Purpose of Assignment

This assignment will introduce students to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data and provide students with the skills to calculate inflation and interpret the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Note: The BLS is the primary source of information on inflation, but their data is re-posted in other sources, such as the St. Louis Federal Reserve FRED site, among others.

Assignment Steps

Resources: Tutorial help on Excel^® and Word functions can be found on the Microsoft^®Office website. There are also additional tutorials via the web offering support for Office products.

Use an internet search or the University Library to locate information on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Internet sites you might find useful include the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Federal Reserve of St. Louis FRED web site although you are allowed to use other sources.

Develop a minimum 700-word analysis of inflation by including the following:

• Choose a product or service you currently consume/use, such as apparel or educational services, that is included in the CPI’s “market basket.” Find the annual CPI index numbers for your chosen good or service for the years 1995, 2005, 2010, and 2015. Enter those index numbers in an Excel^® file and calculate the percent change (inflation rates) in those index numbers from 1995 to 2005, from 1995 to 2010, and from 1995 to 2015.
• Analyze the trends in overall inflation over the last five years and whether your income has kept pace with inflation. How has inflation over the last five years affected you and/or your family?
• Discuss how a business manager, such as a human resources manager, might use CPI statistics.

Cite a minimum of three scholarly, peer-reviewed references.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Shirley Jackson’

Use this rubric to gauge the general success of your reading responses for this course. If you’re looking for strategies for improving your performance in the reading responses, contact me and we’ll schedule a time to chat. I’d be happy to sit down with you and talk about how you might write stronger responses.

Each reading response is scored on a 10-point scale.

Right on Target: Meets the Learning Objective

response should be written clear thoughtful academic prose.

double spaced

choose a specific line or phrase as youre writting a prompt. begin your response with a brief excerpt you have chosen from the text and then use this promt to springboard for reflecting upon that particular passage or some aspect of the authors narrative.

DO NOT INCLUDE THE PASSAGE AS PART OF YOUR WORD COUNT

8.5 points: Good. This level represents proficiency, competence. If you hit this level, you’re doing exactly what I’m looking for. The response demonstrates thoughtful reading; the student’s prose is generally clear and readable; the response is focused on one or two relevant elements of the text; and it meets or exceeds the length guideline (300-400 words).

High Achieving

9 – 10 points: Very Good to Excellent. If you hit this level, you have exceeded my expectations. The response demonstrates sophisticated critical thinking and perceptive reading. It is also very well-written. In other words, the student’s prose is very clear, readable, and well-organized; it is also generally free of grammatical errors and typos. The response is focused on one or two relevant elements of the text, and it meets or exceeds the length guidelines (300-400 words). Note that a 10 is very hard to achieve; responses earning a 10 must demonstrate highly perceptive reading and thinking, and exceptionally clear, compelling writing.

Opportunity for Improvement

7 – 8 points: Almost there. The response demonstrates thoughtful reading, but may be too short, not sufficiently focused on the text itself, and/or difficult to read due to numerous correctable errors.

Below 6 points: Needs work. The response may be late, too short, not sufficiently focused on the text itself, and/or difficult to read due to correctable errors.

4 Black Lives Matter Myths Debunked | Decoded | MTV News (链接到外部网站。)

The Problem w/ White Beauty Standards | Decoded | MTV News (链接到外部网站。)

Watch the videos above a couple times each. You can click on CC to watch them with captions.

Then answer the following questions with a paragraph:

1. For the Black Lives Matter video:

A. What are the four myths the video host hopes to disprove?

B. Did she do a good job? Explain.

C. Do you feel videos such as this one will make young people more aware of societal issues? Explain.

2. For the second video “The Problem with White Beauty Standards:”

A. What do they say the problems are?

B. What do they say about clothing billboards in China?

C. What did she say about how her family photo was filtered?

D. Why do they argue that more representation is needed?

E. Do you agree with them? Explain.

Rubrics

• AU_Discussion Grading Rubric

Module 1 – Case

ACCOUNTING COST SYSTEMS AND COST BEHAVIOR

Assignment Overview

Preparation of an Income Statement for The Serious Reader Company

The first case of this course provides an opportunity to prepare a segmented variable costing (contribution margin, behavioral) income statement and analyze the information. This is a very small company and the information may seem simplistic at first glance. Don’t forget that numbers and hands-on practice best illustrate many basic accounting concepts.

The Serious Reader Company is a small online retailer operating out of a garage apartment. The owner buys books at garage sales, thrift shops, library sales, and whenever an opportunity arises. The company classifies all books into five categories based on cost of acquisition and estimated sales price. See below for details about books purchased and sold during the last year (20XX).

In addition to purchasing inventory (used books), the company incurs some operating expenses.

Case Assignment

Required:

Computations (use Excel)

• Prepare a segmented variable costing (behavioral) income statement for the company in good format.
• Prepare a second variable costing statement assuming 90% of all the books in each category purchased were actually sold.
• Prepare a third variable costing statement assuming that the price is increased by 50% for all five categories (use original sales information).
• The owner enjoys the used-book business. Any suggestions as how to turn this into a full-time business venture so the owner can quit his other job? Prepare another income statement to support your idea.

Memo (use Word)

Interpret the results from the computations and explain how the information is useful. Write a 4- or 5-paragraph memo to the owner of the business. Start with an introduction and end with a recommendation. Each of the four or five paragraphs should have a heading.

Short essay to comment on the questions below (use Word). Start with an introduction and end with a summary or conclusion. Use headings. Maximum length of two pages.

• Why do many organizations make the effort to prepare a different type of income statement for internal purposes?
• Variable costing is not just about preparing income statements. Provide at least three scenarios in which understanding how costs behave is useful.

Assignment Expectations

Each submission should include two files: (1) An Excel file; and (2) A Word document. The Word document shows the memo first and short essay last. Assume a knowledgeable business audience and use required format and length. Individuals in business are busy and want information presented in an organized and concise manner.