Economics

Course Length: Full academic year (30 weeks)

This Year's Schedule: Click here to view

Aims of the Course

Economics will develop your understanding of how the world works, from individuals to local businesses to global corporations. You will look at theories of economics, and then by looking at actual firms the students combine the theory with what they see around them. It makes it all very interesting!

In what type of markets do McDonalds and Apple operate? How do these market structures affect their behaviour? Why is cheaper to buy an apple than a pineapple? When should a firm shut down? How does a business maximise profits? How is inflation calculated? You’ll learn about the impact global markets have on us as a countries, and how governments can influence things like inflation, taxes, wages…

Economics will give you an awareness of how modern-day society works. You will develop a greater understanding of how businesses function and what roles we play in affecting the economy.

You will have a few core texts such as Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? and Common Sense Economics and then you will be reading case studies of actual businesses, articles and looking at graphs.

Subjects Covered in the Economics Course

Each module will help you build your knowledge of modern-day economics. Units you’ll cover include:

Resource allocation- land labour, capital and entrepreneurship
How prices are determined
Production, costs, revenue and profit
Types of firms
Market failure- taxes and subsidies
Introduction to the national economy
Inflation
Interest rates
International trade and the global economy
The role of money and financial market

Homework Expectations

Each week, students complete a reading assignment, watch a video, answer questions based on the topic and do a data question. They also attend a one-hour webinar, where they'll look in more detail at some of the themes in the books.

Add-On Options

The add on analysis option will allow the students do have more time to look at specific real economic situations and will have the opportunity for some country case studies. For example, how and why is the economic situation in China so different to the US? This course serves as a high school credit in social studies for US-style, college-bound approaches and will be an honors course with the add on. If a UK student wishes to do an Economics GCSE, then it would cover a good deal of the content

How It Supports Your Child's Education

The course will serve as a high school credit in social studies for US-style, college-bound approaches. It can be a Social Studies credit for your high school diploma. It can also be an IGCSE course for those aiming to sit UK-style exams if combined with the add on. The Crammer course can be taken alongside this course in January, to prepare for the IGCSE in Economics.

Who Teaches Economics?

Helen Harrold completed her Economics degree at Lancaster University and then did a post graduate teaching qualification. She currently tutors GCSE maths, AP Economics and is a UK consultant for an American high school program . Whilst living in the UK, she has homeschooled her own 7 children using the American curriculum: so has straddled both the UK and US systems.
See all courses taught by Helen