Welcome to the Text Enrichment Site for Business Plan, Business Reality: Starting and Managing Your Own Business in Canada, Second Edition, by James R. Skinner. This site contains the following resources:
Please note that a Student CD-ROM is provided with each copy of Business Plan, Business Reality: Starting and Managing Your Own Business in Canada, Second Edition. The disk includes:
- Weblinks
- Study Tips
- Basic Business Plan Template
- Alternate Business Plan Templates
- Departmental and Non-profit Business Plan Outlines
- Links to Other Example Business Plans and Templates
Check the inside back cover of your book for the Student CD-ROM.
Weblinks
The following weblinks are organized by the chapter where they are most likely to be of assistance to the student or entrepreneur. Additional weblinks related to the teaching of entrepreneurship are offered to the instructor in the Instructor's Resource Manual.
Click here to open the Weblinks PDF file.
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Study Tips
Using the Text
1. Study the Table of Contents and the Preface
Understanding the logic of how the text is organized will make it easier to find specific information and will also give you a context for learning the information in the text. For this book, the organization of material is based on a model of the business plan. The topics in the first five modules are organized in the way that is most logical to explain a new business to a potential lender or investor. Modules 6-8 represent topics for alternative ways of getting into business, and Module 9 discusses more advanced business planning topics.
2. Pay Attention to the Learning Objectives
Each module of the text starts with a list of learning objectives, or things you should actually be able to do after completing the module. These objectives will be similar to the objectives, or learning outcomes, in the outline for your particular course. The learning objectives are a good place to start when you are studying for an exam.
3. Use the Running Glossary
The definitions that are provided in the margins are not intended as an alternative to reading the text. The real meaning of these terms is likely to stick in your memory only when you have read the explanations and examples given in the body of the text. The running glossary is there to highlight critical terms, and it can be used as an aid to review for tests.
4. Test Yourself
The true/false questions found in the margin have answers at the end of each chapter. When using these as a study aid, don't just memorize the correct answers. Make sure you know why they are the answers. The questions on any tests you receive are likely to cover the same topics, but are unlikely to be the exact same questions in the same format. You must understand the concept behind each question.
If you are using these while you read the text for the first time, getting a wrong answer is an indicator that your reading has not been productive. Try to take a break and go back a few pages when you resume reading.
Preparing for and Writing Tests
There is lots of advice, some of it backed by documented studies, on how to prepare for tests in a general sense:
- Get a good night's sleep before the test.
- Eat high-calorie energy foods before starting the test.
- Arrive at the test room early to relax and become familiar with anything in the environment that might otherwise distract you.
- Listen to and read all test instructions carefully.
Specific preparation and strategies for any test, however, should depend on the nature and format of the test. Always be sure to get as much information as possible from the instructor about the number of questions there will be, the type of questions that will be asked, and how the test will be evaluated.
1. True/False Questions
When dealing with true/false questions, answer the questions that you know the answer to with some certainty, right away. Leave questions where you don't know the answer and come back to them later. Sometimes the memory trigger for one question will appear in another question. Analyze the questions in an attempt to look for "tells," or information that will indicate the correct answer. For example, extreme qualifiers such as "always" or "all of" usually indicate a statement that is false. Qualifiers like "usually" or "most" are more likely to indicate a true statement. However, remember that attempts to decode questions are no substitute for study. The best way to review the information for a true/false test is to look for things in the text that could be turned into this kind of question.
2. Multiple Choice Questions
Studying for multiple choice options should also involve "spotting" the questions by going through the text and your notes and looking for things that can be turned into multiple choice questions (short lists, definitions, recommended alternatives, etc.).
Make sure that you know how the questions will be marked. If wrong answers will be deducted from correct answers (to discourage guessing), then leave answers blank for questions where you do not know the answer-- unless you can reduce the options to only two possible answers (i.e., a 50% chance of guessing correctly.) If wrong answers are not deducted from correct answers, then be sure to never turn in your paper with unanswered questions.
When necessary, guess. But first try to eliminate options that you can identify as incorrect to increase your chance of guessing correctly. Again, try to decode the question, paying special attention to grammar. (Sometimes only a single option may be grammatically correct.) Always look for options that are qualified (see True/False Questions) or of anomalous length. For example, if there are three long options and one short option, the short option is more likely to be correct. Two options that mean the same thing will cancel each other out and be both wrong. Two options that mean the opposite of each other will often indicate that one of those two options is the correct answer.
3. Fill-in-the-Blank Questions
Fill-in-the-blank questions will often have options using more than one word, so pay close attention to the spacing of the blanks that might indicate multi-word terms. If wrong answers are not deducted from correct answers, always attempt an answer. In cases where you understand the question, but cannot recall a specific term, you may attempt a multi-word answer hoping to convince the test marker that you understand the concept and should receive the mark.
4. Short Answer Questions
Short questions can often be spotted from the course outline or the learning objectives in the text by looking for terms that the student will be expected to "define," "list," or "compare."
Make sure that you know whether these questions are being marked for grammar or writing style and, if so, answer using complete sentences. Short answer questions are effective for checking whether a student has committed specific definitions to memory, so study accordingly. The marking scheme will generally look for two or three specific points, so don't waste time over-answering these questions.
5. Essay Questions
Essay questions can often be spotted from the course outline or the learning objectives in the text by looking for the broader concepts or issues that the student might be expected to "discuss," "argue," or "explain."
Carefully analyze what the question is asking you to do by underlining the key words, especially verbs such as "discuss," "compare," "argue," or "explain." Prepare a point-form draft of your essay. Write with careful attention to grammar, spelling, and style. (Even though specific marks may not be awarded for these, grammar issues will positively or negatively influence the marker.) Use any spare time, at the end, to proofread and correct your work.
Chapter Reviews
Each chapter review contains the key terms and True/False Review Questions from the chapter. When studying, try to define each term, or respond to each true/false question before looking at the definition or correct answer.
Study Guide
Use the Study Guide on the CD-ROM that accompanies the book. It contains valuable information and interactive (flash card) drills that ease the process of memorizing important terminology.
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Updates
Watch for new or revised information and links to be posted here.
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Financial Schedules Templates
These templates are for students and instructors. Click on the links below to access the templates in Excel format with integrated formulas.
Income Statement template
Cash Flow template
Balance Sheet template
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Instructor Resources
Click here to go to Pearson Education Canada’s online catalogue and access the instructor resources for this text.
On this site, you will find the following downloadable supplements:
PowerPoint Presentations for each chapter of the text.
Instructor's Resource Manual, which includes the following:
- Lesson Notes. The notes are in the form of questions that instructors can ask students for lesson development, or they can be used as lecture outlines.
- Learning Tasks including exercises, projects, assignments and the outline for a major report on an existing small business.
- Case Studies. This is a mixed version (from various program/discipline areas) of the 22 short case studies.
- Test Bank including multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, short answer and essay questions.
- Marking Notes with correct answers for the objective questions as well as marking schemes for short answer and essay questions. Suggested marking schemes are also included for Business Plan submissions.
- Teaching Resources Websites
- Best Practices in Teaching Entrepreneurship Discussion and Postings
- Customized versions of the chapter Case Studies for the following program areas:
- E-Business
- Golf Management
- Hospitality (Hotel and Restaurant)
- Paralegal Studies
- Photography
- TV & Film studies
These supplements are also available on the Instructor’s Resource CD-ROM for Business Plan, Business Reality: Starting and Managing Your Own Business in Canada, Second Edition. To receive a copy of the Instructor's Resource CD-ROM, please contact your Pearson representative.
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Errata
Please alert us to any errors you may find in the text that are not already posted here. Email jim.skinner@humber.ca.
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