Course Title: Macroeconomics 1

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Macroeconomics 1

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
ECON1010	City Campus	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Sem 1 2006, Sem 2 2006, Sem 1 2007, Sem 2 2007, Sem 1 2008, Sem 2 2008, Sem 1 2009, Sem 2 2009, Sem 1 2010, Sem 2 2010, Sem 1 2011, Sem 2 2011, Sem 1 2012, Sem 2 2012, Sem 1 2013, Sem 2 2013, Sem 1 2014, Sem 2 2014, Sem 1 2015, Sem 2 2015, Sem 1 2016, Sem 2 2016, Sem 1 2017, Sem 2 2017, Sem 1 2018, Sem 2 2018, Sem 1 2019, Sem 2 2019, Sem 1 2020, Sem 2 2020, Sem 1 2021, Sem 2 2021, Sem 1 2022, Sem 2 2022, Sem 1 2023, Sem 2 2023, Sem 1 2024
ECON1015	Kolej Metropolitan	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Offsh 1 09, Offsh 3 09, Offsh 1 10
ECON1016	Singapore Inst of Management	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Offsh 1 09, Offsh 3 09, Offsh 1 10, Offsh 3 10, Offsh 1 11, Offsh 3 11, Offsh1 12, Offsh3 12, Offsh1 13, Offsh3 13, Offsh1 14, Offsh3 14, Offsh1 15, Offsh3 15, Offsh1 16, Offsh3 16, Offsh1 17, Offsh3 17, Offsh1 18, Offsh3 18, Offsh1 19, Offsh3 19, Offsh1 20, Offsh3 20, Offsh1 21, Offsh3 21, Offsh1 22, Offsh3 22, Offsh1 23, Offsh3 23
ECON1170	Hong Kong Management Associatn	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Offsh 3 09, Offsh 2 10
ECON1170	Hong Kong Management Associatn	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Internet	Offsh1 13
ECON1192	RMIT University Vietnam	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Viet2 2007, Viet3 2007, Viet1 2008, Viet2 2008, Viet3 2008, Viet1 2009, Viet2 2009, Viet3 2009, Viet1 2010, Viet2 2010, Viet1 2011, Viet2 2011, Viet3 2011, Viet1 2012, Viet2 2012, Viet3 2012, Viet1 2013, Viet2 2013, Viet3 2013, Viet1 2014, Viet2 2014, Viet3 2014, Viet1 2015, Viet2 2015, Viet3 2015, Viet1 2016, Viet2 2016, Viet3 2016, Viet1 2017, Viet2 2017, Viet3 2017, Viet1 2018, Viet2 2018, Viet3 2018, Viet1 2019, Viet2 2019, Viet3 2019, Viet1 2020, Viet2 2020, Viet3 2020, Viet1 2021, Viet2 2021, Viet3 2021, Viet1 2022, Viet2 2022, Viet3 2022, Viet1 2023, Viet2 2023, Viet3 2023, Viet1 2024
ECON1334	RMIT Vietnam Hanoi Campus	Undergraduate	625H Economics, Finance and Marketing	Face-to-Face	Viet3 2019, Viet1 2020, Viet2 2020, Viet3 2020, Viet1 2021, Viet2 2021, Viet3 2021, Viet1 2022, Viet2 2022, Viet3 2022, Viet1 2023, Viet2 2023, Viet3 2023, Viet1 2024

Course Coordinator: Bronwyn Coate

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 (3) 99251309

Course Coordinator Email: macroeconomics1@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: Melbourne Campus Building 80

Course Coordinator Availability: By appointment via email

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

None

Course Description

Macroeconomic events and policies affect our daily lives. This course will equip you with knowledge and skills to understand how the economy operates and to make sense of economic indicators such as economic growth, employment, inflation, interest rates, government budget and exchange rates. You will learn how the government uses fiscal and monetary policy to manage the economy, and understand the role of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship in driving a country’s economic development. The course will teach you how economists think about wellbeing and economic prosperity at a national and global level, which includes a consideration of economic inequality and environmental sustainability. The course content will be highly integrated with real world applications, revolving around the key macroeconomic issues currently faced by Australia, the Asian-Pacific region, and the global economy in general.

By the end of the course, you will understand how the various components of the economy work and interact with each other. You will learn how to interpret and monitor key macroeconomic indicators and understand the implications of changes in economic conditions for businesses. You will gain the skills to understand and evaluate government policy. You will build the skills to access, analyse and present data, and understand the importance of communicating economic concepts in way that is meaningful for businesses. This package of skills and knowledge will be useful in the real world, whether you are in the role of an economist, analyst, consultant, investor, researcher, manager or policymaker. An understanding of the economy will also be valuable in your personal decision-making as an everyday consumer, as a voter in society, and as a participant in discussions on economic, social, environmental and political issues in our community.

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

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On successful completion of this course you will be able to:

1. Describe the operation of the Australian economy to apply in various contemporary macroeconomic issues.
2. Read and critically evaluate current economic news articles as they relate to the Macroeconomy.
3. Assess how government policies and changing macroeconomic conditions affect societal welfare.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of recent economic events and their impact on current policy initiatives on the Australian economy.
5. Interpret charts, graphs, and tables and use the information to make informed judgments.
6. Work and learn independently and work as a team.
7. Communicate macroeconomics concepts and issues effective in a variety of business contexts.
8. Evaluate business outcomes based on the costs and benefits involved.

Overview of Learning Activities

Lectures:
The purpose of lectures is to provide a logical structure for the topics that make up the course; to emphasize the important concepts, models and methods of each topic, and to provide relevant examples to which the concepts and methods are applied. The organization of the course parallels the text, and consequently each lecture will explicate the key concept covered in the corresponding chapter of the text.

Tutorials:
Tutorials are an important component of your learning in this course. The purpose of tutorials is to provide an opportunity for small group discussion of the issues to which economic concepts and methods developed in the lectures can be applied. The Tutorial Program contains problems and questions that review and build on the lecture material. The tutorial questions provide a means for discussion of applications and examples of economic concepts and models introduced in lectures. Students should attempt the set of weekly exercises before each tutorial and be prepared to contribute to tutorial discussion. The communication and presentation skills developed in tutorials by regularly and actively participating in discussions are considered to be most important in the real business world and are highly regarded by employers and professional bodies. Tutorials require students to analyse the ideas covered in lectures and then apply them to specific contemporary macroeconomic issues. The summative component of tutorials will relate to current macroeconomic policy in a way that will encourage independent and critical styles of thinking.

Assignment:
In the assignment students are expected to apply the theoretical framework of economics covered in the course to the analysis of current macroeconomic policy in Australia. The aim is to develop students’ literacy and problem-solving skills especially as these apply to economics and business as well as problem-solving skills.
 

Overview of Learning Resources

Various learning resources are available online through myRMIT/Canvas. In addition to topic notes; assessment details and a study schedule you may also be provided with links to relevant online information; readings; audio and video clips and communication tools to facilitate collaboration with your peers and to share information.

Resources are also available online through RMIT Library databases and other facilities. Visit the RMIT library website for further details. Assistance is available online via our chat and email services, face to face at our campus libraries or via the telephone on (03) 9925 2020.

Additional resources and/or sources to assist your learning will be identified by your course coordinator will be made available to you as required during the teaching period.    

Overview of Assessment

The assessment tasks, their weighting and the course learning outcomes to which they are aligned are as follows:

Assessment Task 1: 10%
Linked CLOs: 1, 5, 6

Assessment Task 2: 40%
Linked CLOs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Assessment Task 3: 50%
Linked CLOs: 3, 5, 6

Feedback will be provided throughout the semester in class and/or in online forums through individual and group feedback on practical exercises and by individual consultation.