Economics

Article Selection:
The article you select should be a news article, either in print or online. You are looking for a current economic news event (from within the last year or preferably 6 months), not an editorial piece, a press release, or an entry from a site like Wikipedia. Nor are you allowed to use the any article from The Economist. Although The Economist is an outstanding magazine. The point of this assignment is not to pick an article that already identifies and discusses key economic concepts. The point is to pick an article that is related or seemingly unrelated to economics and identify the more explicit economic concept within. Economics is everywhere; you just have to be in the right mindset.
A great way to find an article is to go to http://news.google.com/ and type in some economic topics your interested in. You’ll get hits on news sources from all over the world. Make sure that there are at least two different things in your article that you can relate to class material.
For example, consider an article that discusses rising costs of living. Your analysis could focus on what the inflation rate is, how it is measured, and the effects on consumers’ purchasing power and standard of living, based on what you have learned in class. Specifically, you would explain that the inflation rate is the rate of change of the average price rates, provide some information on how it is determined, and how nominal wages do not always keep up with inflation.
We have discussed many topics in macroeconomics, including but not limited to: Institutions, GDP, price levels and inflation, unemployment rates & wages, types of unemployment, banking system & loanable funds, fiscal & monetary policy as well as trade and international finance. Essay Content: (4 to 5 paragraphs total)
First & second paragraph: Summarize the article. When summarizing, you may use the language from the article itself without having to cite it again. Do not quote the article in you summary. Do not write “In the article, it says…” or “The author says…”. Your task is to provide a synopsis of the content of the article not to copy and paste a summary together. This paragraph should be 4-5 sentences long.
Third & fourth paragraph: Explicitly relate the article to class material (define any relevant terms from class; show how the article illustrates a concept from class, etc). If you can’t find at least 2 things in the article to explicitly relate to class, then choose a new article. The paragraph(s) should start with a topic sentence and then explain 2 things from the article and what we learned about those 2 things in class. This should be your longest section.
– relating the article to class material in exactly 2 ways is commensurate with a “C” grade.
– if you are aiming for a higher grade, then relate the article to class in 3 to 4 ways
You may utilize a graph in this area if you feel it will help your explanation or is necessary to communicate the idea. However, a graphic is not required for the project.
Be sure in this portion to make clear what is information specific to the article, and which are your opinions . It is fine to have an opinion on the article, but you must own your opinion/reaction (e.g. I think, I feel, In my opinion, It seems to me, What struck me was, I found it interesting that, etc…).
Fifth (or fourth) paragraph: This should be your reaction or your opinion on the issue or something you learned from the article and why it stuck with you. Avoid making normative statements that do not contain some reference to yourself. This should be your reaction and your reflection on the article
Discuss how this Article Analysis project contribute in a larger way to you understanding Macroeconomics role in your overall liberal arts education. In Other words, what other topic(s) or disciplines have you studied here at Curry that helped you to understand this article, and macroeconomics in your life.
***Overall, your essay should be about one and a half pages, double spaced, in length. It is okay if it is a little longer but anything over 2 pages is too long and 2 points will be deducted. ***
Grading of the Article Analysis Submission: This assignment is worth up to 20 points, and is worth 12% of your overall grade. Please see the grading rubric for specifics.
Article Copy: On top of citing your source on your essay you must also submit a printed copy of your article with your essay. Please staple the copy on the back of your essay.
Format: Your TYPED (Double spaced, 12-pt font, 1″ margins) analysis should follow the format on the next page. (Note, the example format on the next page is much shorter than one page – your actual essay will be much closer to 1-3/4 pages in length (but not over 2 pages).