economics 1b03 question

Joyceyblank · 12-25-2011 at 09:32 AM

has anyone taken economics 1b03 with Hannan U? How is she in terms of her tests/ exams/ assignments? As well, is it necessary to purchase the economics textbook? Will I still manage a 12 without it?

jim1 · 12-25-2011 at 08:33 PM

I took econ 1b03 last year, and it wasn't too bad (except for the exam), I did not buy the book, I just read the lecture notes from avenue.

About purchasing the book, it’s up to you. So many people will tell you that it’s an easy 12 without the book. For ME, if I go back in time I would buy the book, because usually the book explains certain topics more/better than the lecture notes. Even without the book, some of my friends got good gpas (like 10s). It really depends on you.

You mentioned the professor for the course is Hannan U, I don't really know who that is. Last year we had Hannah Holmes. She was okay, most people complained because she just reads from the slides, but I didn't find her that bad.
Most of my friends and the people I know (including me) stopped going to class after like a month.

Tests/ exams/ assignments:
Our tests weren't bad, if you read the lecture slides, you should be good. Also, it’s helpful to look at older tests, it's just a good practise.

The assignments were not bad, so many people got them from older friends, and they were the exact same questions (basically free marks).

The same goes for the quizzes, most people had the quizzes from friends who took the course in the past, and they were the exact same.

The exam was hard, our exam (in term 1) was hard, because the class average in the second midterm was really high. That’s an exception since a lot of people cheated on the second midterm…BS, no body cheated, people just had a past test and apparently it was the exact same as our test. I am saying the class average is high not due to cheating, because it’s impossible that a lot of people cheat when you have like 10 ta’s and the professor in the lecture room.

It seems that you’re taking the course second semester. If you are concerned about not getting a high gpa because of not having the book, why don’t you borrow a friends book, who took the course first semester?

Hopefully I answered your question(s).

Good luck !

gOOCHTOPHER · 12-26-2011 at 10:36 AM

I took it last semester. Dont buy the book, everything you need to know is posted in the complete lecture notes she posts. If you buy the book you will waste your time. If you go to class you will waste your time. Just read the lecture notes in a quarter of the time she takes to teach them, do the online practice problems and your gold.
Also dont read the last 4 lectures for the first time on the day of the exam and you should be good.

kevvmck · 12-29-2011 at 12:41 AM

dont bother with the book, but the mistake i made was not going to class. i felt like it was a bird course and got VERY behind, and it is a lot of information to catch up on. so even if you don't go to class make sure you stay on top of it on a weekly basis, and you will be fine! the tests weren't bad, just make sure you know how to do calculations especially as the course advances.. so practice, practice, practice!

channy · 01-02-2012 at 12:30 PM

I took the course last semester. You can get by without the book, so getting it is really up to you. The book does explain certain things in a much more in depth way than the lecture slides, and I find I learned more from it.

As far as the prof goes, I had Dr. Hannah Holmes. I'm not sure if we're talking about the same person or not. There's nothing bad to say about her. She never got off topic and explained things pretty simply. The quizzes are ridiculously easy and are mostly concept-based. They were only worth 5% all together though, so your grades on those didn't really count for much. The tests were significantly harder than the quizzes, but they weren't too bad either. I found the final exam pretty difficult, but that's because it was completely based on solving mathematical problems. If you hate that kind of stuff, I would advise against taking the course. If you keep it on your schedule, my advice to you would be to practice the problem solving aspects of the material regularly.

muons · 01-02-2012 at 04:54 PM

It's not exactly the easiest course...it's really boring IMO. I took it and regretted it since it was so boring to study for! But if econ is your thing then go for it, but I just think there's much more interesting electives out there.

Good luck with whatever you end up choosing

Marooner · 01-02-2012 at 05:18 PM

I agree with Muons. Prof Holmes basically reads off the slides and gives poor examples when trying to relate concepts to the real world. I find with microeconomics you either get it or you don't, so if you took it in high school you'd probably be good. You don't really need the textbook particularly because TA Radek posts review vidoes on youtube (look up economics 1b03 on youtube) he basically gives the examples from the textbook. The workbook is useful if you plan on doing serious practice otherwise practice questions posted online are just as useful (many questions show up on the weekly quizzes) the midterms were decent, the exam was tough. I have mint copies of the textbook and handbook if you are interested PM me.

jchoichoi · 01-03-2012 at 03:05 PM

Personally, the textbook helped me out a lot because the explanations were really detailed. The tests were not hard at all as long as you took the time to study and she is very generous with bonuses but the exam was a pretty tough!

brpatel · 01-03-2012 at 03:15 PM

Took it last semester. Her lecture notes are very detailed so as long as you read them over carefully and understand them then you should do well on the tests. The final exam was somewhat difficult since it was all application (and not just straightforward definition questions). It may come useful if you don't understand certain concepts and want to read more (or do the practice problems to better prepare). Honestly though, I didn't use it as much as other courses' textbooks

Libi-Li · 01-04-2012 at 11:34 AM

I took it last term and the textbook is not really necessary, everything is covered in the PPT. Also, do the practice quizzes on avenue.

Sima · 01-04-2012 at 11:39 AM

Hannah Holmes is an amazing prof. She is clear, concise, and tells you what she expects right from the start. She follows her lecture notes very closely so you will do perfectly fine without the textbook. Her tests are primarily based on her lecture notes so make sure to study those before the midterms and exams. Also, make sure to know how to do all her mathematical questions that she posts in her notes along with the examples, as they exactly resemble the mathematical questions you will see on the midterms and the exams.

Good luck, hope that helps.