Welcome to
Ms. Wolfson's Advanced Placement Micro~Macroeconomics
Web Page
Leslie Paige Wolfson, MBA Finance and Economics
Office: Room #322 Business Phone: 908.647.5555 x1605
Direct Email: lwolfson@pingry.org
| General Information | History Department Policy |
| Class Expectations | Chapter Reading Schedule |
| Overview | Economic Journals |
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Honor Code/Plagiarism Texts Required: McConnell and Brue "Economics" 18th edition Mc Connell and Brue "Study Guide to Accompany Economics" 18th edition Princeton Review "Cracking the AP Economics Exam" latest edition (2011)
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Written
Assignments Rules Homework |
Macroeconomics involves the study of broad issues, such as the determination of growth in economies, national income, unemployment, inflation, fiscal policy, and monetary policy. In addition, due to the more "global" interests of today's world, we also study international developments and the efforts and effects of globalization. In studying macroeconomics, it is said that "we look at the forest instead of the tree."
Microeconomics gives us a chance to study the principles that apply to the functions of individual decision makers in economic systems, whether they are consumers or producers. We study product markets, factor markets, and the role of government in its efforts to promote efficiency and equity within economies.
The Advanced Placement Micro/Macroeconomics course is a rigorous and exciting learning experience. You will see how studying economics as both an art and a science can not only assist you in learning about major issues throughout the world, but how it will also assist you in making choices in your everyday lives.
We will be staying on a tight schedule during the school year, and covering a lot of material. The approximate dates for the chapters to be covered can be found in the web section titled "Chapter Reading Schedule." Please be sure to stay current with the assigned reading. Since this course is cumulative, falling behind in the reading leaves you at a great disadvantage.
I hope that I can continue to spark your interest in economics. As you will learn, it is a way of thinking and can be applied to all aspects of life. It is an honor to have you along on this adventure.
1. There will be assigned, written economic journals due on set dates throughout the school year. The due dates will be given to the students as the journals are assigned. A brief explanation of these journals follows. Journals must be written about a current economic event or newsworthy topic that you can relate to economics and what you have learned in class. Papers should include a summary of the chosen article or topic, economic relevance of the article or topic, as well as your reaction to and opinion of the article or topic. The student should be able to apply much that he has learned from the textbook, lectures, and/or class notes to these journals, whether it be principles, models, graphs, or economic policies.
2. There will be no permission granted for anyone requesting not to take an exam or quiz on a scheduled date at the beginning of class. Should the need arise, kindly see me as early as possible, or email or leave voice mail should the need arise to reschedule an exam or quiz. I will be flexible with respectable reasoning and time appropriate advance notice.
3. The Advanced Placement Exam given in May is a required exam in this course. All students must sit for both the Macroeconomics and the Microeconomics Advanced Placement Exam.
4. There will be a final evaluation given prior to the AP Exam in May of the school year.
5. When absent, it is the student's responsibility to obtain and complete the appropriate work missed. Be sure to get class notes from a classmate if necessary. Verify whether you need to collect handouts you may have missed.
6. Should you have any questions throughout the school year, I can be reached daily in my office (room 322) or via email (lwolfson@pingry.org) or voice mail (908.647.5555 x1605). Feel free to contact me for any reason.
Following are copies of The Pingry Honor Code and The Pingry School Policy on Plagiarism. It is expected that both be followed at all times.
THE PINGRY HONOR CODE
"Pingry believes that students should understand and lie by standards of honorable behavior which are essentially a matter of attitude and spirit rather than a system of rules and regulations. Decent, self-respecting behavior must be based on personal integrity and genuine concern for others and on the ethical principles which are the basis of civilized society.
The members of the Pingry community should conduct themselves in a trustworthy manner that will further the best interests of the school, their class, and any teams or clubs to which they belong. They should act as responsible members of the community, working for the common good rather than solely for personal advantage. They should honor the rights of others, conducting themselves at all times in a moral and decent manner while at Pingry and throughout their lives as citizens of and contributors to the larger community of the world."
PINGRY SCHOOL POLICY ON PLAGIARISM
"Plagiarism is defined as copying or imitating the language or thought of another and passing it off as one's own. If, in a paper, a student copies the language of someone else (as from a book, periodical, another paper, reference or critical work, CD-ROM, Internet, study guide such as Cliff's Notes, etc.) he or she must credit the quotation and clearly set it off with quotation marks or other generally accepted formatting. All copied passages must be credited, no matter how short.
Imitating (rather than copying verbatim) the language or ideas of another is paraphrasing - restating the material in one's own language. In this case quotation marks are inappropriate, but source must still be credited."
Academic Honor System - Revised 1996
1. All students are to refer to the Pingry Style Manual for assistance with any writing assignments.
2. Name, Class, Period number, and Date should be in the top right hand corner of all work. Also acceptable are folded papers with this information on the outside.
3. You do not need to include the number of words in your paper as shown in the Pingry Style Manual. You do need to note, however, if your paper is on time or late.
4. Regarding any research papers, written essays that require ideas other than those that are completely your own, or economic journals or reaction papers - you must be sure to cite and document properly. Refer to the Pingry Style Manual for exact steps for documentation.
5. Paraphrasing is defined as "a restatement of a text or passage giving the meaning in another form, as for clearness; rewording. The act or process of restating or rewording." (Costello, Robert, ed. Random House Webster's College Dictionary. New York: Random House, 1992)
6. Paraphrasing must be cited.
7. It will be considered plagiarism if you merely change several words in a paraphrased sentence or paragraph.
8. Anything that is not completely your own idea in your own words must be cited.
9. If unsure, cite.
10. You can never cite too much.
11. All suspected plagiarism will be referred to the Dean of Students.
12. For repeated carelessness, technical errors (such as neglecting to cite, or failing to follow proper citation rules) cases will be turned over to the Dean of Students. In addition, grades will be penalized at the discretion of the teacher.
13. All late work will be subject to the History Department policy of loss of three grade points per day, unless otherwise noted by the teacher. There may be certain instances, due to the type of assignment, that if not completed on time, may result in zero credit. Due to the availability of email work being accepted in this course, weekends count.
14. Any and all work emailed to teacher must be verified that delivery was complete. It will not be acceptable to the teacher if a student claims that "the paper was emailed two weeks ago" yet there is no verification with teacher that it was received at that time. Make sure you verify that all emailed work has been received, either by email return mail or by speaking to the teacher.
15. If there are any questions, please ASK! I am available before, during, and after class, in office 322, by email at lwolfson@pingry.org, or by phone 908.647.5555 x1605.
REGARDING SENIOR (FINAL) EXAMS FOR AP COURSES
1. All senior AP students will have a "cumulative evaluation" that requires them to draw upon a year's worth of material.
2. Since all students entertain an ISP, the exam or evaluation must be taken prior to the ISP departure.
3. For all seniors, this evaluation will count as a major coursework grade (200 points) or not more than 20% of the course grade. The exact point value may vary and is at the discretion of the teacher. It will always be worth more than a typical unit test or paper.
4. Cum laude students must take this "cumulative evaluation." Because the test or assignment is not a true final exam (i.e. does not county for 20% of the final grade) there is no justification for a Cum Laude exemption.
5. All course work must be completed before the student begins their ISP work.
It is expected that students:
1. adhere to the honor code at all times.
2. follow the Pingry School policy on plagiarism.
3. treat each other and all classroom materials with respect.
4. be in their seats on time, and prepared for the start of class.
5. have completed all reading and other homework assignments prior to class.
6. apply themselves utilizing their best efforts to succeed in class.
7. will behave appropriately in class.
8. will not bring food, drinks, or gum into the classroom, unless otherwise indicated by teacher.
9. will advise teacher prior to 8:15 AM on any day that the student needs to request a postponement of taking a quiz or exam for legitimate and exceptional reason, to be deemed so by teacher.
10. will advise teacher prior to any exam or quiz for which the student is aware they will not be in attendance.
11. will listen to his peers and respect and learn form opinions differing from their own.
Failure to meet these expectations will result in referral to the appropriate Division Head or Dean of Students.
Month/Date Chapters to read
September
8, 10, 13-17 1, 2, 3
20-24 4,5
27-October 1 23,26
October
4-8 27
11-15 28
18-22 29
26-29
November
1-5 30,31
8-12 32
15-19, 29 - December 3 33,34
December
6-10 35
13-17 36
January
3-7 6,7
10-14 8,9
18-21 10
24-28 11
February
1-4 12,13
7-11, 14-18 27
23-25, 28 16,17
March
1-4 18,20
7-11 21
28-31 37
April
1-8 38
11-14 special projects
18-22 review
25-29 final evaluation
There will be several economic journals due throughout this school year. These journals must be written about a current economic event or newsworthy topic that you can relate to economics and what you have learned in class. papers should include a summary of the article or topic, economic relevance of the article or topic, as well as your reaction to and opinion of this article or topic. You should be able to apply much that you have learned from your textbook, lectures, or class notes to these journals, whether it be principles, models, graphs, or economic policies. The due dates for these journals will be assigned as the school year progresses. Please remember that the late policy applies for all late economic journals. Journals may be turned in via hard copy or email to lwolfson@pingry.org.
In addition, there will be other economic reaction papers assigned throughout the school year on topics chosen by the teacher.
Homework will be assigned throughout the school year to coincide with the chapters under study. Homework may be in the form of problems to supplement the work we are studying, articles to read, written analysis, reaction paper, bulletin board, debate/discussion preparation, problems in the Princeton Review AP Review Book (or other review book), or any other format chosen by teacher. Some homeworks are for review and practice purposes, others will be collected and graded. This is at the discretion of teacher.
There will be exams usually after 2-3 chapters (a unit). Exams generally include a combination of any of the following: multiple choice questions, short answers, fill in the blank, true and false, problems, and analysis. Exams are all worth 100 points. There will be quizzes, some announced, others unannounced, at the discretion of teacher. Point value on quizzes varies per quiz.
Please do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions about this course, a particular class, or the financial literacy initiative at The Pingry School.