ATL Activity 2 - Comprehension Quizzes

Get your students to have a go at comprehension quizzes - a simple but highly effective class
activity to test their understanding of the Peacewick University case study…

1. In which year was PU established?

2. The growth in research into which two areas has been particularly impressive at
PU?

3. When was the recession in Country A?

4. Did the accident at a nearby chemical plant severely impact the surrounding
area?

5. Do most of PU’s lecturers have adequate IT skills to prepare and deliver

high-quality online courses?

6. Where any employees made redundant following the catastrophic accident at

the nearby chemical plant?

7. Why did the Faculty of IT receive funding from the founder of one of the world’s
largest software companies?

8. Why would PU have faced cash flow problems during the 2021/22 academic
year?

9. What percentage of PU’s staff have been moved to part-time employment

contracts

10. In which faculty is there high staff turnover?

11. What is Adriana Cortez’s role at Peacewick University?

12. Why is Patricia Hughes disgruntled with PU?

13. Who is the Head of the Faculty of History?

Teacher only box

1. In which year was PU established? 1935

2. The growth in research into which two areas Artificial intelligence (AI)
has been particularly impressive at PU? and medicine

3. When was the recession in Country A? Throughout 2020/21

4. Did the accident at a nearby chemical plant Yes, the explosion was a
severely impact the surrounding area? catastrophic accident

5. Do most of PU’s lecturers have adequate IT No

skills to prepare and deliver high-quality
online courses?

6. Where any employees made redundant Yes

following the catastrophic accident at the
nearby chemical plant?
7. Why did the Faculty of IT receive funding To research the use of
from the founder of one of the world’s artificial intelligence (AI)
largest software companies? in detecting
contamination

8. Why would PU have faced cash flow Revenue fell whilst costs
problems during the 2021/22 academic remained unchanged (PU
year? still had to pay
employees, maintain
buildings, and pay
general expenses)

9. What percentage of PU’s staff have been 20

moved to part-time employment contracts

10. In which faculty is there high staff turnover? History

11. What is Adriana Cortez’s role at Peacewick President (Vice Principal)

University?

12. Why is Patricia Hughes disgruntled with Claims of being unfairly

PU? dismissed

13. Who is the Head of the Faculty of History? Jim Summerfield

The idea is to get students to understand the contents of the PU case study in a fun and
engaging way. Read more about The Hot Potato Game here.

Your students will enjoy this!

This activity is about getting to know the main people in the case study, as well as other key
stakeholder groups. Read the case study and make note of everything you know about the
following people:

​ Adriana Cortez
​ Jim Summerfield
​ Patricia Hughes
​ Di Jones

Also make note of the other stakeholder groups in the case study, which include:

​ Board of Trustees
​ Students (local and overseas)
​ The government of Country A
​ Teaching faculty (lecturers)
​ Non-teaching staff
​ Computer manufacturers
​ Pharmaceutical companies
​ Local community
This review game for the Paper 1 case study has been created by Andy Hay, who is DP
Coordinator at Taejon Christian International School in South Korea.

This is best done without notes as a quick quiz/review of learning. You can create this in a similar
way as the template above. The purpose of this task to check students' understanding of certain
key areas of the syllabus. Examples include:

​ Give me 5... leadership styles

​ Give me 5... STEEPLE issues that PU is facing at the moment
​ Give me 5... HR issues that are affecting PU
​ Give me 5... sources of finance that PU might consider using in the future
​ Give me 5... problems that Adriana Cortez is dealing with at the moment.

Challenge your students to relate their answers to the case study, e.g., which of the leadership
styles is most related to Jim Summerfield and why? Or which of the 5 listed sources of finance is
the most/least effective and why?

Many thanks to Andy for his generosity in sharing this excellent activity with us.

ATL Activity 8 - SWOT Analysis

Suggested time: 25 minutes

 1. Using the Peacewick University case study and on your own, identify at least five
strengths and weaknesses of PU.
2. Then compare your list with that of someone else in the class.
3. In the same pairs, create a list of the opportunities and threats for Peacewick
University.
4. Then join another group to share your collective responses of the entire SWOT
analysis.

Students can also have a go at this SWOT analysis quiz to consolidate their understanding.

No. Statement SWOT

component

1 The economic recession in Country A may continue for

several more years.

2 Based on a recent student survey conducted in January

2020, the level of student satisfaction was very high.

3 Jim Summerfield's autocratic leadership style has caused

high staff turnover in the Faculty of History.

4 Research suggests that the number of students studying

History and International Languages has decreased in the
last few years.

5 Student enrolment numbers are expected to be much lower

for the 2022/23 academic year.

6 Expanding further provisions (finance and resources) to the

Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of IT.

7 PU’s current cash flow position.

8 The ongoing impacts of the catastrophic accident at a nearby

chemical plant.

9 The opening of a campus in Country B.

 10 PU emphasises on meeting the needs of 21st-century
society, with its strong IT, business, electronics, medicine,
engineering, and media faculties.

ATL Activity 13 - What's Wrong?

In this activity, students need to identify what is wrong with the following statements. The purpose
is two-fold:

1. To enhance their comprehension of the case study

2. To reinforce their knowledge of the Business Management syllabus.

For each statement below, determine what's wrong, i.e. why does the statement contain an
error? The error could be linked to the content of the syllabus or the context of the PU case
study.

Statement What's Wrong?

1. Peacewick University may have some accumulated retained profit from

previous years as it was one of the most popular universities in the
country (line 9).

2. The catastrophic accident at the nearby chemical plant caused the

recession in Country A.

3. Di Jones is a newly appointed director of PU.

4. Jim Summerfield can be described as a democratic leader because he

has been one of the best heads of the Faculty of History at PU.

5. Opportunities for PU to research and develop appropriate medicines

(lines 43 - 44) could earn the university financial profits in the future.
 6. PU receives funds from students throughout the year so can use this to
pay employees, maintenance of buildings and other expenses (lines 55 -
56).

Teacher only box

Statement What's Wrong? Answer

1. Peacewick University may have some accumulated

retained profit from previous years as it was one of
the most popular universities in the country (line 9).

2. The catastrophic accident at the nearby chemical

plant caused the recession in Country A.

3. Di Jones is a newly appointed director of PU.

4. Jim Summerfield can be described as a democratic

leader because he has been one of the best heads
of the Faculty of History at PU.

5. Opportunities for PU to research and develop

appropriate medicines (lines 43 - 44) could earn the
university financial profits in the future.

6. PU receives funds from students throughout the

year so can use this to pay employees, maintenance
of buildings and other expenses (lines 55 - 56).

ATL Activity 14 - The 5,4,3,2,1 Quiz

Get your students to have a go at this simple but highly effective activity to test their
comprehension of the Peacewick University case study…
 ​ State 5 things you know about Peacewick University's Faculty of History ...

​ State 4 revenue streams for PU as a university ...

​ State 3 impacts of low staff morale at Peacewick University ...
​ State 2 things you know about Patricia Hughes ...
​ State 1 of the crises faced by Peacewick University ...

ATL Activity 15 - Inside the Boardroom!

Inside the Boardroom activity

Suggested time: Around 50 mins

1. Split the class into 4 groups, and assign one of the strategic options to each group: (i)
Expand overseas in Country B, (ii) Additional funding for the Faculties of Medicine,
(iii) Additional funding for the Faculties of IT, and (iv) Closure of the Faculties of
History and International Languages.
2. They have 25 minutes to prepare to present their strategic option to the rest of the
trustees (class). The teacher plays the role of Adriana Cortez.
3. Each group then has 3 minutes to present why their strategic option should be
chosen.
4. After all 4 presentations, each group is allowed to ask questions of the other groups,
which should lead to some very lively debate and discussion! Allow around 5
minutes for this.
5. To finish off, give all students 2 minutes to decide on the number 1 reason for their
own strategic option (they should write this themselves), and then the key reason
against the proposal of each of the other 3 groups.
For this activity, there is no need for the use of ICT or PowerPoint presentations etc., so
everything is verbal and the final task in hand written. This is a great activity to promote the skills
of communication, collaboration, self-management, and critical thinking!

ATL Activity 16 - Exam practice questions (by Angelica Jones & Eamonn
Traynor)
I'm very grateful to Angelica Jones from Bishop Mackenzie International School in Malawi for
developing this resource with her students. I have tweaked some of the questions (and answers)
to replicate IB assessment. Answers have been included for teachers to provide further
guidance.

Student should have a go at the following exam practice questions in preparation for their
upcoming exams.

Many thanks to Angelica and her students once again!

(a). Define the term not-for-profit organization. [2 marks]

(b). With reference to the case study, explain one advantage [4 marks]
and one disadvantage of a not-for-profit organization.

(c). Outline two sources of conflict at Peacewick University. [4 marks]

(d). Using a STEEPLE analysis framework, examine the impact [10 marks]
of the external environment on the operations of Peacewick
University.

Ask your students to create their own set of exam practice questions by using past exam papers
as a template and the official guide for the relevant parts of the syllabus that could be examined,
in the context of the Peacewick University case study.

Teacher only box

(a). Define the term not-for-profit organization. [2 marks]

A not-for-profit organization is one that does strive to earn profit for its owners. Instead, any
surplus earned through pursuing business activities or through donations goes right back into
running the organization.
(b). With reference to the case study, explain one advantage and one disadvantage of a
not-for-profit organization. [4 marks]

Advantages include:

● Non-profit social enterprises exist for the benefit of local communities and societies.
Peacewick University caters for the benefit of their students and aims to provide high
quality education.
● Many NPOs also qualify for government assistance in the form of grants and/or
subsidies, thereby reducing their costs of production. Peacewick University has
received funding from the government for the Faculty of Medicine.

Disadvantages include:

● They can be overly dependent on the goodwill of the general public, such as
donations or financial assistance for their funding. Peacewick University is already
struggling with cash flow problems, therefore making it harder for them to conduct
their business activities.
● The wages of workers in NPOs tends to be lower than for those who work in for-profit
organizations. Peacewick University needs to improve its pay structure for lecturers
to tackle the problems of high staff turnover and low morale.

(c). Outline two sources of conflict at Peacewick University. [4 marks]

Possibles sources of conflict could include an outline of the following, written in the context of the
case study:

● Management style and corporate culture - Jim Summerfield's management style

clashing with his team in the Faculty of History.
● Student perceptions vs management perceptions of quality educational services -
Some students are demanded compensation due to disruptions to their education,
caused by the accident at the nearby chemical plant whilst PU is struggling with its
cash flow position.
● Staff vs employer regarding online teaching - Not all of PU's lecturers are comfortable
with remote teaching and feel the need for more appropriate training to be able to
develop quality educational services for their students who have been disrupted
during the past academic year.
(d). Using a STEEPLE analysis framework, examine the impact of the external environment on
the operations of Peacewick University. [10 marks]

Students are not required to use all the components of the STEEPLE analysis - it is a framework
only.

Answers may include:

Political/Legal

Students should refer specifically to the case study, such as the issue in the Faculty of History,
e.g., the conflict between Patricia and Jim (Patricia claims she was wrongfully dismissed and is
taking this matter to court). Explanations could focus on:

● Why Patricia was dismissed

● The role Jim played in this dismissal
● The labour laws in Country A

Economic

Students could reference lines 17-18, which consider the economic recession in Country A.
Consequences of this include:

● Inability to secure finance during an economic downturn, including government

funding (grants and subsidies) as well as private investments
● Another driving force to expand to Country B in order to diversify its operations
● More difficult/longer recruitment process for lecturing staff
● Cash flow problems, including the ongoing maintenance costs whilst revenue from
tuition fees have fallen.

Social

The prime social issue that students might refer to is the issue concerning Di Jones and the
impact this could have on PU. For example, there could be discussions about:

● Potential risks to the corporate image of the university due to Di Jones’s family
history
● What the university should do to counter these issues (contingency planning)
 ● The impact on the morale of both students and staff
● The decline in the number of international students.

Technological

Students could reference the lack of resources required to meet the needs of an effectively
online lecturing programme and the difficulties associated with not learning/learning face-to-face.
Consequences of this include:

● Lower quality education for students

● The impact on motivation of staff and students
● The impact on productivity.

Environmental

Students could mention, reference, or acknowledge the impact of the chemical plant accident.
The environmental impacts include:

● Damage to student accommodation and ‘student lifestyle’ will harm any USP that PU
has - these are important considerations for most universities
● Social needs not being met as staff and students work remotely (online)
● Health and safety issues, such as water contamination, which will adversely impact
PU's brand development and brand image.

Ethical

Students could make reference to the pharmaceutical companies that could fund the commercial
production of PU's medicines and/or the accusation of over-pricing the products from one of
these companies to LDCs. Consequences of this includes:

● Effects on the brand image, which can reduce the number of new students and new
staff that apply to the university
● Difficulty in finding new sources of finance, especially if the corporate image of PU is
damaged by its association with unethical businesses and their questionable
practices.