Current Affairs Quiz 11th June

Some current affairs questions from the last seven days for IB Diploma students around the world…

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Sponsorship – obviously works for some…

Manchester United Football Club has secured a new shirts sponsor for the 2010-2011 season.  Why would a sponsor pay £80 million over four years to have their name on MUFC football shirts?  Does sponsorship really work?

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Internal Assessment

I have just given the attached document to my L6th IB students. It relates to the economic commentaries that form the basis of their internal assessment. The internal assessment is worth 25% of the standard level course and 20% of the higher level course. I am getting them to submit the first draft of their first two pieces by the end of this term, the remaining two pieces by the end of next term. Remember that the portfolio is marked as a complete piece of work so I do not give them feedback on their first drafts until all four pieces have been submitted. Feel free to amend for your groups as you see fit.

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Ireland: Boom to Bust

A head’s up to a Radio 4 program that is on today at 11am, that may be of interest. Ireland:Boom to Bust.

Synopsis: Olivia O’Leary tells the story of the biggest economic crisis Ireland has ever known and its search for a post-crash identity.

For the last 20 years the Irish economy was the pride of Europe. If the rush to riches was very un-Irish, Olivia tries to find out if her country is now reverting to a more familiar state of penance. William Butler Yeats described the indigenous character trait as an abiding sense of tragedy that sustained people through temporary periods of joy.

For many younger people, who were told that they had more money and more freedom than any previous generation, the maudlin emigration songs with their tales of yearning and aching loneliness felt like stories from a distant era. Suddenly, though, they no longer feel so remote. As the shutters are pulled down on job opportunities at home, the harsh prospect of having to find work abroad is all too real for thousands of young people.

Olivia finds that Ireland’s economic crisis is far from over and finds out how the country is re-imagining itself anew.

There is also an article to accompany the program on the BBC website.

The program will also be avaliable for seven days on BBC iplayer.

Get Baking

An article on the BBC website today would make my mother proud. In these downbeat economic times people are making extra money by selling homemade items on the internet.

The UK classified adverts website Vivastreet.co.uk has reported a 123% increase in the number of adverts for homemade goods on the three months to May compared with the previous quarter. There is a rise in adverts for cakes, candles, wedding stationary and even rocking horses.

There has also been a rise in adverts from people offering home-based services such as private tuition and dance lessons.

Development Wall Display

A nice resource from the BBC could form the basis of a new wall display for your department on development economics.

The Indian seafood industry is under threat after demand from the US and Europe has fallen. Demand for Black Tiger shrimps known as the dollar crop has plummeted (this variety of shrimps accounts for half of India’s seafood exports to the US). Fishing ports along the east Indian coast are felling the effects. Trawlers and their crews are are now looking for alternative forms of employment. Amazingly there are 10 million Indians employed in the seafood exporting sector. There is clearly much at stake.

Land of Hope and Walmart!

The global downturn has seen many large and small firms file for bankruptcy and cease trading. It has become a common scene to see streets that were once full and bustling to go into decline in both the number of consumers and number of stores in existence. The negative multiplier effect of these scenes are being witnessed in towns, cities and countries over the last number of months. Closing firms lead to unemployment and reduced disposable income.

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Elevating Ethics for the 21st Century!

An important section of the IB B&M course is the ability to consider how firms respond to changing markets.  This blog is a very good example from Richard Dolan from The Portsmouth Grammar School. The USA has a very high proportion of private universities and it is important that they react to the market and are able to offer courses that will meet the demand of graduates and future employers.  This article is complementary to strategic decisions of change that are occurring in within firms at the moment.

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To cut or not to cut, that is the question

What have FedEx, Hewlett-Packard, Advanced Micro Devices and The New York Times got in common?

Richard Dolan, Head of Economics and Business Studies at The Portsmouth Grammar School, sheds light on the answer…

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Current Affairs Quiz - 4th June 2009

Some current affairs questions from the last seven days for IB Diploma students around the world…

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Junior Apprentice 2010

Do you have what it takes to be The (junior) Apprentice?  Thanks to Richard Dolan, Head of Economics and Business Studies at The Portsmouth Grammar School, for sharing this blog.

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What makes a successful entrepreneur?

Is academic success more important for success as an entrepreneur than drive, common sense and intuition? 
Richard Dolan, Head of Economics and Business Studies at The Portsmouth Grammar School, looks at this question…

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Social Marketing

David Yarwood, B&M teacher in Thailand, shares an interesting article about social marketing (Unit 4.1)...

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World Food Price Update

I blogged a couple of week’s ago about the BBC world service food price index which tracks the cost of a basket of food across 7 major cities around the globe (Moscow, Brussels, Delhi, Washington, Nairobi, Buenos Aires and Jakarta).

The latest data has just been published on the BBC website.

Summer Reading List

Over the coming days I will be compiling a summer reading list for IB economists. I would very much welcome your suggestions from both teachers and students alike.

A recent tweet from Penguin Books on Twitter has made me aware of the inaugural Spear’s Book awards (from finance to fiction). Two categories of particular interest being the ‘Financial Book of the Year’ and ‘The Financial History Book of the Year’. The awards will be made on June 30th, so time for you to read a couple of the nominations! No doubt some of the short listed books will appear on the summer reading list.

TOK - What makes a successful business?

Martin Hartnett, from KCCIS in Hong Kong, presents some B&M TOK questions for us…

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Current Affairs Quiz - 29 May 2009

At Sha Tin College, we use CAQ as a starter activity to get both IB Economics and IB B&M students thinking about the global business and economic issues that can be applied to their studies.  Students really like the competitive nature of these quizzes (who gets the most answers correct – without using the Internet), which serve to make the subjects a little more ‘real’ and engaging.

Feel free to adapt to suit your own country / teaching groups.

So, here we go…(answers at the foot of the page)

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Unit 5.5 – Location, Location, Location

I lived in London for 17 years before moving over to Hong Kong in the summer of 2000.  According to the 2009 Knight Frank World Cities Survey, London has topped the charts for the world’s most desirable place to live; HK is ranked 14th!  However, which of these cities has higher residential property prices?

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Adam Shaw and Utility

An interesting piece from Adam Shaw on the BBC website that looks at the issue of choice and utility theory by considering the decisions faced by children in a sweet shop and the potential disappointment they may experience by picking the wrong sweet. A short but sweet article!

Welcome to the IB Diploma Blog for Business & Management

I am delighted to be working with tutor2u on developing resources for the IB B&M programme.

If you have ideas or suggestions of what you’d like to see on these pages, or wish to contribute to the blogs, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) .

Best wishes,

Paul Hoang

Shatin College, Hong Kong

Start the Week

One of my favourite radio programs yesterday featured the economist Robert J Shiller and editor-in-chief of The Economist John Micklewait.

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Ghost Airport

An extreme example of wasteful government spending coupled with poor economic conditions in this video clip fro the BBC. Yangyang Airport in South Korea cost $400m to build and yet has not seen a single passenger in the last six months. The country is suffering from airport over capacity- 11 of the countries 14 airports are operating below capacity. Two new airports currently being built (one at 80% completion) have now been postponed.

The Food Price Problem

In an economic environment dominated by terms such as recession and deflation rising food prices for households in developing economies still remains a problem.

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Google Search Patterns

Internet searches for luxury brands on Google have soared since January. Is the worst of the recession over?

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Ghana Video Clip

A useful development economics video clip from the BBC. Hugh Pym, Economics Editor, has travelled to Accra, the capital of Ghana and reports from West Africa’s largest shopping centre. The country is going against gloabl trends with consumer spending growing strongly. He reports that indirectly the UK government provided the funds to get the project off the ground. Certainly one to save for your teachibng of development next year.

Why are we happy?

Dan Gilbert questions whether we will actually be unhappy if we don’t get what we want.

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Who Killed the Honey Bee?

I blogged a couple of weeks ago about the declining number of honey bees and the impact upon global food production. There is a program on BBC 2 this evening at 7pm that that investigates the problem further.

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The End

Well for U6th economists it is all over. The last paper was sat yesterday and already papers have arrived on my doorstep to be marked.

My students seemed to think the papers were very fair and with very few surprises. I would love to hear teachers and students comments alike on how it all went. It may well help us drive forward future resources.

Emotional Memory

We are more likely to remember emotionally loaded images than emotion neutral ones. We are also more likely to remember things if we are in an emotional state ourselves. This article also briefly looks at flashbulb memories - those ones where we remember exactly what we were doing when a certain event happened- eg the Twin Towers collapsing, Lady Diana and so on.
This is an interesting read with enough technical information without being too dry or boring.
Click here for the link to the BBC Radio 4 transcript

Michael Portillo on getting violent

Horizon: How Violent Are You? Tuesday BBC2 9pm
The programme is an attempt to have a look at the brain and its relationship to violence.
A lot of the programme is devoted to the Milgram Experiment, which is worth knowing about if you haven’t already come across it. The experiment is part of a study of obedience to authority. Participants think they are administering electric shocks to a stranger. 
There are also interviews with a child soldier and a former football hooligan.  click here for the link to BBCiplayer

Mock IB Data Reponse Question

Just what you want after your paper 1 and 2 this afternoon! I have produced a mock data response question for you to get your teeth into tonight before your paper tomorrow.

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Last minute advice…

Five top tips before the first two papers this afternoon…

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Quick Quiz (6)

A quick 10 questions from section 4 (International economics).

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Quick Quiz (5)

A quick quiz on macroeconomics from section 3 to aid your evening revision.

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Desperate Times for Spanish Unemployed

Whilst reading The Sunday Times today I came across this article that highlights the ever increasing problem of rising Spanish unemployment. Unemployed Spanish workers are resorting to desperate measures to make ends meet by selling their kidneys in return for much needed funds. Although depressing by nature it does highlight the social cost of unemployment and would be a unique article to base a coursework portfolio piece on.

Quick Quiz (4) Market Failure

A topic from section 2 that is on both the higher and standard level syllabus.

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Quick Quiz (3) Higher Level Only

Ten questions for higher level students on section 2 from the syllabus.

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Quick Quiz (2)

A quick 10 questions from section 2 of the syllabus aimed at higher and standard level students.

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Quick Fire Quizzes

With only 24 hours to go before the first IB economics exam I will post through the day a series of 10 question quizzes to see how well you have revised. The first one is from section 1 of the syllabus and is suitable for both higher and standard level students.

 

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Fred-sizing the economy

There is an interesting video clip in the magazine section of the BBC website that puts the UK economy’s current position into scalable context. The UK economy becomes Fred! Worth a watch.

A River for Unused Ships

An interesting piece on the BBC website this morning examining how the fall in global trade has forced many ship owners to take their ships off the sea an mothball them at ports.

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Monster Wave

Unrelated to economics but well worth watching in one of your breaks from revision.

Mathemagic- ToK

Arthur Benjamin combines his love of maths and magic to make a mind boggling presentation. He races a team of calculator to work out complicated sums. He then tells you how he did it.

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A Smooth Read this Summer

A new book has just been published about the firm Innocent. It has been written by Dan Germain the Head of Creative at the company.

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Extended Essay Economics

I have just met with the pupils that I will be supervising for the extended essay in economics. Here are some of the key points that I stressed to them.

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Fellow Twitterers…

I am now a twitterer. Fellow twitterers do feel free to get in touch and tweet away.

Mini Diagram Quiz

A mini diagram quiz that I am going to get my L6th to do this morning. I will then get them up the front to draw their diagrams on the board.

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Paper 2 ( Standard) and Paper 3 (Higher)

This is the final paper for standard and higher level students and the most important. The data response paper is worth 40% of the final grade for higher level students and 50% of the final grade for standard level students. A paper you just have to get right.

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Paper 2 Higher Level

The short answer paper is paper No 2 for Higher-level candidates and is worth 20% of their final mark.

 

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Paper 1- The Essay

This is the first paper for both higher and standard level students. Candidates have a choice of four questions and they are required to write an answer to one of them in one hour.

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