helps the reader to understand how to read the paper. All sections rewritten, with complete bibliography.

This term paper will account for 50 per cent of your course grade. I will grade each installment separately. (The proposal is not graded.) The three installments will be worth five percent of the course grade each. The final paper will count the remaining 35 per cent of the course grade. At the instructor's discretion, you will lose a letter grade for every class day for which you miss a submission deadline.

We will talk about writing style in class. We will also discuss Elements of Style by Strunk and White in class, with quizzes given on material covered in previous classes or otherwise assigned. There will be no make-ups for quizzes or homeworks. A missed quiz or late homework assignment will receive a grade of zero. Instead of make-ups, at the end of the course, I will drop the lowest two of these grades.

You may also benefit by consulting the UConn Writing Center.

You must cite all ideas that are not your own. Give citations in the format given in Kate Turabian's Guide, or the style of any major economics journal. For example, here is the style guide for the Journal of Economic Perspectives. Here is a good source with extensive links to related resources.

The UConn student conduct code defines plagiarism as “presenting as one's own the ideas or words of another for academic evaluation.” Here are some resources from the UConn Libraries, the UConn English Department, and Harvard University. Please read these carefully. I take plagiarism seriously. I will check references and search the internet in an effort to make sure you aren't just copying someone else's work.

Instructor:	Steve Cunningham
Classes	Mondays and Wednesdays, 9 - 12:15 PM (Mornings), Room STRS002
Office Hours:	by appointment, regular hours to be determined
Office:	418 Monteith Building
Telephone:	Instructor (860) 486-3550, Fax (860) 486-4463
Instructor’s Email:	Steven.R.Cunningham@uconn.edu
Instructor's Website:	ProfessorCunningham.com

Midterm	20%
Final exam	20%
Quizzes and Homework Assignments	10%
Draft 1	5%
Draft 2	5%
Draft 3	5%
Final draft	35%