A Level Business Studies

Overview of the course

The A level Business Studies course aims to provide students with an understanding and appreciation of business and its role in society. Students are provided with a variety of perspectives and are required to draw on a range of interrelated disciplines to illustrate this.

The AS Level covers: Business and the Environment in which it Operates; People in Organisations; Marketing; Operations Management; Business Finance; Business Accounting and Information for Decision Making.

A2 level supplements the subject matter delivered at AS level. Students are provided with a more comprehensive study of AS topics but will also develop higher level skills and will be expected to demonstrate an extended level of knowledge and understanding.

How is the teaching adapted to suit the needs of Chinese students?

Chinese students generally have a good understanding of business studies material. However, they often struggle to apply the higher level skills required at A level and commonly have difficulty relating their knowledge to a given business context or situation. The scheme of work has been developed to encourage and enhance these skills. A range of suggested teaching resources has been provided for many of the required learning outcomes, including news articles, case studies and video clips. These are excellent supplementary materials that provide students with the opportunity to recognise how knowledge gained in the classroom can be applied to varying 'real life' business situations. It is also suggested that individual teachers make reference to past paper case studies during their lessons where discussion, collaboration and group work can be used to develop analysis and evaluation skills.

Resources

The scheme of work provides a collection of resources and reference material that can be used where appropriate by individual teachers. All centres have a collection of additional A-level textbooks. A number of CDs containing additional teaching resources have also been made available across the centres. ICT equipment including projectors, laptops or desktops are available in all schools.

Other information

A-level Business Studies introduces students to the world of business in a straightforward, logical and practical way. While this course provides a solid grounding for the study of Business at degree level, it must also be noted that many of today's science and technology based courses involve a combination of technical knowledge and business skills. Many engineering and physical science courses often contain management or business-based modules. An A-level Business Studies qualification allows students not only to gain an understanding of the environment in which the commercial world operates but to enter university with a range of skills including evaluation, decision-making and problem solving.