Dear Prospective Economics student,
We are delighted you are interested in studying economics at SFX. On the link above, you will find more details about the course and examples of different topics we explore. Below is an extended reading list and useful links for those who want an even more sneak peek into the course.
What do I need to know, or able to do, before taking this course?
It doesn't matter if you haven't studied economics before. You might have an interest in economics and want to know more about the impact economics has on the world around you. You might want to investigate some of the stories you hear in the news- Why do some economies grow and others don't? Will the Eurozone survive? Why didn't economist predict the Global Financial Crisis? Does Africa have the potential of becoming the most powerful continent? And of course, what are the economic impacts of Coronavirus and national lockdown? This course will help you to understand all this and more!
What will I learn?
Economics is about choice and the impact of our choices on each other. It relates to every aspect of our lives, from the decisions we make as individuals or families to the structures created by governments and firms. An economic way of thinking can help you make better choices.
In Theme 1 and Theme 2 you will be introduced to the nature of economics, how markets work and why they fail. You will also consider the role of government and the UK economy. In Theme 3 and Theme 4 you will explore how businesses grow and compete, the labour market and how the government intervenes to make markets work better. You will also explore international trade, inequality within and between countries, emerging and developing economies and the public finances. You will also have an opportunity to consider the role and impact of the financial sector.
We look forward to meeting you in the new academic year.
Kind regards and stay safe.
Mr Bouchaara
o.bouchaara@sfx.ac.uk
Online resources
1. www.edexcel.com This is the exam board website. It contains lots of useful information such as specifications, past exam papers and marks schemes.
2. https://edexceleconomicsrevision.com/ This website provides you with notes for
ALL topics we cover in A Level Economics.
3. www.bbc.co.uk/news The BBC news website is excellent for keeping up to date with the latest economic news. The articles tend to be easy to read and often contain news clips which you can watch. There is a separate section for economics under ‘business news’. The BBC’s economics correspondent, Stephanie Flanders, also writes an interesting blog on the economy. You should get into the habit of checking this website every day.
N.B. An additional resource available to you in the Library is ‘The Economist’. Weekly articles on Economic/Political related themes.
4.
This website is an excellent source of revision material. You should also read their economics blog regularly.
5. www.oecd.org
This OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) website has a wealth of useful material. It will be useful when you are doing research and its special reports will keep you informed about current issues in economics.
6. www.indexmundi.com
This website is full of useful statistics for comparing countries. It also allows you to generate graphs which can be included in essays or projects.
7. https://www.youtube.com/user/pajholden/videos
This is a highly recommended Youtube that visually explains each topic we cover over the two year course.
8. https://www.khanacademy.org/
Another online tutorials for most Economics topics over the course.
9. Revision app: Gojimo
Books
Globalisation
‘Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists’ by Raghuram Rajan and Luigi Zingales
‘A Farewell to Alms’ by Gregory Clark
‘Knowledge and the Wealth of Nations’ by David Warsh
‘The End of Poverty’ by Jeffrey Sachs
‘The White Man’s Burden’ by William Easterly
‘Making Globalization Work’ by Joseph Stiglitz
‘The Moral Consequences of Economic Growth’ by Benjamin Friedman
‘The Writing on the Wall : China and the West in the 21st Century’ by Will Hutton
‘The Chinese Century: The rising Chinese economy and its impact on the global economy, the balance of power, and your job’ by Oded Shenkar
Development Economics
‘Development as Freedom’ by Amartya Sen
‘The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries Are Failing’ by Paul Collier
‘Dead Aid’ by Dambisa Moyo
The Global Financial Crisis
‘Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008’ by Paul Krugman
‘Whoops! Why Everyone Owes Everyone and No One Can Pay’ by John Lanchester
‘The Storm’ by Vince Cable
Behavioral Economics (The intersection of economics and psychology—“behavioral economics”—is currently a hot field.)
‘Predictably Irrational’ and ‘The Upside of Irrationality’ by Dan Ariely
‘Nudge’ by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein
Popular Economics
‘Freakonomics’ and ‘Superfreakonomics’ by Steven D. Levitt
‘The Economic Naturalist’ by Robert Franks
‘The Armchair Economist’ by Steven Landburg
‘The Undercover Economist’ and ‘The Logic of Life’ by Tim Harford
‘Discover Your Inner Economist’ by Tyler Cowen