Dubai Silicon Oasis is one of Dubai's most intentionally planned neighborhoods - originally a technology and innovation free zone that has evolved over the past 20 years into a residential community with a strong academic culture in which academic success-oriented families have made their homes. With multiple international schools catering to the DSO and Academic City community, and a highly professional parent community that knows A Level grades are a decisive factor in the quest for university admission, A Level Business Studies is one of the most in-demand subjects at Amourion Training Institute's office at SIT Tower, Office 410, DSO. The subject is a stepping stone to Business, Economics, Management, Finance and Marketing degrees at the world's most prestigious universities - and it takes more than a bit of common sense and general knowledge to excel. Dr. Anil Khare answers the top questions we receive from DSO Business Studies parents.
My son is great in verbal business discussions and ideas but struggles in written responses. Why is this happening?
Dr. Anil Khare: This is the most telling trend in A Level Business Studies and one that is not always expected by students and parents. Spoken and written business reasoning and written examination skills are not the same. A Level Business mark schemes favor a particular analytical approach, which proceeds from recognition of a business idea, explanation of how it applies in the given context, to a concluding judgement regarding its impact or implication. A student who writes eloquently about the concept of business ideas in general but does not explicitly relate theory to the case study supplied, or does not show a reasoning journey to reach a conclusion will inevitably underperform their true potential. We develop this framing of writing from the beginning, by teaching our students to frame their answer within the context of the question, not the broader context of business in general.
It appears my child loses marks on the evaluation questions at the end of the paper. How do you approach these?
Dr Anil Khare: The evaluation questions - usually those worth twelve marks or twenty marks and that require a justified evaluation - are almost the sole determinants of the boundaries between B and A; between A and A*. The most common error students make is that they confuse evaluation with conclusion - a summary of their arguments. Evaluation is more difficult than this: it requires an analysis of competing arguments and the conditions under which one argument is stronger than another, and a justified judgement that recognizes the limits of this judgement. A student who explains that a business should expand because the benefits outweigh the costs has not evaluated but they have concluded. A student who describes why, given the financial position, market environment and attitude to risk in the case study presented, one option is more suitable than another, under certain circumstances has evaluated. We practice this skill through targeted practice on past paper evaluation questions, with mark-scheme feedback provided after each attempt.
My son has difficulty applying theory to the case study given in the exam. Is there a technique for this?
Dr. Anil Khare: Yes, and it is a skill that can be learnt in A Level Business Studies. This case study is not supplementary material. It is the source of evidence for each and every question and examiners explicitly look for evidence of answers that use details from the case study, rather than purely theoretical ones. We teach students to read the case study materials in detail before they answer any questions - highlighting numbers, putting the business into context, assessing its financial standing, its challenges and its opportunities - so when they are answering the questions, they're simply applying theory to the particular business at hand. This approach stands students in good stead over those who consider the case study to be additional information.
The A Level Business Grade That Your University Application Deserves
A Level Business Studies rewards those students who can apply theory to the task with true analytic and evaluative accuracy, which is a skill that can be developed through the right kind of expert support. For students around Dubai Silicon Oasis that are ready to make it so, Amourion Training Institute's Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) center is the starting point.
Contact Dr. Anil Khare
Phone: +971 55 956 4344 | +971 4355 4850
Email: anilkhare@anilkhare.com
Website: www.anilkhare.com <
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