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Syllabus DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS: PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATION - 59512
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Last update 21-10-2015
HU Credits: 3

Degree/Cycle: 2nd degree (Master)

Responsible Department: glocal community development studies

Semester: 1st Semester

Teaching Languages: English

Campus: Mt. Scopus

Course/Module Coordinator: Dr. Reut Barak Weekes

Coordinator Email: reut.barak1@mail.huji.ac.il

Coordinator Office Hours: Mondays

Teaching Staff:
Dr. Reut Barak

Course/Module description:
What allows countries to develop? What holds development and growth in certain regions? Why many developing countries in Africa have seen lower levels of growth and development in recent decades than Asians states? This course examines these questions and many others by discussing various models in development economics and exploring their application in reality.
Among the topics which will be discussed in class are: the relationship between growth and inequality; various dimensions of poverty; the role of the agriculture sector in development; the impact of access to education and health on development; credit and markets and the role of institutions in development. All will include a discussion on relevant literature and examples from case studies.
As a degree in economics is not a precondition to the program, a preparatory course examins basic concepts in micro and macro economics, relevant to the course.

Course/Module aims:
The course is designed to provide general undestanding of development and development economic theory, focusing on concepts of poverty, development, inequality and such, looking into issues of measures, perceptions and relations between the IFIs and developing countries and examining various sectors in the economy and their relations with development, such as agriculture, industrial policy, trade, education, health, etc.

Learning outcomes - On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
Students will be able to understand and research topics and processes related to economics and development economics, such as the impact of trade liberalization on development, challenges in managing micro finance institutions, various dimensions of poverty.

Attendance requirements(%):
80

Teaching arrangement and method of instruction: The course consists of 2 Academic hours lecture and one academic hour seminar every week, joined together. The seminar will address the topics discussed in the lecture in the previous week, and is aimed to be the main sphere for discussion and clarifications. For these seminars students will prepare a presentation, as discussed below. All students are expected to arrive prepared to the seminars and contribute to the discussion.

Course/Module Content:
Lesson 1: Development and growth 14-10-2013
Seminar question: In what ways have development theories and thought been affected by real-life incidents and processes?
Lesson 2: Growth theories 21-10-2013
Seminar question: Do classical growth theory or new growth theory explain slower growth performance in developing countries in recent decades?
Lesson 3: GDP, growth accounting and government intervention 28-10-2013
Seminar questions: ‘GDP per capita is as good a measure for development as any other’. Discuss.
Lesson 4: Development: between geography and institutions. 4-11-2013
Seminar question: What is the role of institutions in development?
Lesson 5: Poverty: concepts and measurements 11-11-2013
Seminar question: What are the differences between the way institutions capture poverty and the poor see themselves?
Lesson 6: Development and distribution 18-11-2013
Seminar question: Will the future bring higher levels of inter- and intra-national equality or inequality? How does your answer relate to economic development?
Lesson 7: The role of agriculture in development 25-11-2013
Seminar question: What are the main barriers for development in agrarian economies? Which policies should developing countries adopt to improve the situation? Explain and give examples
Lesson 8: Industrialization and development 2-12-2013
Seminar question: What should be the role of the state vs. market in the process of industrialization in developing countries?
Lesson 9: Trade and development 9-12-2013
Seminar question: Should developing countries promote trade according to their comparative advantage? Give examples from at least one country
Lesson 10: The role of cooperatives in development 16-12-2013
Seminar question: Which challenges are faced by cooperatives in promoting local development? How can governments support cooperatives to overcome such challenges?
Lesson 11: The impact of education on development 30-12-2013
Seminar question: What are the channels of relationship between education and economic growth in developing countries? Discuss with reference to specific examples.
Lesson 12: The impact of Health and HIV-AIDS on development 6-1-2014
Seminar question: What are the challenges in improving health scores in developing countries? How does this affect economic growth?
Lesson 13: AID and the role of NGOs in development 13-01-2014
Essay question: Does Chinese-led aid to developing countries have higher potential to induce growth than Western Institutions-led aid? Explain by examining the impact of aid on growth over the years.

Required Reading:
Toye, John (2003), “Changing perspectives in development economics”, in (ed) Chang, Ha-Joon, Rethinking development Economics. London: Anthem Press
Kling, Jeff and Lant Pritchett, (1994), “Where in the world is population growth bad?”, World Bank policy research working paper 1391.
McGillivray, Mark (1991), “The Human Development Index: Yet Another Redundant Composite Development Indicator?”, World Development, 19:10, pp. 1461-1468
Acemoglu, Daron, Johnson Simon and James A. Robinson, (2002), “Reversal of fortune: geography and institutions in the making of the modern world income distribution”, The quarterly journal of economics, 117:4, pp. 1231-1294
Hulme, David and Andrew Sheperd, (2003), “Conceptuaising chronic poverty”, World Development, 31:3
Sen, Amartya (1999), Development as Freedom. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Chapter 4.
Cornia, G.A. (2004), Inequality, growth and poverty in an era of liberalization and globalization, UNU-Wider. Chapter 1.

Additional readings are listed in the printed Syllabus

Additional Reading Material:
The World Bank (2011) “World Development Report 2011: Conflict, Security and Development”, Washington DC: IBRD/The World Bank
Mankiw, N. Gregory, Romer, David and David N. Weil (1992), “A contribution to the empirics of economic growth”, Quarterly journal of economics, 107:2 pp. 407-437
Nafziger, E. Wayne (2006). “Chapter 5: Theories of Economic development” in: Economic Development (Fourth Edition), Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press
Pio, Alessandro (1994), “New growth theory and old development problems: how recent developments in endogenous growth theory apply to developing countries”, Development Policy Review, 12, pp. 277-300
Chang, Ha-Joon (2003), “Chapter 22: Institutional development in historical perspective” in (ed) Chang, Ha-Joon, Rethinking development Economics. London: Anthem Press
Hornbeck, Richard (2008) “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors: Evidence on the effects of Property Rights” MIT publication, accessible on: http://economics.mit.edu/files/2566
Mehlum, Halvor, Moene, Karl and Ragnar Torvik (2006), “Institutions and the resource curse”, The Economic Journal, 116, pp. 1-20.

Additional readings are listed in the printed Syllabus

Course/Module evaluation:
End of year written/oral examination 60 %
Presentation 10 %
Participation in Tutorials 0 %
Project work 30 %
Assignments 0 %
Reports 0 %
Research project 0 %
Quizzes 0 %
Other 0 %

Additional information:
 
Students needing academic accommodations based on a disability should contact the Center for Diagnosis and Support of Students with Learning Disabilities, or the Office for Students with Disabilities, as early as possible, to discuss and coordinate accommodations, based on relevant documentation.
For further information, please visit the site of the Dean of Students Office.
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