Smart Budgeting Decisions

Subject is Humanities (Economics and Business) Victorian Curriculum Version 2.0

Rationale The Economics and Business curriculum offers opportunities for students to develop knowledge and skills relevant to economic literacy, business and entrepreneurship, work and financial literacy. Students require this knowledge and these skills to lead successful, productive and financially stable lives as Australian citizens, voters and participants in the economy. Students who acquire effective economic, business, entrepreneurial, and consumer and financial literacy skills and knowledge, combined with an ability to operate effectively in a work setting, are better equipped to manage personal finances successfully, run a business profitably and avoid the mismanagement that may lead to personal debt and other financial problems. Global flows of people, resources, finances and information create social, economic, political and environmental complexities and challenges. Consequently, Australia needs enterprising individuals and businesses who embrace opportunity, are informed decision-makers and have the capacity to make an economic contribution. Young Australians will all face social, economic, environmental and ethical challenges in their lifetime. These will impact both personal economic decision-making and their lives generally. It is critical, therefore, that students be equipped with the knowledge, understanding and skills to respond effectively to the challenges they will face as consumers, employees, future entrepreneurs and participants in the local, national and global economies.

Aims Economics and Business aims to ensure that students develop: ● knowledge about and understanding of work and business environments within the Australian economy, the factors influencing businesses’ decision-making and the importance of entrepreneurship to business success ● understanding of resource allocation, opportunity cost and economic decision-making, and application of these concepts to the economy, the business environment and entrepreneurship, work and work futures, and consumer and financial literacy ● understanding of the importance of being a participant in the economy through work, operating a business, being a financially literate consumer and informed economic decision-making ● appreciation of the key economic and business issues affecting contemporary Australian society, and an understanding of how Australia interacts and is interdependent with the global economy, including the Asia region ● reasoning and interpretation skills through application of economics and business concepts and theory to economics and business issues and events, modelling problem-solving and economic decision-making ● skills required for inquiry, including questioning and researching, interpreting and analysing, decision-making and communicating.

Knowledge and Understanding The Knowledge and Understanding strand provides content and contexts that develop in increasing complexity from Levels 5 to 10. Economics is the study of how scarce resources combine to create finished goods and services, which are used, allocated/distributed and exchanged in society. The study of business management examines the factors, knowledge and skills involved in establishing, managing and operating a successful business operation. Economic and business knowledge refers to the facts, principles, theories and models within economics and business. Economic and business understanding is the ability to recognise the relationships between, and apply, economic and business concepts, content and contexts.

SUBSTRAND - Consumer and financial literacy Students learn about how financial decision-making affects both personal and community wellbeing. Students develop appropriate skills and knowledge through the consideration of the rights and responsibilities of consumers and businesses; planning and budgeting processes; risk management; and informed financial decision-making. The importance of saving and financial planning is considered through development of personal budgeting and planning skills. This sub-strand includes knowledge and understanding about: ● the importance of consumer and financial literacy to both individuals and the community ● the rights and responsibilities of consumers and businesses ● planning and budgeting ● informed financial decision-making ● saving and financial planning.

Students learn about: managing consumer and financial risks and rewards, including financial scams, smart investment strategies and insurance, considering both legal and ethical implications VC2HE10K08 This may involve students: ● investigating minor and major consumer and financial decisions, such as purchasing a car or property, choosing a bank or choosing a superannuation fund, and listing the factors that influence specific major consumer and financial decisions, such as price, availability, cost of finance, marketing, convenience and ethical and environmental considerations ● researching and comparing the potential rewards of different types of investment strategies, such as investment in real estate versus shares ● investigating the different types of insurance available, such as health, motor vehicle, house and contents, and the costs and benefits of each, and then comparing costs of a specific type of insurance between different providers ● investigating different financial scams and preparing a document detailing how to avoid being scammed

Students learn about: superannuation, what it is, who contributes, its importance and the potential benefits of superannuation to both individual and Australian living standards VC2HE10K09 This may involve students: ● explaining the importance of Australia’s superannuation system for human and financial wellbeing in retirement and the government’s ability to maintain a social security payment system into the future ● investigating and calculating the potential costs and benefits of taking out superannuation early to purchase a house ● visiting the Moneysmart website and researching and listing facts about choosing a superannuation fund, different types of superannuation funds, self-managed superannuation, tax and superannuation, and superannuation scams

SKILLS This strand is organised in 2-year bands under 4 sub-strands. Investigating Students develop and modify questions to investigate contemporary economic and business issues. They locate, select and analyse information and data from a range of sources for relevance and reliability. Interpreting and analysing data and information Students interpret and analyse information and data about economic and business issues, trends and cause-and-effect relationships. They make predictions about consumer and financial impacts. They evaluate data and data sources for authenticity and validity. Evaluating, concluding and decision-making Students develop and evaluate responses to economic and business issues, using cost-benefit analysis or criteria to decide on a course of action and draw and justify logical conclusions based on these. Communicating When investigating, explaining and presenting contemporary economic and business issues, students use relevant economic and business knowledge, research findings, concepts and terms to create descriptions, explanations and reasoned responses. Achievement standards Achievement standards describe what students are typically able to understand and do, and they are the basis for reporting student achievement. In Economics and Business, students progress along a learning continuum that provides the first achievement standard at Level 6, and then at Levels 8 and 10. Content descriptions In Economics and Business, content descriptions sequence and describe the knowledge, understanding and skills that teachers need to teach and students are expected to learn. Elaborations Elaborations are examples that provide guidance on how the curriculum may be transformed into a classroom activity or learning opportunity. They are provided as advisory material only.

Skills for Substrand - Consumer and Financial Literacy Strand: Skills Sub-strand: Investigating Content descriptions Elaborations Students learn to: develop and modify questions suitable for investigation of contemporary economic, business, work or financial issues VC2HE10S01 This may involve students: ● developing and modifying a range of questions to investigate an economics and business issue, for example ‘How does the government intervene in the Australian economy and are they justified in doing this?’, or formulating a hypothesis to test, such as ‘Australia’s participation in the global economy is of net benefit to all Australians’ ● developing and modifying a range of questions to improve the focus of an investigation; for example, modifying ‘What factors influence consumer decision-making?’ to ‘What factors influence the choice of a superannuation fund?’ Students learn to: locate, select, organise and analyse relevant information and data from a range of sources VC2HE10S02 This may involve students: ● researching and modelling different options for making an economic decision (for example, planning a holiday with a designated budget or the costs and benefits of a business owner investing in a new product), considering the costs and benefits of each option, and then drawing a conclusion based on the data and information collected and analysed

Sub-strand: Interpreting and analysing data and information Content descriptions Elaborations Students learn to: evaluate and use data and information to address economic, business, work or financial issues through recognition of trends and cause-and-effect relationships VC2HE10S03 This may involve students: ● examining how globalisation allows multinational (transnational) corporations to take advantage of international supply chains and explaining the advantages or disadvantages of using international supply chains ● collecting and presenting data about the changing trends in the direction and composition of Australian trade and analysing this data to form a conclusion about possible future trends and related investment or career opportunities ● examining market research data to explain possible changes in a business’s earning and profit and to suggest changes to the business ● identifying and explaining strategies used by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander-owned businesses to compete successfully in global markets, for example marketing strategies, such as branding or the uniqueness of experience, management of cultural and intellectual property and licensing, and collaboration through the First Nations Chamber of Commerce and Industry ● using case studies to illustrate how entrepreneurs may respond successfully to changes in global and domestic economic and market conditions and use technologies to drive innovation Students learn to: draw logical conclusions based on data and information from verified sources VC2HE10S04 This may involve students: ● investigating the term ‘fake news’ and listing the criteria that information must meet to be considered true ● researching, fact-checking and noting criteria for a trustworthy source

Sub-strand: Evaluating, concluding and decision-making Content descriptions Elaborations Students learn to: develop and evaluate a response to an economic and business issue, using cost-benefit analysis or criteria VC2HE10S05 This may involve students: ● interpreting economic and business information to draw a logical conclusion and recommend an economic decision; for example, looking at data showing annual profits for a business to make recommendations about whether a business should change the products they produce or the marketing strategies they use ● interpreting multi-variable data to explain economic changes; for example, using data showing change in the direction and composition of Australian international trade over a period of time to explain structural changes in the economy and migration patterns ● conducting a cost-benefit analysis for a personal financial decision, for example the forms of investment that have shown the highest return over the past 10 years, or comparing specific share prices between companies or categories of investment, such as investment in shares versus real estate Students learn to: evaluate sources of data and information to determine authenticity and validity VC2HE10S06 This may involve students: ● noting and checking the source of economics and business data and information and making an informed judgement about the accuracy of the data and information

Sub-strand: Communicating Content descriptions Elaborations Students learn to: explain and present arguments about economics and business concepts and issues using subject-specific terminology, with reference to sources VC2HE10S07 This may involve students: ● explaining and presenting arguments about the legitimacy of economic positions, such as ‘Government economic intervention should not occur’ or ‘International trade has costs and benefits’, supported by representations of relevant data, such as visual displays, a graphic organiser or tables and graphs using a range of formats, including verbal explanations, written reports or video recording ● presenting a reasoned argument about an economic or business issue and using a tone appropriate to the purpose; for example, using an authoritative tone when explaining trends shown in data to an audience of peers