There's no denying that since they came to power in 2010, the Conservatives have worked wonders for small business. A sector that had once been all but ignored under the last Labour government was given the capacity to flourish under David Cameron. So much so that you might recall 5,000 small businesses giving their backing to the Conservatives ahead of last year's General Election. That's a boost that is likely to have contributed towards the party's election success.
Personally, I have a number of family members who all operate their own small businesses and I think it would be fair to say that along with larger businesses they form the backbone of our economy and ultimately, our country. With that in mind, more small businesses up and down the country is only something that should be encouraged. But how do we achieve that with a lack of business in the classroom?
The fact of the matter is that many schools are largely ignoring business as part of their curriculum and the government are doing very little to prevent that. Business studies is often seen as a passing interest by schools and not a subject worth their time or investment. So much so that I personally wasn't given the option to study business until progressing from school. That's a grave mistake on the part of our education system and ultimately, our government.
Quite simply, the majority of high school students are leaving school with little or no knowledge about the world of business, so how do we expect small businesses to continue providing the back bone of our economy? The fact of the matter is that running a business isn't easy. It takes a fair amount of knowledge in terms of legal documentation and finances. I believe that if we gave school children just an introduction to this; then future small businesses would see even greater success.
During a time when funding is difficult to come by, it goes without saying that many schools up and down the country are going to struggle financing additional teaching for business. However, there isn't necessarily any need for specialist business teaching. Business heralds great similarities to information technology, or IT as it's known, which means that many teachers could easily adapt to also providing information about the world of business.
Trading penny stocks would be another fantastic way of young people learning the world of business. In a matter of seconds, I was able to find a guide online from Tim Sykes about getting started with trading penny stocks. What's to say that teachers can't take advantage of similar resources in order to give their students just an introduction to business? They might just find that their students enjoy it.
Whether it's on the government's part or through direct action from schools, I do firmly believe that it's time to see business gain a more prominent place in the classroom. We've already seen the wonders that small businesses can do for employment and our economy in general, so isn't it time our schools inspired a generation of new small business owners and gave them the skills they need?