econ homework 1

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Study Tips for Econ 1

Study tips developed by Econ 1 instructors and Academic Coaches to help students succeed.

Read the textbook

The Econ 1 textbook may vary by quarter, but it is always chosen to provide a valuable resource that illustrates the most important diagrams, definitions, and concepts used in the course. The book may seem dauntingly long, but at least skim through the assigned chapters before each lecture to identify which concepts seem easy and which ones are potentially confusing. Plan to re-read the chapters after they are covered in class to reinforce and solidify your understanding.

As you read, make sure that you have something to write with (notebook, tablet, etc.) so you can actively engage with the material. When you encounter a numerical example, try writing out solutions on your own as practice; when you see a diagram, try sketching it in your own hand and thinking about its meaning.

Just as you might write a first draft of a paper and then go back to revise, you can think about the pre-class reading as providing you with a baseline understanding that will be refined as you attend class, revisit the text after class, and practice solving problems.

Read the syllabus, and keep up with materials and announcements posted in Canvas

Remember that an up-to-date copy of the course syllabus, a list of office hours and section times, copies of all assignments and answer keys, and any supplementary readings are always available in Canvas. Make sure you read all e-mail announcements in detail (they’re archived in Canvas, as well as your e-mail inbox).

Be active in discussion sections and in lecture

Try to optimize your note-taking, keeping in mind that slides will be posted after each class. Listen carefully, and try to minimize distractions. Practice drawing diagrams in real-time to build muscle memory and to deepen your understanding of what they represent. Follow along with any mathematical derivations, and make a note of any steps that you don’t fully understand. Ask questions if anything is unclear: it will be helpful to you and to your classmates! If there are polling questions, use them as an opportunity to stop and think, and not just record your attendance : research on learning demonstrates that testing yourself is one of the most effective ways to increase your understanding and long-term retention of material. If there’s a class discussion forum, use it: it’ll be an easy way to pose questions, to share your understanding with your peers, to discuss real-world applications of economic concepts, and to feel connected to the class.

Practice, at every opportunity

While reading the textbook and attending class (both lecture and discussion section) are important components of Econ 1, being able to solve problems yourself requires practice. Weekly assignments give you the opportunity to apply concepts and check for gaps in your understanding. When you watch someone else solve a problem it may seem straightforward, but the only way to know for sure whether you’re able to solve the problem is to try it for yourself.

Problems on weekly assignments are an opportunity to stretch your thinking and apply concepts in new ways — not simply to duplicate something that you’ve already seen demonstrated in class. You may get stuck on particular problems, and that is expected. Identify the general topic each problem is about and look up some examples on that topic. Be sure to have lots of scratch paper or digital note space available, and don’t worry about writing down a “perfect” answer on your first attempt. Also, consider ways to reduce distractions so that you can fully focus on the task at hand. This might include closing open tabs on your computer, turning off your phone or placing it out of reach, and identifying quiet places where you can work.

Starting the homework early is a good idea, as it is less stressful than working right up to the deadline, and it also gives you an opportunity to go to (many!) office hours and ask questions. If possible, set aside some time to start working on the homework problems after lecture and discussion section since the material will be fresh in your mind.

Finally, identify ways you can work with others as part of your learning. You might be used to working on your own, but working with others gives you the opportunity to explain your thinking, brainstorm, and ask questions. These active learning strategies can be valuable, and you should connect with your classmates and course staff for guidance and interactive problem-solving.

Review and check your understanding

If you’ve tried various approaches and still can’t solve a problem, try talking through it with someone else from the class or attend office hours. It can be helpful to explain to someone else what you did and why, and where you got stuck. Sometimes simply talking through your confusion can lead you to discover a different way forward, and it can also help someone else pinpoint gaps in your understanding. When you get a homework or exam problem wrong, use it as an opportunity to learn. Review the grading and instructor feedback, and compare your work with the posted solutions (as objectively as you can!) to see how you can improve your understanding.

For problems that you were able to solve correctly on your own, it’s still a good idea to read the solution sets in detail. If a solution set uses a different method than you did or expresses the same method differently, try to understand it. Getting the correct answer isn’t sufficient if you’re uncertain about how you got there.

If you’re interested in taking further economics classes, make sure you “think beyond the problem set” so you can keep motivated and develop a strong intuitive understanding of the material. Ask your instructor or TA for advice about how to prepare for more advanced classes (which typically are more mathematical in their approach), and make sure you satisfy the math prerequisites (e.g. complete Math 51 before enrolling in Econ 50) as early as you can.

Use active study techniques when preparing for exams

Exams will test your understanding of concepts by including questions that you haven’t done in class or on homework assignments. Re-reading your notes or skimming through past homework assignments might give you a feeling of familiarity with the content, but that isn’t a good indicator of whether you’ll actually be able to apply those concepts in new contexts. Use your study time to practice and test your understanding.

Completing a practice exam without the solutions on hand can be a good way to self-assess what you know and which areas you may need to spend more time practicing. It’s also a good way to practice working under similar conditions to what you’ll experience when you take the real exam. Going back to worked examples in the book, lecture and section notes, and homework solutions can provide more opportunities to practice and test yourself. Studying with others can also be effective if you use it as an opportunity to explain concepts to each other and talk through areas of confusion. Try not to peek at the solutions until you have grappled with the material on your own!

Ask for help

Asking for help may feel uncomfortable, but it’s an important part of learning. When you’re no longer able to do something on your own, it means that you have the opportunity to expand your knowledge and skills, and that’s a good thing! Asking for help shows that you are committed to learning and engaging with challenges. Being proactive and reaching out earlier rather than later is important, since the quarter moves quickly and the material is cumulative. Don’t wait until the end of the quarter to communicate with your instructor and TA; they will be happy to get to know you earlier in the term when the stress level is lower!

Office hours are an excellent first resource for getting help with the course. This is a great space to ask questions or work through points of confusion (and remember that you can attend any office hours — not just the ones offered by your section TA). You can ask questions about concepts, examples, homework problems, class logistics, or real-world applications of economic models. It can also be helpful hearing the instructor or TA answer other students’ questions. Office hours will be most useful to you if you’ve spent time working on problems ahead of time, as it will allow you to ask more specific questions and apply what you learn immediately. Office hours tend to get more crowded (and more problem-set-focused) later in the week, as deadlines approach — so it pays to work ahead if you can!

You can also work with a tutor; the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) offers drop-in and appointment-based tutoring for Econ 1, and the Stanford Economics Association periodically offers “problem set nights” and other study opportunities. Working with an Academic Coach can be helpful if you would like to talk about your approach to Econ 1, including note-taking strategies, reading strategies, or study strategies. With all of these resources, remember that the goal is to improve your studying and deepen your understanding of the material — not to help you achieve a perfect score on a weekly homework assignment!

Adopt a growth mindset

Econ 1 can be mastered with instruction, practice, and persistence; for some, the “economic way of thinking” is new, but many students have achieved great success in Econ 1 even though they had no previous exposure to the subject. If you find yourself struggling, consider other skills that you’ve developed over time. How did you work through challenges? What resources did you use? Even if you experience setbacks in Econ 1, it doesn’t mean that you can’t be successful going forward: many students find that they perform even better in more advanced courses, once they have conquered their initial fears. Think about what you can learn from the challenges you encounter, and use those lessons to inform your approach going forward. Talk to instructors, TAs, tutors, and/or Academic Coaches–they want you to succeed and can help you overcome roadblocks.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 License . You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: Center for Teaching and Learning, Stanford University.  

Browse Course Material

Course info.

• Prof. Victor Chernozhukov

Departments

As taught in.

• Econometrics

Learning Resource Types

Solve 3 out 6 problems from Lecture 1 (PDF) . For empirical questions we encourage you to go beyond the analysis in the lectures to deepen your own understanding of the concepts we are covering and their implication for real economics research.

You can use any software you like. The link to data for empirical problems is available below. Write-ups should be concise and presented in the format of short sections that can be inserted into an empirical paper or research report. For example, they could look like e.g. Section 6 in Lecture 1. 

I also posted the R-code that was used to generate empirical results in Lecture 1. You are allowed and encouraged to look at the code, as this might save you a lot of time, but do write your own code (blind “copy & paste” is strictly prohibited). This forces you to learn programming and is also a good way to avoid errors I may have planted in the code.

Homework 1 Data Description (PDF)

Associated Files

R-code used to do gender wage gap (R)

CPS 2015 data on wages (CSV - 3.9MB)

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