SBEA Conference 2010

Yesterday I attended the SBEA conference held in Inveralmond Community High School in Livingston.

The number of delegates was incredible! It is comforting to know that so many people care about our subject and are willing to give up their free Saturday (some even pay for the conference out of their own pocket and not through departmental budgets) to come to the national conference.

Strangely enough a pupil asked me on Friday "Why would you give up your Saturday if you're not getting paid".

Perhaps if more pupils, parents, politicians and (news)papers - our very own 4 Ps! - realised just how many teachers in general give up their own free time either preparing or marking or attending CPD events etc then we would perhaps be viewed in a different light at times.

I thought the conference went really well and there was a good choice of options for delegates to choose from. It was a worthwhile Saturday - even if some do not view it as so.

SBEA Mini Conference - Inveralmond, Livingston

Attended the SBEA mini conference where there was a great discussion/engagement with an SQA rep over the future curriculum, in particular about wha shape National 4 and 5 qualifications would take.

It was unanimous among the Business Teachers that we wish to keep FOUR discrete subjects that will offer progression to the four Highers and then on to University/College.

It could even be argued that Business may have four different subjects but then perhaps should we have more (ie Marketing, Operations, Finance, Human Resources)? Or should we even be four different departments?

Or should Business subjects even be core? St Paul's High in Glasgow had Administration as a core subject, delivering ICT skills.

Another fantastic idea bandied about was to offer a Business Baccalaureate.

Business subjects are hugely popular in Higher and Further Education.

What future courses could we or should we offer?

We currently offer:

Administration
Accounting and Finance
Business Management
Economics

I would like the name Administration ditched and be replaced with either Business Administration or the more common one used at Uni, Business Information Technology.

Also for Business Management I would like to see a proper Case Study being involved in some form of assessment, as well as a mark for presentation. After all at uni every week in tutorials/seminars we had to study case studies and present back to the tutor, most times as a group. We gained some final marks through this.

Business subjects can deliver ALL the major skills required by employers:

- Literacy
- Numeracy
- Problem Solving
- People Skills (Interpersonal Skills)
- Communication Skills
- Presenting Skills
- Research & Analytical Skills
- ICT skills
- Leadership skills
- Team Working skills

Well, we are preparing pupils for industry! Every subject can be related to Business because every subject has equivalent jobs at the end of it!

Certainly food for thought.