Business

Reasons why you should study Business at Sheffield Girls'

Business is a subject that gives students the opportunity to develop a wide range of transferable skills. Students will become skilled in making decisions, being creative, solving problems, understanding finance, analysing data and working as part of a team. They will not only gain business knowledge and understanding, but will gain the opportunity to put it into practise through a range of business activities and projects. Business gives pupils the opportunity to understand the world that we live in and to become more aware of global issues and events.

GCSE Business is a good choice for students who.

· Can communicate effectively and explain ideas.

· Are creative thinkers and can make decisions.

· Like working with numbers to solve business problems

· Take an interest in the wider business world considering both national and international brands.

GCSE Business - Curriculum 

GCSE Business is a two-year course during which you will explore the issues faced by entrepreneurs in starting a business, right through to those facing senior managers working in large corporations. In Year 10 you will be investigating small businesses and the issues those looking to start a business face. In Year 11 you will explore the issues faced when growing a business, using local and national organisations as case studies.

GCSE Course Content Summary

In Year 10 Students will cover Theme 1 which concentrates on the key business concepts, issues and skills involved in starting and running a small business. It provides a framework for students to explore core concepts through the lens of an entrepreneur setting up a business.

Theme 1 comprises five topic areas.

Topic 1.1 Enterprise and entrepreneurship – students are introduced to the dynamic nature of business in relation to how and why business ideas come about. They also explore the impact of risk and reward on business activity and the role of entrepreneurship.

Topic 1.2 Spotting a business opportunity – students will explore how new and small businesses identify opportunities through understanding customer needs and conducting market research. They will also focus on understanding the competition.

Topic 1.3 Putting a business idea into practice – this topic focuses on making a business idea happen through identifying aims and objectives and concentrating on the financial aspects.

Topic 1.4 Making the business effective – students will explore a range of factors that impact on the success of the business, including location, the marketing mix and the business plan.

Topic 1.5 Understanding external influences on business – students are introduced to a range of factors, many of which are outside of the immediate control of the business, such as stakeholders, technology, legislation and the economy. Students will explore how businesses respond to these influences.

In Year 11 students will cover Theme 2 which examines how a business develops beyond the start-up phase. It focuses on the key business concepts, issues and decisions used to grow a business, with emphasis on aspects of marketing, operations, finance and human resources. Theme 2 also considers the impact of the wider world on the decisions a business makes as it grows.

Theme 2 comprises five topic areas.

Topic 2.1 Growing the business – students are introduced to methods of growth and how and why business aims and objectives change as businesses evolve. The impact of globalisation and the ethical and environmental questions facing businesses are explored.

Topic 2.2 Making marketing decisions – students will explore how each element of the marketing mix is managed and used to inform and make business decisions in a competitive marketplace.

Topic 2.3 Making operational decisions – this topic focuses on meeting customer needs through the design, supply, quality and sales decisions a business makes.

Topic 2.4 Making financial decisions – students will explore the tools a business has to support financial decision making, including ratio analysis and the use and limitation of a range of financial information.

Topic 2.5 Making human resource decisions – growing a business means that decisions relating to organisational structure, recruitment, training and motivation need to be made to influence business activity. These aspects are considered in this final topic.

Super Curricular Opportunities 

The department has an extensive super curricular offer.

We offer a range of business trips to local and national organisations including JCB, Jaguar Land Rover and Alton Towers. We also run an international trip to New York every two to three years.

We have an extensive number of business speakers who come into lessons and talk about how what is being learnt in the classroom applies to their business and the decisions they make.

We also offer a wide range of competitions and regularly achieve success at regional and national level.

Currently we offer the following competitions.

· Girls are Investors – teams will be allocated a mentor from a London based investment bank who they will work with to analyse a business and make a recommendation over whether to buy, sell or hold shares in the business.

· Wings of Hope Achievement Award – a fund-raising challenge which aims to support schools for disadvantaged children in India and Malawi

· Young Financial Journalist – students must write an article on a given topic which could be published in The Times

The Department 

Mrs Taylor – Head of Year and Senior Examiner for Edexcel Business. Mrs Taylor has a wealth of experience and is a team leader for Edexcel GCSE Business. She has extensive contacts with local businesses and regularly organises visiting speakers.

Mr Coote - Head of Department at Sheffield Girls’ since joining the school in 2014. He is a current examiner for OCR Economics and also quality assures examination papers. Mr Coote runs the Wings of Hope Achievement Award super curricular offer for Year 10.