Why are some countries richer than others? Why have some countries experienced growth miracles while others have experienced stagnation of even growth disasters? Within developing countries, what does it mean to be poor? How to combat poverty? What are the challenges that the poor in developing countries face and what can be done to improve their living standards? This course intends to teach students what we know and what we do not know about these important questions and will focus on teaching students tools in understanding them. The topics covered will include explanations on why countries develop differently, the effect of geography, institutions, foreign aid, corruption and differential savings rates on the large disparities across countries. Within countries we will examine the role of education, health migration and credit markets in poverty alleviation. The course will cover both theory and empirical evidence but focusing mainly on how to conduct empirical analysis in understanding these important economic development issues.

Research-Led Teaching

Theory and examples covered in the course are derived from research in the field of economics. In addition, students will have the opportunity to themselves engage in a small research tasks to problem solve throughout the semester.

Recommended Resources

Acemoglu, D. and Robinson, J., 2012, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty, Random House. (ebook ANU library)

 

Banerjee, A. and Duflo, E., 2011, Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the way to Fight Global Poverty, Public Affairs. (ebook ANU library)

 

Collier, P., 2007, The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It, Oxford University Press. (hard copy ANU library)

 

Easterly, W., 2006, The White Man’s Burden: Why the West’s Efforts to Aid the Rest have done so Much Ill and so Little Good, Penguin Press. (hard copy ANU library)

 

Ray, D., 1997, Development Economics, Princeton University Press. (Introduction) (hard copy ANU library)

 

Sachs, J., 2005, The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time, Penguin Press. (hard copy ANU library)

De Janvry, A. and Sadoulet, E., 2016, Development Economics: Theory and Practice, Routledge (hard copy at ANU library)

These texts will be available in the library.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• written comments
• verbal comments
• feedback to whole class, groups, individuals, focus group etc

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). Feedback can also be provided to Course Conveners and teachers via the Student Experience of Learning & Teaching (SELT) feedback program. SELT surveys are confidential and also provide the Colleges and ANU Executive with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement.

Other Information

I communicate in class and through Wattle. Please check Wattle regularly in case there are any announcements. I will NOT respond to individual emails asking questions that have been answered either in class or on Wattle.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	General Introduction	Optional Computer Tutorial - Tutorial 0
2	Poverty and Inequality	Tutorial 1
3	Methodological Issues	Tutorial 2
4	Policy Evaluation	Tutorial 3
5	Economic Development: Big Picture vs Small Steps	Tutorial 4
6	Long run Economic Development: Geography and Institutions	Tutorial 5
7	Long run Economic Development: Geography and Institutions cont.	Tutorial 6, Mid-Semester Exam
8	Foreign Aid Debate	Tutorial 7
9	Migration	Tutorial 8 - Assignment Due
10	Education	Tutorial 9
11	Famine, Health	Tutorial 10
12	Corruption	Tutorial 11

Tutorial Registration

You are expected to attend a tutorial each week from Week 2 onwards. There is an optional tutorial in Week 1 to help you familiarize yourselves with Stata/R/Python. Tutorials will take place live in computer labs.

ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage. https://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/timetabling].

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Mid-Semester Exam	20 %	*	09/10/2023	1,2,3
Assignment	25 %	06/10/2023	20/10/2023	1,2,3
Final Exam	35 %	*	*	1,2,3
Project	20 %	27/10/2023	10/11/2023	1,2,3
Submit written analysis of week 2's project topic	0 %	11/08/2023	21/08/2023

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines , which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Integrity Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Guideline and General Information 
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure
• Code of practice for teaching and learning

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the Academic Skills website. In rare cases where online submission using Turnitin software is not technically possible; or where not using Turnitin software has been justified by the Course Convener and approved by the Associate Dean (Education) on the basis of the teaching model being employed; students shall submit assessment online via ‘Wattle’ outside of Turnitin, or failing that in hard copy, or through a combination of submission methods as approved by the Associate Dean (Education). The submission method is detailed below.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

Details on the delivery of this course and expectations of student participation are outlined in further detail on the Wattle course site. Tutorials are a discussion-based class. Providing worked solutions would not effectively compensate for missing a tutorial. Students who, through unavoidable and unplanned occurrences, are unable to attend a tutorial class one week are encouraged to work through the problems and attend a consultation session for discussion and solutions.

Examination(s)

The final examination will be held according to the published university schedule posted at http://timetable.anu.edu.au/. It is the student’s responsibility to be informed about changes to the examination timetable. The examination material of the final examination will be everything covered in the lectures, including material already covered in the mid-semester examination.

Assessment Task 1

Mid-Semester Exam

An in person mid-semester exam will be held in week 6 or week 7. The examination material of the mid-semester examination will be all that is covered in the lectures up to and inclusive of the week of the examination. The exam will be held during lectures of that week, please make arrangements to attend.

The mid-semester exam is compulsory, non-redeemable. There will be a deferred exam for students who cannot attend for acceptable reasons such as illness.

The exam will be 90 minutes long.

More details will be announced in class 2 weeks prior to the exam. Details on the types of questions will be announced 2 weeks prior to the exam.

Assessment Task 2

Assignment

Students will be asked to download some data and walk through several exercises in the computer program of their choice (choosing from Stata/R/Python) to replicate the results of a paper. Code and output should be handed in, along with answers to questions.

Students will hand in their assignments through the Assignment App on Wattle.

Task will be available no less than 2 weeks before the due date.

More details will be announced in class.

Assessment Task 3

Final Exam

An in person final examination will be held according to the published university schedule posted at http://timetable.anu.edu.au/. It is the student’s responsibility to be informed about changes to the examination timetable. The examination material of the final examination will be everything covered in the lectures, including material already covered in the mid-semester examination.

The exam will be approximately 2 hours long.

More details will be announced in class during week 10.

Assessment Task 4

Project

I will provide the list of topics in week 1. Each week from week 2 you will have a topic to prepare (excluding week 7). All students are required to prepare all weekly topics and each student will submit a written analysis of all 9 topics at the end of the semester, on the last Friday of the semester, 27 October 2023. The project will count 20 per cent of the final grade. 

In addition, each student will be required to give one oral presentation during the semester on one of the topics assigned to you for the project. I will allocate students to presentations. Presentations will start in week 3. There will be no presentations in the week of the mid-semester exam.

I will give you a choice of developing country to research. You may work with students who are studying the same country or you may work alone but at the end each student submits their own report. There should be no identical reports submitted. There is no limit to the length of the report but marks will be awarded for relevance.

The presentation will count 25 per cent of the project mark, the written analysis will count 75 per cent of the project mark. There will be no extensions granted as you will be working on the projects each week. 

Rubric

HD	D	C	P	F
You need to consistently and deeply explore each week’s topic. Your analysis should be relevant to the questions. Your presentation is clear and in your own words, you engage with the audience.	As for HD however perhaps for one or two topics you only provided a superficial analysis or you included things in the project that were slightly off topic. Your presentation is clear and in your own words.	Your analysis for many topics was too brief or you regularly included information that was off topic. Your presentation is too brief or it is unclear.	Your analysis for most topics was too brief (less than two pages per topic). Your presentation is too brief and is unclear.	Your analysis for most topics was too brief (less than two pages per topic). Your presentation is too brief and is unclear or you did not present.

Assessment Task 5

Submit written analysis of week 2's project topic

Students are required to submit their analysis so that I can determine whether they have understood the task. They will be given feedback and may resubmit if they wish to.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of the ANU culture as a community of scholars. The University’s students are an integral part of that community. The academic integrity principle commits all students to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support, academic integrity, and to uphold this commitment by behaving honestly, responsibly and ethically, and with respect and fairness, in scholarly practice.

The University expects all staff and students to be familiar with the academic integrity principle, the Academic Integrity Rule 2021, the Policy: Student Academic Integrity and Procedure: Student Academic Integrity, and to uphold high standards of academic integrity to ensure the quality and value of our qualifications.

The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 is a legal document that the University uses to promote academic integrity, and manage breaches of the academic integrity principle. The Policy and Procedure support the Rule by outlining overarching principles, responsibilities and processes. The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 commences on 1 December 2021 and applies to courses commencing on or after that date, as well as to research conduct occurring on or after that date. Prior to this, the Academic Misconduct Rule 2015 applies.

 

The University commits to assisting all students to understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. All coursework students must complete the online Academic Integrity Module (Epigeum), and Higher Degree Research (HDR) students are required to complete research integrity training. The Academic Integrity website provides information about services available to assist students with their assignments, examinations and other learning activities, as well as understanding and upholding academic integrity.

Online Submission

You will be required to electronically sign a declaration as part of the submission of your assignment. Please keep a copy of the assignment for your records. Unless an exemption has been approved by the Associate Dean (Education) submission must be through Turnitin.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

• Late submission not permitted. If submission of assessment tasks without an extension after the due date is not permitted, a mark of 0 will be awarded.

Referencing Requirements

The Academic Skills website has information to assist you with your writing and assessments. The website includes information about Academic Integrity including referencing requirements for different disciplines. There is also information on Plagiarism and different ways to use source material.

Returning Assignments

Online 2 weeks after submission.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure. Extensions may be granted for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Resubmission of Assignments

None.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information.
In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service – including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy.
If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes.

Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Access and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students