Business Management & Economics
Taking in the dynamic world of business and finance.
The Business Studies and Economics Department helps pupils to gain an understanding of power structures, resources and decisions that dictate how we live our day-to-day lives.
An eight week course for Transitus pupils sees them learn the basic concepts of economics such as the factors of production and their rewards, entrepreneurship and skills, basic needs and wants, and the national minimum wage. Pupils carry out studies of the local area to gain knowledge of the importance of economics in their daily lives.
The theme of entrepreneurship is developed more closely in a short course for First Year pupils. They learn about business planning, types of business organisations, and marketing and advertising, with pupils having the chance to get involved in hands-on practical business tasks.
A sixteen week course for the Second Year cohort is designed to aid pupils in making an informed choice on whether to study Economics or Business Management in Third Year. Building on what has been studied previously, pupils learn about the circular flow of income, as well as the third sector and gig economy. They also discover more about the differences between private limited and public limited companies, and their importance within the economy.
The National 5 course is studied over two years in Third and Fourth Year, with three units studied: 'Economics of the Market', 'The UK Economy' and 'The Global Economy'. These topics explore the basics of demand and supply, costs of production and personal economics, with a focus on current topics such as government revenue and expenditure, unemployment and inflation, Scotland’s economy and, with a more global focus, exchange rates and multinational corporations. Pupils carry out an assignment in Fourth Year, following their prelim examinations, accounting for a quarter of their overall grade.
Economics
Higher Economics expands on the topics studied at National 5 level, with the depth and breadth of the course becoming substantially more challenging. It is completed in one academic session and includes an assignment that goes towards pupils' overall grades. Topics studied include the importance of the elasticity of demand and understanding the association between costs and profit, different types of unemployment and causes of inflation, and balance of payments and its importance within the UK economy.
The syllabus for Advanced Higher Economics is dependent on the main economic issues of that year. In recent times, High School economists have studied the government's response to COVID-19, the furlough scheme and the quantitative easing by the Bank of England. Although there are some topics that are staples (such as monetary policy and fiscal policy), the actual topics studied will vary from year to year. Those sitting Advanced Higher Economics will work on a dissertation throughout the session, worth a third of their final grade.
Business Management
Higher Business Management sees pupils study an extremely detailed unit called 'Understanding Business' which articulates content they have been exposed to in First Year and Second Year. Other units cover the interesting and important topics of 'Finance', 'Marketing' and 'Human Resources', with pupils coming to understand the importance of cash flow, the seven P's of marketing and recruitment. A business management assignment acts as an integral part of the Higher course.
Pupils start the Advanced Higher Business Management course by working on the 'External Business Environment' unit, covering globalisation and multinational corporations, business ethics and corporate social responsibility. Moving on to the 'Internal Business Environment' topic, pupils learn the management theories of Fayol, Taylor and McGregor before looking at leadership and teams. The third and final unit, 'Evaluating Business Information', allows pupils to use analytical techniques such as force field diagrams and Gantt chart as they evaluate financial information.