RES-ECON 106: Economics is Everywhere

Example syllabus only – exact content subject to change. Please see your instructor’s syllabus for the current term for your specific course’s guidelines

Professor: Jamie T. Mullins: @email,
Stockbridge Hall 205D
Office hours: Tuesdays, 12:45pm-2:00pm

Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:30am-12:45pm (ILC S131)

Teaching Assistants: Ana Ospina Tobar (@email) Akanksha Sharma (@email) Ian Bergeron (@email)

The TAs will be your primary contacts for questions about course logistics, Canvas, assignments, etc.

Overview

In this course, we seek to elucidate our role as consumers in society. We are all consumers in many ways. We consume physical products, of course, but we also consume art, media, information, and policy. This course will use economics to shed light on these many dimensions of consumption. We will begin by establishing some key economic principles and themes, and we will proceed to use these as a lens for thinking through diverse topics, ranging from classic consumer markets to education policy, from environmental issues to fashion and entertainment.

Learning Goals

• Learn core economic themes and principles
• Gain exposure to economics through diverse applications
• Weigh diverse views and arguments on complex social issues
• See the hidden economic facets of everyday life
• Build curiosity and use economics to better understand the world

Evaluation

The overall breakdown for the final grade is:

• 15% Minute essays + participation + attendance
• 20% Canvas quizzes and podcasts/readings
• 50% Industry assignment. Track an Industry throughout the semester. 4 Tasks are to be completed in groups over the course of the semester. Each student will be assigned to a single Industry for the duration of the semester, but we will shuffle the groups for each Task.
• 15% Policy Memo

Final course grades will be curved, but the following course percentages will earn at least the letter grade indicated below.

Submission Policy

Unless otherwise specified, all assignments and quizzes should be submitted via Canvas.

Late policy:

Quizzes: due by 11:30am, sharp, on the day of class. No late submissions are accepted. The lowest three quiz scores (covering both completed and un-attempted quizzes) will be dropped at the end of the semester and excluded from final grade calculations.

Minute Essays: due in class. No late submissions accepted. The lowest three minute essay scores (covering both completed and un-attempted minute essays) will be dropped at the end of the semester and excluded from final grade calculations.

Other assignments: due at 6:00pm on the specified due date. Submissions received by 11:59pm on the specified due date will not be penalized. Submission received 6-24 hours after the deadline will be penalized 10%. Submissions 24 to 48 hours after the deadline will be penalized 25%. Work submitted between 2 and 7 days after the deadline will be penalized 50%. After that, you will receive a grade of zero.

Artificial Intelligence Policy

AI is allowed with attribution: Use of AI tools, including ChatGPT, is permitted in this course for students who wish to use them. To adhere to our scholarly values, students must acknowledge any AI-generated material that informed their work (this includes in-text citations and/or use of quotations, and in your reference list), but AI output IS NOT a source of information and should not be cited as such. Using an AI tool to generate content without proper attribution qualifies as academic dishonesty, and students are ultimately responsible for everything submitted. Further instructions will be provided in each assignment.

Attendance Policy

Attendance is required and will be tracked through Minute Essays, which will cover various types of in- class assignments and activities. To receive credit for attendance, you will need to be present when the Minute Essay is given and to submit the Minute Essay at the end of class.

As mentioned above, the three lowest Minute Essay scores will be dropped at the end of the semester. This policy is meant to cover for missed classes due to illness, travel, job interviews, job fairs, etc.

Additional accommodations will only be provided for special circumstances, like extended illness (with documentation for the full time of absence) or for foreseeable absences with advanced notice give and acknowledged within the first two weeks of the semester (e.g., religious holidays, extracurricular commitments, etc.)

Expectations

Instructor expectations: As your instructors, we commit to: 1) being organized, 2) managing classroom time effectively, 3) communicating clearly, 4) being responsive to students.

Student expectations: Students in this course commit to: 1) being punctual, attentive, and engaged in every class, 2) completing assignments by posted deadlines, 3) respecting fellow classmates.

We will contact you about course material, readings, assignments, etc. via e-mail, Canvas, and/or in- class announcements. You are responsible for announcements made through all of these channels.

Be punctual to class; this will ensure that we can complete each class in the allotted time. Please do not leave the room during class, as this can be disruptive to your instructor and fellow classmates. Laptops and tablets will be allowed in the classroom for academic purposes related to this course; all other uses of electronic devices are prohibited.

Accommodation Statement

The University of Massachusetts Amherst is committed to providing an equal educational opportunity for all students. If you have a documented physical, psychological, or learning disability on file with Disability Services (DS), you may be eligible for reasonable academic accommodations to help you succeed in this course. If you have a documented disability that requires an accommodation, please notify me within the first two weeks of the semester so that we may make appropriate arrangements. For further information, please visit Disability Services (https://www.umass.edu/disability/)

Academic Honesty Statement

Since the integrity of the academic enterprise of any institution of higher education requires honesty in scholarship and research, academic honesty is required of all students at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Academic dishonesty is prohibited in all programs of the University. Academic dishonesty includes but is not limited to: cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, and facilitating dishonesty. Appropriate sanctions may be imposed on any student who has committed an act of academic dishonesty. Instructors should take reasonable steps to address academic misconduct. Any person who has reason to believe that a student has committed academic dishonesty should bring such information to the attention of the appropriate course instructor as soon as possible. Instances of academic dishonesty not related to a specific course should be brought to the attention of the appropriate department Head or Chair. Since students are expected to be familiar with this policy and the commonly accepted standards of academic integrity, ignorance of such standards is not normally sufficient evidence of lack of intent (http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/codeofconduct/acadhonesty/).

Gen Ed Statement

This course fulfills the requirements of both General Education and Social and Behavioral Sciences course designations through the introduction and application of perspectives and analytic frameworks from the economics discipline. This includes theory, applications, and research results presented by instructors in class and through podcasts outside of class which deal with both the state of the world and the evolution of systems which impact every area of our lives. Applications in individual, societal, economic, political, and even artistic domains are considered throughout the course as part of both instruction and student activities/assignments. Course assignments are designed to drive critical and integrative thinking and analysis through the production of written and recorded work on both an individual and collaborative basis.

Title IX Statement

In accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 that prohibits gender-

based discrimination in educational settings that receive federal funds, the University of Massachusetts Amherst is committed to providing a safe learning environment for all students, free from all forms of discrimination, including sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and retaliation. This includes interactions in person or online through digital platforms and social media. Title IX also protects against discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, miscarriage, abortion, or related conditions, including recovery. There are resources here on campus to support you. A summary of the available Title IX resources (confidential and non-confidential) can be found at the following link: https://www.umass.edu/titleix/resources. You do not need to make a formal report to access them. If you need immediate support, you are not alone. Free and confidential support is available 24 hours a day / 7 days a week / 365 days a year at the SASA Hotline 413-545-0800.

Diversity Statement

The Department of Resource Economics and the larger University are committed to fostering inclusive learning environments. This course is designed to support the needs of all students and honor the diversity of identities, backgrounds, and experiences of all learners via thoughtful dialogue, course materials, and assignments. Students are asked to help foster inclusion through their words and actions, to hold one another accountable to these ideals whenever possible, and to consult the instructor if there are related questions, concerns, or improvements that can be made, including ways in which the instructor’s may fall short of these goals.

Student Learning Objectives and Experiential Goals

This course contributes to the following student learning objectives for undergraduate students in the Department of Resource Economics:

Schedule and Due Dates

(subject to change; see Canvas for latest)

The following table gives the topics for each class meeting. Podcasts and readings will be posted on Canvas. Make sure to complete podcasts, articles, and quizzes before the class in which they will be discussed.