Faculty Report

Studying Commerce at Mazenod College

Students at Mazenod are continuing to demonstrate a keen interest in the ever-changing business and economic landscape we are currently presented with. The popularity of our Commerce offerings tells us that understanding this landscape is a passion for many of our students.

Whilst we have always experienced strong interest in our range of VCE offerings, we are experiencing increasing interest in our elective offerings at Year 9 and 10 which focus on developing financial literacy, an understanding of how the legal system operates and an introductory exploration into the various Commerce subjects available at VCE. 

Year 9 Financial Literacy

Over the past few years, we have partnered with Banqer to support our Year 9 Financial Literacy offering. Over 220 Year 9 students utilise a digital financial education platform where online simulations explore a range of essential financial concepts from debt to investments, budgeting to careers, and more.

The platform simulates real life events, like stock market shifts, natural phenomena like flooding, and job promotions, to link students to experiential learning and real-world applications.

Students are also able to see how their Banqer journey stacks up against their classmates with leaderboards for different areas of the platform, such as savings and investments.

VCE Business Management

Early in Term 2 the Year 12 Business Management classes visited the Yakult factory in Dandenong South. The tour moved through the whole facility giving students the opportunity to witness the entire manufacturing process and find the connections between the textbook and the real-world application. 

The tour concluded with a taste test of the final product and students left with a wealth of knowledge of how an operations process works.

Increasingly in the end of year examination, students are asked to link to content to contemporary business case studies and we hope that activities such as our trip to Yakult, assist students to demonstrate critical thinking and appropriate linkage to examples.

Across all of our Commerce subjects, which include Accounting, Business Management, Economics and Legal Studies, we are always looking for opportunities to enrich our students learning. If you are keen to share the story of your business success or provide insight into any of the topics highlighted in the article, we would love to hear from you.

Nicholas Redfern

Faculty Head, Commerce