WHY ARE WE TEACHING A KNOWLEDGE-RICH CURRICULUM; HOW IS IT DIFFERENT?

Our business curriculum is designed so that pupils can understand how different types of businesses operate in a competitive environment. The knowledge rich curriculum uses a business process approach which gives pupils a framework to develop a rich understanding of how businesses operate. A key aim of this curriculum is to help pupils come to appreciate how businesses determine their structure, market their products and recruit their staff. The course also looks at how businesses choose where to produce their goods in the market they operate. Students learn how financial considerations determine profit levels.  This knowledge will enable students to engage in the business world and perhaps consider starting their own business. 

WHY ARE WE TEACHING THIS CONTENT?

Students are following the OCR Business GCSE 9-1 course. There are two main considerations that help us choose what we teach: 1) content that will help pupils come to understand the discipline of Business so they can eventually apply their knowledge to Business situations and 2) skills which students could use to solve Business problems such as profit and loss accounts and break-even points.  

WHY ARE WE TEACHING IT IN THIS ORDER?

Our curriculum is mainly delivered in the order suggested by OCR. This is a logical order which looks at business structure, marketing and recruitment before looking at production, finance and influences on business. Everything is brought together in a final unit called the interdependent nature of business. 

WHAT DO PUPILS NEED TO REMEMBER AND BE ABLE TO DO IN THIS SUBJECT?

Pupils need to be able to remember and use a wide range of Business vocabulary and business concepts.  As pupils progress through the curriculum, they will be able to analyse and evaluate business activities in case studies. Fundamentally we want students to remember and understand everything that affects the operations of UK businesses in a global market. 

WHAT METHODS DO WE USE TO HELP PUPILS SECURE THIS KNOWLEDGE IN LONG-TERM MEMORY? 

Methods used are quizzing at the start of each lesson, with a mixture of more recent questions but always including questions from previous topics. We regularly practice case study-based questions so that students learn to apply their Business knowledge. As part of this exam practice we focus on demands of the command words used in the examination.

WHAT METHODS DO WE USE TO HELP PUPILS SECURE THIS KNOWLEDGE IN LONG-TERM MEMORY AND APPLY IT IN COMPLEX TASKS?

We draw comparisons and connections between current and previous units so that pupils can find business themes that run throughout. These connections enable them to produce exam answers which analyse and evaluate a range of business actions such as business activity, marketing, recruitment, operations, finance and influences on business.

To view the Business Curriculum Overview click here.

More information on the Business GCSE can be found here.