Undergraduate Accounting Program Research Articles

A Case for Incorporating Forensic Accounting Courses in Undergraduate Accounting Programs

A Case for Incorporating Forensic Accounting Courses in Undergraduate Accounting Programs

The impact of teacher video presence on student performance and satisfaction in undergraduate accounting courses

ABSTRACT The current study examines the impact of teacher video presence on student performance and satisfaction in a regular asynchronous online course required as part of an undergraduate accounting program. For a sample of 115 students registered in the course, the results indicate that ‘enhanced strategic’ teacher video presence does not lead to better learning outcomes than use of videos with no teacher video presence. However, it does increase the satisfaction of students who do not participate in separate Zoom meetings with the teacher. To our knowledge, this paper is the first to analyze the impact of teacher video presence in a regular 15-week asynchronous online course in an undergraduate program, including impact on student satisfaction. By comparing two extremes, ‘enhanced strategic’ teacher video presence and no teacher video presence, the experiment provides an acid test of the effect of teacher video presence in a regular undergraduate online course.

An Integrated MCDM Model for Sustainable Course Planning: An Empirical Case Study in Accounting Education

As an essential element of higher education, course planning at the program level is a complicated multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem. In addition, a course planning process tailored to sustainable development is exceptionally important to sustaining the quality of academic programs. However, there is a scarcity of research on the program course planning problem at the operational level due to a diverse set of stakeholder requirements in practice. Motivated by the challenge, this study proposes an innovative MCDM model for sustainable course planning based on He-Xie management theory. In the introduced framework, the best worst method (BWM) can obtain the optimal weights of sustainability competencies, which are then embedded into the fuzzy filter ranking (FFR) method to generate the ranking of candidate courses by each course module, considering the connectivity between courses and the development of sustainability competencies. Finally, multi-choice goal programming (MCGP) is adopted to allocate each selected course to a semester, aiming to balance total credits and average difficulty level among semesters as much as possible. The practicability and reliability of the proposed course planning model is validated through a case study of an undergraduate accounting program. Results show that the proposed framework is a feasible tool for course planning. This research extends the existing literature on course planning by explicitly capturing the fuzzy nature of human decision making and avoids underestimation of the decision. The implications of the paper are not restricted to developing a sustainable course plan for an accounting program.

ATRIBUTOS DE LA CALIDAD DE LA ENSEÑANZA DESDE LA PERSPECTIVA DE ESTUDIANTES DE PREGRADO EN CONTABILIDAD EN ARABIA SAUDITA: UNA ENCUESTA

This study aims to explore the attributes of teaching quality from the perspective of undergraduate accounting students in Saudi Arabia. A questionnaire survey was used to obtain views of undergraduate accounting students on the attributes of teaching quality. 28 attributes of teaching quality were included in the questionnaire. The findings of the study showed the importance of 27 of the 28 attributes of teaching quality included in the questionnaire from the accounting students' perspective. These attributes include attributes related to the class preparation and design, the class delivery, and the instructor's traits and personal characteristics. The findings of the study can help accounting faculties to evaluate their teaching strategies and create a development plan that is aligned with students’ expectations to enhance teaching quality, improve classroom effectiveness, and ultimately deliver students who are better prepared for the accounting profession. The findings of the study may also be of interest to academic managers, such as deans and heads of departments/schools, in designing staff development programs to improve teaching and student satisfaction. This study is timely because most of the undergraduate accounting programs in Saudi universities have recently applied for accreditation either from national or international accreditation bodies. As teaching quality is one of the important factors in obtaining academic accreditation, this study may have important implications in the field of higher education in Saudi Arabia.

The Role of Taxpayer Trust and Awareness on Voluntary Compliance: An Experimental Study

This study is a development of previous research which found that fair treatment from the tax authorities were not able to encourage taxpayer compliance. It is suspected that this is caused by another personality element, namely taxpayer awareness. Therefore, this study examines the effect of taxpayer trust and awareness on taxpayer voluntary compliance using the experimental method. The participants of the experiment were 106 students of Undergraduate Accounting Program, Ganesha University of Education. The results of this study found that trust in tax authorities is a very important factor in shaping compliance behavior, especially for taxpayers who have low tax awareness. Meanwhile, taxpayer awareness has an important role in shaping compliance behavior when the condition of trust in tax authorities is low. The results of this study are expected to contribute theoretically and practically, to emphasize the importance of forming taxpayer awareness and trust in tax authorities.

Preposition Mistakes in English for Specific Purposes: The Case of Indonesian Accounting Study Program Students

Prepositions remain challenging for learners of English as a foreign language. Linguistically speaking, prepositions are part of grammar and are frequently used in speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Thus, this research investigated the mastery of English prepositions of undergraduate accounting program students of batch 2021 at a private university in Yogyakarta. The data of this quantitative research were collected through a close-ended questionnaire using Google Forms distributed to 23 students. The collected data were analyzed to identify preposition mistakes. Results showed three common problems of prepositions, namely the addition of unnecessary prepositions, omission of prepositions, and misuse of prepositions. The findings would assist students, thesis advisors, and teachers in using English prepositions grammatically, particularly in English for Specific Purposes (ESP). It is expected that future researchers utilize larger data sets to obtain more robust results of proper uses of prepositions and future researchers are expected to observe the participants directly to maximize the results of the data.
 

Islamic household accounting: romance discussion in accounting curriculum

Purpose - This study aims to formulate an Islamic household accounting model that should be part of the accounting curriculum.Method - The method used is grounded theory in constructivism. The first step is self-consciousness, then consideration of participants, followed by data collection, coding, and theory building. Data were collected from 22 informants, 19 of whom were already married whose educational background is in accounting and who were employed in accounting-related positions.Result - The results show that households consider that household accounting needs to be included in the formal accounting curriculum, while most of the heads of the household see it as not mandatory. Discussion revolves around household life, how love springs in the household all the way through, as well as an argument that household accounting must be put as a subject (of curriculum). It is also noted that communication in households must cover both material and spiritual aspects in order to pursue true happiness (a serenity state of a household or sakinah).Implication - Practically, household discussion in classrooms is mandatory for accounting students; this discussion serves as a foothold on how to lead a household life all the way through. Theoretically, for accountants, a household is a life priority in order to shape a better civilization.Originality - This topic of romance in the accounting curriculum has never been specifically addressed in classrooms of undergraduate accounting programs.

Motivasi, Tingkat Pemahaman, Persepsi Biaya dan Minat Mahasiswa Memperoleh Sertifikasi Chartered Accountant

The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of self-motivation, career motivation, economic motivation, level of understanding and perception of costs on student interest in obtaining Chartered Accountant (CA) certification. The research was conducted in the area of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University, especially in the undergraduate accounting program. The sample in this study was 188 respondents with probability sampling technique, namely simple random sampling. For the analysis technique using multiple linear regression analysis. The research shows that self-motivation, career motivation, economic motivation, and level of understanding have a positive influence, while the perception of cost has no effect on students' interest in obtaining CA certificates.
 
 Keywords: Self Motivation; Career Motivation; Economic Motivation; Level of Understanding; Cost Perception; Chartered Accountant.

Employers’ expectations of accounting skills from vocational education providers: The expectation gap between employers and ITPs

This study examines whether a gap exists between employers' skills expectations and the skills accounting students acquired during their undergraduate accounting programme at several institutes of technology and polytechnics (ITPs) in New Zealand. Extant studies have examined the technical accounting skills expectation gap at the university level but the case of vocational education providers has not been sufficiently explored. Data were collected using a survey instrument. Descriptive analysis and partial least squares structural equation modeling were undertaken to describe the technical accounting skills expectation gap and the factors associated with the employers' perceived technical accounting skills gap. While employers' expectations and the technical skills acquired by students during their tertiary education in ITPs were mainly aligned, there is variability in the results when the employers' business location and size are taken into consideration. This study provides insights on the consistency between ITPs' undergraduate accounting programmes and the factors that influence employers’ expectations of technical accounting skills from ITPs. The findings are expected to support vocational educational managers in developing technical accounting curricula and prepare accounting students for the opportunities and challenges in the accounting profession.

Modelling Student Dropout Risk Using Survival Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process for an Undergraduate Accounting Program

Modelling Student Dropout Risk Using Survival Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process for an Undergraduate Accounting Program

Data mining: will first-year results predict the likelihood of completing subsequent units in accounting programs?

ABSTRACT This study introduces data mining methods to accounting education scholarship to explore the relationship between accounting students’ current academic performance (grades), demographic information, pre-university entrance scores and predicted academic performance. It adopts a C4.5 classification algorithm based on decision-tree analysis to examine 640 accounting students enrolled in an undergraduate accounting program at an Australian university. A significant contribution of this study is improved prediction of academic performance and identification of characteristics of students deemed to be at risk. By partitioning students into sub-groups based on tertiary entrance scores and employing clustering of study units, this study facilitates a more nuanced understanding of predictor attributes. Key findings were the dominance of a cluster of second year units in predicting students’ later academic performance; that gender did not influence performance; and that performance in first year at university, rather than secondary school grades, was the most important predictor of subsequent academic performance.

Higher education in the IPSAS implementation process: A comparative study between Brazil and Mexico

The Brazil and Mexico started their International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) IPSAS adoption strategies in 2008 and consider the importance of the accountant role in this process and the existence of specific undergraduate Accounting programmes in the two countries. This study aims to compare the offer of courses about public sector accounting in public institutions of higher education in these countries during year 2018 & 2019, under Institutional Theory perspective. The methodology of this article consists of a documentary analysis of the curricula in force of website of the Public Institutions of Higher Education (PIHE) of each federative entity of Brazil and Mexico. The results show great diversity in the offer of disciplines among the 76 Brazilian and in the 39 Mexican institutions, with an average of only 3 and 1,3 courses by each country respectively. In Brazil, every institution has at least one mandatory Public Sector Accounting discipline, whilst only 28 Mexican institutions offer as obligatory. If institutional legitimacy consider education in Mexican and Brazilian IPSAS adoption strategies, the diffusion of IPSAS accrual accounting information will account for a huge network of more than 1000 of people involved. Furthermore, it highlights the weakness of the public sector approach to develop professional skills (normative isomorphism) in line with emerging trends in Public Sector Accounting for transparency. This article contributes to show what has been considered from the perspective of higher education of future public sector accounting professionals aligned with the IPSAS adoption strategies that involve Brazil and Mexico.

Incorporating International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) into Accounting Curricula: Perceptions of Undergraduate Accounting Students in Saudi Universities

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions of accounting students in Saudi Arabia on the extent of incorporating IFRS into accounting curricula in undergraduate accounting programs in Saudi universities after the mandatory implementation of IFRS in 2017. Approach/Methodology/Design: This study is cross-sectional and a questionnaire was used to collect data from accounting students in Saudi Arabia regarding the extent to which IFRS are incorporated into accounting curricula in undergraduate accounting programs in Saudi universities. The sample of the study included 132 accounting students from the largest and oldest three Saudi universities. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Findings: The findings of the study revealed a weakness in students' awareness of IFRS due to the weakness in incorporating IFRS into the accounting curricula. The majority of students indicated that they do not have a separate course on IFRS, and if this course is included in the study plan, it is an elective course and not a required course. The textbooks that they study from in the university are old textbooks and therefore, do not include accounting treatments according to IFRS. Also, teachers do not mention the IFRS when explaining the topics included in the accounting courses. Practical Implications: The study has implications for Saudi universities. Based on the results of the study, Saudi universities should update curricula in undergraduate accounting programs so that IFRS are incorporated into accounting curricula. Accounting students will have careers where global transactions and interactions are common, so they need to be familiar with IFRS. The incorporation of IFRS into accounting curricula increases the ability of Saudi universities to provide graduates who can obtain job opportunities and succeed in the workplace after graduation. Originality/value: Accounting students are prospective accountants, so they should be aware of the IFRS they will use in preparing and auditing financial statements after graduation. Therefore, it is important to explore the universities' response to the adoption of IFRS by incorporating IFRS into the accounting curricula to provide a graduate who can implement these accounting standards after graduation.

A Systematic Literature Review on Critical Thinking in an Undergraduate Accounting Programme

The ability of accountancy students to apply critical thinking in solving problems related to modules offered in accountancy undergraduate programme, has remained a concern for many higher institutions. Accountancy students tend to struggle to apply critical thinking to their course work offered in the programme. To be able to apply critical thinking, accountancy students in undergraduate programmes should be able to apply a series of attributes that can enable them to understand questions asked in case study questions or multiple tasks. This study reviewed various ways in which students can apply critical thinking in an undergraduate accounting programme. A systematic literature review was conducted to examine the challenges undergraduate accounting students in South Africa face in applying critical thinking. This study found some of the barriers for applying critical thinking include redundancy, backwardness, application, extent to which preferences are associated to learning, and the ability to engage in real life accountancy practice. Literature reveals that accounting students can use the cube method which includes six steps: describe, compare, associate, analyse, apply, and argue to address the challenges of applying critical thinking. The study however, proposed some strategies that academics can use to ensure that accountancy students are able to apply critical thinking in solving accounting problems. Students are able to apply critical thinking in problem solving. Suggestions for future research were provided.

Qualitative analysis on accounting ethics education for bachelor students

This paper aimed to determine the scope of accounting ethics at the bachelor level in Ghana. This study adopted an exploratory approach. A thematic content analysis was employed alongside unstructured interviews for data gathering. The participants for the study were purposively and conveniently selected. The data were analysed using the Invivo 7.0 version. The findings show that the objectives of the accounting courses placed little emphasis on shaping students' affective domain; accounting ethics was taught via integration. The study recommends a comprehensive review of the undergraduate accounting programmes at the universities to include theories and models of ethics education to provide an equal emphasis on the affective domain of learners just like is done for the cognitive and psychomotor domains in the current syllabi; accounting ethics, for at least two semesters, be offered as a separate course in the undergraduate accounting programmes to provide the needed emphasis on the significance of accounting ethics in the character formation of the accountant.

Students’ experience of pervasive skills acquired through sponsored projects in an undergraduate accounting degree

An accounting graduate should not only possess technical knowledge, but also core competencies and pervasive skills necessary to meet the needs of employers and society as a whole. This study is centred on the undergraduate accounting programme of a South African university where several sponsored projects are offered to develop these skills. An exploratory design using purposive sampling was used to gain insights into the perceptions of students on whether these skills were developed throughout their degree. It was found that the students perceived the projects to have developed their critical thinking and problem-solving skills, promoted their ethical awareness and enhanced their communication skills. Students further gained a better understanding of the role of an accountant through their participation in the sponsored projects and found them effective learning experiences. The challenges reported by students were the social aspect of the projects and the ability to work successfully in a team.

The Impact of Prior Work-Experience on Student Learning Outcomes in Simulated Internships

In this paper, the extent to which a compulsory non-placement work-integrated learning (WIL) activity, in the form of a simulated internship, in an Australian undergraduate accounting program, created learning outcomes for students with different levels of prior work-experience is assessed. The paper extends prior, theoretically based literature by providing an exploratory evaluation of the experiences of students undertaking a specific simulated internship. This evaluation is important because it enables students and higher education providers to evaluate the extent to which a simulation is likely to meet the learning needs and expectations of individual students and student groups. Despite the critical importance of such an evaluation, prior literature has thus far focused on theoretically based evaluations and comparisons of simulated internships, with empirical evidence being largely absent from the literature. Using a series of semi-structured interviews with students, the current paper shows that the evaluated simulation was generally able to develop cognitive, skill-based, and affective learning outcomes, and that students’ learning outcomes were strongly influenced by their prior real-world work-experience. In addition, the paper also shows that the lived experiences of students within the simulation were much more multifaceted and diverse than anticipated in the prior literature. The findings of this paper are relevant for higher education providers and students planning to undertake a simulated internship, or other non-placement WIL activity. Potential challenges and opportunities for different groups of students arising in the analysed simulation are identified and discussed.

Authentic Learning though Role Play in Learning Financial Reporting: Malaysian Undergraduate Perspective

This paper examines whether role-playing provides student with learning opportunities in financial reporting and motivates student to reflect the practical financial reporting issues. The research is conducted in Advance Financial Reporting class under an undergraduate accounting program in a public university during semester two in 2019. The participants were divided into two roles within the context of an audit firm, audit associate and audit supervisor in preparing and reviewing the consolidation of financial statements audit working paper (financial reporting). The results of the study show that role-playing allowed students to improve their knowledge and increase their confidence in preparing consolidated financial statements. It also motivates student to reflect the practical financial reporting issues. Hence, the results suggest that role-play model can be applied to other accounting learning activities with inter-related subjects within accounting.

Inclusion of Ethics in Undergraduate Accounting Programs and a Discussion About its Teaching Ways

Ethics is a core issue for all professions and companies to secure public trust which is one of the steps to continue the existence successfully. As a result of frauds and accounting scandals, ethics gained more importance in accounting profession. It is clearly understood that ethics education should start in early stages of education for future accountants. It is also emphasized in International Education Standard 4 (IES 4) –Initial Professional Development – Professional Values Ethics, and Attitudes issued by the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB). The IAESB also issued Approaches to Developing and Maintaining Professional Values, Ethics, and Attitudes (IEPS 1) as a guide for ethics education continuum that developing professional values, ethics and attitudes be ensured throughout the accounting profession. The aim of this study is to consider ethics education in undergraduate accounting programs in Turkey. Curriculum of these programs are analyzed whether ethics is given as a separate course or/and embedded in other courses. The credit-hour basis and compulsory/elective basis of the courses are also analyzed. The teaching methods are discussed and the new methods in the literature are mentioned. Results show that all of the programs have a separate Ethics course, mostly 3 credit hours and elective basis. Ethics is also included in other courses of some programs mostly in Auditing and Internal Auditing/Control courses.

Analytics, accounting and big data: enhancing accounting education

The role of Analytics and Big Data in business has been the subject of considerable research and discussion. Members of the accounting profession have recognized the importance of both and recognize that the emergence of these technologies require employees who possess a higher level of data analysis capabilities. Thus, industry is demanding that institutions of higher education place a greater emphasis on developing curricular elements, which will adequately address the needs of the ultimate consumers of these capabilities. This paper examines the data analysis skills relevant to accountants and how and where data analytics and big data have impacted undergraduate accounting education. This research examines the degree to which selected undergraduate Accounting programs have embraced Analytics and Big Data to the greatest extent and proposes a set of curricular elements the provide the appropriate level of learning within the current framework of undergraduate accounting education.