Kyla Collins

Sost 316
Due: 9/17/14
Economics

What is the most important thing to know about this topic?
The most important thing to know about economics would first be the definition of economics. How economics
work would also be really important to know. Since social studies is made up largely of history, economics
throughout history is something that could be covered. Main topics of economics throughout history which should
be covered are the following: communism, socialism, capitalism, and NAFTA.
What is economics?
Economics, as defined by investopedia, is
A social science that studies how individuals,
Governments, firms and nations make choices on allocating scarce resources to satisfy their unlimited wants.
Economics can generally be broken down into: macroeconomics, which concentrates on the behavior of the
aggregate economy; and microeconomics, which focuses on individual consumers.A much simpler
definition from Merriam-Webster states that economics is a social science concerned chiefly with
description and analysis of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services or a science
concerned with the process or system by which goods and services are produced, sold, and bought."
How do we measure economics?
The economics of a country is measured primarily by the GDP (Gross Domestic Product). GDP represents the
total dollar value of all goods and services produced over a specific time period - you can think of it as the size of
the economy. GDP is typically measured year to year. Measuring GDP, at its most basic, is a calculation which
can be done in one of two ways: either by adding up what everyone earned in a year (income approach), or by
adding up what everyone spent (expenditure method).


Economics throughout History
Communism
Communism, also known as a command system, is an economic system where the government owns most of the
factors of production and decides the allocation of resources and what products and services will be provided. The
most important originators of communist doctrine were Karl Marx and Frederick Engels. They wanted to end the
exploitation of the masses by the few. The capitalist system at that time required workers to work under harsh and
dangerous conditions for little pay. The end goal of communism was to eliminate class distinctions among people,
where everyone shared equally in the proceeds of society, when government would no longer be needed.
Communist countries, decided on a centrally planned economy (also known as command economy or
communism). The centrally planned economy has the following major attributes:

The government owns all means of production, which is managed by employees of the state.


These employees operated under party-appointed economic planners, who set output targets in prices and
frequently interfered with the operations to satisfy personal or party desires.


And because communist economies are not efficient and because of the Communist Party's
desire to retain power, most economic resources were devoted to industrialization and to the military,
depriving consumers of food and other necessary products, causing intense competition for these limited
necessities, where many people had to wait in long lines for common consumer goods, such as toilet
paper.

Emphasis on the country's self-reliance, discouraging international trade and investment.


Although the purpose of communism was to serve the needs of the proletariat, communist
governments simply became repressive regimes that exploited their people to aggrandize their own power,
exploiting the masses even more so than the capitalists.

Capitalism

Adam Smith, a Scottish philosopher, set down many of the main principles of capitalism.
Under capitalism (market system), each individual or business works in its own interest and maximizes its own
profit based on its decisions. A market economy is one where the allocation of resources and the trading of goods
and services are through the decentralized decisions of many firms and households. Prices and the willingness of
the market to pay those prices determine economic output, which, in turn, determines the allocation of resources.

The essential characteristics of capitalism are that:

the factors of production are privately owned;

economic transactions take place in markets, where buyers and sellers interact;

businesses and employees are free to pursue their own self-interest;

The main purpose of the government in regard to the economy is to promote free markets, keep inflation low and
steady, protect the rights of private property, and to guarantee contracts.

Socialism

The definition of socialism varies widely, but it can accurately be described as an economic system between both
communism and capitalism. Like communism, socialism seeks to redistribute the wealth more fairly by the
communal ownership of natural resources and major industries, such as banking and public utilities. Socialists also
seek to nationalize monopolies, which greatly enrich their owners at the expense of the proletariat. However,
unlike communism, most small or nonessential enterprises would remain privately owned. Also unlike the
Communists, most socialists do not advocate violence or force to achieve their economic system. Socialism is also
referred to as common ownership. This means the resources of the world being owned in common by the entire
global population.

NAFTA

NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) is a trilateral free-trade deal that came into force in January
1994, signed by U.S. president Bill Clinton, Mexican president Carlos Salinas, and Canadian Prime Minister Jean
Chrtien. The central thrust of the agreement is to eliminate most tariffs on products traded among the United
States, Mexico, and Canada. The terms of the agreement called for these tariffs to be phased out gradually, and the
final aspects of the deal weren't fully implemented until January 1, 2008. The deal swept away import tariffs in
several industries: agriculture was a major focus, but tariffs were also reduced on items like textiles and
automobiles. NAFTA also implemented intellectual-property protections, established dispute-resolution
mechanisms, and set up regional labor and environmental safeguards, though some critics now lobby for stronger
measures on this front.

NAFTA has helped boost intraregional trade between Canada, Mexico, and the United States, but has fallen short
of generating the jobs and the deeper regional economic integration. Trade relations have broadened substantially,
and U.S. manufacturers created supply chains across North America that have made companies more globally
competitive

Key Vocabulary
Economics
Macroeconomics
Microeconomics
Production
Distribution
Consumption
Goods
Services
GDP
Renewable resource
Non-renewable resource
Communism
Karl Marx
Frederick Engels
Proletariat
Bourgeoisie
Centrally planned economy
Command economy
Capitalism Adam Smith
Market system
Pure capitalism
Consumer sovereignty
Socialism
Monopolies
NAFTA



Lesson Plan Resources
1. Teachers Pay Teachers
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Economics-Quick-Guide-662176
I really liked this one. It is a basic overview of economics and breaks it up so it can be better understood.
Since economics is such a broad topic, this would be a good source to guide teachers toward a lesson. It
would also make a good study guide for students.
2. Instructor Web
http://www.instructorweb.com/resources/economics.asp
3. Money Instructor
http://www.moneyinstructor.com/elementary.asp
4. Scholastic
http://www.scholastic.com/browse/search/teacherautoComplete=1&?query=economics&as_values_029
14=&channelOnly=true
5. Business Schools
http://www.bschool.com/little-entrepreneurs-business-for-kids/

Technology Resources

1. Online Stock game
http://www.smartstocks.com/
2. Currency Converter
http://www.oanda.com/currency/converter/
3. Online Entrepreneur Game
http://www.learn4good.com/games/tycoonbusiness/entrepreneurgame.htm
4. 6th Economics and Political Interaction Overview
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcEw7dWYo5I
5. Internet for Classrooms
http://www.internet4classrooms.com/social_economics.htm