Course Name Year Term Period Faculty / Graduate School All Instructors Credits
34819:Japanese Economy (E) § 34820:Contemporary Japanese Economy (E) 2024 Spring Fri2 College　Of　Economics YOSHIOKA SHINJI 2

Campus

BKC

Class Venue

Ad-seminario202

Language

英語
English

Course Outline and Method

In order to understand the size and position of Japan in the global economy, and to look back on the progress of the postwar Japanese economy, this class will provide concrete data, analyze the private economic sector such as company activities and the labor market, and furthermore, the government and the BOJ, proceeding to understand economic policies. To deepen the understanding of the Japanese economy systematically and structurally, along with current issues.
The lessons will be centered around lectures. Except for the 11th classes, I am planning to have a question-and-answer session at the end of each class. In addition, a bulletin board (BBS) for questions will be set up in manaba+R. As much as possible, I try to answer questions on the spot, but sometimes I answer them on bulletin boards. In the 11th class, in order to evaluate the achievement level, I will request an in-class report to be submitted.

Student Attainment Objectives

① Being able to grasp the structure and trends of the Japanese economy comprehensively and systematically.
② Increasing understanding of how companies, workers, governments, etc. respond to the characteristics of the Japanese economy.
③ Understanding data on the Japanese economy, reading economic analysis reports from think tanks, government and international organizations, and writing simple economic reports.

Recommended Preparatory Course

Japanese Economy is basically an applied field of macroeconomics. To the extent possible, although this will be taken into consideration in the class, an understanding of macroeconomics, or at least an interest in it, is expected. In addition, a basic understanding of economics, including microeconomics, is equally important. However, since students are not majoring in economics, it is desirable to be exposed to newspaper articles and news about the economy and economics to the extent possible.

Course Schedule

Lecture/Instructor（When there are multiple instructors) Theme
Keyword, References and Supplementary Information
1

Introduction and guidance

Class outline, Grade evaluation, Economic indicators

2

Review of basic economics

Utility, National Income, Growth

3

Overview on Japanese economy

GDP, International comparison

4

Progress of Postwar Japanese economy: part 1

Priority production system, Rapid growth

5

Progress of Postwar Japanese economy: part 2

Oil crisis, Wild inflation, Bubble economy

6

Progress of Postwar Japanese economy: part 3

Bubble burst, Financial crisis, Lost 2 decades

7

Company activities in Japan

Corporate governance, CSR

8

Japanese labor market

Japanese employment practices, Work-life balances

9

Japanese social securities

Welfare state, Low birthrate and aging society, Balance between benefits and contributions

10

Japanese fiscal policy

Public goods, Fiscal balance, Budget

11

In-class Report

12

Japanese financial system

Bank of Japan, Deflation, Exchange rate

13

Japanese trade

Globalization, Export and import, Foreign direct investment

14

Japanese agriculture

Food self-sufficiency rate, TPP, Protection policy

15

Global environmental issues and the Japanese economy

Pollution, Climate change, Emissions trading

Class Format

The 1st class will be held on a Web basis and the 2nd to 15th classes will be held on a face-to-face basis in principle. When the classes are held on a Web basis, information will be posted on course news.

Recommendations for Private Study

We strive to be able to interpret the information related to the Japanese economy in our daily media reports on our own and have a broad perspective not only on the Japanese economy but on the entire global economy, and, where possible, on various aspects of the economy. I strongly recommend students to make efforts to learn from media and reading, etc. with intellectual curiosity and critical spirit in the academic field.

Grade Evaluation Method

Kind Percentage Grading Criteria etc.
Final Examination (Written) 0

The final exam will not be held.
Report Examination
(A report to be submitted by the unified deadline)

Exams and/or Reports other than those stated above, and Continuous Assessment　
(Evaluation of Everyday Performance in Class)		 100

Students are required to submit three types of reports as follows: 1) the initial report (20%) including self-introduction, purpose, and target to check English ability of each student; 2) in-class report (30%) to confirm the understanding of the classes; and 3) the final report (40%) to confirm the degree of the understanding of the classes and assess that the students take them critically and express their own unique perspectives obtained from their own research.
Other than three types of reports, active participation in the class will be included as evaluation (10%).

Grade Evaluation Method （Note）

For both the in-class report of the 11th class and the final report, I will give a few themes to be chosen. Details about the themes and quantity, etc. will be given later at the time of report. In addition, questions that convey the content of the question to all students through the classes and bulletin boards will be evaluated more highly by individual inquiries by email.
The initial report includes three topics: they are self-introduction, purpose, and target. The reports format is distributed via manaba+R and the students submit the reports also via manaba+R. Details will be announced in a class or in the course news.
For the 11th in-class report, basically, students are required to submit the report according to the themes given during class time while report format is distributed at the classroom. Details will be announced in a class or in the course news.
After the end of the 15th class, the themes for the final report will be given within about three days, and approximate seven days are given for students to submit report. Reports are accepted via manaba+R. Details will be announced in a class or in the course news.

Advice to Students on Study and Research Methods

We use data a lot and be interested in data because this class is a field of economics, but there are two aspects to working with data. There are two cases: one needs to pay attention to the details of the data for use in economic judgments and quantitative analysis, and the other does not care so much about the details of the data to overview trends and understand the structure. Therefore, it is better to pay attention to the cost in handling data.

Textbooks

Textbooks （Frequency of Use, Note）

Textbook will not be specified because there is no appropriate one written in English.

Reference Books

Title Author Publisher ISBN Code Comment
入門・日本経済論 [第6版] 浅子和美・飯塚信夫・篠原総一 [編] 有斐閣 978-4641165618
The Japanese Economy, 2nd edition Takatoshi Ito and akeo Hoshi MIT Press 978-0262538244

Reference Books （Frequency of Use, Note）

I couldn't find an appropriate textbook on Japanese economy written in English, and I have listed the first reference book written in Japanese. Each lesson corresponds mainly to each chapter of this reference book, and I am planning to proceed according to the structure of the reference book chapters. On the other hand, I am going to take the main points of the first reference book on slides and to post it at manaba+R in advance. I will take care so that learning can proceed without a reference book written in Japanese or understanding of Japanese language. The second listed reference book is written in English, which is at the postgraduate level rather than the undergraduate level. Some students may find it a little difficult to understand.

Web Pages for Reference

How to Communicate with the Instructor In and Out of Class(Including Instructor Contact Information)

Learning Management System （manaba+R）,Talk with Students

Other Comments

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