New GCSE - details for students and parents

From September 2009 the economics and business department will offer a new business studies and economics GCSE.

The GCSE, taught over 2 years, will allow students to engage actively in the study of both subjects and will develop skills such as building arguments and making informed judgements. Students will be encouraged to adopt a critical approach to the subjects, and appreciate different perspectives on business and economics issues.

The course is modular. Students will be assessed at various points throughout the two years and will be able to ‘bank’ their results or re-sit depending on their performance.

The course provides an excellent introduction to both business studies and economics and provides a rigorous preparation for the study of either or both subjects at A Level.

The first unit of the course provides an introduction to small business and focuses on the issues involved in setting up a business. It involves the study of entrepreneurs, how business ideas are put into practice, how business start-ups can be made effective and the economic environment in which businesses operate. It is examined by multiple-choice and objective test questions and can be sat online. Students will sit this exam at the end of Year 10 (the fourth form). This exam makes up 25% of their GCSE.

The second unit allows students to investigate a small business of their own choosing under controlled conditions in the classroom. Students are allowed six hours of research time and three hours of writing time. They are given a choice of five tasks:

Task 1: What are the most important qualities that an entrepreneur needs to possess, in order to start up and run a business successfully?

Task 2: What is the most important way in which a business you have chosen competes with its rivals?

Task 3: What is the most important way in which a business you have chosen motivates its workers?

Task 4: What is the most important element of the marketing mix to a business you have chosen?

Task 5: To what extent have recent changes in interest rates affected the business you have chosen to investigate?

This unit is marked internally and moderated by the exam board and makes up 25% of the total GCSE mark. It can be done in Year 10 (fourth form) but is more likely to be done in Year 11 (fifth form).

The final unit of the GCSE focuses entirely on economics and involves the study of a wide range of economic issues, including how markets work, international trade and exchange rates, monopoly power, how the economy is managed by governments and central banks, and debates related to economic growth, the environment and global inequality. The exam makes up 50% of the total GCSE mark and is a mixture of multiple-choice, short- and extended- answers and data response questions. Students will sit the exam at the end of Year 11 (fifth form).

Students and parents wanting to find out more about the new GCSE in business studies and economics may find these online documents useful:

The specification
Sample question papers
Student guide – page 1 and page 2
e-spec and guide

The economics and business department will be producing its own short guide to the new GCSE course shortly along with an outline scheme of work for each of the two years of the course.