Seminar No.1 Final Student f2023

Microeconomics is about money you don't have, and macroeconomics is about money
the government is out of.

(P. J. O'Rourke)
Introduction to Macroeconomics
Seminar No. 1
Macroeconomics, even with all of our computers and with all of our information - is not an
exact science and is incapable of being an exact science.
(Paul Samuelson)
IntMac - conditions for credit
• IntMac = optional subject = graded credit
• NO exam, only 3 months of the term
• Max, you can get = 100 points
• Min, you must get = 51 points
• Partial assessments are:

• 1. Term project
• 2. Homeworks (during the term) or Written test (at the end of the term)
IntMac - conditions for credit –Term project
• 1. Term project
• Choose the term project in Moodle:
• Go to link: https://www2.ekf.tuke.sk/moodle/
• Log in with your Username and Password
• Find and enter the Introduction to Macroeconomics course
• Find link:? Choose the term project 2023
• Time to apply for the project: from September 27, 2023 (6:00 pm) to October 4, 2023
(midnight)
• Each student can apply for only one project
• Deadline for the project:
• according to the agreed dates and upload the project‘s final version (the final version of the
presentations + Word/Pdf document with the text for slides) on December 15, 2023 (11:59 pm-
midnight)
• You need to hand over only an electronic version of the project – 1 member of the project part/ team
– via a link in Moodle
• Max points = 50
• Required points = 26
Projects you can choose from…
• 1. Economic Freedom and Quality of Life (18 – 4/5/5/4)
• 4 parts; the leader of the project is needed
• First one: What Economic Freedom is about? (4)
• Find, explain, and compare different definitions and notes about EF.
• What EF rests on? Are there any principles, postulates, etc., the EF is based on?
• What is or should be the government’s role in EF?
• Second one: Compare the top 5 nations in the Economic Freedom Index. (5)
• Use all of these characteristics: GDP per capita, Economic growth rate, Investment per
capita, Unemployment rate, Life expectancy, Income level of poorest 10%, Adult literacy,
Access to improved water
• Use information from the last 7 years for each characteristic
• Make the different comparisons
• Visualisate data - the results, numbers, development
• 1. Economic Freedom and Quality of Life (18 – 4/5/5/4)
• Third one: Compare the bottom 5 nations in the Economic Freedom Index. (5)
• Use all of these characteristics: GDP per capita, Economic growth rate, Investment per capita,
Unemployment rate, Life expectancy, Income level of poorest 10%, Adult literacy, Access to
improved water
• Use information from the last 7 years for each characteristic
• Make different comparisons
• Visualisation of data - the results, numbers, development
• Fourth one: What differences does Economic Freedom make? (4)
• Use the statistics prepared by your colleagues and compare them (Top vs. Bottom; by each
characteristic; …)
• Make conclusions based on the statistics
• Find a reason for differences.
• Total presentation time: 40 minutes but it takes 25 minutes at least.
• Each member of the group presents.
• You're evaluated as one group – 18 people.
• 2. Government spending and Opportunity costs (30 – 6/6/6/6/6)
• 5 projects; compiled presentation; set order
• a brief illustration of the opportunity cost of the government spending.
• Situation: The state government is considering a temporary half-cent increase in the
sales tax to expand government programs. The tax is expected to raise €500,000,000
per year, and the state legislature is considering the following choices:
• Project - New stadium (6)
• Build a new stadium for the professional football team that has threatened to move to another
state. The new stadium would be a state-of-the-art facility with comfortable seats, skyboxes,
extensive restrooms, and numerous food areas. Backers claim the construction will create many
high-quality jobs.
• Project – Education for Future (6)
• This is a plan to improve the public schools and improve student performance in math, reading,
and science. Under this plan teacher salaries would increase, schools would get new facilities,
and accountability for student performance would increase. Backers believe that improving the
skills of future members of the workforce will attract businesses that will create high-quality jobs.
• Project – Transportation Express (6)
• This is a plan to create highways throughout the state and public transportation in urban
areas. Backers believe that the improved transportation system will stimulate business
development and make the state a more pleasant place in which to live. They also believe
that construction will create many new jobs.
• Project – Establishing a creative center (6)
• A plan that embodies the idea of humanism and the promotion of the development not
only of technical and technological innovation but also of intellectual and creative
development. Supporters underline the need to implement new technologies and create
new jobs.
• Project – No new taxes (6)
• Some state legislators believe that the taxpayers should keep the money they earned and
the sales tax should not be raised. They argue that lower taxes create incentives for
people to work, spend, save, and invest. They argue, therefore, that more jobs will be
created and living standards will be raised.
• For each project:
• Introduce your project – the aim, the main parameters, the budget, and sustainability in
a horizont of the next 5 years after the realisation.
• Prepare at least 5 pros and 5 cons with the explanations.
• Prepare a catchy presentation - you compete for the votes of the local council
representatives who will decide which project will be implemented.
• You have 8 minutes to present the project.
• Each Project represents one group. Every group is evaluated separately.
• The order in which the projects will be presented will be determined by someone in the
audience pulling out the project title.
• 3. GDP and Government Spending. (9)
• Choose two representatives from each group (Big 5 – Old European Countries,
V4, Baltic countries, BENELUX, Balkan countries - EU members, Group – Asia,
Australia, Canada, New Zealand) and analyse the evolution of GDP and
Government Spending in each selected country.
• Period: 2000 – 2021 (2022)
• Compare these developments and find common and different reasons. Look
for the breaking points for each country or group of countries. (Use graphs,
tables, and definitions, ...)
• 4. Is Household Consumption a big problem or a big safety net for the
economy? (9)
Australia, Canada, New Zealand) and analyse the evolution of Household
Consumption in each selected country.
• Period: 2000 – 2021 (2022)
• 5. Public debt and household debt = communicating vessels. Yes, or
No? (9)
Australia, Canada, New Zealand) and analyse the evolution of public debt and
household indebtedness in each selected country.
• Period: 2000 – 2021 (2022)
• 6. The financial world - the past and the future of the greatest (11)
• Part 1: Structure, Operations, Tools, and Aims of the ECB, FED, and The Bank
of Japan. (6)
• Analyse the structure, operations, tools, and aims of the organizations.
• Compare these organizations. Compare their policies used during the last crisis and find
common and different features. Look for the breaking points in their history.
• Find and describe the main trends of the financial world.- Find the trends, describe
them, and discover the role of the mentioned banks in these trends.
• Part 2: The Ups and Downs of Lehman Brothers, Barclays, Goldman Sachs (5)
• Describe each company, and briefly go through their history, and present.
• Describe the main breaking points and results of the strategies they have adopted in the
past.
• Compare these companies and compare their effect on the monetary system.
• Each Part represents one group. Every group is evaluated separately.
• 7. Slovakia and Covid 19 - How does Covid 19 affect the economy of
the Slovak Republic? (10)
• What is the main effect of COVID-19 on the Slovak Economy from the
Macroeconomic point of view? Explain why.
• What type of macroeconomic tools (monetary, fiscal) were used due to the
impact of COVID-19?
• What was the short-term forecast of Slovak economic development in the
case of the strong second wave of the COVID-19 crisis? Compare the forecast
with the reality.
• 8. External Economic Shocks (11)
• Part 1: The Oil Shocks of the 1970s and 1980s. (5)
• OPEC – what is it? What is the aim? Who is involved? Make a short description of the
economic environment of each member.
• Describe the reasons for the oil shocks and their consequences on the world economy.
• Part 2: Speculative Bubbles in Our History: Tulipmania, the Great Depression,
dot.com, Debt Crisis, etc. (6)
• Describe each bubble.
• Describe the main breaking points, and results and make a comparison of them.
• Compare the situation that preceded these crises. Look for common features.
• Each Part represents one group. Every group is evaluated separately.
• 1. Term project = Presentation of the chosen topic
• Each project – a presentation (the PPT presentation or other suitable form of electronic
presentation – max 35 slides) or a 15-minute video
• Presentation tools - you can use tools such as Canvas, Quizizz, Visme, SlideCamp, Powtoon,
LaTeX,…
• Not included in 35 slides:
• The cover slide - the name of your topic, the team members' names, the submission
date, the name of the school, and the name of the subject – without numbering.
• References (literature) – the list of the used sources
• Attachments
• Video tools – Animoto, ThingLink, ...
• In the video, all necessary (evaluated) parts should be clearly involved
• A shorter video can be used as a part of the presentation.
• What is evaluated in the project presentation:
• Content point of view – 4 basic parts:
• 1. Introduction (can get max 4 points)
 briefly describe the reason for choosing the issue and the main idea you want to explore
 summarize the structure of your work (how many chapters + one sentence about the content of each
chapter)
• 2. Discussion (can get max 20 points)
 elaborate the chosen issue on the basis of the obtained sources and facts
 use tables, graphs and figures - each must be linked with the source
 be sure to explain what the tables, graphs and figures mean and why you used them
• 3. Conclusion (can get max 12 points)
 is a very important part of the work
 evaluate what you have achieved and describe it in your own words
• 4. Innovative or social-interesting element (can get max 4 points)
 include some interesting activities in your presentation (use Quizizz, Mentimeter, Socrative, MindMeister,
Miro, Mural, Padlet, Slido, Kahoot ...)
• What is evaluated in the project:
• Formal point of view – 3 basic parts:
• 1. Bibliography (can get max 5 points)
 at the end of the presentation the bibliography must be listed, and it must meet the
requirements of the citation standard
• 2. Citations in the text (can get max 3 points)
 in the text, it is necessary to include citation references to individual sources in the way to be
under the citation standard
For 1st and 2nd – follow the Harvard style citation guidelines  go to link:
https://www.mendeley.com/guides/harvard-citation-guide
https://www.otago.ac.nz/library/pdf/Harvard_referencing.pdf
• 3. Other (can get max 2 points)
 Assessment of the formal aspects of the presentation or video
Schedule of Presentations
• 7. Slovakia and Covid 19 - How does Covid 19 affect the economy of the Slovak Republic? – October 11, 2023
• 3. GDP and Government Spending. – October 18, 2023
• 2. Government spending and Opportunity costs - November 8, 2023
• 4. Is Household Consumption a big problem or a big safety net for the economy? - November 15, 2023
• 8. External Economic Shocks - November 22, 2023
• 6. The financial world - the past and the future of the greatest - November 29, 2023
• 5. Public debt and household debt = communicating vessels. Yes, or No? – December 6, 2023
• 1. Economic Freedom and Quality of Life – December 13, 2023

IntMac - conditions for credit –Written test or
…
• 2. Written test or several short tasks
• For the last part of the assessment – two basic options:
• Option NO 1: - written test
• At the end of the term, in seminar room, max 75 minutes
• Numerical exercises, Case studies, and Theoretical questions – from the whole course curriculum
• Max points = 50
• Option NO 2: - collection of the points
• Several short tasks to work out on your own during the term – collect points – the same
conditions as for written test
• One week before the date of the written test, a list of students who have earned sufficient points
on assignments during the term and do not have to take the test will be announced
• Max points = 50

Seminar No.1 Final Student f2023

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Microeconomics is about money you don't have, and macroeconomics is about money

the government is out of.

• Partial assessments are:

• 3. GDP and Government Spending. – October 18, 2023

• 2. Government spending and Opportunity costs - November 8, 2023

• 8. External Economic Shocks - November 22, 2023

• 1. Economic Freedom and Quality of Life – December 13, 2023

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