Economics - Pittsford Central School District



Economics Name:

Mr. Radano Date:

Directions – Carefully read all parts of the activity below and follow each step. Turn-in both the completed Comparative Systems and Assessment Questions worksheets.

Comparative Economic Systems

Introduction:

What would life be like in the North Korean economy? How would things be different in the economy of Chad? In this lesson, you will have the opportunity to compare these two economies to the U.S. economy, and you’ll practice using some tools that can help you to study any economy in the world.

Task:

In this lesson, you will:

• Define market economies, command economies, and developing economies.

• Compare one country with another by reference to factors associated with economic performance.

Process:

First we need to take a moment to look at how economists categorize economies. A market economy is characterized by private ownership of the means of production (for example, farms and factories), and supply and demand are responsible for the price and allocation decisions. The United States, Hong Kong, and Germany are considered market economies. A command economy is characterized by government (or central) control ownership of the means of production, and with a central authority setting prices of goods and services and for most allocation decisions. North Korea and Cuba are command, or more specifically communist, economies. A developing economy is one which is not yet industrialized, but is developing. Chad, Ecuador, and Bangladesh are considered developing nations.

In this lesson, you will compare several aspects of the economies of the United States (representing a market economy), North Korea (representing a command economy), and Chad (representing a developing economy). Use the CIA’s World Fact Book at to complete the following Comparative Systems Worksheet, and answer the assessment questions.

Economics Name:

Mr. Radano Date:

Comparative Systems Worksheet

|GEOGRAPHY |United States |North Korea |Chad |

|Natural Resources – How | | | |

|Many and what types of | | | |

|Resources available? | | | |

|Land Use – What percentage | | | |

|of the land is arable (can be | | | |

|farmed)? | | | |

|PEOPLE |United States |North Korea |Chad |

|Life expectancy at birth – How | | | |

|long are children born today | | | |

|expected to live? | | | |

|Total Fertility Rate – How many children | | | |

|does each woman have, on average? | | | |

|Literacy Rate – What percentage of people| | | |

|over the age of 15 can read and write? | | | |

|GOVERNMENT |United States |North Korea |Chad |

|Government Type – How do | | | |

|leaders come to power? | | | |

|Government Spending as Percent of GDP | | | |

|(Budget Expenditures Divided by GDP). | | | |

|Military Spending as a | | | |

|Percentage of GDP. | | | |

|ECONOMY |United States |North Korea |Chad |

|Economy Overview – What are the most | | | |

|serious economic problems facing each of | | | |

|these three nations? | | | |

|GDP Per Capita – What is the value of | | | |

|goods and services produced per person? | | | |

|ECONOMY (cont.) |United States |North Korea |Chad |

|Population Below Poverty Line – How many | | | |

|people live in poverty? | | | |

|GDP Composition by Sector – What | | | |

|percentage of GDP is industry and | | | |

|services? | | | |

|Labor Force by Occupation – What | | | |

|percentage of workers is in agriculture? | | | |

|Industries – What are the primary | | | |

|industries? Are they primarily producing | | | |

|for | | | |

|consumer or government consumption? | | | |

|Agriculture Products – What are the | | | |

|primary agricultural goods produced? | | | |

|Industrial Production Growth | | | |

|Rate | | | |

|Electricity Production | | | |

|Telephones – Main lines in | | | |

|use | | | |

|Internet Service Providers | | | |

|Railways | | | |

|Paved Highways | | | |

|Airports with Paved Runways | | | |

Economics Name:

Mr. Radano Date:

Assessment Questions Worksheet

How can the presence or absence of natural resources and arable land affect a nation’s economy, regardless of the type of economic system?

How can life expectancy and literacy rates affect the quality of labor in the economy? How can fertility rates affect the use of scarce resources?

How can GDP per capita and poverty rates indicate standards of living in each system?

How can the size of the industrial/service sector and agriculture employment rate indicate the level of industrialization?

How can electricity, communication and transportation facilities indicate the potential for industrial growth?

Considering the lack of natural resources, the labor problems, and the lack of capital and little industrialization of developing countries, how can under-developed countries develop? (HINT: look at Economy – overview for Chad).

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