Business & Economics

The impact of business and economic activity on our world is unquestionable, and an understanding of how businesses operate is crucial to making some sense of the complex society we live in.

The Business curriculum at Key Stage 4 and 5 gives students the opportunity to explore the fundamentals of entrepreneurship as they engage in the development of new products and tackle the challenges of a new business start-up.

The Economics curriculum at Key Stage 5 aims to provide our students with an understanding of their place in a dynamic and evolving global economy.

Within either discipline, the curriculum encourages students to be multivisionary and able to look at problems from many different perspectives. Students will be challenged to consider the moral or ethical problems and principles which arise when making decisions. The curriculum will make certain that students know about our world and will challenge them to consider how best to live in this world.

Key Stage 4 Business

Course content

Students will consider the practical application of theory, the course is designed to give students the opportunity to explore business concepts, issues and how businesses work. The knowledge and skills gained from the course will give students a firm foundation for further study.

Hours taught by week – 3

Curriculum Journey

Exam Board – Pearson

Specification

Assessment

Exam (1.75 hours)	Investigating small business	50% of qualification
Exam (1.75 hours)	Building a business	50% of qualification

Key Stage 5 Business level 2 extended certificate

Course content

The aim of this course is to develop students’ knowledge and understanding by applying their learning and skills in a work-related context. Additionally, this qualification engages learners to take responsibility for their own learning and to develop skills that are essential for the modern-day workplace. These skills include: team working; working from a prescribed brief; working to deadlines; presenting information effectively; and accurately completing administrative tasks and processes.

Exam board – Edexcel

Specification

Assessment – Two External Exams, Ten Written Assignments, Presentations and Role plays

Key Stage 5 Business A Level

Course content

The A level Business course is structured into four themes and consists of three externally examined papers. Stu-dents are introduced to business in Themes 1 and 2 through building knowledge of core business concepts and applying them to business contexts to develop a broad understanding of how businesses work. Breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding, with applications to a wider range of contexts and more complex busi-ness information, are developed in Themes 3 and 4, requiring students to take a more strategic view of business opportunities and issues. Students are encouraged to use an enquiring, critical and thoughtful approach to the study of business, to understand that business behaviour can be studied from a range of perspectives and to challenge assumptions.

Exam board – Edexcel

Specification

Assessment

Exam (2 hours)	Marketing, people and global businesses	35% of qualification
Exam (2 hours)	Business activities, decisions and strategy	35% of qualification
Exam (2 hours)	Investigating business in a competitive environment	30% of qualification

Key Stage 5 Economics A Level

Course content

The study of Economics is concerned with the allocation of scarce resources and the decisions which then have to be made by individuals, businesses and governments when allocating these resources. It looks at the trade-offs involved in making these decisions and tools that can be used to help in the decision making process. The course is spilt into two distinct categories – the focus on the microeco-nomic factors and the focus on the macroeconomic factors.

As part of the final assessment students will be required to demonstrate quantitative as well as quali-tative skills. Therefore it is vital that students have a strong basis in Maths and English.

Students will be assessed at the end of year 13 through three exams which will assess the content covered over the two years.

Curriculum Learning Journey

Exam board – Edexcel

Specification

Assessment

Exam (2 hours)	Markets and business behaviour	35% of qualification
Exam (2 hours)	The national and global economy	35% of qualification
Exam (2 hours)	Microeconomics and macroeconomics	30% of qualification