Hurtwood House School

‘Economics is a subject that does not greatly respect one’s wishes' – Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971)

Economics is an academic A-Level highly valued by universities, but it is also a subject that deals with vital matters concerning all of our daily lives.

How should a student make the most of his or her limited income? This question is equally applicable to companies and even the Government when deciding how to spend its taxation revenue! Should the UK join the single currency or not? What effect will rising house prices have on the economy and will high rates of interest control this upward trend? Privatisation programmes, unemployment, inflation and the funding of health and education are also studied.

As you can see, this is not a theoretical, text-book subject, but one that can be observed in action every day in the newspapers and on TV programmes. Indeed, events mean that up-to-the-minute changes are monitored by frequently issued economics magazines and the internet. In short, Economics is an interesting, topical and popular A-Level. Results over many years have been excellent and well above the national average number of A and B grades have been awarded. Rather than being a subject that is studied and then forgotten after the examination is over, it will continue to be of use throughout your adult life.

Full use is made of resources such as television, video and internet and students are actively encouraged to enhance their awareness of events in the UK economy by reading daily newspapers as well as magazines like ‘The Economist’. Case-study and data-response questions are used to supplement the topics discussed in class such as the budget issued by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

In addition to the lively and informal classroom with students taking an active part in discussions, visits are also made to Surrey University first-year Applied Economics lectures. This year, many Economics students from Hurtwood are visiting Prague to see the results of the transition of the Czech Republic from communist to market economy at first hand, visiting several industries like the Škoda car plant while still finding time to enjoy the cultural aspects of this beautiful city.

AS             
 
Unit 1 – How Markets Work
 
What are the economic effects of the transition of Eastern European economies like Russia towards market reforms? What determines the prices of goods and what role is played by consumers and producers?

and Why do Markets sometimes fail?
 
Do we need to control dominant firms like Microsoft and encourage the entry of new, smaller companies? Why should governments intervene in markets like transport, agriculture, health and education?
   
 
Unit 2– Managing the Economy
 
How should governments prioritise between economic targets such as lower inflation, lower unemployment, higher living standards and stable trade and exchange rates? How can the aims be achieved? 
 
 
The A2 units (forming the remaining 50%)
 
 
Unit 3 – Industrial Economics
 
How can the birth and growth of firms be encouraged? How do firms use pricing and non-price marketing in various industries? Why do privatised industries need regulators?  

Unit 4 – Economic Development
 
The causes, costs and benefits of economic growth. How do we measure higher living standards? What are the sources of finance and strategies for growth e.g. aid or trade? and the Global Economy
 
What determines the level of import and exports? Why did the Euro slide in value after its launch? Should the UK join this single EU currency? What were those World Trade Organisation problems in Seattle? Can an economy enjoy low levels of both inflation and unemployment? What determines level of taxation and Government expenditure?

If you choose Economics as an A-Level subject you must have passed English and Mathematics at GCSE-Level, but crucially you will also enjoy problem-solving and have a strong interest in current affairs. During the first year of the course the work involves dealing with concepts and economic models which, once mastered, provide a foundation for other topics. However, this is not a subject for the student wanting factual, straightforward content. Economics requires students to cope with ideas and numbers such as how price is determined, inflation and deflation, the measurement of the national wealth and the conflicts between economic policies.

The ability to learn and understand economic data and to use it to illustrate points in essays is essential for success in this subject, as well as clear and accurate essay style. Once the basic concepts are understood you will progress to the wider issues of Economics, such as the organisation of business and the costs of production, public finance, banking, labour markets and international trade.

You will no doubt have a keen interest in contemporary society, for there are wide, everyday issues to which economic methods can be applied such as crime, healthcare and the environment. You should not be daunted by the jargon used even if it appears to complicate matters! Remember, if everybody was able to understand economic jargon the supply of economists would increase and their value (ie their salaries) would fall, which would make a lot of teachers and lecturers much worse off. By the way, if you have managed to understand that, then you have just learned one of the basic concepts of Economics - supply and demand!
 
After A-Level
 
Economics has high status, combines well with most subjects and is always welcomed by university admissions tutors in an A-Level portfolio, whether you are applying for arts, science or social science degree courses. It is useful to have taken Economics at A-Level if you want to read Economics at university, and a combination of Mathematics and Economics at A-level is especially recommended to anyone considering Business Studies or Economics as a degree course. Economics should not be combined with Business Studies at A-Level as there is too much overlap and universities may well not accept them as two separate subjects.

Graduates in Economics are in demand from a wide range of employers as professional economists, financial analysts, accountants, bankers, civil servants, teachers and managers, and recent surveys have shown that Economics graduates are among the highest paid of all graduates.
 
Suggested reading
 
Economic articles in ‘The Times’, ‘Guardian’, ‘Independent’ and ‘Financial Times’

’The Economist’

’Economics Today’ and ‘Economic Review’ magazines are issued throughout the course.
 
and there is always ...
 
 
Anderton, A - ‘Economics’ (Third Edition) (Causeway Press, 2000)
ISBN 1 902796 10 1
 
Anderton, A - ‘Economics AS Level’ (Causeway Press, 2000)                                                                                                                             
ISBN 1 902796 12 8
 
Anderton, A - ‘The Students’ Economy in Focus 1997/98’
(Causeway Press, 1998)                                                                                                                             
ISBN 1 873929 38 2
 
Atkinson, GBJ - ‘Economics: Themes and Perspectives’ (Causeway Press, 1997)                                              
ISBN 1 873929 27 7
                                                                                                                             
Beardshaw, J et al - ‘Economics:  A Student’s Guide’ (4th edition) (Pitman, 1998)                                                                                                                            
ISBN 0582 303486
 
Davies, B et al - ‘Investigating Economics’ (Macmillan, 1996)                                                                                                                            
ISBN 0 333 63808 5
 
Grant, S & Vidler, C - ‘Economics in Context’ (Heinemann, June 2000)
ISBN 435 33111 6
 
Maunder P et al - ‘Economics Explained’ (Collins, June 2000) Revised Third Ed                                                      
ISBN 0 00 327758 5