Business Education courses are taught to give students a way to fulfill their consumer education credit as required by the state of Illinois in order to graduate. At ETHS, students are able to fulfill this requirement by taking any of the the following courses offered in the Applied Sciences Department: Business Smart Lab, Business Law, Business Practicum, or Contemporary Adult Life. In these courses, we strive to not just teach students the importance of consumer education and having a healthy financial profile but also to engage them by infusing topics with technology, writing, research and group project activities. Below is an examples of assignments from Business Smart Lab and Sports & Entertainment Marketing, both classes I teach at Evanston Township High School.
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Assignment Sample A: Consumer Education
In-Class Film: Living on Minimum Wage for 30 Days by Morgan Spurlock (the creator of Super Size Me)
This assignment is part of a larger unit that teaches students about the importance of strong financial planning as a life skill. The unit encourages students to understand the complexities of culture, finances, housing, employment and access to health insurance in order to plan a successful post-high school life as a young adult in the United States. Other items used in the unit might be the combination of a budgeting worksheet and an essay on some aspect of personal financial planning such as managing a credit card or applying for an apartment, as a complement to the film and the required blog posting.
- Watch the film and take notes of 3 aspects that you think are important.
Complete the following worksheet; be prepared to share at least two of your responses during classroom discussion time.
Discussion Questions – 30 Days
DVD
Living For 30 Days on Minimum Wage
Questions Eligible for Blog Posting: #3, #4, #7, #11
1.
How
good were Morgan and Alex at budgeting for the 30 day period?
2.
What
role did budgeting play in survival for Alex and Morgan?
3.
Do
you feel that race was a factor in getting hired or finding an apartment for
Morgan and Alex? What about the fact
that they had no children?
4.
Answer honestly:
How likely would you have
been to just walk away from the landlord who helped Alex and Morgan without
paying the entire sum owed to him?
5.
What
do you think of Gerald’s reasoning regarding how the cost of living wage has
devalued over the last 25 years and what that means for his current employment
status?
6.
Do
you agree with Sen. Ted Kennedy’s argument that raising the minimum wage helps
families? What about the opposing side
that is against raising the minimum wage (big business in the U.S.)?
7.
Define
who the “working poor” are.
8.
Why
do you think that Alex became so emotional about the services that were given
to her and Morgan at The Free Store?
9.
Describe
how you would make the decision regarding going to the doctor vs. trying to
keep finances in the black. What if
children were involved—would that change your decision making process? If so, how?
10. Are you surprised about the
electric company deposit request? Why?
11. Observe how easy it was for
Morgan and Alex to get into an argument over finances. What is the underlying feeling that you think
is at the cause of the conflict?
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3. Post to our classroom blog by selecting one of the questions above and crafting your answer.
Please remember to post a picture of yourself and of Morgan Spurlock that will effectively support the
reasoning found in your response.
4. Respond to at least two other students postings by the due date indicated in class.
5. Please see Mrs. Gordon with questions.
Business Smart Lab Classroom Blog Posting
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Assignment Sample B:
Sports & Entertainment Marketing
Create Excitement!: Create a Buzz! Poster Advertising An Event or Celebrity Endorsement of A Product
This assignment is designed to get students to creatively brainstorm about how to use the 4 P's of Marketing: Product, Placement, Price and Promotion in order to create a buzz or excitement about an upcoming event featuring an entertainer or an athlete.
CREATE A “BUZZ” POSTER 75 points
· Create a poster that will show an athlete or celebrity endorsement of a product. (PROMOTION)
· The product can be any one of the following:
- Energy bar
- Sports drink
- Radio station
- Restaurant
- Dance club
· You must create your own wording for the product. The poster must contain the following information:
- What the product is (PRODUCT)
- Where it can be purchased (PLACEMENT)
- How much it will cost (PRICE)
- Clear descriptors of the product and why the consumer should buy it or try it
- Who to contact for more information
- A picture of the celebrity athlete or entertainer
- When the event will take place and where (optional)
- Creativity counts and is expected
· You must identify who your target market is by describing the demographic of who you think your consumer is. Who is going to buy this product? Why? How much $$$ do you think can be raised from using the “buzz” poster + the celebrity endorsement? Where will the poster be placed for maximum effect? Please craft a paragraph explaining your “plan” and how you will target each of these problems.
· Your project will be a poster that will consist of:
- The celebrity holding or talking about the product or venue.
- Your contact information showing your name, title, company name, address, phone, fax, and e-mail address.
- Your paragraph explaining the “plan” for your product.
- Wording for the product as requested above.
Make it your best effort as the rest of your marketing plan will branch off from it.
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