This document provides an overview of an entrepreneurship education program called "Unleashing the Entrepreneurial Spirit". The program aims to inspire entrepreneurship educators by providing free education materials including business plan templates, budgets, and a textbook. The program is based on problem-based learning and aims to transform students' ideas into business realities by guiding them through the process of developing a business plan and presenting it. The program consists of 8 modules that take students from developing a business idea to presenting their plan. The goal is to provide students with the understanding and tools to start their own business.

1. Unleashing the
Entrepreneurial Spirit
- An entrepreneurship education program created to inspire
entrepreneurship educators around the world
“Throughout the world, student interest in entrepreneurship as a career choice is
growing while interest in traditional professional employment in big business is
gradually declining.
Empirical research has shown that the presence of entrepreneurship education
programs and a positive image of entrepreneurs within the university are both
incentives for participants to choose an entrepreneurial career.”
Professor in Entrepreneurship Alain Fayolle, EMLYON Business School, 2005
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2. Content
Entrepreneurship education...................................................................................2
Entrepreneurship education context......................................................................3
Entrepreneurship education concept.....................................................................4
Training module specifications...............................................................................6
Inspiration to Problem Based Learning................................................................10
Entrepreneurship education
On these pages educators will find inspiration for their own entrepreneurship lectures
and can download and use free education material.
We call this entrepreneurship education material: Unleashing the Entrepreneurial
Spirit.
Entrepreneurship is a world trend
“Throughout the world, student interest in entrepreneurship as a career choice is
growing while interest in traditional professional employment in big business is
gradually declining.
Empirical research has shown that the presence of entrepreneurship education
programs and a positive image of entrepreneurs within the university are both
incentives for participants to choose an entrepreneurial career.”
Professor in Entrepreneurship Alain Fayolle, EMLYON Business School, 2005
Free entrepreneurship education material
Entrepreneurship education is about transforming an idea into reality – opposite to
academic talking about how to do it.
Practical tools for realizing a commercial idea are found here; that is:
• 75 pages of online text about business plans
• Downloadable business plan template
• Downloadable establishing budget
• Downloadable operating budget
• The text book Dynamic Business Plan
• Power Point slides
Inspiration to your own teaching
Experience says that even if you are an excellent educator, teaching
entrepreneurship can be a challenge. Here you will find inspiration to implement
entrepreneurship education at your own college/university:
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3. • Training context
• Training concept
• Training module specifications
• Training event description
• Inspiration to Problem Based Learning
Why free entrepreneurship education material?
I, Mr. Mogens Thomsen, the owner of Thomsen Business Information and the web
site www.dynamicbusinessplan.com, was inspired by the UNDP report “Unleashing
Entrepreneurship”. The report says that one of the pillars of entrepreneurship is:
“Access to Skills and Knowledge” I am able to deliver access and knowledge.
I have the belief that most persons have the ability to start a business. They just
need core knowledge about starting a business and that is one of the gifts I can
deliver to the world community.
If I help potential entrepreneurs to become actual entrepreneurs I feel
I have participated in making the world a better place. Especially if the
entrepreneurs embrace and support the 10 principals of UN Global
Compact initiative. - www.unglobalcompact.org
Entrepreneurship education context
The training program “Unleashing the Entrepreneurial Spirit” is different from other
entrepreneurship programs in the way it meets the participants/students.
The author of this web site believes that the individual person /study group must be
activities involved in entrepreneurial activity if proper entrepreneurial learning to take
place. This means that the students must try to start a business or act as if they want
to start a business.
This view of entrepreneurship education is built from years of experience and from
solid theoretical studies.
Theoretical background
Olsen and Bosserman (1984, 53) says that “individuals will exhibit entrepreneurial
behavior when they possess a combination of three attributes”, namely:
1. Role orientation - emphasizing effectiveness
2. Abilities - to think both intuitively and rationally
3. Motivation - the driving force behind action
According to Alain Fayolle (2002) to achieve these, it seems necessary to adopt an
approach to learning that:
• Gives participants ownership of their learning, including negotiating with their
tutor, their own learning objectives, the resources, etc.
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4. • Involves participants in problem-solving in real-world situations, possibly in
teams
• Encourages participants to formulate decisions on data which are immediate,
incomplete, “dubious” and, as appropriate, personally generated
• Provides participants with role models who are involved in both the learning and
assessment processes
This approach to learning is deeply founded in the Scandinavian educational tradition
and is the basis for our approach to entrepreneurship education.
Goal of training program
The goal of the training program “Unleashing the Entrepreneurial Spirit” is:
• To provide the participants with the understanding that they themselves can
create a business and give them the tools to carry out this entrepreneurial
desire.
Entrepreneurship education concept
The target group for this entrepreneurship training program “Unleashing the
Entrepreneurial Spirit” is college or university students – or adults with at least a
college degree.
The training concept consists of the following eight training modules:
1. Establish a creative learning environment
2. Develop/adapt an idea from which a business will be created
3. Lecture about using a business plan
4. Lecture about budgeting a new business
5. Participant consultations with lecturers
6. Group work creating a business plan – lecturers are consultants
7. Lecture on presentation skills
8. Presentation of business plan – maybe for invited persons
Training overview
The training is planned to take place during 40 lessons. The time frame can be
adapted to the circumstances.
During lessons the participants will be guided /coached from having no clear
business idea - and maybe no knowledge about business - to have created a
business plan and presented it to fellow participants and lecturers.
This is possible with the use of:
• The educator’s ability to motivate students
• The educator’s ability to teach business plan knowledge
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5. • www.dynamicbusinessplan.com which delivers the entrepreneurship
education material
The training must:
• Give participants an idea of how to start a business
• Enable the participants to spot a business idea
• Provide an understanding of the concept of a business plan
• Enable the participants to create an operating budget
The training should:
• Unleash the entrepreneurial spirit of the participant
• Encourage the participant to actually start a business
• Make the participants feel confident with own possibilities
Evaluation
Relevant topics in the plan shall be supported by data.
If you must evaluate the education it can be done by a “Reaction evaluation” and a
“Learning – knowledge and skills evaluation”
Reaction
The reaction evaluation will be based on a written evaluation scheme handed out to
the participants after the final training event while participants are still are sitting in
the training event room.
Learning
The Learning – knowledge and skills evaluation will be done by the lecturers. The
student’s presentation of their business plan will show if they have understood what it
means to start a business.
The lecturer could fill out the “Five criteria scheme for Dynamic Business Plan
Diploma”. The five criteria are:
1. Business idea
2. Depth of product description
3. Depth of knowledge of market and sales potential
4. Realism in and understanding of budget
5. Entrepreneurial spirit and enthusiasm
Depth of data
The more solid the data in the business plan is the higher quality.
You can divide data in three categories:
• Factual data – e.g. when one table cost 500 $ two must cost 1.000 $.
• Estimated data – e.g. five customers out of 20 asked, said they will buy the
product - therefore 25 % might buy the product.
• Allegations - I just believe it is like that …
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6. Training module specifications
The training concept: Unleashing the Entrepreneurial Spirit consists of the following
eight training modules:
1. Establishing a creative learning environment
2. Develop/adapt idea from which business will be created
3. Lecture about using a business plan
4. Lecture about budgeting a new business
5. Participant consultations with lecturers
6. Group work creating a business plan – lecturers are consultants
7. Lecture on presentation skills
8. Presentation of business plan for invited persons
The modules will always be present in the training programme “Unleashing the
Entrepreneurial Spirit”, but they can be altered and fitted into different time frames
and training venues.
Presentation of modules:
Title: 1. Establishing a creative learning environment
Performance goal: It is intended to establish a learning environment, which inspires the participants
to participate actively in an innovative process
Standard: Evaluation will show if participants felt confident
Conditions: Room for all participants at one time. Facilities to work in groups. Access to PC
with internet and the use of telephone throughout the training period. Printing
facilities
Main content: The basic elements in the learning environment should be:
Mutual respect between students and lecturers, confidence, motivation and
courage to innovate.
To establish this learning environment in very short time, we will use:
- Mutual presentations
- Energizers
- Presentation of the learning methods
- Exercises to train the ability to be creative
- Teambuilding activities
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Title: 2. Develop/adapt idea from which business will be created
Performance goal: The participants should feel that they have the ownership of their own idea
Standard: All participants /groups must have decided on which idea they will build their
business.
Conditions: Class room and possibilities to group work
Main content: • Define business /entrepreneurship
• Top 10 businesses in the country
• What makes a good business?
• Room for more businesses in the country?
• Creating a “creative space” for creativity
• Each group create a business idea in group work
• Presentation of business idea in class room
3. Lecture about using a business plan
Title:
Performance goal: The participants will be able to understand and use the different elements in the
business plan
Standard: At participants presentation of business plan it will show if they understand the
fundamentals of a business plan
Conditions: Class room, black board, electricity, overhead projector and screen for PC
projector /overhead. Facilities to copy xx copies of business plan and other
education material
Main content: Business Plan presentation:
• Personal resources
• The product / service
• Market
• Sales and marketing
• Organization of business
• Development of business
• Budgeting
• Financing
Material: Power Point slides, Book The Dynamic Business Plan
4. Lecture about budgeting a new business
Title:
Performance goal: The participants should understand that budgeting is common sense and
consist only of +, -, x and /
Standard: At presentation of business plan it will show if participants understand the
fundamentals of budgeting
Conditions: Lecture room, black board, if possible PC and projector.
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8. Main content: Establishing budget
Operating budget:
• Turn over / sale
• Used goods
• Gross profit
• Fixed costs
• Interest
• Depreciation
• Profit
Income comes from profit
If PC involved also: Use of spread sheet
Material: Power Point slides, The Book The Dynamic Business Plan
Title: 5. Participant consultations with lectures
Performance goal: The participants present a business idea and should be enthusiastic about by the
chosen idea.
Standard: Lecturers will in the following group work see if the study group is working with
enthusiasm
Conditions: Room for consultations.
Main content: Business coaching of the study groups. Guide the participants in the direction
that will accomplish their business idea. Help making the idea into a business
idea. Make sure the students know what to do when they start working in groups.
6. Group work creating a business plan – lectures are business
Title:
coaches
Performance goal: Participants shall face practical problems and find ways to solve them.
Standard: Lecturers will evaluate if the participants are committed to their work
Conditions: Access to PC with internet and the use of telephone throughout the training
period. Print from PC facilities
Main content:
• Real life situations of uncertainty
• Problem solving
• Cooperation skills
• From chaos over creativity to structured planning.
• Deliver written business plan to lecturers
The educator will be present but will not be lecturing answer questions when
approached by students.
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7. Lecture on presentation skills
Title:
Performance goal: Students should acquire tools so they can present a project for other people
Standard: At presentation of business plan it will show if participants present their
business plan in an acceptable way.
Conditions: Lecture room, black board, if possible PC and projector
Main content: Presentation material
Presentation performance
Presentation content
Title: 8. Presentation of business plan for invited persons
Performance goal: The participants should present their new business in a convincing way.
Standard: The presentation must have the required depths in the presenting the data of the
business plan
Understand the five principles for of a business plan:
1. Business idea
2. Depth of product description
3. Depth of knowledge of market and sales potential
4. Realism in and understanding of budget
5. Entrepreneurial spirit and enthusiasm
Conditions: Class room, black board, overhead projector, screen for PC projector /overhead.
If possible participation of one or two local entrepreneurs.
Main content: Each group do their presentation
Evaluation and feedback on presentation
Next group
Hand out of Dynamic Business Plan Diploma
Evaluation of training project
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10. Inspiration to Problem Based Learning
If you want to use the entrepreneurship education programme Unleashing the
Entrepreneurial Spirit at its best you should build your teaching around the Problem
Based Learning method.
Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centred instructional strategy in which
students collaboratively solve problems and reflect on their experiences.
Characteristics of PBL are:
• Learning is driven by challenging, open-ended problems
• Students work in small collaborative groups
• Teachers take on the role as "facilitators" of learning
Students take responsibility
Accordingly, students are encouraged to take responsibility for their group and
organize and direct the learning process with support from a tutor or instructor.
Advocates of PBL claim it can be used to enhance content knowledge and foster the
development of communication, problem-solving, and self-directed learning skills.
Problem-based learning and entrepreneurship
PBL is excellent for entrepreneurship education because if presented properly the
“problem”: “Describe how to start a business” will create a lot of energy in the
students.
At first the students feel they know nothing but after a short introduction and the
guidance from the lecturer they realise that they themselves can be the drivers in
creating their own business.
The knowledge at www.dynamicbusinessplan.com, the business plan template and
the lecture’s guidance is sufficient for them to describe what their new business will
be.
The students are the creators so they take responsibility for their group and organize
and direct the learning process.
Organizing Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning is typically organized with small groups of learners,
accompanied by an instructor, faculty person, or facilitator. During this process, a
series of problems are presented to learners with guidance early in the PBL process,
and then later guidance is faded as learners gain expertise. Guidance is faded as
group members feel more confident with the subject matter and become more
competent with the procedures.
Progress in problem solving
You could begin with worked examples and then later, introduce students to smaller
less complex problems. But as the process progresses, you should change problems
by adding components to make them more realistic. Thus it is important to begin with
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11. simplified versions of real world problems to progressively add components. This
progression of compellability and fading of support motivates learners as they slowly
gain expertise and take ownership.
During the PBL process learners should discuss problems, define what they know,
generate hypotheses, derive learning goals and organize further work. Results may
subsequently be presented to larger groups (under guidance from an instructor). A
PBL cycle should conclude with learners reflecting on the learning that has taken
place.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem-based_learning
Literature
At Wikipedia you will find a lot of references http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem-
based_learning
Best of luck in your teaching
Mogens Thomsen, Founder
Thomsen Business Information
mt@www.dynamicbusinessplan.com
www.dynamicbusinessplan.com
21 November 2011
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