Assessment:
1. Donna has three children. Distinguish whether each of Donna’s wants is a good or service and why
she would want them for her children.
Donna’s Wants Why does Donna want this item?
automobile (good, to transport herself and her children to work and school)
cable television (service, to entertain herself and her children)
clothing (good, to provide warmth and be stylish)
doctor’s visit (service, to stay healthy)
electricity (service, to run lights and appliances)
groceries (good, to eat and drink)
checking out library books (service, to learn and be entertained)
toys (good, to play with and have fun)
2. A class is deciding how to share a cake. The class is made up of 1 male teacher, 14 boys, and 10 girls.
Examine each proposal for sharing the cake, infer which proposal is the most fair to everyone and defend
your choice.
a. The teacher gets ½ the cake, and the students share the other half.
b. Boys share ½ of the cake, and girls shares the other half.
c. Everyone with A’s and B’s gets a big piece, everyone with C’s and D’s gets a small piece, and
everyone with an F gets no cake.
All of the proposals have pros and cons.
Proposal A is more fair than B or C because having a college degree is desirable, gives status,
and is difficult to earn, but Proposal A also gives half of the cake to the teacher and forces all of
the students to share the other half.
Proposal B is more fair than A or C because it divides the cake most equitably by the number of
people, but Proposal B also forces 15 males to share ½ the cake and 10 females to share the same
amount.
Proposal C is more fair than A or B because it recognizes the accomplishments of the students
and rewards good grades, but Proposal C also does not allow F students to receive a piece of
cake, and also doesn’t allow the teacher to have any cake because he doesn’t earn grades!
3. Why do people trade goods and services with each other? (People trade goods and services so
they can obtain something they want by trading something they want less.)
4. Explain why each of these people will be better off after trading.
a. Carlos has a pack of pens and he wants a new eraser. Susan has several erasers but needs
something to write with.
b. Paul and Tara each have a bag of candy. Paul’s favorite color is red, and Tara’s favorite color is green.
c. Michael is a math whiz but has a broken bicycle. Cheryl is good at fixing bicycles and needs help with
math.
(Carlos and Susan should trade so that they each have erasers and something to write with. Paul