Course Catalogue

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The course introduces students to alternative perspectives in economics. As part of this introduction, students will study methodology and history of economic thought (which are not usually part of standard micro and macro courses) to situate current economics historically, understand the context in which it emerged and its scope of application, and the institutional and political reasons for its persistence. The course then critically covers orthodox micro and macro theories, examines their central features, reveals their possible deficiencies, and considers what adjustments the mainstream theories may need to improve our understanding of economics. Finally, the course will acquaint students with some schools of thought alternative to the current orthodoxy, namely, the Austrian and Socialist economics.

Lectures: 2 hours of lectures x 10 weeks.

A grade D3 or above in both Economics 1A and Economics 1B.

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None

ILO being assessed

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

Normally, the groupwork listed above cannot be reassessed.

The aim of this course is to generate an understanding of:

■ the different perspectives (schools of thought) on the key principles of economics;

■ the methodology of the discipline; theories of how individuals, firms and governments behave and the economy works, and the constraints they face;

■ the nature of policy actions available to policy-makers;

■ the role and methods of empirical analysis;

■ the importance of history and of the cultural and social environment;

■ the relationship of economics with other disciplines.

By the end of the course students should be able to:

1. Assess how the development and entrenchment of economic theories is affected by historical and institutional context;

2. Critically compare the theoretical foundations of select alternative schools of economic thought with the mainstream;

3. Evaluate the contribution of the alternative schools of thought to our understanding of the economy;

4. Contrast the policy implications resulting from alternative theoretical perspectives on various economic topics.

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.