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A level Business Years 12 & 13

Specification

AQA - The specification and assessment structure can be found at the link: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/business-subjects/as-and-a-level/business-7131-7132

Business is about analysing and evaluating the decisions that businesses make in the real world.  To be able to do this well, students must be able to use the knowledge that they learn throughout the course.  They must pull apart the advantages and disadvantages of decisions, the factors effecting the decisions and be able to recommend strategies for real businesses to follow.

The Business course aims to:

  • Develop an enthusiasm for studying business.
  • Gain holistic understanding of business in a range of contexts.
  • Develop a critical understanding of organisations and their ability to meet society’s needs and wants.
  • Understand that business behaviour can be studied from a range of perspectives.
  • Generate enterprising and creative approaches to business opportunities, problems and issues.
  • Be aware of the ethical dilemmas and responsibilities faced by organisations and individuals.
  • Acquire a range of relevant business and generic skills, including decision making, problem solving, the challenging of assumptions and critical analysis
  • Apply numerical skills in a range of business contexts.

Students do not need to have studied Business before but those who have a GCSE in Business will find the approach very similar, although the content more demanding.

Topics to be covered:

  • What is business?
  • Managers, leadership and decision making.
  • Decision making to improve marketing performance.
  • Decision making to improve operational performance.
  • Decision making to improve financial performance.
  • Decision making to improve human resource performance.
  • Analysing the strategic position of a business.
  • Choosing strategic direction.
  • Strategic methods: how to pursue strategies.
  • Managing strategic change.

Examination Assessment Overview

  Business 1 Business 2 Business 3
What is assessed? All content above All content above All content above
Examination

2 hours
100 marks in total
33.3% of A Level

2 hours
100 marks in total
33.3% of A Level

2 hours
100 marks in total
33.3% of A Level

Questions

Three compulsory sections. Section A has 15 multiple choice questions worth 15 marks.
Section B has short answer questions worth 35 marks.
Sections C and D have two essay questions worth 25 marks each

Three data response compulsory questions worth approximately 33 marks each and made up of three or four part questions. One compulsory case study followed by approximately six questions.

Year 12

  Topic Further details about the topic Skills
Autumn Term
1

What is business?

Managers, leadership and decision making

Why businesses exist, the measurement and importance of profit, reasons for choosing different forms of business, the role of shareholders, how the external environment can affect costs and demand

Understanding management, leadership and decision making, understanding management decision making, understanding the role and importance of stakeholders

Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
2

Decision making to improve marketing performance

Decision making to improve operational performance

Setting marketing objectives, understanding markets and customers, making marketing decisions: segmentation, targeting, positioning, making marketing decisions: using the marketing mix

Setting operational objectives, analysing operational performance, increasing efficiency and productivity, improving quality, managing inventory and supply chains

Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
Spring Term
1

Decision making to improve financial performance

Decision making to improve human resource performance

Setting financial objectives, analysing financial performance, sources of finance, improving cash flow and profits

 

Setting human resource objectives, improving organisational design and managing the human resource flow improving motivation and engagement, improving employer-employee relations

Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
2

Finish HR

Revision for AS Business examinations

Scrutiny of past papers and mark schemes

Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation

Summer Term
1 Analysing the external environment to assess opportunities and threats Economic change, corporate objectives, financial documents Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
2

Analysing the external environment to assess opportunities and threats

AS exams (internally assessed)

Economic change, corporate objectives, financial documents Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation

Year 13

  Topic Further details about the topic Skills
Autumn Term
1 Analysing the strategic direction of a business Mission, corporate objectives and strategy, financial ratio analysis, SWOT analysis, political and legal change, social, economic and technological change and investment appraisal Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
2

Analysing the strategic direction of a business (continued)

How to pursue strategies

Choosing strategic direction

Managing strategic change

Methods of growth and economies of scale, assessing innovation, digital technology and internationalisation.

Ansoff’s matrix, Porter’s generic strategy and Bowman’s strategic clock

Organisational culture, managing strategic implementation, evaluating strategy and why it fails

Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
Spring Term
1

Managing strategic change (continued)

Choosing strategic direction (continued)

Organisational culture, managing strategic implementation, evaluating strategy and why it fails Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
2 Revision of Year 1 and Year 2 content Scrutiny of exemplar papers and mark schemes in preparation for the linear examinations Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation
Summer Term
1 Revision of Year 1 and Year 2 content Scrutiny of exemplar papers and mark schemes in preparation for the linear examinations Knowledge, application, analysis and evaluation

Assessments

Resources Topic Type of assessment
CAT 1 All areas covered in term 1 Exam paper
CAT 2 All areas covered in Year 12 Exam paper
CAT 3 AS Business syllabus paper 1 and 2 Mock exam
CAT 4 Strategic direction Exam paper
CAT 5 Paper 1 and 2 Exam paper
CAT 6 Paper 3 Mock exam

Main Resources

Resource Details Term
Text books and support materials

AQA AS Business Studies by Wolinski – ISBN 9781471836107

AQA A2 Business Studies by Wolinski

Workbooks, Tutor2u PPTs

All
Recommended reading A quality newspaper All
Recommended websites

www.bized.co.uk

www.tutor2u.net

www.businessstudiesonline.co.uk

www.businesscasestudies.co.uk

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business/

All

Enrichment opportunities

Activity Day and time or term
   

Where Next

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