Business economics training services are focused on a wide variety of natural resource and environmental issues concerning economics.

• Business Economics Training,
• Commodity Valuation,
• Price Projections,
• Cost Forecasting,
• Operations Analysis for Productivity and Profitability,
• Developing management and taxation policy based on
  • social,
  • financial and
  • political constraints,
• optimization of business operations, and
• land resource valuation for appraisal purposes.

This list of potential business and economics profiles brings together environmental policy and technology issues. At D&D Larix, we bring business economics training into clear focus.

Courses taught by D&D Larix, follow a strategy we developed to enhance the learning experience. Students begin the class long before the classroom sessions begin. Videos are sent to participants to watch on YouTube. Tasks are assigned in these videos and students begin the process of knowledge assimilation. When the class begins, it may be in a classroom, but it generally transitions to a field site. Students can watch a video, but they experience learning.

Business Economics Training

Students come to our classes from a broad array of backgrounds. Each student builds on what they knew before ever entering the class. Every student also has vision of what is to be gained through the classes they attend and participate in. This is where our classes take on a different light of understanding. The pre-class materials watched as videos establish the ‘concrete’ learning facts and figures. ‘Abstract’ understanding comes through application of topics to each person’s understanding. These are formed through examples, testing, theorizing, and even game-playing.

This can be seen when a student applies the concepts about price forecasting demonstrated to delivered log prices. We do this through the Real Price Appreciation Forecast Tool, and task students to apply it to other commodities. Class participants apply those concepts to forecasting the price of a commodity they selected before class began. It is the application of established ideas to personal experiences that leads to understanding.

This is what we do.

Class sessions build the topics discussed into examples seen in the real world. Some criteria changes are discussed, like “what happens when this variable changes from this to that?” These simple questions can lead to speculation by everyone involved to expand discussions to new horizons. It is rather interesting to guide these events and consider ‘expected’ events in the marketplace. Change-discussions lead to forecast anticipation and questions about what impacts some groups, businesses, or people.

As instructors, we try not to dominate the class, instead we engage students to become involved with each other. Class participants develop explanations and situational examples to explain their understanding. Those discussions build through examples to create opportunities everyone can mentally grow with. Learning business economics training does not happen because you know what “Keynes” said and when he said it. It happens when the ideas are integrated into everyday understanding of events.

Dr. Bill has been a faculty member teaching economics and business management, and natural resource topics. His class sessions have been considered by many of his peers to be unique, and challenging. His approach is different from the traditional teaching profile. Some of his students have responded with exceptionally high praise. “This was the most time consuming class I ever took! But, it was also the class where I learned more than I ever learned in any class ever before!”

When he first started teaching college classes, he used the traditional slideshow while teaching classes. Discussions were usually made as part of the structured presentations. His teaching approach evolved as technologies advanced to enable several different tools useful for student engagement. Dr. Bill uses the Learning Management System (LMS) hosted at colleges and universities to virtually interact with his students. This begins with welcome videos he makes for each class, used to acquaint students with materials and expectations. Students receive e-mail messages, from daily to several times a week, to guide expectations through the class.

Topic Materials

Each student takes weekly on-line quizzes through the LMS and receives scores on these as tasks are completed. Discussion Board events follow directions to students “Define and Discuss with Example”. The terms are selected by students for the weekly terms. These are reviewed and commented on by their class-peers to continue the discussion through the semester.

Assignments, or tasks, through the class use a combination of software tools like spreadsheets, word processor, presentation, and database tools. He has built several YouTube videos giving example of how to use software tools to complete tasks assigned in class. Students complete their tasks in a Windows Operating System, on an Apple MacIntosh, or a Linux computer. All platforms are welcome.

Secondary Research

In each class, each student is tasked to prepare and deliver a Term Report using a class-topic they select. Students use their software program and integrate software tools:

• apply a Style Sheet,
• create and use a References citation database,
• make in-document references for figures and tables,
• end the report by automatically generating References Cited record.

The term report is researched and written through the first half of the semester in 4 parts. Each section builds on the previous version.

Professional Interaction

After the term report is approved, each student makes a presentation, on a program like PowerPoint. It is prepared as a 10 minute presentation to their peers. Students make a written narration of their presentation, set slide-timing and animation for each slide. They record their narration in their own voice. Next, digital mastering of their audio tracks is made. They then synchronize audio with their slide show’s screens and animations. Each student creates a 10 minute YouTube video they place on their own YouTube Channel to submit for this event.

Each student production is linked on the class LMS platform where each student views and comments on the video productions. This is a multifaceted assignment for each student receiving attentive comments by their peers. Students extend the discussions for each video produced.

Students may have entered the class to study Microeconomics, International Business, Geospatial Analysis, or even multi-spectral image analysis. Term reports and video productions give students a different perspective of their topics. With these approaches applied, student engagement rose to the high levels.

An interesting aspect of YouTube videos made by Dr. Bill, is seen when watching them. Recognize that his talking face is not seen on these videos. Some ‘virtual videos‘ are produced by educators who set a video camera to record them talking to the screen. This is the standard practice for news shows conducting interviews and for broadcasters wanting to connect with their viewers. This is not something Dr. Bill endorses.

“Talking Faces are a Distraction.” says Dr. Bill.

He creates videos centered on written documentation, videos of activities, charts and graphs. Dedicating 25% of the computer screen to a ‘talking face’ is a waste of scarce real estate. Dr. Bill uses subscripts created from his video narration text to play in sync with the video show. These subscripts perfectly match the narration delivered in English (his native language). These scripted narration guides are translated by the YouTube online translations with increased accuracy.

Interested to see how to make that happen? Follow this link, made by Dr. Bill: Closed Captioning with YouTube for Excellent Results.

Give it a try, it works, and you will make it part of your work.

Contact us to begin the training opportunities for your agency, association, company or group. We want to work with you to make natural resources and business economics training concepts a part of your success. Think Like an Economist and send us that e-mail.