Senior Seminar in Economics and Finance
ECO 490 call number 1423
Spring 2007
INSTRUCTOR: Victor Kasper, Ph.D. OFFICE HOURS: Mon
Room: Classroom Building B230 Tues
Phone: 716 878-5132 Weds 11:00
- 12:00 am
Email:
Website: http://facstaff.buffalostate.edu/kasperv Or by Appointment
Username: sam Password: part
MEETING
TIME AND ROOM: Monday, Wednesday and
Friday
Building:
Classroom Building A 108
REQUIRED
TEXTS:
McCloskey, Deirdre N. Economical
Writing. Second Edition.
Waveland Press, Inc. 2000.
COURSE
PREREQUISITES: Seniors only ECO 305 307 308 424 and their prerequisites.
COURSE
DESCRIPTION:
According to the Merriam-Webster Online
Dictionary one definition of a seminar is “a group of advanced students studying
under a professor with each doing original research and all exchanging results
through reports and discussion.”[1]
Another definition is a meeting for “giving and discussing information.”[2] This course is considered the capstone course
for the economics major. Its purpose is to consolidate and integrate the
knowledge you have acquired or to which you have been exposed in your studies
as an economics major. You are advanced
students in economics at the undergraduate level. As a participant in this seminar you will
research an advanced topic of interest and provide reports and presentations on
your findings. You will also complete a
12 to 15 page Senior Thesis.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
class=Section2>
1.
To enhance your ability to integrate concepts and skills from the
several areas of the economics core curriculum in the context of advanced
topics.
2. To provide the opportunity to apply economic
thinking to policy and other areas.
3. To allow you to explore an area of economic
interest while honing your research
skills.
4. To improve your writing and oral presentation
skills.
5. The completion of a 12 to 15 page Senior
Thesis.
COURSE
METHOD AND REQUIREMENTS: The course will
follow a seminar format. Students will
present a descriptive summary of an article to the class, some of which will be
assigned by the instructor, others will be chosen from the student’s thesis
research topic. Each presentation will
use a PowerPoint presentation. The
presenter will provide a written report of the presentation. Other students will be assigned to provide
the main critiques. The remaining
students will have secondary critique roles. Later in the course students will
present their senior research topic prospectus and results. Evaluation will be based on the senior
thesis, class presentations, class participation and a final exam. The students also provide periodic materials
on the progress in their senior thesis prior to making their thesis
presentations and handing in the final version.
The instructor will serve to keep the discussion focused on economic
issues and provide historical and theoretical context where needed. Some presentations will be videotaped.
EVALUATION AND GENERAL RULES OF
CLASS: Students are evaluated according
to their attendance, participation as a presenter and discussant. You will also
be evaluated on the basis of your written reports, your Senior Thesis, your
PowerPoint presentations, and your final exam, and role as a discussant Your
thesis will be evaluated on the basis of economic theory, clarity, coherence
and quality. If a student is assigned as
a main role discussant and is not there or is not prepared to comment, he/she
will lose one point of the main role discussant grade for each instance. If a student is called on to comment on the
presentation or article as class discussant and is not there or is unprepared,
he/she will lose one point for each instance.
|
Requirements |
% of
Grade |
|
|
3
Presentations |
20 |
|
|
3
Written reports |
5 |
|
|
Senior
thesis |
25 |
|
|
Thesis Topic Due |
1.25 |
|
|
Thesis Sources Due |
1.25 |
|
|
Thesis Outline |
1.25 |
|
|
Rough Draft of Thesis |
1.25 |
|
|
Final Senior Thesis |
20.00 |
|
|
Discussant |
20 |
|
|
Final
Exam |
10 |
|
|
attendance |
20 |
|
1.
It is the student’s responsibility to seek clarification of the grading
scheme, system, or procedure followed in this course.
2.
Regular attendance is mandatory.
Discussions, presentations and participation
are essential parts of a seminar
and have a major impact on what you get
out of it. A seminar involves an exchange of knowledge.
a. An attendance sign-up sheet will be
circulated in class and the student is
responsible for signing
it. In the event of illness and/or some other
circumstances which
prevent you from attending one or more
sessions, you should inform
me as soon as possible.
b. You will get 100 points for your attendance
grade to start. You are
allowed three absences
without penalty. Any absences for
whatever reason (health,
family emergency or job, etc.) will count in
the determination of all
absences. The count starts as soon as
you
are considered
registered. After your first three
absences you will
lose 5 points for each
of the next four absences. For every
absence
beyond seven you will
loose 15 points each.
c. Be aware that attendance and participation
have a significant impact
on your grade.
d. Missing or leaving the library session early
will result is two absences.
3.
Entering the class late or leaving early is disruptive. Do not do it.
If,
however, either is necessary,
you should seek prior consent of the
instructor. Note that if I find a pattern of signing the attendance sheet and
leaving early, I will increase
the number of absences for your attendance
and reduce my assessment of your
participation.
4.
Reports handed in after the last class will not be counted toward the
final
grade.
5.
See me if you cannot make a presentation on schedule.
6.
Feel free to see me during office hours or by appointment if you have
any
questions or would like to
discuss an issue. I will make
suggestions about
how you can set up your
PowerPoint presentations.
7.
All students at Buffalo State College are expected to maintain academic
integrity. Violations of academic
integrity are subject to penalties.
SCHEDULE
OF MEETINGS, TOPIC AND
The first class session is primarily
organizational. You will be made aware
of your responsibilities. We may go over
the use of the smart cart and power points if we have time. The second class session will discuss two
articles with the instructor leading the discussion. Students will be asked to comment on the
article.
Each class will be divided into two
sections. There are 25 students registered for the seminar. The class will be divided into 7 teams about
3. Two teams will have 4 people. Each class consists of 50 minutes. Each class will have two discussions. Each discussion will have one presenter and
two main role discussants. The presenter
will be given 8 minutes to present a report on the reading or readings. Each main role discussant will then have to
identify two issues that the discussant felt were important and indicate
whether the presenter adequately addressed them. Each main role discussant will be given 5
minutes. Then the instructor will ask
questions from other students in the class and students can ask questions at
will. The whole discussion will last 18
minutes. Extra time will be used to discuss aspects of writing based on the
McCloskey text.
The first section of the seminar (six
classes) will be devoted to student presentations based on material assigned by
the instructor. Each presenter will
provide a 1 page report on their reading along with the presentation. Each main role presenter will provide the two
most important issues they felt important about the assigned reading. These will be double spaced and typed.
The McCloskey text is designated [Mc] in
the reading assignments. The citations
for other readings are noted later or will be provided later in the course.
|
Meeting
|
Date
|
Topic
|
|
|
|
January |
|
|
|
1 |
Monday 22 |
|
|
|
2 |
Wednesday 24 |
|
|
|
3 |
Friday 26 |
|
|
|
4 |
Monday 29 |
|
|
|
5 |
Wednesday
31 |
|
|
|
|
February |
|
|
|
6 |
Friday 2 |
|
|
Meeting |
Date |
Topic |
|
|
|
February |
|
|
|
7 |
Monday 5 |
|
|
|
8 |
Wednesday
7 |
Paper topic due |
|
|
9 |
Friday 9 |
|
|
|
10 |
Monday
12 |
|
|
|
11 |
Wednesday
14 |
|
|
|
12 |
Friday 16 |
|
|
|
|
Monday
19 |
Presidents’ Day |
No Classes |
|
13 |
Wednesday
21 |
|
|
|
14 |
Friday
23 |
|
|
|
15 |
Monday
26 |
|
|
|
16 |
Wednesday 28 |
|
|
|
|
March |
|
|
|
17 |
Friday 2 |
Paper
sources due |
|
|
Meeting |
Date |
Topic |
|
|
|
March |
|
|
|
18 |
Monday
5 |
|
|
|
19 |
Wednesday
7 |
|
|
|
20 |
Friday
9 |
|
|
|
21 |
Monday
12 |
Paper outline due |
|
|
22 |
Wednesday
14 |
|
|
|
23 |
Friday
16 |
|
|
|
24 |
Monday
19 |
|
|
|
25 |
Wednesday
21 |
|
|
|
26 |
Friday
23 |
|
|
|
27 |
Monday
26 |
|
|
|
28 |
Wednesday
28 |
|
|
|
29 |
Friday
30 |
|
|
|
|
April |
|
|
|
|
Monday - Friday 2 - 7 |
Spring Recess |
No classes |
|
Meeting |
Date |
Topic |
|
|
|
April |
|
|
|
30 |
Monday
9 |
|
|
|
31 |
Wednesday
11 |
|
|
|
32 |
Friday
13 |
|
|
|
33 |
Monday
16 |
|
|
|
34 |
Wednesday
18 |
|
|
|
35 |
Friday
20 |
|
|
|
36 |
Monday 23 |
|
|
|
37 |
Wednesday 25 |
Rough
draft of paper |
|
|
38 |
Friday 27 |
|
|
|
39 |
Monday 30 |
|
|
|
|
May |
|
|
|
40 |
Wednesday 2 |
Final
draft of paper |
|
|
41 |
Friday 4 |
|
|
|
42 |
Monday 7 through Thursday 10 |
Final Exam Period |
|
KEY
DATES TO NOTE: These dates are important
and should be noted now so that you can plan ahead.
|
Paper
due dates |
|
|
Event
|
Date |
|
Thesis
Topic Due |
February
7 |
|
Thesis
Sources Due |
March
2 |
|
Thesis
Outline Due |
March 12 |
|
Rough Draft of Thesis Due. |
April 25 |
|
Final Senior Thesis due |
May 2 |
WRITING ASSIGNMENTS:
Reports: (3)
You
will do three written reports. The first report will be one type written page
(double spaced). It will summarize and
provide commentary about the assigned reading for your first presentation. Your second report will be two type written
pages (double spaced). It will summarize
and provide commentary on your second reading.
This reading will be selected by the instructor with the instructor’s
approval.
The
third report will be a prospectus or your thesis topic. It will discuss ideas and topics, and
expected results of your thesis topic.
It will be two type written pages (double spaced).
Each
Report must have a citation of the article or interview. Use the ASA guidelines
provided by the
or
Butler Library
Citation Machine - Turabian: (http://citationmachine.net/index.php?new_style=11&reset=1#here)
Reports or Theses
handed in late will be penalized points.
Suggested Writing
Guides are note at the end of the syllabus.
Tips on avoiding
Plagiarism: http://www.northwestern.edu/uacc/plagiar.html
Writing link: http://www.writing.northwestern.edu/links.html
PowerPoint Presentations: (3)
Each PowerPoint presentation will have at
least five slides. The key points will
be presented as the presenter sees fit.
The presenter is expected to provide the details of his presentation
using the power points as a guide.
He/she can use index cards and or handouts as aids. One presentation will be on an assigned
reading. A second presentation will be
on a reading of the student’s choice (with approval of the instructor). A third presentation will be a prospectus of
the senior thesis.
Senior Thesis
You will be graded
for the writing and the proper use of technique, the clarity of graphs and
presentation of results.
Grading Criteria for
the Senior Thesis:
Ten percent of the grade for the senior thesis will be for the
variations materials handed in prior to the final draft such as thesis topic,
sources, thesis outline, and rough draft. All of these assignments will be
typed. The senior thesis topic should
include a title and a short abstract about the general direction of your
paper. The senior thesis sources should
be done with appropriate academic citation style and include at least 10
reference articles and data sources. The
thesis outline should follow the guidelines at the department of economics and
finance website. The rough draft should
be at least 8 pages while as indicate above the final thesis should be 12 to 15
pages. All components should be typed.
(Double Spaced)
The following are general issues that I will consider in grading.
An A thesis will exhibit superior knowledge of the topic and
economic theory related to the area examined.
It will make reading and learning from the thesis enjoyable. The A thesis shows a clear pattern of
organization that captivates the audience and keeps readers absorbed through
the entire thesis. In addition, an A
thesis reveals a cultivated style and an original voice, sequences that are
appropriately varied in length and construction, transitions that are used to
produce a smooth flow, connections between unrelated sentences and ideas that
are clear. Individual sentences are
concise, clear, and highly specific. The
A thesis will exhibit selective word choice and contain no errors in mechanics
and grammar. The A thesis will indicate
the writer is at ease with complex material and can interpret this material
effectively for others. As a result of
the careful organizational structure and development, all issues both in
content and style, emerge as a cohesive entity.
Generally, a style that is efficient, avoids the first person and
passive voice and is gender neutral will be favored.
A "B" thesis will be almost free of mechanical errors
and will provide a substantial amount of interesting information effectively.
The specific points will be logically ordered, well developed and unified
according to a clear organizing principle.
The introduction and conclusion are effective, but not as engaging as in
the A thesis. The transitions are adequately
smooth, sentence structure is sufficiently varied in both length and construction,
and the choice of words has been made selectively. The writing in a B thesis
will be organized, clear, coherent, and correct, the thesis will be far more
than competent.
A C thesis will be generally competent and reasonably well
organized and developed. The C paper
will exhibit an average knowledge of the subject matter, but the presentation
of that information will be often vague and superficial. The sentence structure often will not be
varied in either length or construction, and word choice is sometimes
inappropriate. Though the C paper will
satisfy the assignment, the reading is not especially engaging or enlightening.
A D or E thesis will have major flaws in organization,
development, sentence structure, word choice, theory, application of theory
and/or mechanics and grammar. The D or E
thesis make the reader believe that the writer was not involved with the
seminar or gave very little thought to the thesis.
SUGGESTED SOURCE
MATERIALS FOR USE IN THE SENIOR THESIS:
For data and articles written about the topic of your choice some
of the following will be helpful:
|
Source |
Library Call
Number |
|
1. American Economic Review |
|
|
2. Balance of Payments Statistics, IMF Yearbook |
HG3879.B34 |
|
3. Brookings Papers on Economic Activity |
|
|
4.
Challenge |
HC101.U533 |
|
5.
Commodity Yearbook |
HF1041.C56 |
|
6. Dissertation Abstracts |
|
|
7. The Economist |
|
|
8.
Economic Indicators |
|
|
9.
Economic
Development and Cultural Change*** |
HC10.C453 |
|
10. Economic Outlook (OECD) |
HC10.018 |
|
11. Economic Report of the President |
HF106.5.A27 |
|
12. Federal Reserve Bulletin |
|
|
13. Finance and Development*** |
|
|
14. Financial Market Trends |
|
|
15. GATT Activities |
|
|
16. GATT Focus |
|
|
17. Handbook of Economic Statistics *** |
D. HA155.054 |
|
18. Government Finance Statistics Yearbook |
HJ101.G68 |
|
19. International Economic Conditions |
|
|
20. International Economic Review |
|
|
21. International Financial Statistics |
HG3881.1626 |
|
22. International Trade Statistics Yearbook |
HF91.U473 |
|
23. Journal of Developing Areas*** |
HC59.7J65 |
|
24. Journal of Economic Literature*** |
HB1.J6 1969- |
|
25. Journal of International Money and Finance |
|
|
26. Journal of Industrial Economics |
HD1.J6 |
|
27. Main Economic Indicators - Historical |
HC10.069 |
|
28. Morgan International Debt |
|
|
29. Morgan International Data |
|
|
30. National Accounts |
HC79.1057a |
|
31. National Accounts Statistics |
HC79.15U534 |
|
32. New York Times Index |
|
|
33. OECD Economic Outlook |
HC10.018 |
|
34. Review of Radical Political Economics |
HC101.R43 |
|
35. Review of International Political Economy |
|
|
36. Social Science Index |
|
|
37. Social Science Citation Index |
|
|
38. Survey of Current Business |
|
|
39. Treasury Bulletin |
|
|
40. United Nations Statistical Yearbook By country |
HA12.5.U63 |
|
41. U.S. General Imports |
HF105.C137182 |
|
42. |
|
|
43. |
|
|
44. Annual Report |
|
|
45. |
HA202.A35 |
|
46. Wall Street Journal Index |
|
|
47. Weltwirtschaftliches
Arichiv (Review of World
Economics) |
|
|
48. World Development Report *** |
HC59.7.W65949. |
|
49. World Economic Outlook *** |
HC10.W7979 |
|
50. World Tables, World Bank *** |
HC59.I4989 |
USEFUL WEB SITES:
class=Section3>
|
SITE |
ORGANIZATION |
|
Bureau of Economic
Analysis |
|
|
Bureau of Labor
statistics |
|
|
Board of Governors
of the FED |
|
|
Dow Jones
Industrial Average |
|
|
Economic
indicators |
|
|
Fair Macro Model |
|
|
FED stats |
|
|
Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation |
|
|
Institute for
Women’s Policy Research |
|
|
|
|
|
International
Labor Organization |
|
|
Journal of
Economic Literature |
|
|
Left Business
Observer |
|
|
Macroadvisers |
|
|
National Bureau of
Economic Research |
|
|
New Jersey
Department of Labor |
|
|
New York
Department of Labor |
|
|
Resources for the
Future |
|
|
|
|
|
The Brookings
Institute |
|
|
The WEFA Group |
|
|
The White House,
Council of Economic Advisor's |
|
|
United Nations
Development Program (UNDP) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
World Bank |
|
|
Word Trade
Organization (WTO) 95 |
References:
American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association. Fourth Edition.
Baker, Dean. Is the Housing Bubble Collapsing? 10 Economic Indicators to Watch [Issue
Brief]. Center for Economic and Policy Research,
Barsky, Robert
B. and Kilian Lutz. “Oil and the Macroeconomy Since the
1970s.” Journal of
Economic
Perspectives. 16: 4
(Fall 2004): 115-134.
Bivens, Josh. Trade
Deficits and Manufacturing Job Loss: Correlation and Causality, 2003, [Briefing
Paper]. Economic Policy Institute,
http://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/171/bp171.pdf
Butler Library listing of Style Guides: (http://www.buffalostate.edu/library/research/style.asp).
Department of Economics and Finance Website. Citation and Bibliographic Guides. (http://www.buffalostate.edu/economics/x622.xml).
Department of
Economics and Finance Website. Writing
Your Senior Thesis.
(http://www.buffalostate.edu/economics/x616.xml).
Department of
Economics and Finance Website.
Plagiarism.
(http://www.buffalostate.edu/economics/x665.xml).
Gibaldi, Joseph. The MLA Style Manual. Fourth Edition.
McCloskey, Deirdre N. Economical Writing. Second Edition.
Waveland Press,
Inc. 2000.
McCloskey, Donald N. The Rhetoric of Economics.
Mishkin, Frederic S. “The FED after Greenspan.” Eastern Economic Journal 31, no. 2
(Summer 2005): 317 - 332.
Palley, Thomas. “The Questionable Legacy of Alan Greenspan.” Challenge 48, no. 6
(November - 2005): 17 - 21.
Scott, Dr. Robert E. U.S. -
Nationally and State by State
Washington, D.C.: Economic Policy Institute, 2005, accessed
Strunk, William, Jr. And White, E.B. The Elements of Style.
Third edition,
NY: MacMillan
Publishing Company, 1979.
(http://www.bartleby.com/141/index.html).
Thomson, William. A
guide for the Young Economist - Writing and Speaking
Effectively about Economics.
Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers,
Theses and Dissertations. Sixth
Edition.
For some guides based
on Turabian (http://info.lib.uh.edu/rsa/turabian.htm)
and (http://www.lib.usm.edu/~instruct/guides/turabian.html).
Wyrick, Thomas L. The
Writer’s Guide to College Economics.
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN: West Publishing Company. 1995.
“Seminar.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2006.
http://www.m-w.com/help/citing.htm
(
Final Notes:
If you are a qualified student with a disability seeking accommodations
under the Americans with Disabilities Act, I will be happy to discuss your
special needs and accommodate those needs after you produce documentation. You should make an appointment with me within
the first two weeks of the semester to discuss any special needs.
Divergent Views:
All students are expected to adhere to rules of conduct that contribute
to an atmosphere conducive to the discussion of perspectives which spring from
differences in age, race gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and ideological
perspectives.
Copyright © 2007 Victor Kasper, Jr. All
rights reserved.
(For the syllabus as a whole not for
all individual components)