Month 4 week : 2 and 3 The Federal Reserve Game due 12/11

 

The Federal Reserve System:

Jerome Powell was nominated to the Federal Reserve Board by former President Barack Obama in 2012 and by President Donald Trump in 2017.

Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images (NPR, 2017)

Background:  

The Federal Reserve System is overseen by the Board of Governors of the the Federal Reserve. The Board of Governors is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Its seven members are appointed for staggered fourteen -year terms by the President of the the United States with the advice and consent of the Senate. The President also appoints, from among these seven members, the chair of the Board of Governors. The Senate confirms the appointment. Chairs serve four-year terms. The chair acts as the main spokesperson for monetary policy for the country. Monetary policy refers to the actions the Fed takes to influence the level of real GDP.

Activity:

The Fed Chairman Game (FCG) is an interactive online website tool to help you better understand the impact of the Federal Funds Rate on unemployment and inflation.  Put yourselves in the chair’s shoes and try your hand at monetary policy through steering a simulated economy. Crises pop up throughout the game in order to lend an element of surprise and to simulate sudden changes in the economy. At the end of the game, the “Chair” is reappointed if you did well in keeping inflation low and stable and meeting the unemployment target.

Directions: Check out the Fed Chair Game and then answer the following questions and post your answers.

1.) What job or role did you play in the game and what were your responsibilities?
What is the relationship between interest rates and demand for money?

2.) When the economy is expanding quickly and inflation is high, what should the Chair do to slow inflation?
3.) What is one of the key roles of Chair of the Federal Reserve?
4.) How does the Chair of the Federal Reserve benefit American society?

Month 3 week 3: Federal Regulatory Agencies, due 11/13/2020

 Federal Regulatory Agencies:

AGENCIESFOUND 435                

The government has created a number of federal regulatory agencies to oversee the economy. The government's involvement in our economy has created a modified free enterprise system. The agencies are intended to protect and regulate industries and consumers. Some of the agencies you maybe familiar with are:

• FDA - Food and Drug Administration
• NLRB- National Labor Relations Board
• EPA - Environmental Protection Agency
• FAA -  Federal Aviation Administration
• FDIC -Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Directions: Watch the following video: FDIC   and visit the following website: FDA and answer the following questions. Post your answers.

1. If you open a savings account in a bank that indicates deposits are FDIC insured, what protection does that give you?

2. If you purchase uncooked meat at the grocery store what government agency will oversee monitor the quality and safe handling of the product?

3. Which Agency oversees the safety and procedures of the airline industry?

4. Select a Federal Agency that interests you. Tell us about the agency include the name, the purpose, and how the agency benefits American society.

Month 3 week 1 and 2 Adam Smith on Self-Interest due Nov 6th

 

Adam Smith on Self-Interest (Document A)

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Adam Smith was a Scottish professor that strongly believed in the idea of a free economy. His ideas were the foundation of Capitalism.  In this passage  from his book The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith discusses his law of self-interest, which is the idea that people work for their own good.     

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“The natural desire of every individual is to improve his own condition (life).  

For example, it is not because of the benevolence (kindness) of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard for their own self-interest

It is for his own benefit, and not that of the society, that the butcher is thinking about when he slaughters his pigs for meat. His self-interest leads him to choose that employment (job) which is also helpful to society, but he intends (desires) only his own gain. If people were not willing to pay the butcher good money for his meat, then the butcher would not care to slaughter his pigs.”

Guiding Questions

1. Analyze: What does Smith mean when he says “the natural desire of every individual is to improve his own condition”? Explain.

2.  Summarize. Why does Adam Smith believe the butcher does his job (EXPLAIN! Don’t just say “self-interest!”)?

3. Interpret: Do you agree with Adam Smith that people do their jobs only out of self-interest? Are there any jobs that people might do for a different reason? Explain. 

Month 2 week 4: Supply and Demand Dance due 10/16/20

 

Supply and Demand

Main Question: How does supply and demand shape the Market Curve?

Directions: View the following supply and demand clip Supply and Dance Man from We the Economy   Then answer the following questions and post your answers: 

• What is the definition of a market?
• What is a market force?
• How does the consumer interest in the canes start?
• What makes the price go up initially?
• What is Kristen and Jonathan’s motivation for ordering more canes?
• What are the factors that cause the price of the canes to continue to go up?
• What causes the surplus?
• How does the surplus affect the cost of the canes?
• What are the factors that cause the price of the canes to continue to go down?
• What is equilibrium?

questions taken from VIRGINIA YANOWSKY

Month 2 Week 3: Cave-O-nomics, due 10/17

Cave-o-nomics

KEY WORDS AND PHRASES

Economy, Profit, trade, free market system, industry, competition, 

innovation,Regulate, productivity,  

Guiding question: How did the market get started? What role does  the free market economy,  trade, bartering, supply and demand have in the economy?

Question:

Explain how this quote relates to the film “Cave-o-nomics,” and make use of information garnered from the film.

“If a man has good corn or wood, or boards, or pigs, to sell, or can make better chairs, forknives, crucibles or church organs, than anybody else, you will find a broad hard-beaten road to his house, though it be in the woods.”

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

WE THE ECONOMY LESSON: cave-o-nomics
© 2014 Cinelan LLC, Vulcan Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Visit www .wethee conomy.com for updates.

Month 2 week 2: What is Your Economic Literacy? due 10/9

 

Economic Literacy Quiz

How much economic knowledge do you have?

Directions:  Test your own economic literacy with 20 questions. Then view results to see how you rank against everyone else who has taken the quiz. Post your answers to the following questions below the quiz link. 

Take the Quiz

1. Did you score above or below the national average of 70%? Post your answer to this question. 

2. What experience do you have with economics? 

3. What would you like to learn more about regarding economics in this class?

Month 2 Week 1: Introduce Yourself due 10/2

 

Dear Parkview Economics Student, 

 

Your are participation in the weekly in the discussion board is an integral part of the Parkview curriculum.

I look forward to hearing from you! Your voice and ideas are of value here. 

How and what you think will help move the learning process forward. 

So, thank you in advance, for your participation!  

Sincerely, 

Mrs. Bernstein

Welcome to Parkview's Discussion Board Blog! The place to interact with the instructor and classmates to discuss important events in our nation's history. To begin our blog it is important to know the expectations and rules.

All postings titles will be marked by the school month and school week and due date. For example, this is the first week posting for month 2, and the title is "2.1 Introduction due 10/2" 

You are required to make 2 posts on the discussion board every week. The first post is your response to the questions posted. The work is to be your own, plagiarism will result in a failing grade. The second response is a comment to a classmates post.

Due date: Discussion Board responses are due by Friday of the week of the posting. 

Grades: Discussion Board participation is 10% of your grade. You will get credit for your participation and will be marked down for posting late. Failure to post will earn a grade of a "0" for the week.

Study Guide: Each discussion board question is related to question on the final. Students who complete each posting do better on the final. A more detailed study guide will be provided a few weeks before the final.

Finals: Mid January.  The finals will be multiple choice questions based on the textbook and discussion board. A study guide will be posted to help you prepare for the final.

Important record keeping notice: Please copy every post you submit, save to a document, label the month and week, and turn in with your monthly turn in work to your Parkview teacher for credit. You are responsible to complete on average 4 posts a month. Your participation is part of your history grade. 

Parkview's Economics: Introductions

Directions: This class is about history. In 200-300 words write your history from your beginning to present day. Be sure to include:

• your name (the history of why your name was given to you)
• birthplace
• 2 or 3 high points in your life
• places you have lived
• your favorite year and why
• a historical American figure related to economics and our economy you admire and why