ACE 452: The Latin American Economies
The Latin American Economies (ACE 452) course focuses on the historical development of region, such as: (1) recent industrialization process and its effects, (2) the role of the state and foreign capital for the economic development, (3) the impact of the recent privatization process, hyperinflation and stabilization policies. In the last part of the course we cover some important issues related to economic development, such as poverty, inequality, health and educational policies in the region.
Prerequisites (Must be complete BEFORE taking this course):
ECON 102 or ECON 103. ECON 302 or ECON 303 strongly recommended.
Instructor Teaching the Course:
This course has been taught by the instructor below. You may click on their name to learn more about them. Teaching schedules vary by semester. Please check the Course Explorer for the most up-to-date information about the sections they will teach.
Renata de Melo Caldas
View the Course Explorer:
See when the course is offered as well as section details here: https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/terms/ACE/452
Fall 2018 Restrictions
Restricted to students in Agricultural and Consumer Economics. This course is crosslisted with Econ 452, so it may show that there are remaining seats in one section; however, these seats may be taken by the other section. Restrictions are rarely lifted. For more information, visit http://go.illinois.edu/coursesundergrad. This course may not be offered this fall. If you are interested in taking this course, please contact our department for further information.
Additional Course Information
Read more about what Dr. de Melo Caldas has to say about ACE 452!
Is this class discussion-based or lecture-based? How would you describe your teaching style?
The classes are lecture-based using slides.
How are students evaluated (e.g. multiple choice or essay tests, papers, etc.)?
The students need to take a couple of quizzes and midterms, composed by essays, True/False, and/or multiple choices questions.
What careers does this course help prepare students to pursue?
They will be able to work in a wide range of areas, such as consultancy firms, development banks (Inter-American Development Bank, World Bank, etc.), academia, companies whose headquarter or branch are in Latin America, etc.
In what ways does this course prepare students to move through the program and/or into the work force?
The students will see many of the concepts studied in their past introductory and intermediate micro and macroeconomics courses applied in a context of a developing region (Latin America).
What is your background in Agricultural and Consumer Economics?
I have PhD in Economics at Federal University of Pernambuco (Brazil), which is part of the region we study in the course, and my current research focuses on impact evaluation of public policies in Brazil, specifically irrigation and micro credit policies implementeed in the Brazilian semi-arid area, and the analysis of intergovernamental transfers and its impacts on regional inequalities in Brazil. Eventually, I use part of my research as case studies in class.
What is your attendance policy?
10% of the final grade is composed by participation points. Although I will not check the attendance every class, to receive the participation points the student need to be present. Eventually I will make the attendance check and, in random days (I will not inform in advance the days), I will give to the students some assignments to be answered in class and they will compose the participation points.