ECON 453

Institutional familiary

Students will summarize common financial assets, institutions, policies, and historical experiences, with a base of knowledge that facilitates life-long learning after graduation.

Macro data usage

Students will competently extract and visualize macro data from the Federal Reserve Economic Data website (FRED), and evaluate overall trends against model predictions.

Critical thinking with models

Students will develop intellectual humility and fair-mindedness, practiced by evaluating a number of related models and discriminating between their distinct settings and distinct predictions.

Role of money

Students will rigorously analyze the roles of money in facilitating transactions, storing value over time, and comparing prices of goods.

Causes and impact of inflation

Students will identify the causes of inflation, characterize the negative impacts of inflation, and assess incentives for governments to create inflation.

Role of private banks

Students will explain the beneficial role of financial intermediaries (banks), and illustrate the individual and systemic risks that they introduce.

Role of central banks

Identify current issues iStudents will evaluate the role of central banks in regulating private banks, and analyze the impact of their regulations on output, inflation, and macro risks.n the conduct of monetary policy.

Monetary policy and deficits

Students will examine the impact of government deficits and debt, particularly in their interaction with monetary policy.

Scriptural alignment

Students will assess where economic models are in alignment with relevant scriptural doctrine, and identify gospel principles that can enrich our understanding of monetary economics.