Connections

• Business studies and other subjects
• Developing learning pathways

Business studies and other subjects

Business studies sits within the social sciences learning area but has strong connections with other learning areas. Business contexts often offer opportunities to integrate learning across a number of different subjects or learning areas.

For example, students often cater for school events. When doing so, they need to apply practical business skills. School can use these opportunities to integrate learning in food technology and business.

Event management offers opportunities for students to act as project managers, drawing on skills they are learning in the business studies classroom.

Opportunities exist for links to be made between business studies and performing arts programmes. Performing arts students regularly stage events that require marketing, budgeting, and money handling.

Foundation learning in literacy and numeracy can make use of business-related contexts. For example, the price component of the marketing mix for a product can be an authentic context for numeracy.

Integrated learning can be planned for in either of two ways:

• business studies teachers join with teachers from other curriculum areas to jointly plan learning
• teachers in other curriculum areas teach business-related learning as part of their regular programme.

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Developing learning pathways

As well as exposing students to a range of possible careers, learning in business connects students to mentors and to the business community. These connections can be further developed as students enter the workforce and progress in their own business careers.

All students who take business studies gain knowledge, skills, and attributes that they will need should they become entrepreneurs, run their own business, or become involved in a business or community organisation.

Some students may pursue business or commerce-related qualifications at polytechnic, wānanga, or university.

Students who do not opt for further qualifications or take up a career in business will be more knowledgeable consumers and better able to manage personal or household finances as a result of their learning in business studies.

The skills students learn in business studies are transferable to learning in many other areas, and to real life.

Last updated November 29, 2011

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