Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

This course is intended to prepare students to use basic mathematics in solving monetary problems in business and personal finance. This course must be taught with the SAC approved text.

Upon successful completion, students should be able to:

• Analyze real world scenarios to recognize when simple and compound interest, annuities, payroll preparation, pricing, invoice preparation, trade discounts, taxes, and depreciation are appropriate, formulate problems about the scenarios, creatively model these scenarios (using technology if appropriate) in order to solve the problems using multiple approaches, judge if the results are reasonable, and then interpret and clearly communicate the results.
• Appreciate business mathematics concepts that are encountered in the real world, understand and be able to communicate the underlying business concepts and mathematics involved to help another person gain insight into the situation.
• Work with simple and compound interest, annuities, payroll preparation, pricing, invoice preparation, trade discounts, taxes, and depreciation problems in various situations and use correct mathematical terminology, notation, and symbolic processes in order to be prepared for future coursework in business and mathematics that requires the use of and an understanding of the concepts of business mathematics.

Assessment must include:

1. At least two in-class examinations (one of which may be the final exam), no notes, no textbook, and

2. At least two of the following additional measures:

a) take-home examinations.

b) graded homework / worksheets.

c) quizzes.

d) writing assignments.

e) group / individual projects.

g) attendance.

1. EQUATIONS AND PERCENTAGES  The instructional goal is to explore simple equations and percent problems.
   1. Use order of operations in the solution of arithmetic application problems.
   2. Identify unknowns in business oriented applications.
   3. Solve equations for unknowns.
   4. Apply proportions to rate, base, and percentage problems.
2. TRADE AND CASH DISCOUNTS   The instructional goal is to explore applications involving discounts.
   1. Calculate trade discounts, single and series.
   2. Calculate cash discounts.
   3. Compare advantages of cash discounts and credit terms.
3. RETAIL PRICING  The instructional goal is to explore applications in retail sales: markup and markdown.
   1. Use cost as the base in markup applications.
   2. Use selling price as the base in markup applications.
   3. Compare the two methods of calculating markup.
   4. Calculate markdown, reduced price, and rate of markdown.
4. INTEREST AND PROMISSORY NOTES  The instructional goal is to explore simple and compound interest and promissory notes.
   1. Solve simple interest application problems: principal, interest, rate, and time.
   2. Solve compound interest application problems using:
      1. compound interest tables.
      2. compound interest formula.
   3. Investigate bank discount and proceeds for a promissory note.
5. DEPRECIATION AND INVENTORY CONTROL  The instructional goal is to explore selected topics of depreciation and inventory control.
   1. Solve depreciation problems with at least two methods:
      1. Straight-Line.
      2. Declining-Balance.
      3. Sum-of-the-Years Digits.
      4. Units-of-Production (ACRS).
      5. MACRS
   2. Solve inventory control problems with at least two methods:
      1. Specific Identification.
      2. Weighted Average.
      3. LIFO.
      4. FIFO.
6. WAGES, COMMISSIONS, PAYROLL DEDUCTIONS, BANKING SERVICES, AND TAXES  The instructional goal is to explore problems that apply to employee income, deductions, and taxes.
   1. Calculate employee income from wages (hourly and/or piecework) and commissions.
   2. Calculate deductions, taxes, FICA, and other special deductions that can occur.
   3. Reconcile a checking account with a bank statement.
7. ANNUITIES  The instructional goal is to explore annuities, including future value, present value, and sinking funds.
   1. Find the future value of an annuity or an annuity due using a table.
   2. Find the present value of an annuity using a table.
   3. Find the payment for a sinking fund using a table.