International Business Fundamentals, Grade 12, University/College Preparation (BBB4M)

A1 demonstrate an understanding of terminology, concepts, and basic business communication practices related to international business;

A2 analyse the impact of international business activity on Canada’s economy

A3 demonstrate an understanding of how international business and economic activities increase the interdependence of nations.

B1 analyse ways in which Canadian businesses have been affected by globalization;;

B2. demonstrate an understanding of the factors that influence a country’s ability to participate in international business;

B3. assess the effects of current trends in global business activity and economic conditions.

C1 analyse the ways in which cultural factors influence international business methods and operations;

C2. assess the ways in which political, economic, and geographic factors influence international business methods and operations;;

C3. identify and describe common mistakes made by businesses in international markets

C4: evaluate the factors currently affecting the international competitiveness of Canadian businesses

D1. assess the challenges facing a business that wants to market a product internationally;

D2. compare the approaches taken by various companies to market their products internationallyl;

D3. demonstrate an understanding of the logistics of, and challenges associated with, distribution to local, national, and international markets.

E1 analyse the ways in which ethical considerations affect international business decisions

E2. assess the working environment in international markets

E3. demonstrate an understanding of the process for crossing international borders as it relates to international business

Students learn best when they are engaged in a variety of ways of learning. Business studies courses lend themselves to a wide range of approaches in that they require students to discuss issues, solve problems using applications software, participate in business simulations, conduct research, think critically, work cooperatively, and make business decisions. When students are engaged in active and experiential learning strategies, they tend to retain knowledge for longer periods and to develop meaningful skills. Active and experiential learning strategies also enable students to apply their knowledge and skills to real-life issues and situations. Some of the teaching and learning strategies that are suitable to material taught in business studies are the use of case studies and simulations, teamwork, brainstorming, mind mapping, problem solving, decision making, independent research, personal reflection, seminar presentations, direct instruction, portfolios, and hands-on applications. In combination, such approaches promote the acquisition of knowledge, foster positive attitudes towards learning, and encourage students to become lifelong learners. Since the over-riding aim of this course is to develop an accounting literacy in all students, a wide variety of instructional strategies are used to provide learning opportunities to accommodate a variety of learning styles, interests and ability levels. These include

Assessment is a systematic process of collecting information or evidence about student learning. Evaluation is the judgment we make about the assessments of student learning based on established criteria. The purpose of assessment is to improve student learning. This means that judgments of student performance must be criterion-referenced so that feedback can be given that includes clearly expressed next steps for improvement. Tools of varying complexity are used by the teacher to facilitate this. For the more complex evaluations, the criteria are incorporated into a rubric where levels of performance for each criterion are stated in language that can be understood by students.

Assessment is embedded within the instructional process throughout each unit rather than being an isolated event at the end. Often, the learning and assessment tasks are the same, with formative assessment provided throughout the unit. In every case, the desired demonstration of learning is articulated clearly and the learning activity is planned to make that demonstration possible. This process of beginning with the end in mind helps to keep focus on the expectations of the course as stated in the course guideline. The evaluations are expressed as a percentage based upon the levels of achievement.

The assessment will be based on the following processes that take place in the classroom:

Some of the approaches to teaching/learning include

The evaluation of this course is based on the four Ministry of Education achievement categories of knowledge and understanding (25%), thinking (25%), communication (25%), and application (25%). The evaluation for this course is based on the student’s achievement of curriculum expectations and the demonstrated skills required for effective learning.

The percentage grade represents the quality of the student’s overall achievement of the expectations for the course and reflects the corresponding level of achievement as described in the achievement chart for the discipline.

A credit is granted and recorded for this course if the student’s grade is 50% or higher. The final grade for this course will be determined as follows:

• 70% of the grade will be based upon evaluations conducted throughout the course. This portion of the grade will reflect the student’s most consistent level of achievement throughout the course, although special consideration will be given to more recent evidence of achievement.

• 30% of the grade will be based on a final exam administered at the end of the The exam will contain a summary of information from the course and will consist of well-formulated multiple-choice questions. These will be evaluated using a checklist.

Textbook

• International Business – Canada and Global Trade; Mike Schultz, David Notman, Ruth Hernder; Nelson

Potential Resources

• Lab simulation software
• Various internet websites

The areas of concern to all teachers that are outlined in the Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 to 12: Program Planning and Assessment, 2000 include the following:

• Instructional Approaches
• Health and Safety in Science
• Planning Science Programs for Students with Special Education Needs
• Program Considerations for English Language Learners
• Environmental Education
• Antidiscrimination Education
• Critical Thinking and Critical Literacy in Science
• Literacy, Mathematical Literacy, and Investigation (Inquiry/Research) Skills
• The Role of Information and Communications Technology in Science
• The Ontario Skills Passport and Essential Skills
• Career Education
• Cooperative Education
• Planning Program Pathways and Programs Leading to a Specialist High Skills Major

Student come to the secondary school with a natural curiosity as well as individual interests and abilities within their diverse personal and cultural experiences. Effective instructional approaches and learning activities in Science draw upon their prior knowledge, capture their interest and encourages meaningful practice especially when the student sees a connection between the scientific concepts they are learning the their real-world application. Students are provided with opportunities to learn in a variety of ways. From a solid understanding of scientific concepts, the scientific method is employed to enable the student to investigate their world. The context for all learning in Science comes from the Relating Science to Technology, Society and the Environment (STSE) expectations.

The Science program develops analytical skills of students explore a variety of concepts in the real world. Various kinds of health and safety issues can arise when student engage in different learning activities. Teachers must always model safe practices at all times and communicate safety expectations to students. Teachers who provide support for students in workplace learning placements

need to assess placements for safety and ensure that students can read and understand the importance of issues relating to health and safety in the workplace. Teachers must also ensure that students have the knowledge and skills for safe participation in Science activities.

Class room teachers who play a key role in educating students with special education needs, have responsibilities to work collaboratively with special education resource teachers to achieve education goals. In planning courses in Science, teachers should take into account the needs of exceptional students as set out in their Individual Education Plan. In planning science courses for students with special education needs, teachers should begin by examining the current achievement level of the individual student, the strengths and learning needs of the student, and the knowledge and skills that all students are expected to demonstrate at the end of the course, in order to determine which of the following options is appropriate for the student: (a) no accommodations or modifications; or (b) accommodations only; or (c) modified expectations, with the possibility of accommodations. If the student requires either accommodations or modified expectations, or both, the relevant information, as described in the following paragraphs, must be recorded in his or her Individual Education Plan (IEP).

English language learners (students who are learning English as a second or additional language in English-language schools) bring a rich diversity of background knowledge and experience to the classroom. These students’ linguistic and cultural backgrounds not only support their learning in their new environment but also become a cultural asset in the classroom community. With exposure to the English language in a supportive learning environment, most young children will develop oral fluency quite quickly, making connections between concepts and skills acquired in their first language and similar concepts and skills presented in English. However, oral fluency is not a good indicator of a student’s knowledge of vocabulary or sentence structure, reading comprehension, or other aspects of language proficiency that play an important role in literacy development and academic success. When learning expectations in any course are modified for an English language learner (whether the student is enrolled in an ESL or ELD course or not), this information must be clearly indicated on the student’s report card.

As noted in Shaping Our Schools, Shaping Our Future: Environmental Education in Ontario Schools, environmental education “is the responsibility of the entire education community. It is a content area and can be taught. It is an approach to critical thinking, citizenship, and personal responsibility, and can be modeled. It is a context that can enrich and enliven education in all subject areas, and offer students the opportunity to develop a deeper connection with themselves, their role in society, and their interdependence on one another and the earth’s natural systems” (p. 10). The increased emphasis on relating science to technology, society, and the environment (STSE) within this curriculum document provides numerous opportunities for teachers to integrate environmental education effectively into the curriculum. The STSE expectations provide meaningful contexts for applying what has been learned about the environment, for thinking critically about issues related to the environment, and for considering personal action that can be taken to protect the environment.

The science program provides students with access to materials that reflect diversity with respect to gender, race, culture, and ability. Diverse groups of people involved in scientific activities and careers should be prominently featured. The examples used to illustrate knowledge and skills, and the practical applications and topics that students explore as part of the learning process, should vary so that they appeal to both boys and girls and relate to students’ diverse backgrounds, interests, and experiences. Although it is impossible to anticipate every contingency, teachers should be open to adjusting their instruction, if feasible, when concerns are brought to their attention. It is important that learning

activities include opportunities for students to describe, study, or research how women and men from a variety of backgrounds, including Aboriginal peoples, have contributed to science, used science to solve problems in their daily life and work, or been affected by scientific processes or phenomena.

Critical thinking is the process of thinking about ideas or situations in order to understand them fully, identify their implications, and/or make a judgment about what is sensible or reasonable to believe or do. Critical thinking includes skills such as questioning, predicting, hypothesizing, analysing, synthesizing, examining opinions, identifying values and issues, detecting bias, and distinguishing between alternatives. Students use critical thinking skills in science when they assess, analyse, and/or evaluate the impact of something on society and the environment; when they form an opinion about something and support that opinion with logical reasons; or when they create personal plans of action with regard to making a difference. In order to do these things, students need to examine the opinions and values of others, detect bias, look for implied meaning in their readings, and use the information gathered to form a personal opinion or stance. Critical literacy is the capacity for a particular type of critical thinking that involves looking beyond the literal meaning of a text to determine what is present and what is missing, in order to analyse and evaluate the text’s complete meaning and the author’s intent. Critical literacy goes beyond conventional critical thinking by focusing on issues related to fairness, equity, and social justice. Critically literate students adopt a critical stance, asking what view of the world the text advances and whether they find this view acceptable. In science, students who are critically literate are able, for example, to read or view reports from a variety of sources on a common issue. They are able to assess how fairly the facts have been reported, what biases might be contained in each report and why that might be, how the content of the report was determined and by whom, and what might have been left out of the report and why. These students would then be equipped to produce their own interpretation of the issue.

Literacy, mathematical literacy, and investigation skills are critical to students’ success in all subjects of the curriculum and in all areas of their lives.Communication skills are fundamental to the development of scientific literacy, and fostering students’ communication skills is an important part of the teacher’s role in the science curriculum. When reading in science, students use a different set of skills than they do when reading fiction or general non-fiction. They need to understand vocabulary and terminology that are unique to science, and must be able to interpret symbols, charts, diagrams, and graphs. In addition, as they progress through secondary school, it becomes critically important for them to have the ability to make sense of the organization of science textbooks, scientific journals, and research papers. To help students construct meaning from scientific texts, it is essential that teachers of science model and teach the strategies that support learning to read while students are reading to learn in science. Writing in science employs special forms and therefore also requires specific and focused learning opportunities. Students use writing skills to describe and explain their observations, to support the process of critically analysing information in both informal and formal contexts, and to present their findings in written, graphic, and multimedia forms. In all science courses, students are expected to use appropriate and correct terminology, and are encouraged to use language with care and precision in order to communicate effectively.

Information and communications technology (ICT) provides a range of tools that can significantly extend and enrich teachers’ instructional strategies and support students’ learning in science. As a result, students will develop transferable skills through their experience with word processing, internet research, presentation software, and telecommunication tools, as would be expected in any environment. Information and communications technology (ICT) provides a range of tools that can significantly extend and enrich teachers’ instructional strategies and support students’ learning in science. Computer programs can help students collect,

organize, and sort the data they gather and to write, edit, and present multimedia reports on their findings. Technology also makes it possible to use simulations – for instance, when field studies on a particular topic are not feasible or dissections are not acceptable.

Ongoing scientific discoveries and innovations coupled with rapidly evolving technologies have resulted in an exciting environment in which creativity and innovation thrive, bringing about new career opportunities. Today’s employers seek candidates with strong critical-thinking and problem-solving skills and the ability to work cooperatively in a team – traits that are developed through participation in the science program. Through science courses, students will develop a variety of important capabilities, including the ability to identify issues, conduct research, carry out experiments, solve problems, present results, and work on projects both independently and as a team. Students are also given opportunities to explore various careers related to the areas of science under study and to research the education and training required for these careers.