Reference no: EM133479070
Economics
TOPIC - MONOPOLY
Case Study Presentation
What does the Case Study Presentation involve?
Many class members report the experience of being aware of issues in the news, but wishing that they had a better background understanding of the concepts behind these news stories. This task involves your group choosing one news item relevant to your topic, then presenting the class with:
1. A News Story and a Question
• Please choose a news story and a question that will be of value and interest to the class. Part of what you will be graded on is your choice of news story, the clarity of your question, and its relevance to your classmates and the wider business community.
Present an excerpt of a news video
• Once you have a topic and question, please present the class with an excerpt of a news video.
• Please do not show a whole 5 minute clip: show 1-2 minutes that summarises the issue and sets up your question.
Identify a clear question
• The question does not have to be long or complicated. Simple, important questions answered clearly are valuable.
Examples of good questions:
• Supply and Demand: "What factors caused a drop in world oil prices?"
• Elasticity: "How responsive are cigarette smokers to tax increases?"
• Monetary Policy: "Why did the RBA cut the cash rate, and what effect has that had on the economy?"
• GDP: "Has real wage growth kept pace with GDP growth?"
Examples of bad/non-existent questions:
• "Hello, our presentation is on Supply and Demand"
• "Cigarette tax in Australia" -that's not a question
• "Monetary Policy" -again, there's no question
What if we can't think of a question?
• A good tip is to have a look at the tutorial problem sets for the topic. Is there a question in the tutorial that you can apply to a news story that is currently of interest to everyone?
2. Analysis: Using the Tools of Economic Theory to Analyse the Question
• Please apply the economic concepts and models we have used in class to address the question.
• PLEASE DO NOT: spend time repeating what we have already covered in lectures and in textbook reading.
Example of repeating explanations (failing grade; 0 marks)
• "A demand curve can shift right, if demand increases for a reason other than changes in price. Demand curves shift left if demand decreases for a reason other than price"
• "GDP stands for Gross Domestic Product and is the value of all goods and services produced in an economy"
The above examples are essentially just reading the textbook to the class, and are not solving a case study question. Please do not do this.
Example of a good analysis:
• Example for the Supply and Demand question, "Why did Beef prices increase in 2016?"
• Good Analysis: "In 2016, cattle farmers in Australia experienced drought. In a Supply and Demand diagram, a drought would be a shift in the Supply Curve to the left because even at the same price, producers produce less beef. Let me illustrate that shift, and show you what happens. . . "
3. Empirical Evidence: Research Some Data and Communicate the Relevant Points to the Class. (3 marks)
• Please present some data that you have researched.
• For the Macro topics (Wk8 onwards) please create some charts using R and ggplot. Earlier topics will not require the use of R, as it will take some time to learn R.
Good Example of Researched Data
• e.g. "Our analysis shows that Price should rise, and Quantity should fall following a drought, and this is a chart showing the average retail price of rump steak in Australia over that period. Here is a chart showing beef exports in 2016, and you can see Australian beef exports to the US dropped 42% year-on-year"
Bad Example
• "Okay, let's say that beef used to cost $10 a kilo. If Supply shifts left, Price goes up to $15" (where the numbers are wholly just made up)
• Please use real numbers that you have researched.
Does it Have to Be Long?
• The presentation should be strictly shorter than 10 minutes.
• If you can answer your question and show some researched data in less than 10 minutes, that is even better. There is no need to fill time.
Choosing your group:
• Class members will form groups during the first class in Week 1. You are free to choose your group members; it is your responsibility to find suitable group members.
• Groups should be of 4 students; please do not ask to present individually.
• If you are experiencing any difficulties with your group please notify the convenor as soon as possible-for example, if one of the group members withdraws from study.
When do we present?
The presentation will be scheduled in the same week that the tutorial questions are covered for that topic. For example, if you choose a news story relating to the Week 1 topic of Supply and Demand, your presentation will be in the Week 2 class.
Presentation Topics:
• Wk 2: Supply and Demand
• Wk 3: Elasticity
• Wk 4: Perfect Competition (or Oligopoly)
• Wk 5: Monopoly
• Wk 6: Externalities (+ another group Monop Comp)
• Wk 8: GDP or Inflation
• Wk 9: Aggregate Demand/Aggregate Supply
• Wk 10: Fiscal Policy
• Wk 11: Monetary Policy
• Wk 12: Exchange Rates
Choosing your video/news clip:
There are many possible sources of material. For example, newspapers and publications such as The Economist magazine have suitable videos, youtube, etc. There is also a source called "TV News" which can be accessed through Swinburne library.
Steps:
1.Swinburne homepage 2.Index - L - library
3. Databases - A-Z list - T - TVNews
4. Search e.g. monopoly, carbon tax, inflation, etc.