This document explains the details of your assessment, please read it carefully.

Qualification/Programme: Undergraduate Foundation Programme
Module Name: UFP Economics and Finance- Module 2
Start Date: halfway through term 2.

Deadline Date: your final essay is due on or before the penultimate week of the academic year (normally the second to last week of May). Your presentation will most likely be held earlier that week.

Module learning outcomes:

• Understand the basic principles of macroeconomics
• Apply the Aggregate Equilibrium Theory
• Investigate economic growth, living standards, and social welfare
• Understand the 2008 global financial crisis and its aftermath
• Work in a team to conduct research and produce an essay
• Deliver a team presentation to an audience using a PowerPoint
• Use accurate Harvard style referencing

Assignment Title: Economic growth and living standards This assignment requires that you demonstrate that you can:

• Understand economic growth and living standards
• Able to examine economic growth and living standards
• Able to analyse the implications of economic growth on living standards
• Able to offer an opinion or make a judgement on the topic

You will be marked against the following criteria: See attached Assignment Purpose:

For learners to demonstrate their understanding of comparative economic growth and living standards. This assignment has two parts: an essay and a presentation. Together, these assignments count for 40% of your overall grade for UFP Economics and Finance. The essay part makes up 25% of your overall grade, and the presentation part makes up 15% of your overall grade. The pass mark for this assignment is 40%.

Assignment Instructions:

For this assignment you need to work in a team of two (with a partner who does not share your native
language) and submit a 2000 word essay (there is a leniency of +- 10% for the essay’s word count) and
prepare a team presentation detailing your findings. Please note, if your essay is shorter than 1800 words
or longer than 2200 words, your grade will be reduced by 10%. Use the following details to help structure
your essay.

• Form a team with one other person (unless specified otherwise by your tutor). Your partner should not have share the same native language as you. Ask your teacher to approve your team.
• Choose two countries; one developed (or emerging) and one developing (can be a least developed country or a frontier country). Neither of these countries should be your home country. Research should be conducted in English. Ask your teacher to approve the countries of your choice in order to avoid overlap between different teams. Get into the habit of following the economic news about these two countries using different news sources.
• Examine the economic growth of these two countries, and how it has been achieved.

• Use GDP growth figures of the last decade for the analysis.
• Take into account the global financial crisis and whether it has affected the country. GDP growth figures may vary around that time.
• What are the main sectors that drive economic growth in this country?
• You can create your own graphs (using Excel or another tool) to illustrate your analysis.

• Examine the standards of living in both countries by looking at economic and social welfare.

• You should use indicators from the list below:

• GDP per capita
• Income inequality
• Population living below poverty line (use national poverty line)
• Unemployment figures
• Human Development Index (HDI)
• Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index
• UN’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)
• Social Progress Index (SPI) (if available)
• You may also use indicators on any of the 5 topics that are described in chapter 28 of your book (Anderton, 5th edition), that may be relevant to the countries of your choice.

• Compare the economic growth and standards of living between the two countries.

• Which country is performing better in terms of economic growth, why?
• Which country is performing better in terms of living standards, why?

• To what extent has economic growth contributed to living standards in these countries? (discuss). Use the following to help you with the discussion.

• Has economic growth affected the living standards?
• If the countries you selected have high economic growth, is that economic growth inclusive or exclusive?
• If the countries you selected have high living standards, has economic growth lead to achieving this?
• If the countries you selected have low living standards, would a higher economic growth be enough to achieve higher living standards?

Extra Details about your assignment:

• Your group presentation should last for between 15 – 20 minutes. Each partner should present roughly half of the information. Please note, if your presentation is shorter than 15 minutes or longer than 20 minutes, your grade in the “timing and ability to respond to questions” will be lowered by 3 points. You will need to use a PowerPoint presentation.
• You will need to provide a bibliography of at least 6 references in your report including 3 books or academic articles and 3 websites. You will need to use Harvard referencing.
• Your report needs to show:
• Logical arguments and conclusions.
• Proof that you have researched and analysed information. Critical thinking and evaluation.
• Economic theory.
• Your own opinions and views.
• A high quality of written English. A logical flow to your essay.
• You can create and use graphics in your analysis using Excel or another tool.

Extra Guidance for your Research:
You can use the following databases to find data:

• World Bank DataBank
• United Nations Database
• International Labour Organisation (ILO) Statistics and Database
• Other sources approved by your tutor

You must not reference any user-generated sources of information such as Wikipedia or forums. You could read these to get a general overview for your own understanding, but they should not be used in your references as they are not always reliable sources of information.

All coursework (unless direct otherwise by your tutor) must be word processed, double spaced, justified, fully referenced using the Harvard system, and in 12 pitch font, with page numbers and the word count. The word count does not include end of text references or appendices.

You are required to submit an electronic copy to a plagiarism checker using the website http:// www.turnitinuk.com.

Feedback will be communicated back to you at the same time as your examination results for other examinations via your tutor and http://www.turnitinuk.com.

If you are unsure of what is expected of you, please speak to your tutor.