BA 160 Course Syllabus

Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College

Kentucky Community and Technical College System

 

INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS

BA 160 - C7Z1 (three credit hours)

Class # 46120

FALL 2009

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Business careers, terminology, and the interrelationships and  complexities of business are introduced and examined in this survey course.

 

PREREQUISITE: None

 

TEXTBOOK AND OTHER RESOURCES:

 

Title: Business,. 10th edition
Author: Pride, Hughes & Kapoor
Publisher: South-Western/Cengage Learning

 ISBN-10: 0324829558 |  ISBN-13: 9780324829556

 

(You can check with your campus bookstore about the textbook. The textbooks for all KCTCS classes are also available from one convenient Web site at http://kctcs.bncollege.com.)

 

  • High-Speed Internet access to KCTCS e-learning is also required.  The Web site address for this course is http://elearning.kctcs.edu. Wireless connection is not recommended.

 

  • The Mozilla Firefox browser must be used for Blackboard course management system. If you don’t have the 3.0 version of Firefox, you can download the free browser (U.S. English) at http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all-older.html. It should be pointed out the new 3.5 version of Firefox is also available, but that version has NOT been certified for Blackboard as of August 8, 2009.

 

PROFESSOR:   Mr. Jamie H. Vaught

 

Mailing address:

Mr. Jamie H. Vaught

Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College

Middlesboro Campus

1300 Chichester Avenue

Middlesboro, KY 40965

                       

E-mail Address:   jamie.vaught@kctcs.edu

 

Phone:

Contact Office Faculty Assistant Josh Brooks at 606-248-0620 and he will relay the message to the professor.

 

 

IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO STUDENTS: Since the professor is hearing-impaired (lip-reading with voice), it’s strongly suggested the students use e-mail if he or she would like to communicate with him directly. I will check e-mail every business day during the week (except when I’m sick or out of town for a conference). Please keep in mind that if you send an e-mail on a weekend or on a legal holiday, you will get a delayed response. I look forward to hearing from you this semester. I’m here to help you!  Good luck!

 

Also, please keep in mind that occasional announcements and professor’s e-mail replies usually will be sent through e-mail within the BA 160 Course in Blackboard (not your regular e-mail box). Therefore, you need to check your e-mail in Blackboard frequently just in case.

 

(For your information, as for your regular college e-mail box, it should be pointed out that you will need to delete the old files or messages from your e-mail box frequently (including the folders like Deleted Items, Sent Items, etc.) since you’ll probably have limited storage space.  If you don’t delete the old e-mails or messages, your e-mail box will be full and you won’t be able to get any new e-mails from the college.)

 

Professor’s Academic / Professional Background:

 

--B.S. Accounting, University of Kentucky

--MBA, University of Kentucky

--Additional graduate work at UK, Eastern Kentucky University and Lincoln Memorial University.

--Taught at Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College (since 1991); Sue Bennett College, London (two years); and St. Catharine College, Springfield (three years).

--Four years as internal auditor at First & Farmers Bank, Somerset.

--Long-time newspaper columnist and author of four successful books on UK basketball.

OFFICE HOURS:

 

Monday                   9:00 – 11:30 a.m.

Tuesday                  8:30 – 9:15 a.m. and 10:45 -- 12:00 noon

Wednesday             9:00 -- 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

Thursday                 8:30 – 9:15 a.m. and 10:45 -- 12:00 noon

Also by appointment

 

SKCTC SOCIAL SCIENCES AND RELATED TECHNOLGIES DIVISION CHAIR:

Mr. Kevin Lambert (Whitesburg campus)

606-589-3305

 

SKCTC MIDDLESBORO & PINEVILLE CAMPUS DIRECTOR:

Ms. Susan Croushorn

606-248-2014

 

 

COURSE COMPETENCIES:      After completion of this course, the student can:

(1)   Describe the private enterprise system.

(2)   Identify areas of business social responsibility

(3)   Describe economic challenges facing U.S. business.

(4)   Identify and differentiate between the forms of private business ownership.

(5)   Identify the management skills necessary for business in a capitalistic economy.

(6)   Explain the need for human relation skills in managing a business.

(7)   Describe the need for marketing skills that are necessary for a business.

(8)   Explain the importance of current and accurate financial information in managing a business.

(9)   Explain the government’s role in the American economic system.

(10) Describe the American legal system as it applies to business.

(11) Explain the impact of the quality initiative in business.

(12) Use appropriate business vocabulary.

 

 

TOPICS: 

 

The Environment of Business

A)    Exploring the World of Business

B)    Being Ethical and Socially Responsible

C)    Exploring Global Business

Trends in Business Today

D)    Choosing a Form of Business Ownership

E)    Small Business, Entrepreneurship and Franchises

Management and Organization

F)    Understanding the Management Process

G)    Creating a Flexible Organization

H)    Producing Quality Goods and Services

Human Resources

I)      Attracting and Retaining the Best Employees

J)     Motivating and Satisfying Employees and Teams

K)    Enhancing Union-Management Relations

Marketing

L)     Building Customer Relationships Through Effective Marketing

M)   Creating and Pricing Products that Satisfy Customers

N)    Wholesaling, Retailing and Physical Distribution

Finance and Investment

O)    Understanding Money, Banking, and Credit

 

COURSE FORMAT:

 

This class will be taught via the Internet, using the Blackboard course management system at http://elearning.kctcs.edu. The on-line course is an independent study class and requires self-discipline and motivation to complete the course. It takes a very dedicated student to complete a course on the Web. The student is expected to have an excellent attitude (being respectful of others such as classmates and professor) as well.  Also, it is strongly recommended that you print this course syllabus for your guidance and information after reading it.

 

Short quizzes are designed to keep you involved with the course material between the exam dates. They are excellent way to improve your grade. Each chapter quiz – which may have a time limit -- is designed to be convenient, valuable study aid. You must read the chapter before taking the quiz.  The students will submit all coursework -- exams, quizzes and article summary -- electronically.

 

The student is expected to check the announcements and e-mail several times a week – just in case. The professor can track the days and times of the student’s participation. Students should use e-mail within the course in Blackboard (not the regular KCTCS e-mail account). If you don’t use the e-mail feature within the Blackboard, please put your NAME and BA 160 in the SUBJECT LINE of all e-mails you send to the professor from any place. Otherwise, you may get a delayed response from the professor.  As mentioned earlier, if you send an e-mail on a weekend or on a legal holiday, you usually will get a delayed response.

 

If you have problems with Blackboard, contact the KCTCS 24/7 Help Desk. (The professor may be of some help, but when it comes to technical problems the help desk is your best opportunity.)

 

 

EVALUATION OF COMPETENCIES:

 

In addition to basic course content, the student will acquire certain General Education competencies and will demonstrate their acquisition of these skills and knowledge by successful achievement on class assessment measures. These General Education competencies will include the following:

 

COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY – 1) The student will prepare to read and listen with comprehension by reading the textbook, by viewing the videos, and by taking examinations and quizzes.  2) The student will write clearly using standard English by doing a two-page article summary.

 

THINK CRITICALLY – 1) The student will make connections in learning across the disciplines and draw logical conclusions by using information and concepts from the course and related disciplines such as accounting and management for learning.

 

LEARN INDEPENDENTLY – 1) The student will make choices based upon awareness of ethics and differing perspectives/ideas. 2) The student will apply learning in academic, personal and public situations by understanding the issues facing the business world today.

 

EXAMINE RELATIONSHIPS IN DIVERSE AND COMPLEX ENVIRONMENTS – 1) The student will recognize the relationship of the individual to human heritage and culture by studying the business environment. 2) The student will develop an awareness of self as an individual member of a multicultural and global community by understanding different cultures and business practices in various countries.

 

 

 

GRADING:

Five exams                                                           @100 points each               500 points

15 Chapter Quizzes                                            @ 20 points each                 300 points

**Five Video Quizzes                                          @ 20 points each                 100 points

Two-page Article Summary                                                                                150 points

                                                                                                                                1050 points TOTAL

 

 

**It is understood that only IF these particular videos somehow become unavailable (or are not available) online, short writing assignments (or short summaries of other videos) instead will replace the video quizzes.

 

 

1050-945      A

944-840        B

839-735        C

734-630        D

Below 630    E

 

(NOTE:  Students will be required to take the pre-test sometime during the first or second week of the semester as a part of the Business Administration’s program requirement.  If you don’t take the pre-test, you won’t be allowed to take the first “regular” exam which is scheduled for September 6 to 8.  Your pre-test grade will NOT affect your grade for the course.  However, five extra points will be added to your first exam grade if your pre-test grade is at an acceptable level. It is expected that your pre-test grade will be rather low and just do the best of your ability.  Later you will be taking the post-test in your last semester of college.)

 

It is strongly suggested that you submit a quiz before or on due date because you may fall behind in the course work and have a difficult time to catch up.  The chapter quiz material will come from the textbook. The video quiz will come from the video.

 

For the Article Summary, you are to select a business-related article found in BusinessWeek magazine (www.businessweek.com) or Wall Street Journal newspaper (www.wsj.com) and prepare a summary (two full pages or more) of the article. The summary is due on Tuesday, Nov. 3 or earlier.  Additional information about the Article Summary will be announced at a later date.  The Article Summary may be graded on a “satisfactory” scale.  A satisfactory grade (S) will give you a numerical score of 142.5 points (out of 150 possible points), while satisfactory with a minus (S-) grade will give a score of 127.5.  You must repeat an unsatisfactory summary to receive credit (maximum of “S-” grade or 127.5 points).

 

No late assignments – quizzes and article summary – will be accepted after Tuesday, Dec. 1 as the assignments are expected to close after that date. In other words, they may not be available on Blackboard and the professor is not obligated to accept late assignments. 

Cheating of any sort, including plagiarism, will NOT be tolerated.  See KCTCS’ policy on plagiarism and cheating.  

 Each exam will be made up of multiple-choice and true/false questions. Once you have opened the exam, you will have a time limit to complete it. So, because of the time limit, you need to be ready or prepared before the exam. The exam dates are:

 

EXAM # 1 (Chapter 1, 2 and 3)

Sunday, Sept. 6 to Tuesday, Sept. 8

EXAM # 2 (Chapter 4, 5 and 6)

Sunday, Sept. 27 and Monday, Sept. 28

  EXAM # 3 (Chapter 7, 8 and 9)                   Sunday, Oct. 18 and Monday, Oct. 19  

  EXAM # 4 (Chapter 10, 11 and 12)              Sunday, Nov. 8 and Monday, Nov. 9

  EXAM # 5 (Chapter 13, 14 and 18)               Sunday, Nov. 29 to Tuesday, Dec. 1  

The exam dates are also listed below in the Course Calendar section. The exams usually will open on a Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. EASTERN time and end on a Monday night at 11:55 p.m. EASTERN time. (The first and fifth exam will end on Tuesday evening at 11:55 p.m.)   More information about the exam will be given about a week before the exam date. You might be able to use the textbook for a question or two, but you won’t have much time.  If you are prepared, you won’t have problems with the exam.  You will be fine. (WARNING: Do not try to exit out of an exam. It will not let you back in. It must be finished once you start. If that happens, you will likely be forced to take a make-up exam at a later date.)   

 You will have an opportunity to make up a missed exam on-line with PRIOR approval of the professor.  The make-up exam, however, is worth 90 points (instead of 100 points).  You lose 10 points, but please remember taking the make-up exam is better than nothing and the professor needs to be fair to the students who took the regular exam on time. The make-up exam also may be composed of essay or short-answer questions, instead of multiple-choice and true/false questions.

 

The date for the make-up exam will take place on Wednesday, Dec. 2 (anytime between 7:00 a.m. to 11:55 p.m.)

 

Technical problems with your computer when taking an exam are not necessarily an excuse to take a make-up exam at a later date – so please be very careful!  A friendly suggestion:  You may want to take the exam on a reliable computer at your local campus, if possible. 

 

COURSE CALENDAR:

Week of Aug. 17-21                                           Read Chapter 1

                                                                        Video Quiz No. 1 Due on Thursday, Aug. 20

__________________________________________________________________________

Week of Aug. 24-28                                           Chapter 2

Chapter 1 Quiz Due on Thursday, Aug. 27

Chapter 2 Quiz Due on Thursday, Aug. 27

__________________________________________________________________________

Week of Aug. 31-Sept. 4                                    Chapter 3; Quiz Due on Thursday, Sept. 3

__________________________________________________________________________

EXAM # 1 (Chapter 1, 2 and 3)                      Sunday, Sept. 6 to Tuesday, Sept. 8

______________________________________________________________________

Week of Sept. 7-11                                            Chapter 4; Quiz Due on Thursday, Sept. 10

                                                                        Video Quiz No. 2 Due on Thursday, Sept. 10

____________________________________________________________________________

Week of Sept. 14-18                                          Chapter 5; Quiz Due on Thursday, Sept. 17

____________________________________________________________________________

Week of Sept. 21-25                                          Chapter 6; Quiz Due on Thursday, Sept. 24

                                                                        Video Quiz No. 3 Due on Thursday, Sept. 24

____________________________________________________________________________

EXAM # 2 (Chapter 4, 5 and 6)                      Sunday, Sept. 27 and Monday, Sept. 28

_______________________________________________________________________

Week of Sept. 28-Oct. 2                                       Chapter 7; Quiz Due on Thursday, Oct. 1

____________________________________________________________________________

Week of Oct. 5-9                                                   Chapter 8: Quiz Due on Thursday, Oct. 8

                                                                        Video Quiz No. 4 Due on Thursday, Oct. 8

___________________________________________________________________________

Week of Oct. 12-16                                               Chapter 9; Quiz Due on Thursday, Oct. 15

__________________________________________________________________________

EXAM # 3 (Chapter 7, 8 and 9)                      Sunday, Oct. 18 and Monday, Oct. 19  

_____________________________________________________________________

Week of Oct. 19-23                                            Chapter 10; Quiz Due on Thursday, Oct. 22

__________________________________________________________________________

Week of Oct. 26-30                                               Chapter 11; Quiz Due on Thursday, Oct. 29

                                                                        Video Quiz No. 5 Due on Thursday, Oct. 29

__________________________________________________________________________

Week of Nov. 2-6                                                 Chapter 12; Quiz Due on Thursday, Nov. 5

__________________________________________________________________________

EXAM # 4 (Chapter 10, 11 and 12)                  Sunday, Nov. 8 and Monday, Nov. 9

____________________________________________________________________

Week of Nov. 9-13                                               Chapter 13; Quiz Due on Thursday, Nov. 12

                                                                             Article Summary Due on Tuesday, Nov. 10 

___________________________________________________________________________

Week of Nov. 16-20                                             Chapter 14: Quiz Due on Thursday, Nov.19

                                                                             Chapter 18; Quiz Due on Saturday, Nov. 21

__________________________________________________________________________

Week of Nov. 23-27                                           FALL BREAK / THANKSGIVING

__________________________________________________________________________

EXAM # 5 (Chapter 13, 14 & 18)                    Sunday, Nov. 29 to Tuesday, Dec. 1

CALENDAR NOTES:   1) All late coursework, including quizzes, should be submitted no later than Tuesday, Dec. 1. The course is expected to shut down by the end of that week.  3) The Make-up Exam Date is Wednesday, Dec. 2.  This will be your last opportunity to take a make-up exam, which is usually more difficult. It may be either an essay exam or an objective-type exam.

ADDITIONAL COURSE INFORMATION:

Please keep in mind that the course schedule for coursework is TENTATIVE, and a coursework MAY BE added to, deleted from, or changed. It is the responsibility of the student to observe such changes even in case of absence from the Web course. In order to complete all of the course requirements, you will need to follow the schedule very closely. If you get behind, you may need to drop the course. Please let me know if you are having problems and perhaps we can solve them.

IMPORTANT DATES IN ACADEMIC CALENDAR:

 

August 17 -- First day of class session

August  21 – Last day to enter organized class for fall semester

August 21 -- Last day to drop a class without a grade

Oct. 9 -- Last day for students to drop at their discretion and receive a grade of W

Dec.  4 -- Last day for a student at the instructor’s discretion to officially withdraw from a class and receive a grade of W.  

(However, it is strongly suggested that if you need to drop the course, you should contact your advisor or professor before Dec. 4.  If the need arises for you drop this course or any other course, make sure you complete the “drop and add” procedure required by the college. Failure to do so will result in the recording of an “E” as your final grade. The professor has no control over this process.)

Please keep in mind that your home college’s academic calendar may be different from the on-line academic calendar.

CONSUMER (STUDENT) INFORMATION:

The following information is available on the Web site of Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College (www.southeast.kctcs.edu).  Go to Student Services and click on Consumer Information.

AIDS Guidelines

Code of Student Conduct

Crime Awareness

Drug Free Policy

Financial Aid Information

Graduation Rate and Transfer Out Rate

Hepatitis B

KCTCS Community College Catalog

Sexual Harassment Policy

Student Grievance Procedures

Student Handbook

Student Rights Under FERPA

 

 

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:

Each college has a coordinator to assist students with their disabilities. Students with disabilities who desire academic accommodations must provide the coordinator with current documentation of their disability including evidence of the need for academic accommodations. Contact the local college’s Student Services Office for more details including the name and location of the Disability Coordinator.