LESOTHO
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
2022 COURSE OUTLINE
PROGRAMME
DIPLOMA IN EDUCATION SECONDARY 1
FACULTY
Arts and Social Sciences
DEPARTMENT
Commercial Studies
COURSE TITLE
Business and its Environment 1
COURSE CODE
BUS 1601 S-A
COURSE TYPE
COMPULSORY
COURSE LECTURER
SYLVESTER JOHN AMOAKO (Mr.)
LECTURER’S
CONTACTS
T – BLOCK (T4)
Year 2022
NO OF CREDITS
6
HOURS

ELECTIVE
s.amoako@lce.ac.ls or yawjaysly@gmail.com
+ 266 5885 3114
+ 266 6263 3114
GROUP
REPRESENTATIVES
ABRIDGED COURSE SYNOPSIS
The course is intended to:
 Address the LGCSE syllabus on Business Studies as taught in the High Schools of Lesotho.
 Cover main themes of business: understanding business activity; people in business and the
basic role that marketing serve in business.

Lay a foundation that will enable students to follow various career opportunities in the field
of business.
COURSE AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
1
At the end of the course student teachers should be able to:
i. apply their knowledge and critical understanding to current issues and problems in a wide range
of business contexts •
ii. make effective use of relevant terminology, concepts and methods, and recognise the strengths
and limitations of the ideas used in business
iii. distinguish between facts and opinions, and evaluate qualitative and quantitative data in order to
help build arguments and make informed judgements
iv. develop knowledge and understanding of the major groups and organisations within and outside
business, and consider ways in which they are able to influence objectives, decisions and
activities
v. appreciate the perspectives of a range of stakeholders in relation to the business environment,
individuals, society, government and enterprise
The course will assess the following assessment objectives (AOs):
AO1 Knowledge and understanding • demonstrate knowledge and understanding of facts, terms,
concepts, conventions, theories and techniques commonly applied to or used as part of business
behaviour.
AO2 Application • apply knowledge and understanding of facts, terms, concepts, conventions,
theories and techniques.
AO3 Analysis • distinguish between evidence and opinion in a business context
 Order, analyse and interpret information in narrative, numerical and graphical forms,
using appropriate techniques.
AO4 Evaluation • present reasoned explanations, develop arguments, understand implications
and draw inferences
• Make judgments, recommendations and decisions.
CONTENT
WEEK
1
TOPICS
Business
Activity
DESCRIPTION
1.The purpose and nature of business activity:
 Concepts of needs, wants, scarcity and opportunity cost, specialization,
purpose of business activity
 The concept of adding value.
2
Classification
of Business
3
Enterprise,
business
2. Business activity in terms of primary, secondary and tertiary sectors:
 Basis of classification
 Reasons for changing importance of business classification. E.g. in
developed and developing countries.
 Classifying business enterprises between private and public sectors in
a mixed economy.
1.Enterprise and entrepreneurship:
 Characteristics of successful entrepreneurs
2
growth and
 Business plans, contents and usefulness
size
 Government support for business, why and how?
2.The methods and problems of measuring business size:
 Methods of measuring business size
 Their limitations
 Reasons for expansion
3. Why some businesses grow and others remain small
 Why expand your business?
 Different ways to expand
 Problems linked to business growth and how to overcome them.
 Why some businesses remain small?
 Why some businesses fail (new or established businesses):

Causes of failure

Why new businesses are at a greater risk of failing?
 Assignment
4
Types of
The main features of different forms of business organizations:
business
 Businesses in the private sector: Sole trader, partnerships etc.
organizations
 Businesses in the public sector: unincorporated businesses and limited
companies(differentiate between the two)
 Concepts of risk, ownership and limited liability
5
Business
Businesses can have several objectives whose importance can change:
objectives and
 Need and importance of business objectives
stakeholders
 Stakeholders and their objectives
objectives
 Private and public sector objectives
 Social enterprises objectives
 Demonstrate an awareness of the differences in the aims and
objectives of private and public sector enterprises.
6
Motivating
1. The importance of a well-motivated workforce
workers
 Reasons why people work
 The concept of human need – Maslow`s hierarchy
 Key motivational theories: Taylor and Herzberg
2. Methods of motivation
 Financial and non-financial rewards and methods
3
7
Organization
1. Draw, interpret and understand simple organization charts:
and
 Organizational charts – Structure, Span of Control, Chain of
Command and Delegation, Roles and Delegation.
Management
 Roles, responsibilities and inter-relationships between people in
organizations.
2. The role of Management
 Functions of Management – planning, organizing, coordinating,
commanding and controlling
 Importance of delegation: trust versus control
3. Leadership styles:
 Features of the main leadership styles – autocratic, democratic and
laissez-faire
4. Trade unions – what they are and the benefits to workers of being
union members
Test 1
8
Recruitment ,
1. Methods of Recruitment and Selection of Workers
Selection and
 Recruitment and selection
training of
 Difference between internal and external recruitment
workers
 Main stages in recruitment and selection of staff
 Benefits and limitations of part-time and full time workers.
2. The importance and methods of training:
 Importance of training to a business and to workers
 Benefits and limitations of induction training, on-the-job training and
off-the-job training.
3. Why is there a need for workforce reduction?
 Differentiate with examples to illustrate dismissal and redundancy
 Situations where downsizing the workforce might be necessary
4. Legal controls over employment issues and their impact on employers
and employees:
 Legal controls over employment contracts, unfair dismissal,
discrimination, health and safety issues and legal minimum wage.
9
Internal and
External
1. Why effective communication is important and the methods used to
achieve it:
 Effective communication and its importance to business
4
Communicati
on
 Benefits and limitations of different communication methods
including those based on IT (Information Technology)
 Recommend and justify which communication method to use in a
given situation.
2. Demonstrate an awareness of communication barriers:
 How communication barriers arise
 Problems of ineffective communication
 How communication barriers can be reduced or removed.
10
Marketing,
1. The role of marketing:
Competition
 Identify customer needs
and the
 Satisfy customer needs
Consumer
 Maintain customer loyalty, building customer relationships
2. Market changes:
 Why customer/consumer spending patterns may change
 The power and importance of changing customer needs.
 Why some markets have become competitive?
 How business can respond to changing spending patterns and
increased competition
3. Concepts of niche market and mass marketing:
 Benefits and limitations of each approach to marketing
4. How and why market segmentation is undertaken:
 How markets can be segmented e.g. according to age, socio-economic
grouping, location, gender
 Potential benefits of segmentation to business
 Recommend and justify an appropriate method of segmentation in
given circumstances.
11
Market
1. The role of market research and methods used:
research
 Market-oriented businesses (use market research information to a
business)
 Primary and secondary researches (benefits and limitations)
 Methods of primary research e.g. postal questionnaire, online survey,
focus group; the need for sampling
 Factors influencing the accuracy of market research data
2. Presentation and use of market research results:
5
 Analyze market research data shown in the form of graphs, charts and
diagrams: draw simple conclusions from such data.
12
Marketing
 Product –development of product, costs and benefits
mix
 Brand image, packaging, product life cycle and how it influences
decisions
 Price – Pricing methods, price elasticity
 Importance of elasticity to pricing decision
13
Marketing
strategy
 Importance of product, Place, Price, and Promotion in influencing
customer decisions.
 Impact of legal controls on Marketing Strategy
 Opportunities and problems of entering foreign markets
Test 2
COURSE ASSESSMENT
Assessment method
Description
Weight
Aligned course learning outcome
40%
Assignment, tests,
presentations
60%
Examination
REFERENCES
Nuttal, C.J. and Houghton Medi. Business Studies, Cambridge IGCSE second edition. ISBN: 978-0-52112210-8 Paperback with CD-ROM for Windows & Mac.
Titley, Brian. (2011). Complete Business Studies for Cambridge IGCSE & O Level. Malaysia: Vivar
Printing Sdn. Bhd.
Tuipende, D, Bukenya, P. (2015). Introduction to Business Studies 2nd Edition. Brandhof: Tubumb
Printing House.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Reserve shelve material
Borrington, K. Simpson, P. (20). Business Studies Cambridge IGCSE, 4TH Edition. Hatchette UK
Company: Hodder Education. London
6
FOR OFFICE USE
Lecturer’s Signature------------------------------------HOD’s Signature ------------------------------------------
7
Date----------------------------------Date----------------------------------