Week 1: Introduction to Economics

Day 1: Scarcity and Decision Making

Introduction to the course and overview of economics
Define scarcity and its impact on decision making
Explore the concept of opportunity cost
Discuss how individuals, businesses, and societies make decisions based on scarcity

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Day 2: Economic Questions and Systems

Identify the fundamental economic questions: What to produce? How to produce? For whom to produce?
Explore how different economic systems answer these questions
Introduce the concepts of efficiency and equity in economic decision-making

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Day 3: Types of Economies

Compare and contrast different types of economies: traditional, command, market, and mixed
Analyze how countries with different economic systems answer the main economic questions
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each economic system
Explore real-world examples of different economic systems

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Day 4: Market Structures

Introduce the concept of market structures
Examine the characteristics of different market structures: perfect competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, and monopoly
Discuss how market structures affect business decisions and consumer choices
Analyze real-world examples of different market structures

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Day 5: Law of Demand

Define demand and the law of demand
Explore factors that influence demand
Analyze how changes in price affect the quantity demanded
Introduce the concept of elasticity of demand
Discuss real-world applications of the law of demand

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Key Concepts

Scarcity
Opportunity cost
Economic systems
Market structures
Law of demand

Learning Objectives

Understand the concept of scarcity and its impact on economic decision-making
Identify and explain the fundamental economic questions and how different systems address them
Compare and contrast different types of economic systems
Recognize and describe various market structures and their characteristics
Understand and apply the law of demand