Virginia Law

The program in business and information technology shall ensure that the candidate has demonstrated the following competencies:

1. Knowledge, skills, and principles of manual and automated accounting, including:

a. Accounting concepts, terminology, and applications;

b. Accounting systems;

c. The basic accounting cycle of source documents, verifications, analyzing, recording, posting, trial balances, and preparing financial statements; and

d. Use of accounting computer software to automate accounting tasks.

2. Knowledge and skills in economics, including:

a. Basic economic concepts and structures;

b. The role of producers and consumers in a market economy;

c. The price system;

d. The many factors that may affect income;

e. The nation's economic goals, including full employment, stable prices, and economic growth;

f. The nation's finance system;

g. How monetary and fiscal policy influence employment, output, and prices;

h. The role of government in a market economy;

i. The global economy; and

j. Distinguishing between trade deficit and trade surplus.

3. Knowledge of the foundations of business selected from the following areas:

a. Business law.

(1) Ability to recognize the legal requirements affecting business organization; and

(2) Ability to apply legal principles to business situations.

b. Business principles.

(1) Ability to identify, explain, and apply contemporary business principles;

(2) Ability to identify and explain the advantages and disadvantages of various business organizational structures; and

(3) Knowledge of the foundations of international business, the global business environment, international business communications, and global business ethics.

c. Management. Understanding and analyzing of basic management functions, tools, theories, and leadership styles to explore and solve problems in business organizations, economics, international business, and human relations issues.

d. Marketing and entrepreneurship.

(1) Understanding of basic marketing concepts in sales techniques, advertising, display, buying, wholesale and retail, distribution, service occupations, market analysis, warehousing, and inventory control; and

(2) Understanding of the unique characteristics of an entrepreneur and the knowledge and skills necessary for an entrepreneurial venture.

e. Finance.

(1) Knowledge about and skills in the areas of managing personal finance and budgeting, saving and investing, buying goods and services, banking and financial institutions, and earning and reporting income needed for sound financial decision making; and

(2) Understanding of the basic concepts of economics, insurance, credit, consumer skills, and other related topics.

4. Knowledge and skills in all of the following communications and information technologies:

a. Communications.

(1) Ability to communicate in a clear, courteous, concise, and correct manner for personal and professional purposes through the foundations of listening, writing, reading, speaking, nonverbal cues, and following written and oral directions;

(2) Ability to use information systems and technology to expedite and enhance the effectiveness of communications and telecommunications; and

(3) Ability to gather, evaluate, use, and cite information from information technology sources.

b. Impact of technology on society and the individual or digital citizenship. Knowledge to assess the impact of information technology on society.

c. Computer architecture. Ability to describe current and emerging computer architecture; configure, install, and upgrade hardware; and diagnose and repair hardware problems.

d. Operating systems, environments, and utilities. Ability to identify, evaluate, select, install, use, upgrade, customize, and diagnose and solve problems with various types of operating systems, environments, and utilities.

e. Application software, such as word processing; database; spreadsheet; graphics; web design; desktop, presentation, multimedia, and imaging; and emerging technologies.

(1) Ability to identify, evaluate, select, install, use, upgrade, and customize application software; and

(2) Ability to diagnose and solve problems resulting from an application software's installation and use.

f. Input technologies. Ability to use input devices and technologies, such as touch keyboarding, speech recognition, handwriting recognition, hand-held devices, touch screen or mouse, scanning, and other emerging input technologies to enter, manipulate, and format text and data.

g. Database management systems. Ability to use, plan, develop, and maintain database management systems. Ability to diagnose and solve problems using database management systems.

h. Programming and application development. Ability to help students design, develop, test, and implement multi-platform, such as mobile, different operating systems programs that solve business problems.

i. Networking and communications infrastructures.

(1) Facilitate students' development in the skills to design, deploy, and administer networks and communications systems;

(2) Facilitate students' ability to use, evaluate, and deploy communications and networking applications; and

(3) Facilitate students' ability to analyze networks for security vulnerabilities and develop and deploy appropriate security plans and applications.

j. Information management.

(1) Ability to plan the selection and acquisition of information technologies (hardware and software);

(2) Ability to instruct students in the development of technical and interpersonal skills and knowledge to support the user community; and

(3) Ability to describe, analyze, develop, and follow policies for managing privacy and ethical issues in organizations and in a technology-based society.

k. Web development and multimedia;

(1) Ability to instruct students in the design and development of web applications based on industry standards and principles of good design;

(2) Ability to instruct students in the design and development of multimedia applications; and

(3) Ability to design and develop multimedia and web-based applications for multiple operating systems and environments, such as mobile, desktop, cloud.

l. Project management.

(1) Understand the components of project management and its importance to business and information technology; and

(2) Use project management tools to coordinate information technology, business, or related projects and manage teamwork.

5. Knowledge and skills necessary to teach leadership skills, organize and manage an effective co-curricular student organization, and implement the organization's activities as an integral part of instruction.

6. Understanding of and proficiency in grammar, usage, and mechanics and their integration in writing.

7. Understanding of and proficiency in pedagogy to incorporate writing as an instructional and assessment tool for candidates to generate, gather, plan, organize, and present ideas in writing to communicate for a variety of purposes.

8. Knowledge and skills necessary to apply basic mathematical operations to solve business problems.

9. Demonstration and integration of workplace readiness skills in the classroom and real-world activities.

10. Ability to plan, deliver, evaluate, and manage work-based learning methods of instruction such as internship, job shadowing, cooperative education, mentorship, service learning, clinical, and youth apprenticeship.