Business
Business A Level is an exceptionally useful course as it has a practical and academic benefit. Business equips students to understand the factors affecting businesses and helps them gain a head start in future careers in a range of organisations. We examine the internal structure of a range of businesses, looking at areas including marketing, finance, production and personnel. We also examine external forces that affect businesses, such as recession, and the strategies they can adopt to achieve their business goals.
At Kimbolton, we have an interactive teaching style which applies the analytical tools to both small and prominent businesses. Our weekly news sheets help us to examine both amusing and serious business events. We organise trips and encourage extra-curricular involvement in various competitions. We also have an enviable track record of success in creating real businesses via business competitions.
We are proud of our recent record of 'value-added' in public examinations.
Departmental Staff
Curriculum
Sixth Form – A Level optional subject
We follow the AQA Business syllabus. There is no coursework or controlled assessment. The three examinations are:
- Paper 1 - Fifteen multiple choice, short questions and two essays.
- Paper 2 - three data response questions based on real companies.
- Paper 3 - six questions based on a major case study.
The course emphasises the study of real businesses and current business issues, and our teaching uses real business example, role play, and discussion of topical issues appearing in the news. A weekly news sheet looks at current issues and stories from the sublimely powerful like Apple, to the ridiculous, like sheep-poo-paper. Businesses range from fashion to football, chocolate to cars, guitars to groceries so current lifestyles and trends are examined through the course. There are visits to real businesses to see principles in operation first hand.
The course will consider issues including: do world forces such as Chinese competitiveness threaten UK jobs?; does the Internet threaten the survival of the high street?; have some firms become too powerful, e.g. Amazon?; can UK firms be a force for good, ethically and environmentally, e.g. Lush?
Practically, you will learn how to: generate business ideas, set up and run your own business; understand the psychology behind motivating and managing others; construct a convincing business plan; manage your career, devise and defend strategies to run your business.
Kimbolton 7th Period Super Curriculum: We will dig deeper behind current news stories, including debates and discussion. We will also practise strategic decision making and prepare for competitions such as the BASE competition. It gives us the opportunity to play some Business strategy games and hear and question local businessmen and women.
Extra-Curricular Activities
- Many of our students choose to participate in the Peter Jones Young Tycoon scheme in which students run their own business. We have an excellent track record of success in entrepreneurial competitions.
Regular Trips, Visitors and Competitions
- We enter the BASE competition and have been to the National Finals three times, most recently winning the Adaptability Award in 2019.
- We run trips to businesses such as JCB, ABB and Jaguar LandRover.