Business Education: Past, Present, and Future

1. Business Education: Past, Present, and Future Dr. Marty Yopp University of Idaho Boise Center 322 E. Front Street, Ste. 440 Boise, ID 83702 myopp@uidaho.edu

2. The Past: A Brief History • In 1925 business courses were called “Commercial” courses and were considered part of the requirements for high school graduation. • Typewriting, Business Math, Business Law, General Business, Accounting, and Marketing were considered essential to a well rounded high school curriculum.

3. Initially the Smith-Hughes Act included agriculture, home economics, industrial technology but not business. • In the mid-1960’s, federal legislation was passed to make business and marketing programs eligible for vocational dollars. • The money was designed to: • Promote programs & recruit students • Purchase modern equipment • Provide professional development for teachers.

4. Pros & Cons to Vocational Funds • Some business educators supported eligibility for vocational funds while others did not. • Schools and programs had to apply to their state divisions of Vocational Education to receive funds. Not automatic. • Teachers were supposed to complete the course work required for vocational certification.

5. Many business educators wanted to retain their academic status. • They viewed vocational education as attracting inferior students. • This perception prevails today. • The Big Shift began around 1970 when schools, in large numbers, wanted to replace their existing typewriters with IBM Selectric typewriters. They also wanted data processing equipment, and eventually microcomputers.

6. Spinoffs from Vocational Status • A group of business educators left FBLA programs and established the Office Education Association (now BPA) which was more supportive of vocational education and vocational funding. • Business programs and classes were physically moved into vocational wings or buildings. • Money for equipment was available.

7. Programs, faculty, and students were lumped together with other vocational programs which were largely “blue collar” work with your hands programs. • Fewer academic students enrolled in business, marketing, and office oriented classes. • Some programs flourished while others struggled.

8. Business Ed: The Present • Microcomputers and Microcomputer Applications resulted in an elevation of the status of business teachers and their subject matter expertise. • Business teachers had to retool in large numbers. • Business teachers became viewed as the technology leaders in their schools.

9. Basic business and accounting courses were lost in favor of computer applications and technology courses. • Office practices, procedures, and word processing (with skill development) were replaced by computer courses using Microsoft Office Applications. • Keyboarding was offered at different times in different places. Skill development suffered. High quality keyboarding standards were not maintained. • Students developed bad habits.

10. Mixed Messages: • Primary responsibility is to somehow keep pace with technology, faster computers, the latest version of software, prepare students to pass certification tests. • Primary responsibility is to align the business curriculum with academic standards and prepare students to transition into college. • Primary responsibility is to prepare students to enter the workplace.

11. Primary responsibility is to help each student grow and develop in accordance with their background, experience, interests, abilities, aptitude, and culture. • I must recognize and provide nurturing and support for at-risk students. • I must provide challenging and relevant assignments and projects for all my students. • I must recognize and respect diversity and individual differences. • I must ensure that all students can pass the academic standards assessments. • I must do all of this and more with larger classes, fewer resources, and more uncertainty about the future.

12. Some Suggestions • Develop lessons, projects, and activities which begin with fairly simple and basic assignments and then become more complex and sophisticated at level two or three. • Level 1: Prepare a simple spreadsheet. • Level 2: Add additional rows and columns and include some formulas. • Level 3: Enhance the appearance of the spreadsheet and make projections for the future.

13. Teach Students not Subjects • Content is important but students are more important. Be student centered. Help all students find some level of success. • Use plus points not minus points. • Allow students to go back and correct their mistakes before moving on. • Do not allow inferior work to count. Emphasize quality over quantity. Use mailability standards. Three mistakes and it is unsatisfactory and must be redone.

14. Encourage students to work in pairs and to learn together • In society and the workplace people are expected to work well together. We need to make our classrooms more representative of what is taking place in the work environment. Fewer and fewer people work in isolation. They are part of a team who work together to solve problems and get things done. • Have assignments turned in as units not just daily assignments.

15. Keyboarding is a Computer Application • If your computer application students have poor keyboarding skills, provide them with some keyboarding drills they must complete as part of their growth and development effort. First-finger, first reach drills work well to improve the use of the correct fingers. (www.educ.uidaho.edu/bustech) under keyboarding. Alphabetic sentences also work well to improve basic keyboarding skills. • At 20 to 25 wpm students can keyboard more efficiently than they can hand write.

16. Don’t Ignore the Basics • Teach basic business, accounting, and economics in your technology classes. • Teach technology in your basic business, accounting, and economic classes. • Give students a problem or simulation and have them determine how they are going to use technology to solve the problem. • Don’t rely too heavily on tutorials for computer applications. Give them real assignments for which there is no answer key.

17. Teach accounting along with business plans • Entrepreneurship and school based enterprise activities are popular. • When developing a business plan teach students to develop a chart-of-accounts for their business and then to come up with sample transactions they might have the first month they are in operation. • Journalize, post, prepare a worksheet and financial statements for the business.

18. Powerpoint & Web Sites • When students prepare presentations and web sites require them to use a business topic which they research. • That way they are learning about business as they are learning to use technology. • Encourage them to explore local or regional business issues and/or contemporary economic conditions as the basis for their work. Use current events.

19. The Future of Business Education • Serving ALL Students: • National standards and guidelines for business educators emphasize the need to educate all students—not just those majoring in business. • Business, economics, personal finance, accounting, marketing, law, careers, critical thinking, decision-making impact everyone.

20. Align standards for business education and academics: Business courses help students meet the academic standards on which they are assessed (reading, writing, social studies, math). • Connect with the Business Community as frequently as you possibly can. • Move from assessment to proficiency. Demonstrated competencies over time are what matters most. • Business & economics drive this country and the world. We deal with REAL!

21. National Business Education Standards Call For: • Economically literate citizens • Interpersonal, teamwork, and leadership skills • Career Awareness & lifelong learning skills • Use technology for personal and business decisions • Effective communicate skills • Use of accounting for decision-making

22. Understand the principles of law • Value an entrepreneurial spirit in small business and the corporate environment. • Apply critical-thinking skills to multiple roles as citizens, consumers, workers, managers, owners, and directors of our own economic future. • Teach students the ARMA Filing Rules • Teach some International Business & Economics • Infuse marketing into business and business into marketing

23. Operate your classroom more like a business than a school room • Expect students to behave as they would in the workplace • Require them to accept responsibility for the quality of their work. Don’t reward junk. Demand quality which meets industry standards • Utilize relevant problems or projects as much as possible • Keep them busy the entire class period • Rotate students on and off computers with specialized software or hardware

24. The Final Word • Business educators should facilitate learning in a student-centered environment. Learning is customized: Students select projects and work independently or in teams to use technology to solve unstructured problems. Assignments support independence, creativity, and collaboration. Trust & respect are essential for growth, development, and success.