Below is a summary of assessment in this subject

This component    ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK SUMMARY
Assessment Tasks:    Due Date    %        Comments
In class exercises     Multiple     15    You will complete 5 class exercises. Your best 3 will counted for your assessment grade    See tutorial schedule. See guidelines below
Mid semester test    Week 9    15    Problems and multiple choice questions. The problems will come directly from your tutorial questions
Group  assignment    Week 9    20
Final examination    During the official university examination period.     50

GROUP ASSIGNMENT

The assignment will demonstrate the student’s/group’s ability to:
•    Represent the market of the firm’s product diagrammatically and explain in words the key factors influencing: demand for the firm’s product; the supply of the product; the price elasticity of demand.
•    Illustrate with separate diagrams and explain the words the effect of; i) an external shock and ii) a change in government policy affecting the market of that the firm operates in.
The assignment will:
•    Be less than 1000 words with a correctly labelled diagram(s).
•    Include a title, introduction and conclusion.
•    Include diagrams where appropriate.
•    Word processed in 12 point font at 1.5 spacing
•    Include a statement of authorship on the front page.

Grading process:

Each student in the group will receive the same mark for this assignment. One mark will be deducted for each day that a group assignment is late.

Groups can consist of 3 or 4 students and you are free to choose your own group. Each group will provide a statement of the frequency and dates of their meetings and a statement of how tasks for the completion of the assignment were allocated.   In extreme circumstances, the class facilitator may adjust the allocation of marks in line with individual contributions to the assignment. These adjustments will be at the discretion of the facilitator

Description of Group Assignment
Students will be allocated one of the following firms:
i.    A farming company specializing in wheat and barley production (Silo Pty Ltd). The firm is one of many producers in the international market.
Part A
In the assignment you are required to describe three factors influencing the market demand and three factors influencing supply curves for the chosen firm’s product or service (e.g. how would a change in consumer income affect demand). You are also to explain the concept of price elasticity of demand and explain why you believe demand is elastic or inelastic in the long and short run.

Part B

Students are to illustrate and explain, using comparative statics, the impact of the following shock in the market in which the chosen firm operates.
i.    A bumper harvest in the U.S. and South America increase the global wheat yield.
ii.    There is a reported dramatic increase in the compensation claims going to court.
iii.    A multinational white goods retailer launches a strategy to open 20 new stores in Australia.
iv.    Ford to close its Broadmeadows and Geelong plants for which Ex Hoon Pty Ltd is a major supplier.
v.    The construction industry faces a significant increase in labour costs.
Part C
Illustrate and explain with the market demand and supply curve the expected impact of a change in government policy on the chosen firm/industry:
i.    The government introduces a tax on fertilizer used in agriculture due to runoff damages to rivers and streams
ii.    Government disbands the Traffic Accident Commission (TAC), a publicly funded compensation scheme
iii.    The government decides to increase GST from 10 to 15%
iv.    The government announces tough new safety standards for all new vehicles sold in Australia
v.    The government announces it will scrap the First Home Buyers Grant.
Last for the firm chosen; what is the market structure that the firm operates in? Why? For example, does in operate in a competitive market, is it a monopoly, or someone in between such as monopolist competition or oligopoly?

In class exercises
In Class Exercises    Week    SILOs Assessed

Exercise 1    4    1, 2, 3 & 5
Exercise 2    5    1, 2, 3 & 5
Exercise 3    6    1, 2, 3 & 5
Exercise 4    8    1, 2, 3, 4 & 5
Exercise 5    11    1, 2, 3, 4 & 5
Details
These in class exercises are best prepared for by completing the tutorial exercises on that topic. Students who do not attend the sessions to complete the assessment tasks will be awarded NO MARKS.

Grading and Feedback
Over the course of the semester six of the in class group based exercises and tests will be assessed, with the best three results contributing to a mark out of 15. Each exercise will be marked out of 5.