Microeconomics Fundamentals: Free Course

About this course

Scarcity makes choices necessary, and economic models make their tradeoffs explicit. This introductory sequence focuses on opportunity cost, allocation, investment and comparative advantage. Study the complete public source playlist from Khan Academy in English, with all 7 recordings available in the on-site classroom. Lessons retain their original titles and source order, including worked examples, introductions and repeated entries.

Course at a glance

What you’ll learn

• Explain scarcity and the role of a simplified economic model.
• Interpret marginal benefit and allocative efficiency.
• Relate investment to productive capacity.
• Distinguish absolute advantage from comparative advantage.

Skills you’ll gain

• Opportunity cost
• Economic models
• Marginal reasoning
• Comparative advantage

Course Overview

The lessons introduce economics through simplified representations of choices and constraints. Allocative efficiency and marginal benefit connect a decision about one additional unit with the value it provides. Investment is considered in relation to future productive capacity, while scarcity supplies the reason alternatives must be compared in the first place. The trade section distinguishes absolute advantage from comparative advantage and follows specialization through to possible gains from exchange. These concepts form a foundation for later microeconomics topics; the playlist is not a complete treatment of consumer theory, firms and every market structure. Work carefully with the opportunity cost expressed by each example. Producing more in absolute terms and giving up less of another good are different comparisons, so they can lead to different conclusions about specialization.

How to study the course

• Videos 1–1: this part of the source list includes “Economic models” through “Economic models”. List the assumptions of the model. Keep a brief working note, revisit an unclear explanation and test one example before moving to another part of the material.
• Videos 2–3: this part of the source list includes “Introduction to economics” through “Allocative efficiency and marginal benefit”. Identify the participants and incentives. Keep a brief working note, revisit an unclear explanation and test one example before moving to another part of the material.
• Videos 4–5: this part of the source list includes “Economic growth through investment” through “Scarcity”. Compare outcomes after one defined change. Keep a brief working note, revisit an unclear explanation and test one example before moving to another part of the material.
• Videos 6–7: this part of the source list includes “Comparative advantage and absolute advantage” through “Comparative advantage specialization and gains from trade”. Explain a mechanism before making a conclusion. Keep a brief working note, revisit an unclear explanation and test one example before moving to another part of the material.

Who is this for?

This course suits students and interested readers studying the named economic concepts. It also provides a recorded reference for revisiting a topic after an earlier lesson or study attempt. Choose examples appropriate to your background and allow time to work through the method instead of judging understanding only by how familiar the terminology sounds.

Before you start

Basic arithmetic and comfort interpreting a graph are useful. Follow the assumptions of each model rather than treating every simplified example as a real-world prediction.

Put the lessons into practice

Create a two-person, two-good production table with manageable numbers. Compute the opportunity cost of each good for each person, identify comparative advantage and propose terms of trade both could find beneficial. Explain why the result need not follow absolute productivity. Add a short note describing which real-world details your simplified example leaves out.

This optional study activity is provided by WikiFree for independent practice. Keep your working notes and use the relevant classroom recording to check a step, definition or interpretation. It is not an instructor-marked assignment.

Certificate / Assessment

Watching the public videos and using WikiFree completion tracking does not award a certificate, academic credit, an examination voucher or instructor assessment. Use your practice output to review what you can explain and repeat independently. The recorded lessons provide study material; completion tracking records your progress through that material.

Frequently asked questions

Provider: Khan Academy. Videos play from the Khan Academy channel on YouTube.