Help With Using Virtual Worlds
Virtual Worlds is a section dedicated to large-scale learning resources which have been developed
exclusively by Biz/ed. There are currently five different Virtual Worlds.
- Virtual Factory
- Virtual Economy
- Virtual Bank of Biz/ed
- Virtual Developing Country
- Virtual Learning Arcade
Virtual Factory
The Virtual Factory applies business theory to a real world business situation and looks at all the major business functions including production, accounts and marketing.
Hints and tips on using the Virtual Factory:
- The Cameron Balloons Virtual Factory is divided into four main sections all of which can be
accessed by the top tool bar.
- Use the Factory Floor to gain an overiew of the whole factory and to look into the activities
which take place in each area of Cameron Balloons.
- The Glossary provides definitions of terms to help you understand any ballooning jargon.
- Use the home icon to return to the Factory home page at any time or the Biz/ed logo to
return to the main Biz/ed menu.
- Use the site map to find a specific theory or worksheet associated with an area of the factory or
for familiarising yourself with the site.
- Take a photographic tour or virtual tour of Cameron Balloons to see inside the factory.
- Teachers may like to use the online guide to get the most out of using the Virtual Factory in the classroom.
Virtual Economy
The Virtual Economy is an online model of the economy based on the HM Treasury model of the economy which includes supporting educational materials. The Virtual Economy was developed with the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Hints and tips on using the Virtual Economy:
- The Virtual Economy is divided into five floors (ground to fourth) all
of which can be accessed by the top tool bar or by using the floor panel
on the right. It is based around Number 11 Downing Street and once on a
particular floor you access the resources by clicking on the relevant
room.
- Use the site map or index (links to these are in the footer) to get an
overiew of the whole site and to look at the resources that are
available.
- The Glossary provides definitions of terms to help you understand any
economic jargon. Clicking on a book symbol anywhere in the text will
take you directly to the definition of that term.
- Click on the ground floor at any time to get back to the home page or
the Return to Biz/ed link at the bottom of each page to return to the main Biz/ed menu.
- Click on the i symbol on the ground floor to get to students' guides,
teachers' guides and extensive information about the model itself.
- Go directly to the fourth floor if you just want to use the model
itself.
- Choose the 'selected variables' input form, if you want a simpler set
of choices for inputting your changes.
- Why not look at the timeline of economists in the library on the third
floor to find out more about famous economists?
Virtual Bank of Biz/ed
The Virtual Economy looks at the role of banks and central banks in the management of the economy and also the services that banks offer to support business. The resource is aimed at both Business Studies and Economics students.
Hints and tips on using the Virtual Bank of Biz/ed:
- The Virtual Bank of Biz/ed is divided into two main sections. The business section looks at how the policies of the banks and the central bank may affect businesses and covers external business environment, finance and business planning. The economics section looks at the role that the banks and other financial institutions and a central bank play in the management of the economy and covers money, monetary policy, inflation, markets and the role of Europe.
- Use the navigation on the left to enter the business or economics side of the Bank and drill down to the area you are interested in. You can also use the Search facility on the left to find relevant information.
- The Glossary provides definitions of terms to help you understand economics and business language. Clicking on the button on the left will take you directly to the glossary.
- Click on the Bank of Biz/ed logo in the top left at any time to get back to the home page or on
the Biz/ed logo in the top right to return to the main Biz/ed menu.
- The guide for teachers is available in the left hand navigation and has information on how to use the resource at different levels as well as full listings of theories and worksheets.
- A data series and our In the News archive are available for use with the worksheets in the Bank. These are linked to from the exercises or can be accessed from the left hand navigation.
Virtual Developing Country
The Virtual Developing Country is a case study centred around Zambia. It is based around a series of field trips that take you around a number of different destinations. There are field trips covering Rural Life and Agriculture, Copper, Trade, Aid and Wildlife. There are also worksheets, data, photos, a development glossary and a series of maps.
Hints and tips on using the Virtual Developing Country:
- The Virtual Developing Country is divided into three main sections - background, resources and field trips.
- Use the site index (linked to from the footer) to get an
overview of the whole site and to look at the resources that are
available.
- The Glossary provides definitions of terms to help you understand any
development economics jargon. The glossary is available in the resources section and there are links on every page in the field trips to glossary terms related to the page.
- Click on the logo in the top left hand corner at any time to get back to the home page or
the Return to Biz/ed link at the bottom of each page to return to the main Biz/ed menu.
- Use the links on the top right hand side to get to directly to any section in the Virtual Developing Country.
- Go the resources section (use the link on the top right hand side) to get to listings of all the supporting resources and the teacher guide to the site.
Virtual Learning Arcade
The Virtual Learning Arcade is a series of economics and business simulations on various topics. The simulations enable you to carry out a series of experiments and each one is supported by a wide range of supporting materials. There are two types of simulations - small-scale and large scale. The large scale simulations include a child poverty simulation, a transport simulation for London and a simulation of the labour market. The small-scale simulations are based on spreadsheet models and there is a wide range of these including the trade balance, the profit and loss account, elasticity and ratio analysis.
Hints and tips on using the Virtual Learning Arcade:
- From the VLA home page select the simulation you want to look at.
- Each simulation has a series of 'try this' scenarios where you can try particular policies and see the impact of them. These also have supporting questions.
- Use the drop-down boxes on the right to access related theories, diagrams, web sites and definitions.
- Click on the Virtual Worlds link in the top navigation bar at any time to get back to the home page or
the Biz/ed logo in the top left hand corner of each page to return to the main Biz/ed menu.
- Many of the simulations have supporting interactive worksheets and other materials - why not have a look at these to help you understand the basis of the simulation.
- All the simulations can be downloaded in original spreadsheet format so that you can see the basis of the underlying models and experiment with different values and assumptions.
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