Transcript 2012 - Canvas

Common Errors on the 2012
AP Macroeconomics Exam
AP Annual Conference 2012
Orlando, Florida
Arthur Raymond
Chief Reader, AP Macroeconomics
Muhlenberg College
Allentown, PA
Exam Question Development
• Questions are solicited from teachers and professors
familiar with the AP course.
• The Test Development Committee reviews and edits
the questions multiple times at its thrice yearly
meetings before questions are used on exams.
• A preliminary rubric is established once a question is
chosen for the exam
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Exam Question Development
Members of Test Development Committee
• Clark Ross, Co-chair: Davidson College, Davidson, North
Carolina
• Patti Brazill, Co-chair: Irondequoit High School, Rochester,
NY
• Sally Meek, College Board Advisor, Plano West Senior High
School, Plano, Texas
• Uchenna Elike, Alabama A&M U., Normal, Alabama
• Gabriel Sanchez, Bonita High School, La Verne, California
• Nora Traum, North Carolina State U., Raleigh, North
Carolina
• Holly Jones, The Pennington School, Pennington, NJ
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Exam Question Process
Members of Test Development Committee
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ETS Test Development Specialists
• Fekru Debebe
• Huanwei Zhao
• Marwa Hassan
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Common Errors AP
Macroeconomics
• General Advice from TD Committee
• Common Errors on the 2012 AP
Macroeconomics Exam
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General Advice from TD Committee
When answering the Macroeconomics or
Microeconomics free response questions, a
student should respond clearly and concisely.
Including paragraphs or even full-sentence
responses is not always necessary; however, it
is important to address the verb prompts
appropriately (as explained below). A written
response that presents conflicting answers is
likely to lead to the loss of points.
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General Advice from TD Committee
• The definitions of the following terms that are frequently
used as prompts in free response questions are:
“Show” means to use a diagram to illustrate your answer.
Correct labeling of all elements including the axes of the
diagram is necessary to receive full credit.
“Explain” means to take the reader through all of the steps or
linkages in the line of economic reasoning. Graphs and
symbols are acceptable as part of the explanation.
“Identify” means to provide a specific answer that might be a list
or a label on a graph, without any explanation or elaboration.
“Calculate” means to use mathematical operations to determine
a specific numerical response, along with providing your work.8
Common Errors on the 2012 AP
Macroeconomics Exam
• General Content Areas of Errors
Money and Banking
Real vs Nominal Distinction
Long-Run Aggregate Supply
International Economics
• Error rate of top ten errors ranged from 53.7% to
95.4%
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Error Number 10
Question 2, Part (b)(i)
• Stem: Assume that Luis withdraws $5,000 in
cash from his checking account at Mi Tierra
Bank
• Question: By how much will Mi Tierra Bank’s
reserves change based on Luis’ withdrawal? (1
pt.)
-5,000
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Errors 9 and 2
Question 1, Part (c) (ii)
• Stem: Suppose Rankinland has a current
account deficit. Rankinland’s currency is called
the bera.
• Question: What will happen to the
international value of the bera solely due to
the change in the real GDP from part (b)(iv)?
Explain. (2 points)
(Real GDP increased in part (b)(iv))
The bera depreciates
The supply of the bera increases (because
imports increase)
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Error Number 8
Question 3, Part (d)(ii)
• Stem: As a result of the increase in exports,
export-oriented industries in Andersonland
increase expenditures on new container ships
and equipment.
• Question: What is the impact on the long-run
aggregate supply? Explain. (1 pt.)
LRAS increases because the stock of
physical capital increases.
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Error Number 7
Question 1, Part (b)(iii)
• Stem: Assume that the Central Bank of
Rankinland pursues an expansionary monetary
policy.
• Question: Assuming no change to the price level,
what happens to the real interest rate as a result
of expansionary monetary policy? Explain. (1 pt.)
Decreases because the nominal interest rate
decreases and the price level is unchanged.
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Error Number 6
Question 2, Part (b)(iii)
• Stem: Assume that Luis withdraws $5,000 in cash from his
checking account at Mi Terra Bank.
• Question: As a result of the withdrawal, what is the new
value of excess reserves on the balance sheet of Mi Terra
Bank based on the reserve requirement from part (a)? (1
pt.)
(The reserve requirement is 0.10, initial deposits are $100,000
and existing reserves are $15,000 (Required reserves are
$10,000 and excess reserves are $5,000)
$500
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Error Number 5
Question 3, Part (c)
• Question: Based on your answer in part (b),
what is the impact of higher exports on real
wages in the short run? Explain. (1 pt.)
(In part (b), an increase in exports increased AD which
produced an increase in equilibrium real GDP and the price
level. The stem also stated that nominal wages are fixed in
the short run.)
Real wages decrease because the price level
increases and nominal wages are fixed.
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Error Number 4
Question 2, Part (b)(ii)
• Stem: Assume that Luis withdraws $5,000 in
cash from his checking account at Mi Terra
Bank.
• Question: What is the initial effect of the
withdrawal on the M1 measure of the money
supply? Explain (1 pt.)
No effect because both demand deposits and
cash are part of M1.
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Errors Number 3 and 1
Question, Part (c)(i)
• Stem: Suppose Rankinland has a current account
deficit. Rankinland’s currency is called the bera.
• Question: What will initially happen to the current
account deficit in Rankinland solely due to the change
in real GDP from part (b)(iv)? Explain. (2 pts.)
(Real GDP increased in part (b)(iv))
Current account deficit increases.
Because imports increase.
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Good News
• Students did very well on:
Question 3, Part (a) where students were asked to draw
an AD-SRAS-LRAS diagram when there is full
employment.
Question 1, Part (a) where students were asked to draw a
production possibility frontier (ppf).
Question 1, Part (a) where students were asked to show a
point in the ppf diagram that could represent a
recession.
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