AP Microeconomics Reviews

Quintiliano Domico AP Microeconomics Class Review

Mr. Burns undoubtedly is one of the best teachers that I have ever had. The way that he prepared each and every week’s worth of work  provided great teaching methods that brought different topics to life. I felt extremely prepared for the AP exam that I just completed; the material covered was perfect for the exam. Everything that was on the exam I took was taught many times throughout the class.  I had to spend about 7 hours a week during the year and around 9-10 hours a week in the final few weeks of the class leading up to the exam. The workload definitely was not too much to where it felt like it was killing me, but it was definitely plenty to prepare me for the exam. For anyone looking to become much more prepared for the AP Macroeconomics exam, this class is a MUST!! Good luck to anyone who takes this class in the future! I hope you enjoyed it and learned as much as I did.

Excellent Course

Did you feel this course prepared you for the AP exam?

Definitely! The practice exams are especially helpful. The course included everything I needed to know, although I found that watching some of Mr. Clifford's videos was also helpful. (This is a resource Mr. Burns recommended for review for the AP).

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?

I put in around 5 hours most weeks, although some weeks had a ton of assignments and probably took me up to 10 hours.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

All of the assignments are useful in preparation for the exam, and none of them are busy work.

Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes! I'm now considering majoring in economics thanks to this class!

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

I didn't find the discussions super helpful for me personally because I generally prefer to work on my own, but there were some fun economics discussions with the class.

What sort of student would do well in this class? Would you recommend this class to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

I would absolutely recommend this course to anyone who is willing to put in the work! Mr. Burns is a great teacher!

--Nathanael

A Fantastic Class for Anyone Curious about Economics :)

• Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP exam?

Totally, I've been impressed with every AP Homeschoolers class I've taken how ready I felt on exam day and this class was no exception. I walked into and out of that exam feeling genuinely excited and very much prepared. This class prepared me so well that the exam felt like a fun opportunity to show off everything that I had learned rather than a stressful moment of judgement. 

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?

I would say that I probably spent on average about a half hour to an hour per day on this class. Some days I wouldn't have anything and others I would have two or so hours worth of homework and readings. All in all for an AP class the work load was very manageable and I never felt overwhelmed with homework. 

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I really liked the discussions which we did every week. Each week there would be a new discussion which could range from debates about economic topics, practice essays, or really anything economics related. These weekly discussion board assignments provided a fun way to interact with classmates, ask questions, and practice everything which we had been learning. This is incredibly helpful because sometimes doing just readings or watching videos doesn't always 100% translate to being able to answer questions (which is needed for the exam). The discussions often provided an opportunity to practice and make sure you were understanding what you needed to. 

• Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?

100%. I always thought Economics was interesting, but I never knew a ton about it. Between this class and Macroeconomics I've learned a ton and feel a lot more informed about how the world and businesses around me work, which is really cool! While I felt adequately prepared for the exam, Mr. Burns also maintained a healthy balance of really teaching us to enjoy and be curious about this topic, not just test prep. That's one thing I've experienced in all my AP Homeschoolers classes which I am so incredibly thankful for. :)

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

Definitely! As I said earlier we have weekly assigned and unassigned discussion posts where we get to ask each other questions and have conversations about whatever economic questions we may have. In assigned discussion posts we would have to answer prompts and questions, but in the weekly unassigned posts we would either ask or answer questions we generally had about economics or any material we were unsure about or curious about. We had all sorts of interesting, engaging, and very often helpful back and forwards over the discussion board this year. I really appreciated all the interaction as it was fun to talk to my classmates, but also really often helped me understand the material better.

• What sort of student would do well in this class? Would you recommend this class to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Any student who is at all curious about economics and is ready to put in the work would love this class! I would highly recommend pairing this course with Macroeconomics as well, they complement each other excellently. I would (and have) recommend this class to any friends and family I know. When I told a friend I was taking AP Economics he initially asked why. Then I started talking about the class and by the end he said "gosh I wish I had as well now!" This class is really awesome, you should definitely take it! :)

Great Class!

I took this class last year and it prepared me well for the AP Exam! The class consists of weekly modules, which contain readings, videos (including AP Classroom materials), a lab (questions on that week's material), a discussion, and a quiz, for which it is helpful to know the key terms and points in the textbook at a bare minimum. Every unit (every 2-4 weeks) there is also a test on the last week, but Mr. Burns gives good review materials. He also does live review sessions the week of the test and before the AP exam—it's a helpful review to fill in any last gaps.

There are only two weeks of review, given that the class is only one semester long. This may seem short but if you do an FRQ every day or supplement it with review materials like Mr. Clifford's videos and College Board videos like Mr. Burns recommends, it is enough to cover everything. I also used the Barron's book for review in the weeks prior because I was going to be traveling and not have as much time as I wanted for review. 

Mr. Burns also offers opportunities for extra credit. They are all small assignments, but they add up over time and allow you to interact with other students in the class. The TAs this year did an amazing job this year of helping set up these games and interacting with students—they would even schedule extra times outside of the arranged game time so that students who couldn't attend could still get the bonus points.

If you are interested in taking this class, I would recommend it! It provides a good foundation in microeconomics and will prepare you for the AP Exam!

AP Micro Review

Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP exam?

Yes! Definitely! I took the spring only version, because I was taking Macro in the fall. I feel super fresh on all the concepts, and this class was super super helpful. I didn't feel like I had to do a bunch of studying outside of the class, which is nice, because I'm not good at making myself do that.

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?

About 4-5, but I tend to work pretty quick. :)

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

As much as I don't like doing them, I feel like all the practice tests at the end were super helfpul.

Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes, I do enjoy micro, it's interesting to be able to analyze firms and markets with totally different eyes.

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

I'm not someone who needs interaction with other students to help me learn, so I don't really care. But the discussion boards could be really useful for someone like that!

What sort of student would do well in this class? Would you recommend this class to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Anyone who is ok with a lot of vocabulary, and graph analyzation. :) And yeah, a lot of vocab and concept memorization.

This class was amazing because of Mr. Burns!

For anyone interested in macro or micro economics, I definitely suggest Mr. Burns as your teacher! He was an incredible teacher that took the time to help all of his students truly prepare for the AP exam! Not only was his class super interesting, but it also really prepared me for every single topic that could be present on the test. I loved this class so much! This class has taught me how to manage my time efficiently and how to use the information I gain from microeconomics to contemplate real-world examples. I have learned so much in this class that I feel is important for every kid to study in high school. Mr. Burns not only helps in in every aspect of the class but he also makes learning about economics so fun through games and videos. I highly suggest Mr. Burns as your micro teacher!

Mr. Burns for president 2024!

Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP Exam?

Yes, totally. Although we had less FRQ practices, we had plenty of quizzes and "lab" assignments that made sure we were understanding the concepts and knew the required graphs for the AP exam.

How many hours of work per day did you generally put into the class?

I would say I generally put in about an hour a day, more or less.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I don't think there were any particularly valuable assignments because all of them were extremely valuable haha. There was pretty much no busywork in this course; everything was to make sure you knew the concepts.

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

I had less interaction with other students in this class than my Macro class, but I did make some good friends haha.

What sort of student would do well on this class?

Pretty much anybody who would be willing to work hard should do fine in this class. Just make sure to 

10/10 course!!

Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP exam?

Yes!! Mr. Burns provides constant guidance and help whenever a student is falling behind and the quizzes in the class are actually harder than the actual AP exam questions so if a student learns and performs well in class, I would say a 5 is guaranteed!

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?

Around 3-5? A lot of time is dedicated to understanding the material and the assignments take comparatively less time if you really understand the concepts and fundamentals.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I loved the games - they provide a real-life application of the concepts we learned and I was able to use them as a revision tool for my exam.

Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?

This course and AP Macro made me choose economics as my desired major, so yes!

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

I was able to form valuable friendships with my classmates and I deeply appreciated how passionate and hard-working my whole class was. I really felt that every student strived for the best and it was 

Microeconomics Review

• Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP exam?
  I feel it prepared me very well, when the class started to prepare for the AP exam I found the practice tests to be easier than most of the coursework and quizzes we had done which is a welcome surprise in my book.
• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?
  I really depended on the week/ the unit, I found some units to be quite easy so I only needed an hour or two to do the work but some other weeks when we were in harder units or had a paper due I might spend closer to 5-6 hours in a week still not too bad. 
• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?
  I think that the assigned discussion questions were always good since they were generally more fun but also quite insightful, plus you could see what your classmates thought. 
• Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?
  Definitely! I already liked economics and I took Macro last year but I really liked the class and thought the course content was very interesting.
• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?
  Yup! I don't normally like message boards as they feel contrived but I think that much of the interaction was fun and I really did learn a lot about economics from my peers!
• What sort of student would do well in this class? Would you recommend this class to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?
  I think if you have any sort of interest in economics you should do well, there is a decent amount of work but none of it is super complex so as long as you are interested/stick with it you should do well. I would definitely recommend the class! I liked the structure of the class and I think the contents of the course are useful even outside the classroom which is always good!

Microeconomics Review by Zohan Subhash

First of all, this course was a lot easier than I anticipated, and this is mostly because I had such a great teacher! I understood most of the material almost intuitively, and even the counterintuitive ideas were explained very well. I think that this course is exceptionally well designed, and out of the six AP courses that I took this year (some were from very prestigious institutions like Johns Hopkins CTY), I would say that this course had the best course material and student support system. Daniel Burns was a very supportive teacher, and his curriculum is specifically structured so that the course material itself resolves any questions or doubts that you might have. He explains the same concept multiple times, first through the textbook, then through powerpoint presentations, then through Khan Academy videos, then through Hillsdale College lectures, then through AP Review videos, and finally through labs, games, discussions, and quizzes. Although I found this iterative process repetitive sometimes, the fact that so many different avenues were available to help me learn meant that I could choose which ones to use, and this was really powerful for my learning experience. As for Daniel Burns, he is an awesome teacher, and he is always available to help resolve doubts or questions. His explanations are very insightful, and he often takes part in the class discussions himself, offering additional information or extra material to check out. I thoroughly enjoyed this class, and not only was it fun, but I was also able to learn key concepts in economics that I will be able to apply in so many fields moving forward. This was a great class; definitely a 10/10!

• Did you feel this class prepared you for the AP exam?
  • Definitely! The problem with AP courses is that they're almost an year long, and so you tend to start forgetting material when you hit March or April. Daniel Burns helps fix this problem by having graded assignments that are meant to help you review the course material. Moreover, these assignments are graded based on participation and not merit, so that takes some of the pressure out of the practice exams too! For example, doing a full length practice exam is a graded assignment, but you get full points regardless of how much you score on the practice exam. This is a great incentive for you to keep reviewing the material you've learnt so far.
• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into this class?
  
  • I have no idea! I would say 3-5 hours per week? Some weeks take more time than others, but it's generally reading the textbook, watching presentations + additional videos, one lab (test that asks you draw graphs and stuff), two discussions, and a quiz. Some weeks have additional reading by Henry Hazlitt, and I love those! But I'm a slow reader, so weeks with more reading take me significantly longer.
• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?
  
  • They were all equally enjoyable :) I found the discussions the most enjoyable though, since it was really fun talking to my classmates about subjects that interested me, like the economics of airlines, or how Apple manages to make so much profit.
• Did this class enhance your interest in the subject?
  
  • Yes! I was always interested in economics, but I was really scared of it too, because I thought it was a complicated subject. Because of that, I would never really get into economics, or read any articles on economics, and this course definitely helped me get over that fear. I really enjoyed the course too, and the external articles and reading were really interesting.
• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?
  
  • Surprisingly, yes! Online courses are not the best, and you don't tend to get very valuable or interesting discussions with your peers. This has been my experience so far with Johns Hopkins CTY and AoPS. The two courses I took with PA Homeschoolers, though, had wonderful discussion forums with like-minded students who were passionate about the subject they were learning. This course had a great discussion forum, and the majority of students (and not the minority!) engaged in long and interesting discussions about various topics.
• What sort of student would do well in this class? Would you recommend this class to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?
  
  • If you're interested in learning economics, I would suggest you give it a go! It is not particularly hard, especially if you have a strong foothold in math. The workload is slightly high, but it's not very difficult per se, so you can easily skip some optional assignments and do well. Don't feel obligated to watch all the videos if you feel like you understand a concept. Mr. Burns sometimes gives additional videos and content over the textbook, but make sure that reading the textbook is your priority, and you can easily skip some of the videos. Overall, I would say that an interest in economics is what the priority is, and if you're interested, then you're likely to do well in the course. Good luck!

Great class!

AP Microeconomics with Daniel Burns is a top quality class. It is well organized has a mixture of assignments between homeworks, tests, projects and research papers which kept the class engaging. I had no knowledge let alone interest in economics prior to this class and left highly interested in the topic. Finally, this class prepares you VERY well for the AP exam. I felt very confident both walking in and out of the exam. 

Thanks Mr. Burns!

Awesome AP Microeconomics Course

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

Absolutely. When taking the exam, I felt completely confident in my answers and projected score.

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I put in approximately 10 hours of work per week for this course.

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

Participating in the discussion board was one of my favorite parts of the course. I enjoyed sharing my thoughts and learning from others.

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes, it did. Taking this class, along with Mr. Burns' macroeconomics course, sparked my interest in economics; I plan to major in econ for university.

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

Yes. A significant part of the course involves participating in the discussion board. Other students' posts provided plenty of interesting commentary.

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

A student who wants to get new perspective on how the world works and enjoys circulating different ideas with others will particularly enjoy this course. I would 100% recommend this course to other students.

Really enjoyed this class!

I loved taking Mr. Burns AP Micro class!! Before this school year, I hadn't really had an interest in economics and didn't know much about it. Now, I'm eager to take AP Macro next year and I want to study economics in college. I felt very well prepared for the AP Exam. We did a few full length practice tests towards the end of the year, and there weren't any surprises for me on test day. I probably spent an hour on this class each day, but it varied depending on which assignment(s) I was doing. If you spread out the workload throughout the week, it really is very manageable and I never felt overwhelmed by the homework. Additionally, I thought that the weekly quizzes were really helpful. I usually took them on Friday, so it was a good way to review what I had learned that week. They also made for great refreshers at the end of the year, so I would study them in preparation for the AP Exam. I enjoyed interacting with the other students, both in discussion posts and also with special assignments like the Pasta Wars game, where we were separated into groups and had to try to anticipate what the other "firms" (groups) were planning to do. It was insightful for me to see my classmates' views on how economics played into our everyday lives in weekly discussion posts. I would 100% recommend this class to other students looking for an AP Microeconomics course. As long as you are willing to plan out the week's work and understand the economics concepts, you're going to do great! :)

Sparked interest in more advanced study of Economics!

Mr. Burns' AP Micro course definitely prepared me for the AP exam. Even though it was online and the format was drastically different this year, we practiced many FRQs over the semester and I felt completely prepared when it came to the exam! Even if the exam had been full-length, I would have been very well prepared in terms of both my understanding of course content and the exam timing.

During the course, I generally spent about 1-2 hours a day on it depending on which assignment I was working on. If I had one tip to give future students, it would be to use the whole week to read the material and complete the assignments instead of leaving it for the last few days. I found that spreading the work out over the full week maximized my productivity and understanding. Here's how I structured a typical week:

Monday: Textbook reading

Tuesday: Videos, PPT, Independent Discussion Post

Wednesday: Lab (these usually took me around 2 hours!)

Thursday: Assigned Discussion Post, Making summary notes for the week's course content

Friday: Review, Chapter Test

Personally, I think the discussion posts were especially valuable because I had really interesting discussions with my peers and we started to recognize aspects of what we were learning in the real world. I always love seeing the practical applications of what I'm learning in a course, and it makes me more motivated to really dig into the material and understand the details. All of our discussion threads were very active, and I had lots of fun playing the economics games with my classmates! I also enjoyed the labs because they helped me understand the relevant graphs and formulas for each unit through practice and interactive questions.

I would recommend this course to any student willing to put in the required time and effort, even if they aren't already SUPER interested in economics. Trust me, you'll gain interest through this course! I had a previous experience learning economics with a teacher that almost made me lose interest in the subject, but after taking this course, I'm considering studying more advanced economics in high school and later, college! Mr. Burns was really supportive through this process, and always there to help me understand a topic or question I was confused on or wanted to dive deeper into.

AP Micro Review

In general, I did enjoy the micro course. I'm interested in economics especially as it relates to public policy, and this course definitely helped me with my economic understanding of topics. The micro course does require effort; I had to put in about six hours each week, even though I did almost all my work on Fridays, because of all my other courses. I would definitely recommend future students to spread out the courseload as Mr. Burns recommends. I think the course did prepare me well for the micro exam; though the textbook is quite dense, the labs and the quizzes really help you with your understanding, though they might be tedious at some times. I think the practice AP tests that we did nearer the end of the course were really helpful; one of my suggestions is to spread more "real" AP review throughout the year or semester. I think any hard-working student would be able to do well in the Micro course--you just have to plan your time well, and make the most of your resources, especially as the online classroom format demands a lot of independent study. Thank you again to Mr. Burns--he works hard to answer all your questions and organizes the website really well! 

great microeconomics course

Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

I definitely felt that the course prepared me for the AP exam! I really enjoyed all the past FRQ that we did throughout the year on tests and through discussion questions. 

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

About 7-12 hours of work per week. I was able to split up the work evenly over a week, and I felt that this helped since I was able to space out what I needed to accomplish.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

The weekly supplemental discussions were really exciting! I got to discuss current events with my classmates. Even if they didn't always pertain to microeconomics (because of COVID-19 we talked a lot about economic plans and responses) I still had a great time discussing with my classmates and seeing different perspectives. 

I also found the tests we did every week to be very valuable. Though certainly not my favorite assignment, I thought that these tests were great review for the exam and helped to solidify concepts that we had learned throughout the year.

Also, the Pasta Wars game was very fun! In that game, we got to apply the concepts of game theory to a larger matrix and got to deal with oligopoly in order to make our decisions. It was really fun to see how collision can impact the decision making process and how independent decision making is so different from collusive behavior. It also showed how hard can be (sometimes) for certain teams to cooperate and choose the common interest over their own interest, as our game constantly had a team that was not willing to cooperate.

Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

I definitely grew more and more interested in microeconomics as the year went on. I had taken macroeconomics in the fall semester, so this was a great next course to take as it really built off of macroeconomics and explained the forces at work at a much smaller level, which then combine to create change at the larger level. I'm able to understand now how many economic policies will affect different types of businesses...and I'm also able to better play the boar game, monopoly! Just the other day, I was playing monopoly, and I instantly started tying back economics to the game (for example, the law of diminishing marginal returns by the rents you receive based on the number of houses you have, the marginal utility per dollar rule to help me maximize where I bought houses and also the fact that the players are price takers, the economies and diseconomies of scale, and that the competition is probably monopolistic competition as each player is a price taker).

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

I did! the discussion board was fairly lively with common discussions about economics taking place thanks to the supplemental discussion questions. I really enjoyed hearing different perspectives. Also, anytime I had a question I would post on the board and get a pretty quick response from someone else passing along. Everyone in the class was able to help each other out through the year.

What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Definitely a student that works hard would do well. I'd recommend taking macroeconomics before this course, just because some of the concepts in this course come from macroeconomics, and this course made a lot more sense after taking macroeconomics than it would have if I had come in blindly. The course does move fairly quickly, and it's assumed that you understand some basic economic rules before taking the course.

AP Microeconomics Review

I enjoyed AP Micro and thought it was a great class to take, especially in conjunction with AP Macro. I felt prepared for the AP exam, however I did feel the need to utilize preparation books as well as external sources (I found Jacob Clifford's Youtube channel and the Crashcourse AP review books to be particularly helpful.) I definitely think that without the external review, I might not have been as confident as I was heading into the exam. Although I have not received my scores yet, I feel great about how the exam went overall and was able to answer the FRQs without any difficulty.

In general, I put an average of 2 hours a day, if not more, into this course. However, this definitely varied based on what homework I focused on each day and whether the week was at the beginning, middle, or end of a unit. I found the readings and labs to be the most time consuming, but they were the sections that truly taught the concepts. We also had discussion questions, quizzes, tests, and games as part of our coursework. I particularly enjoyed the focus on class participation through student-initiated discussions; it was very fun to peruse the news with an economics lens as well as start/answer discussions based on current events. It was interesting to hear everyone's perspectives, and I found our discussions to be especially relevant -- there was a lot to delve into this year due to COVID-19. 

Overall, I think this class in particular is best suited to students who are fine with a very self-guided approach to learning. This class is asynchronous and without any live meetings; time management is important when it comes to distributing the coursework into your week because it is very tough to complete it without spreading it out and approaching it systematically. We were given the class materials, but then we had to essentially teach ourselves the concepts based on them. I would have preferred having a live class time to help teach us the content, or regular teacher office hours for asking questions. As I mentioned before, I genuinely found the time I spent using extra resources to be the difference between doing well in the class, and doing very well/truly understanding the concepts. In conclusion, I certainly recommend taking AP Micro and Macro, especially if you also have an interest in politics, international relations, public policy, or any related area (as I do!) I think the course material is so valuable and applicable to everyday life! This class is best if you are fine with asynchronous online learning and are willing to work hard to understand the concepts, as well as do some supplementary work to solidify your understanding. 

Very good class!

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

Yes, it did. I'm not 100% sure if I got my desired score, but that is mostly because of the current Covid-19 pandemic.

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I generally put in around 7 hours per week.

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I really liked the virtual labs, they made me use my microeconomics knowledge in real life situations.

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes, it did.

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

Yes, the other students were pretty helpful, and the conversations were always interesting.

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Yes, I would recommend this course. I'm not sure if this course is for everyone though - you need to be willing to be up for the challenge.

Extra:

I just wanted to say that Mr. Burns is a great teacher, but I definitely wouldn't have made it through the class without the TAs. Erik and Kendall were insanely helpful and supportive, thank you so much guys!

Micro is an amazing class for a motivated student!

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

I did not take the AP exam; however, I felt like the prep in this class was sufficient and am confident that I could have passed if I'd taken it.  There was not as much prep as other AP classes I have taken, but overall it was good.  

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I would say about 5-7 hrs a week.  The lab assignments took me about 1-3 hrs a week, and the videos, quizzes, and readings usually took about 1-2 hrs.  Games took about an hour or two as well.  

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

The games and the current events discussions were particularly enjoyable!  I was especially excited by the epidemic game and the airline game.  A few weeks before the end of the class I convened with a few of my classmates to play some games, which was a super fun and educational way to spend an afternoon.  

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes, although the Macroeconomics class had already made me pretty interested in Economics!

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

My classmates and I didn't really discuss very often, so I feel like class discussion was not as valuable or interesting as in other classes I have taken.  However, this class definitely has a social aspect in the games, which I enjoyed very much.  

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

This class feels similar to self-paced courses I have taken before.  While it is not entirely self-paced, it isn't the most interactive course, and Mr. Burns doesn't have live classes, so I think self-motivation is particularly important in this course.  In addition, most class instruction is in Khan Academy videos or reading powerpoints, so if you learn well on your own, this class will work well for you!  

Economics, pasta, and more

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

This course definitely prepared me for the AP exam, and I felt very confident when I was taking it.

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I probably put in around 5 hours of work per week.

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I especially liked the games (Pasta Wars and a stock simulation), since they were good real-life examples of what we were studying. Fortunately, the stock simulation was a simulation, as my investments went rather... poorly.

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

This course definitely made me more interested; I knew next to nothing about economcis before I took this course, but now I think it's fascinating.

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

My discussions with other students were definitely valuable. Every Friday, one of the TAs would run a 1-hour study session where we would cover the topics we learned that week.

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

I would recommend this course to any student who's interested in learning about economics.

Review of AP Microeconomics Course

The class was well run and I learned a lot! Thanks so much!

Great Class!

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

Absolutely, this class prepared me for the AP exam. It covered almost everything I needed to know for the AP exam. Do note: There are a few things on the AP exam this class does not cover, but they are very minor and you can easily study them yourself.

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I put about one hour per day on average into the course.

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

My favorite assignment was the weekly assigned topic discussions. This is because it it enabled me to engaged with the economic theory I was reading about, and provide my own opinions, spiking my interest and engagement and helped me truly understand the material. I also liked the discussions we had on the "general discussion board," because we were applying economics to real-life current events.

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

The course definitely enhancced my interest in the subject. In my opinion, microeconomics is the more interesting part of the two parts of economics, as it delves into individual human behavior (including behavioral economics!) much more deeply than macro.

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

Yes -- my fellow classmates often pointed out a novel idea or reason that I had missed, brought up fresh examples, and helped to answer questions I had.

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Students interested in economics (duh); students interested in any social science; and anyone who is intellectually curious about the world around them and why people behave the way they do.

AP Micro-Economics Class Review

1. I felt the course prepared me well for the AP Exam. Our textbook was clear and easy to read. The labs helped us to apply the information we had learned in the textbook. The quizzes helped me to realize which areas I was weak on. Whenever I had a question, I could ask Mr. Burns for help. When we got closer to the exam, we had to review FRQs from past exams. This really helped me to get used to the types of questions they would ask on the test. We also took four practice exams. I got a five in each one because Mr. Burns had made it clear what would show up on the test! 

2. I generally put about an hour or an hour and a half per weekday into this class. 

3. The labs we used allowed me to apply the information I learned in the textbook, so they were very valuable. The practice exams were very valuable as well, since I was able to get used to the exam format. When I got to the exam, I didn't panic because I knew what would be on the test and what it would be like. 

4. Yes, this course did enhance my interest in microeconomics. It was my favorite subject out of all my other school courses! 

5. Yes, it was very interesting to communicate with other students on our forums and discussion boards. We were able to discuss concepts and ask questions if we needed to.  

6. I would definitely recommend this course to other students. Mr. Burns was a great teacher! He was always available to answer questions. Our assignments were clear and easy to find. The textbook, labs, and quizzes all helped me to learn a lot, and have fun at the same time. I felt very prepared for the exam. This is an awesome course, and I would encourage any student that is willing to work hard to take it!

AP Micro Review

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

Definitely.  Mr. Burns was very thorough with all of the material he assigned, and I felt really confident the whole way through the AP Micro Exam.  

• Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

I particularly enjoyed the flour game, where Mr. Burns put us into groups and we became our own flour mills.  The idea of the game was to help us understand Nash Equilibrium and how oligopolistic firms HAVE to make their decisions based off of their competitors' decisions.  I also enjoyed this game because my team ended up winning!

• Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Oh yes!  I really appreciate both Macroeconomics and Microeconomics, and how they are basically the study of human choices.  I think I would want to continue learning along these lines, although I don't know where they will take me.  

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

What was interesting about this class was that we were all REQUIRED to have at least two substantial posts every single week.  They had to be related to microeconomics somehow, so simply wishing people luck on the exam wouldn't count.  But because of this requirement, I got to learn a lot from my classmates.  Many of the other students would post about some current even and then we would all respond to the post and have discussions about what our opinoins and views are, and it was all really cool!  

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Really, the material is not that hard to understand, and it doesn't take too long to complete the required work.  In my book, any student who is curious about economics and who wants to learn should take this course.  

A fantastic class!

This course prepared me really well for the AP exam! In the final two weeks before the exam, Mr. Burns had us take practice tests, review the content, and watch interesting Microeconomics youtube videos.  These activities helped me to get a good grasp of the material.  By the time exam day came, I felt very confident! 

I probably put in about 9 hours per week on this course.  The workload is very manageable, and Mr. Burns also adds in some fun activities like a stock market game and a game theory simulation.  

One awesome aspect of this course was the discussion forums.  This is one thing that I really appreciate about Mr. Burns's classes (check out his AP U.S. history class as well!).  He introduces an assigned discussion topic on some aspect of economics each week.  Besides this, there's also a general discussion forum where students can get to know each other or talk about topics in economics that they find interesting.  Finally, there's also a "economics in the news" forum where we can discuss how economics applies to current events.  These discussions have sharpened my critical thinking skills and also given me a better understanding of how economics relates to the real world.  

I highly recommend this class! Mr. Burns is a great teacher and microeconomics is a great subject! 

Good Microeconomics Class

I definitely felt that this class prepared me for the AP test, I was confident of all the answers that I wrote. It's not a very heavy workload, only perhaps 3 hours a week or so. There are several fun economics games that we played over the year that were rather enjoyable. Also the Khan Academy videos that were posted were very helpful. Before I started this class I didn't know much about Economics, but this class definitely piqued my interest.

I think any student who wants to understand the general concept of economics and topics such as supply and demand would definitely do well in this course.

A Good AP Micro Class

Note: I took the year-long version of this class along with three other AP classes. Including this year's classes, I've taken eight total AP courses through PAH.

Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam? - Yes, I do. I struggled a little bit keeping all of the graphs straight during the school year, but once I really sat down to study I found the material all came together neatly in my mind. The end-of-year studying basically consists of watching ACDCLeadership videos and taking full-length released exams, which is the absolute best way to study for an economics exam. That's how I studied for Macro last year and got a 5, and I'm pretty confident I got a 5 on Micro this year, too.

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course? - Hmm, it's hard to say. I usually did the entire week's worth of work in one day (I found that compartmentalizing each class into its own day was the most efficient way to get through all of my AP classes). Micro was usually my second easiest class time-wise, so I would guess I spent about six hours a week working on it. Every week we had a few videos to watch, a chapter to read, a quiz to take, and some practice problems to work; all together, it was really very manageable.

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable? - My favorite assignments were when we were assigned ACDCLeadership videos to watch. I really can't express how much I love that YouTube channel! There's no better way to cement economic concepts into your brain. Whether you take this class or not, definitely watch those videos whenever you wind up taking an economics course.

Did the course enhance your interest in the subject? - Not really, no. After taking Macro last year I thought I might major in economics, but Micro has convinced me that's probably not something I really want to do.

Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable? - Yes, to a certain extent. Every week we were required to post twice on the discussion boards, so throughout the year we talked through a variety of topics. Most of the time, though, I was only posting because I had to and not because there was anything I really felt the need to share.

What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)? - As long as they're willing to work, then anyone can do well in this course. It helps, of course, to have already taken Macro - and I highly recommend Dr. Richman's awesome class! - but that's not an absolute necessity. This isn't the most innovative of classes (it mainly runs like a brick-and-mortar class just moved to an online format), but it's a solid course for anyone who is interested in learning about microeconomics. Of the four AP classes I took this year (the others being Calc AB, English Lit, and Computer Science), this was probably the one that I was most apathetic about: I did the work, and I made good grades, but I very rarely thought about the material when I wasn't actively working on the class. I just didn't, well, care about Micro the way I did my other classes. If you're more of a business-centric person, or you plan on being an entrepreneur someday, then you'll probably find the class a lot more absorbing than I did.

Awesome Microeconomics Class!

The course was rigorous and well-organized. I felt that it really prepared me for the AP exam and future economics coursework. I would highly recommend this course to any student who is interested in learning how the economy works and is willing to put in good effort to master the concepts.

Great Class

• Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?

Yes, this course definitely did. I felt very prepared going into and during my exam. My one comment is that the course covered more than just the exam. We were not assigned busywork, but we covered economic content that was not directly relevant to the test. That being said, this extra content definitely furthered my understanding of economics and was interesting.

• How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

I generally put in 6 to 7 hours a week. I would encourage future students to first watch the week's videos, then read the chapter, then complete the FLYX lab, study the material, and finally take the week's test. 

• Did you find your communications with other students to be interesting or valuable?

Each week all students were expected to submit two posts on the discussion board. While these posts were sometimes interesting, I found it to be a bit of a boar toward the end of the year when we had run out of topics. The group games and activities were fun though. I would definitely look ahead in the syllabus to see when these will occur because they require extra time and precise scheduling. 

• What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

I definitely recommend this class. It was one of my favorites this year. The concepts are usually very straightforward and make a lot of sense. Mr. Burns is a great teacher and was happy to answer any question I had. While some math is involved, it is very basic. If you can multiply, divide, draw graphs, and understand exponents, you should do just fine. 

Great class!

Did you feel the course prepared you for the AP exam?
I feel pretty confident about it; independent study is definitely required for this course.

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?
I generally spent 1-2 hours a day, depending on the topic and assignments.

Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?
I found out that, while I like economics, Macro is easier for me than Micro. I had been told that you either like Micro and hate Macro or vice-versa. As the course progressed, however, I liked both more and more. While this was a challenging class, I enjoyed taking the AP exam and found that I retained more than I had realized.

What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?
A sudent who puts the time into this class can succeed. Economics is definitely good to understand, regardless of a student's chosen career path. I would recommend this course to other students.

Any last tips?
Watch the ACDC YouTube economics videos with Mr. Clifford. These are great resources to get a different perspective, and they are concise. You can succeed in this course!

AP Microeconomics Review

Mr. Burn's AP Microeconomics class was excellent in every aspect! I did not know anything about economics before I started the class. However, at the end of the class I felt prepared and ready to take the AP test. All the quizzes, games, videos, and review work helped me to not only retain the course work but also realize the real-life applications in it. The practice tests Mr. Burns provided closer to the test date were a huge help in building confidence and readiness.

This class would be perfect for any diligent student interested in learning economic concepts and taking the AP Microeconomics test.

Microeconomics

I took Microeconomics Daniel Burns and really enjoyed the experience. We had an indepth course and great interaction. Mr. Burns also prepaired us excellently for the AP exam and gave us all the studying material and advice we needed.

Microeconomics Review

Mr. Burns' Microeconomics class was great because it not only taught me basic economic concepts that everyone should know, but it also prepared me extremely well for the AP exam. I felt very confident in the material heading into the test because of the extensive review work that Mr. Burns gave us. Even though the Microeconomic exam was on the last possible AP test day this year, I felt like I could have taken the test two weeks earlier when other AP tests were starting to be administered since I retained the information I had learned throughout the year quite well because of the various readings, videos, activities, and quizzes Mr. Burns assigned us throughout the year. On average, I spent about 8 hours a week on economics homework.

I would definitely recommend this class to any hardworking student, no matter what their interest level in economics, because the concepts you will learn in Mr. Burns' class help you even if you do not plan to major in this field. Learning economics will positively affect your decision making and help you view the business world with a different perspective. This year, I found myself constantly writing about economic concepts in my AP English papers to help back up my arguments. The variety of ways to utilize economics is just one of the many reasons this class is worth taking. 

Mr. Burn's Microeconomics course

Although I only took the spring semester of Mr. Burn's class, I feel it covered a lot of material in just a few months and really prepared me for the AP exam. If you decide to take just the spring semester I would definitely make sure you just took Macroeconomics with Dr. Richman, because spring Micro moves very fast. 

I probably put in 2-4 hours a day for this course, although I'm sure it wouldn't be as much for the full course. I would totally make sure you don't miss the fun and educational games Mr. Burns has in this course, like the stock market game, and the Pasta Wars game. I also found that engaging in frequent discussions and debates with my classmates(many of whom I had just worked with in Macro) to be very helpful in the learning process. 

I would recommend this course to anyone who has an interest in business or economics, although I think everyone can benefit from an understanding of economics. This course also makes a great combination with Dr. Richman's Macroeconomics course. This is a great course and Mr. Burns is a great teacher, so if you are interested in income inequality and monopolies, or are just a hardworking student, I would highly recommend this class. 

AP Micro review

I would strongly recomend this class to anyone who enjoys detailed economic analysis and its application to the real world. If the student devotes the necessary time and work into this class, he will not only learn fundamental economic concepts, but he will also learn how to truly think like an economist, a skill that is necessary for success in anything from business, to government, to every day living. In terms of the AP Microeconomics exam, I felt that this class prepared me well for the topics that were tested. I spent approximately 6 hours studying Microeconomics per week, and throughout the duration of the course my interest in the subject continued to grow because, no matter where you go, microeconomics always plays a part in decision making. Even if the people making decisions don't realize it, the concepts presented in this class have significant impact on the way the world opperates. This class gives you the benefit of knowing what specifically goes on behind the scenes of a seemingly simplistic decision.