ECS1501/101/3/2023

Tutorial Letter 101/3/2023

Economics 1A

ECS 1501

Semesters 1 and 2

Department of Economics

This tutorial letter contains important information about your

module.

BARCODE
 CONTENTS

Page
1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 3
2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES ....................................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Purpose ............................................................................................................................................................... 3
2.2 Outcomes ............................................................................................................................................................ 3
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ........................................................................................................ 3
4 CONTACT DETAILS ..................................................................................................................................... 3
4.1 Lecturers ............................................................................................................................................................. 3
4.2 Contacting the University ................................................................................................................................... 4
5 RESOURCES ................................................................................................................................................... 4
5.1 Prescribed book .................................................................................................................................................. 4
5.2 Study guides ....................................................................................................................................................... 4
5.3 Tutorial letters .................................................................................................................................................... 4
5.4 myUnisa ............................................................................................................................................................. 4
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES ................................................................................................................ 5
6.1 The Unisa First-Year Experience Programme ................................................................................................... 5
7 STUDY PLAN .................................................................................................................................................. 6
8 CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT ..................................................................................................................... 6
8.1 General remarks ................................................................................................................................................. 6
8.2 Assessment plan ................................................................................................................................................. 6
8.3 Assessments ....................................................................................................................................................... 6
8.4 Missed assessments ............................................................................................................................................ 6
8.5 Submission of assessments ................................................................................................................................. 7
8.6 Invigilation/proctoring........................................................................................................................................ 7
8.7 Cheating ............................................................................................................................................................. 7
9 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES ............................................................................................... 7
10 YEAR MODULE.............................................................................................................................................. 7
11 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................................. 8

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1 INTRODUCTION
Welcome to Economics 1A, an introduction to microeconomics. We hope that you will find this module
interesting and rewarding. We will do our best to make your study of this module successful. You will be
well on your way to success if you start studying early in the semester and keep on working throughout
the semester. Because this is a module with continuous assessment, you will need to use myUnisa to
study and complete the assessments for this module. You will, therefore, need to visit the ECS1501
module site on myUnisa frequently.

2 PURPOSE AND OUTCOMES

2.1 Purpose
When you are credited with this module, you will have a basic knowledge of microeconomic theory and
you will be able to apply, analyse and, interpret microeconomic concepts and principles. The purpose of
this module is to gain insight into the solving of economic problems in different economic systems and to
understand how households and firms make decisions and prices are determined.

2.2 Outcomes
The main outcomes of this module are the following. You must be able to
• conceptualise and apply the main economic problem in different economic systems and use a
diagram to explain how the economy functions
• explain and conceptualise the interaction between consumers and producers in a perfectly
competitive goods market
• conceptualise, apply, calculate and evaluate the price decisions of firms under perfect market
conditions in both the short and the long run
• conceptualise the factors that influence the labour market
More detailed module outcomes and assessment criteria can be found in each topic.
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION
Unisa has implemented a transformation charter, in terms of which the university has placed curriculum
transformation high on the teaching and learning agenda. Curriculum transformation includes student-
centred scholarship, the pedagogical renewal of teaching and assessment practices, the scholarship of
teaching and learning, and the infusion of African epistemologies and philosophies.

4 CONTACT DETAILS
4.1 Lecturers
The contact details of the lecturers, who are responsible for this module, are available on the module
website. As your lecturers, we are responsible for compiling the study material, setting up the assessments
and evaluating your performance in these tests. If you have any questions on the content of this module
(i.e., not administrative queries) send them to the following e-mail addresses:

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First semester students:
• [email protected]
Second semester students:
• [email protected]
If you have any administrative (non-academic) queries, you can contact:

• Ms Nontsikelelo Ntwanambi - [email protected] 012 433 4727

4.2 Contacting the University

If you need to contact the University about matters not related to the content of this module, see the Unisa
website for the contact addresses of the various administrative departments:
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Contact-us/Student-enquiries.
Below you will find some important e-mail addresses for the departments that you might need to contact.
• [email protected] - for study material queries
• [email protected] - for account queries
• [email protected] - for application and registration queries
• [email protected] - for assistance with myLife e-mail accounts
• [email protected] - for assistance with myUnisa

Please include your student number in all correspondence.

5 RESOURCES
5.1 Prescribed book
There is no prescribed book for this module.
5.2 Study guides
The fifteen topics covered in this module are included in Study Guide 1 and Study Guide 2.
• Study Guide 1 contains topics 1 to 8.
• Study Guide 2 includes topics 9 to 15.
The study guides cover all the academic content of the module.
5.3 Tutorial letters
This tutorial letter (Tutorial Letter 101) contains administrative information about this module. Tutorial
Letter 102 is a glossary that contains definitions of important Economics terms and concepts in English,
Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa, Northern Sotho, Sesotho and Setswana.
5.4 myUnisa
The myUnisa learning management system is the Unisa online campus where you can communicate with
your lecturers and other students as well as with the administrative departments of Unisa. Since this
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module is presented as a blended module, you must access myUnisa regularly. More information on how
the online platform is used is available on the module myUnisa website.
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES
Whether you are a new student or a returning student, you need to take some time to think about how you
will commit to the study process and what you need to put in place to focus on your studies. The Study @
Unisa brochure, which is available on myUnisa: www.unisa.ac.za/brochures/studies, contains important
information and guidelines for successful studies through Unisa.
If you need assistance with the myModules system, you are welcome to use the following contact details:
• Toll-free landline: 0800 00 1870 (Select option 07 for myModules)
• E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

You can access and view short videos on topics such as how to view your calendar; how to access module
content; how to view announcements for modules; how to submit assessments; and how to participate in
forum activities via the following link: https://dtls-qa.unisa.ac.za/course/view.php?id=32130

As a registered Unisa student you get a free myLife e-mail account. Important information, notices and
updates are sent exclusively to this account. Please note that it can take up to 24 hours for your account
to be activated after you have claimed it. Please do this immediately after registering at Unisa, by
following this link: [email protected]
Your myLife account is the only e-mail account recognised by Unisa for official correspondence with
the university and will remain the official primary e-mail address on record at Unisa. You remain
responsible for the management of this e-mail account.

6.1 The Unisa First-Year Experience Programme

Many students find the transition from school education to tertiary education stressful. This is also true in
the case of students enrolling at Unisa for the first time. Unisa is a dedicated open distance and e-learning
institution, and it is very different from face-to-face/contact institutions. It is a mega university, and all
our programmes are offered through either blended learning or fully online learning. It is for this reason
that we thought it necessary to offer first-time students additional/extended support, to help them
seamlessly navigate the Unisa teaching and learning journey with little difficulty and few barriers. We,
therefore, offer a specialised student support programme to students enrolling at Unisa for the first time –
this is Unisa’s First-Year Experience (FYE) Programme, designed to provide you with prompt and
helpful information about the services that the institution offers and how you can access information. The
following FYE services are currently offered:
• FYE website: All the guides and resources you need to navigate through your first year at Unisa can
be accessed using the following link: www.unisa.ac.za/FYE
• FYE e-mails: You will receive regular e-mails to help you stay focused and motivated.
• FYE broadcasts: You will receive e-mails with links to broadcasts on various topics related to your
first-year studies (e.g., videos on how to submit assessments online).
• FYE mailbox: For assistance with queries related to your first year of study, send an e-mail to
[email protected].

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7 STUDY PLAN
The best way to be successful in this module is to work diligently from the start to the end of the
semester. A study programme to help you work through the module systematically is available on the
module website. The lecturers will also work according to this study programme.

8 CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT
8.1 General remarks
ECS1501 is a “continuous assessment module”. As the term implies, you will be assessed throughout the
semester by completing an assessment every week or sometimes every second week. In total, there are
several assessments spread over the semester. The marks you obtain for the assessments are used to
calculate your final mark. In other words, all the assessments contribute to your final mark and you do not
write a formal examination at the end of the semester. More information on the assessment system is
available on the myUnisa website.
8.2 Assessment plan
All information about when and where to submit your assessments is available on the module website.

8.3 Assessments
There are no assessments included in this tutorial letter. The assessments and due dates are available on the
module website.

8.4 Missed assessments

No extension will be given for the assessments. However, we know that life does not always go according
to plan. Alternative arrangements will be made for students who have valid reasons for missing a due date
and have applied for an extension within scheduled time as indicated below. These reasons must be in
line with those stipulated in Unisa’s assessment policy, for example,

• Death in the immediate family

• Military/SAPS service
• Illness on the due date of the assessment

Evidence, a doctor’s note, proof of hospitalisation, call-up instructions and so on, must be
submitted before or within 10 days of the assessment’s due date.

Normal work commitments, extracurricular activities or connectivity problems beyond Unisa’s control,
for example,

• Personal network or service provider issues

• Load shedding
• Crashed computer

will not be accommodated.

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Unisa system issues must be reported within 24 hours of the occurrence. Attach proof, for example, a
screenshot, of the occurrence. Note, it will be verified if the problem was indeed on Unisa's side before
alternative arrangements will be made.

8.5 Submission of assessments

The assessments can be completed online only. Most of these assessments are in the form of multiple-
choice quizzes. If at all possible, please do not use a cellphone to complete the quizzes, as you might find
it difficult to navigate the quiz on the small screen. It is better to use a desktop computer, tablet or laptop
when completing the quizzes.

8.6 Invigilation/proctoring
Given stringent requirements from professional bodies and increased solicitations of Unisa’s students by
third parties to unlawfully assist them with the completion of assessments, the University is obliged to
assure its assessment integrity through the utilisation of various proctoring tools. For this module, the
Moodle Proctoring tool will be used. The Moodle Proctoring tool is a facial recognition software that
authenticates students’ identities during their quiz assessments. More information on how it works in
practice is available on the module website.
8.7 Cheating
Despite the use of proctoring tools, we still find students who fish for and provide answers to assessments
on various social media platforms. This is nothing but cheating and can land you in big trouble. Cheating
includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Completing assessments on behalf of another student, copying the work of another student during
an assessment or allowing another student to copy your work.
• Using social media (e.g. WhatsApp, Telegram) or other platforms to disseminate assessment
information.
• Submitting corrupt or irrelevant files.
• Buying completed answers from so-called “tutors” or internet sites (contract cheating).
For more information about cheating and the steps that can be taken against cheaters, see the following
link: https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/myunisa/default/Study-@-Unisa/Student-values-and-rules.

9 STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES

The Advocacy and Resource Centre for Students with Disabilities (ARCSWiD) provides an opportunity
for staff to interact with students with disabilities. For more information on services and support offered
to students with disabilities, you are welcome to contact the ARCSWiD office at the email address
[email protected] or telephone numbers +27 12 429 6923 / 6924 / 6540 or +27 12 441 5470 / 5471.
10 YEAR MODULE
Our experience with a continuous assessment framework has convinced us that it does result in more
effective learning and a higher pass rate. However, to really exploit the benefits of continuous assessment,
enough time must be available to provide feedback to students and, importantly, students must have
enough time to learn from the feedback and be given a chance (second attempt at an assessment) to apply
what they have learnt from the feedback.

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We believe that this can be done by presenting the module over a year, instead of a semester. Thus, we
have applied for permission to offer the module as a year module from 2024.
What will this mean? Students who are registered for the first semester in 2023, will be able to register for
the second semester in 2023 if they fail. Students who are registered for the second semester of 2023 and
fail, will have to register for the year module in 2024.
Note, that permission has not been received for the change to a year module. You will be notified as soon
as we have more information.

11 CONCLUSION
Do not hesitate to contact us if you are experiencing problems with the content of this tutorial letter or
with any aspect of the module. We wish you a fascinating and satisfying journey through the learning
material and trust that you will complete the module successfully.
Please work hard and enjoy this module.