Business Studies
Business Studies
Welcome to Business Studies!
In the Business Studies department we are passionate about educating students who themselves have a passion for business. Theoretical knowledge and business experience can be passed on by teachers who have worked in organisations across London prior to becoming teachers. Many Business Studies students have left Carshalton Boys to embark on successful careers or moved on to degree level education.
Students will be taught skills that will be useful throughout their school career and well beyond. Effective presentation skills are taught throughout the course; a skill essential for anyone wanting to embark on a career in business. Business literacy is also taught. An understanding of the language of business is central to the course and also of great importance, is a basic understanding of the workings of the UK economy and the wider environment that businesses work within.
Our vision as a department is to produce creative thinkers, who are able to 'work' through problems and deliver solutions, whilst also having the ability to present these solutions with clarity and confidence.
Our Curriculum
Business Studies Curriculum Map
At Key Stage 3 students take Business Studies as a ‘Taster’ subject. During Year 9, students will be taught the Foundation knowledge required to progress further. Topics taught at Key Stage 3 include:
- Market Research
- Financial Viability
- The Marketing Mix
- Business Ownership
- Sources of Capital
Year 9
At the end of Year 9, pupils will have the opportunity to continue to study Business, during which they will be able to progress onto a GCSE course, or the OCR Cambridge Nationals course.
GCSE Business
The Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) in Business is designed to reflect the demands of a modern and evolving business environment, enabling students to develop as commercially minded and enterprising individuals. By studying this course, students gain a deep understanding of business concepts and terminology while learning to apply their knowledge to contemporary issues across local, national, and global contexts. By studying this subject, pupils will develop critical and reflective thinking skills, as well as the ability to solve problems and make informed business decisions using both qualitative and quantitative data.
Year 10 (GCSE)
Year 11 (GCSE)
This qualification has two mandatory units:
Theme 1: Investigating Small Business
This unit is assessed by an exam, lasting 1 hour and 45 minutes, which accounts for 50% of the total GCSE. This unit concentrates on the key concepts and skills involved in starting and running a small business. Students explore the course through the lens of an entrepreneur, learning how to identify business opportunities through market research and how to understand customer needs.
Theme 2: Building a Business
This unit is assessed by an exam, lasting 1 hour and 45 minutes, making up the remaining 50% of the qualification.This unit examines how a business develops beyond the start-up phase and focuses on the decisions required to grow a business. It introduces students to national and global business contexts, exploring how businesses operate on a larger scale.
OCR Cambridge Nationals Enterprise & Marketing
Our OCR Cambridge Nationals Enterprise and Marketing Level 1/2 Certificate qualification is aimed at students who wish to develop applied knowledge and practical skills in enterprise and marketing. It is designed to sit alongside other GCSEs and contains both practical and theoretical elements, which will prepare students for further study of qualifications in enterprise, marketing or business. The Cambridge National in Enterprise and Marketing is graded pass, merit and distinction for Level 1 and pass, merit, distinction and distinction* for Level 2.
This qualification has three mandatory units:
R067: Enterprise and Marketing Concepts
- This is assessed by an exam. In this unit, you will learn about the key factors to consider and activities that need to happen to operate a successful small start-up business.
R068 Design a Business Proposal
- This is assessed by a set assignment. In this unit, you will identify a customer profile for a specific product, complete market research to generate product design ideas, and use financial calculations to propose a pricing strategy and determine the viability of their product proposal.
R069 Market and Pitch a Business Proposal
- This is assessed by a set assignment. In this unit, you will develop pitching skills to be able to pitch your business proposal to an external audience. Finally, you will review your pitching skills and business proposal using the learning, self-assessment and feedback gathered.
Year 10 (Cambridge National)
Year 11 (Cambridge National)
At Key Stage 5 students study the Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate in Business. This qualification will provide learners with the opportunity to develop the core specialist knowledge, skills and understanding required in the business sector through applied learning.
Learners will take five units. There are three mandatory units and two optional units. All pupils will study the following mandatory units:
- The business environment
- Working in business
- Customers and communication
Business Environment will give learners an understanding of the wider external contexts in which businesses operate and of internal business functions and their interdependencies. The unit will allow them to appreciate how legal, financial, ethical and resource constraints can affect business behaviour and the influence that different stakeholders can have and how businesses must respond.
Working in Business will give learners an understanding of the type of critical skills needed when working in business, such as organisation, prioritisation and effective communication. The unit will allow students to learn how to use different business documents and about organisational protocols that most businesses would expect employees to follow.
Customers and Communication will allow learners to appreciate how vital customers are to the success of a business. It will give students an understanding of how important it is for businesses to know their customers and factors that influence customer behaviour. In this unit they will understand how to communicate with customers.
The optional units cover a wide range of topics to give them the opportunity to take a unit that is relevant to a specific aspect of business; for example marketing, accounting, human resources or business planning.
Year 12
Year 13
Destinations
These courses, combined with other qualifications, will provide learners with the skills, knowledge and understanding to progress into Higher Education (HE) on business-related programmes such as Business, Business Management, Marketing, Business and Finance, Business and Economics and Accounting. It will also allow them to choose non-business related degree programmes or take them into employment where they would continue to study.
Subject Leader: Mollie Murphy - mmurphy@carshaltonboys.org