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Market Power, Competition and Regulation - Lesson Plan: 4 x 1 hour lessons

A series of 'off the shelf' lesson plans and resources for use in the classroom. These lessons deal with Market Power, Competition and Regulation and are relevant to the following specifications:

  • AQA: Module 3, 12.2
  • Edexcel: Unit 1, Sections 1 and 4
  • OCR: Module 2871

Aim:

This could cover three or four one-hour lessons, with at least two of the lessons being devoted to the research activity and preparation, whilst the third or fourth could be devoted to the presentations themselves. Some time will need to be spent at the outset explaining the context - the Presentation and Mind Map should be able to cover the main areas here.

There is a good deal of background information and students need to be aware that an outline knowledge only is required of the legal framework rather than any details of the relevant Acts of Parliament. The aim of the Presentation is to give students some understanding of the sheer volume of legal and regulatory powers that cover business and to impress upon them that such powers are a force for good. However, it also aims to show the disadvantages in terms of the added cost burdens that businesses have to face in complying with and monitoring these laws and regulations.

It can be a useful ploy to get an outside speaker from a local business to explain how such regulations and laws impact on their business - question and answer sessions are useful to explore this further. If this proves difficult, the Principal or Head Teacher could well be a valuable substitute in covering the range of legal and regulatory instruments that affect a school. Another strategy could be to use students' own experiences of their work environments and how rules and regulations affect how they work. Such a ploy is very important in helping to place known experience into the context of the studies being undertaken and works from the basis of what students know.

After the initial discussion, the research activity can begin. The Activity does warn against getting too much information; the sites that have been highlighted give all the information that is necessary for the successful completion of the Activity but students will have to learn to be selective. Working in groups is recommended here but care needs to be taken to ensure that all students in the group are on task and have something valuable to do and contribute to the presentation.

Students can be guided to the importance of presenting their ideas effectively - many will use a PowerPoint presentation but it is important they understand that merely reading out what they have put on the screen insults the intelligence of their audience! Such skills are important parts of the learning process and this Activity seeks to help develop those skills. If the task is to form part of an assessment then the ability to present and communicate the ideas and points successfully can be built into the assessment or used as possible evidence in a key skills programme. Videoing the presentations can be useful in helping students to see how they thought they presented!

The outline for the lessons therefore is less prescriptive than we have given in the past and is designed to offer maximum flexibility but the outline below is a rough guide.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lessons, students should:

  • Understand the meaning of the term 'regulation'
  • Understand the scope of the regulatory authorities in the UK
  • Understand the range and implications of the legal framework as it affects business
  • Demonstrate key research skills - selection, organisation and synthesis
  • Have prepared and given a presentation to peers using appropriate methods

Resources:

Lesson Structure:

Lesson 1

  1. Introduction to the topic area:
    • Use of Presentation/Mind Map
    • Use of a visiting speaker/Principal/Head Teacher
    • Discussion session with students on their own experiences
  2. Explain the task - the task can be printed out to give to students or they can be directed to PCs where they can follow the process
  3. Decide which group is going to tackle which case - groups can be given more than one - there is a significant amount of choice
  4. Begin the research task

Lessons 2 and 3

Continue research task and develop presentation.

Lesson 4

Each group offers its presentation. Time should be set-aside at the end of this lesson or at the beginning of the next lesson to discuss the learning outcomes of the Activity in relation to the learning objectives above.