What should I study?

Midterm I will cover the material discussed in class (up to and including Monday, February 18). Most likely, this will correspond to items 1 to 4 in the syllabus (see also Chapters 2 to 6 textbook and the workbook).

In order to study for the exam, first review your class notes. Then study the practice questions and the problems in the workbook. Most of the exam questions will be modified versions of posted questions and of workbook questions. Note that for technical reasons the web-homework questions may not be available after the due date of the homework---so keep a copy in your record.

Thus, in order to do well on the exam, it is important that you understand the theory behind the questions and that you know how the questions are solved. You will have to solve problems for the exam. So the best way to prepare for the exam is to do practice problems. Understanding the theory is crucial as it will enable you to answer questions even if they differ somewhat from questions that you have seen before. In other words, do not memorize procedures but strive to understand the concepts and methods.

Format of the Exam

The Midterm will contain both multiple choice questions and problems. Some of the multiple choice questions ask the basic definitions. Some other ones are similar in format to the workbook questions. The problems are related to those in the homework and in additional question section. The maximum score on the exam will be 100%.

Sample Exam Questions

As indicated above, the best way to pratice is to the homework, the additional questions and the workbook questions. Each of these questions can be considered as sample question (a few of them will be on the exam in only a slightly modified form). If you want to know the answer to a workbook questions that is not posted, please stop by during my office hour. For your information some old exams with solutions are posted.

Grading

+/- grades will not be used.

Time

You will have 80 minutes to complete the exam.

What Concepts do I need to memorize?

As indicated above, you should not memorize procedures. However, there are a few concepts to you will need to know. All of these concepts were discussed in class, and you can find them in boldface print in the textbook. Also, you should remember the form of utility functions u(x₁,x₂) that represent perfect substitutes, perfect complements, Cobb-Douglas, and quasilinear.

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