aaa presentation final

8/3/2019 AAA Presentation Final

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Strategies for Teaching

the Accounting Theory Course:Curriculum, Pedagogy and Resources

Carla Carnaghan - University of LethbridgeJames DoddDrake University

Irene Gordon - Simon Fraser University

David Gilbertson - Western Washington University


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Strategies for Teachingthe Accounting Theory CourseTopics to be discussed:

What do we mean by an accounting theorycourse?

Why we think a theory course is important

Roles for the accounting theory course in thecurriculum

Considerations in designing the course content Pedagogical techniques and resources

Strategies for Teaching the Accounting Theory Course - AAA Annual Meeting. August 4, 2010


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What Do We Mean byAn Accounting Theory Course? Not a lot of literature on such courses (James Martin,

MAAW - AECM)

Nature of the course is very diverse: CPA Exam Prep

Current Topics Financial Economics

Conceptual Framework Course

Our Focus in Teaching Accounting Theory:

To help students better understand why accountinglooks like it does, and the challenges of creatingaccounting standards and information givendiverse needs and stakeholders

Strategies for Teaching the Accounting Theory Course - AAA Annual Meeting. San Francisco. August 4, 2010


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Why is a Theory Course Important? Increasing complexity of business transactions

More understanding of what accounting is trying to do isimportant

Impossibility of prescriptive rules

Trend toward principles-based accounting standards Provides students with a different vision of accounting

Social responsibility

What could be, rather than what is

e.g. use of all fair values, replacement cost accounting, differentapproaches to accounting for intangibles



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Roles for the Accounting Theory Coursein the Curriculum: Skills and Knowledge Critical thinking and reasoning

Using evidence; challenging status quo Speaking and writing skills Conceptual knowledge (e.g. fair values, adverse

selection) Research skills

Accounting standards Financial reporting regulations Practitioner articles and commission reports Research studies

Motivation for standards What to do when there is no clear guidance



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Roles for the Accounting Theory Course:Complementing Other Parts of the Curriculum (1) Review/integrate topics from other accounting courses

Conceptual Framework

Examples using existing standards

Implications of current accounting approaches (e.g.

pensions) IFRS

Forest rather than Trees (Why, not how)

Discuss current business and accounting issues

Derivatives and off balance sheet financingAccounting Scandals

Management Compensation

Fair Values



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Roles for the Accounting Theory Course:Complementing Other Parts of the Curriculum (2) Relating accounting to other disciplines:

Economics (The dark side?)

Psychology

History

Ethics



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Designing the Courses Content: What DoWe Want Students to Learn? Critical Thinking

Role of Assumptions in Developing Accounting

Using Evidence to Develop/Support Positions

Writing/Articulating a Coherent Position Learning to Learn

Research skills

No one right answer? Judgment skills (better answers)



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Designing the Courses Content: What DoWe Want Students to Learn? My emphasis is on the development of accounting

standards using history as the starting point. Theidea is to understand how we got to where we arebefore starting the trip.

I emphasize likely future trends and how the studentsas professionals can find/support ways to account foreconomic transactions. The find/support leads to aresearch orientation to stay abreast of change.

I want students to develop empathy for differingpositions



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Designing the Courses Content:Foundations Financial economics

Critical theory

Conceptual framework

Psychology

Valuation bases (HC vs FV vs RC etc) - R. Jensen,AECM

A mix can be helpful to make students think aboutunderlying assumptions

History of development of accounting thought can behelpful in explaining particular developments



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Designing the Courses Content:Concepts that Might be CoveredEconomics Psychology Critical ConceptualFramework

EfficientMarkets

BehavioralFinance

Ethics Relevance

InformationAsymmetry ProspectTheory Stakeholders Reliability

Agency Theory SatisficingHistory ofAccounting

ValuationBases

Earnings

Management

Attribution

TheoryStewardship

StandardsSetting

DecisionUsefulness

MarketFailures

ValuationBases



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Designing the Courses Content:Controversies that Might be CoveredTopic Econ Psych Critical Framewk

Fair Values X X X

Intangibles/Contingencies**

X X X

Market efficiency X X X X

Management Comp. X X X

Earnings Management** X X X X

IFRS Adoption X X

Derivatives/Shadow Economy**

X X X



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (1):Alternative Delivery Methods In a traditional classroom, a mixture of

face-to-face and online Drake University

University of Iceland

Online delivery, 100% Blackboard Discussion Boards (forums)

Blackboard Quizzes for content facts

VoiceThreads for community building



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (2):Assignments and Projects Debates on Controversies (Team)

Position Papers - Followup to Debates (Individual)

Beginning and ending assignments

Group Assignments (in and out of class) Microeconomic experiments (See Book by Bergstrom and

Miller - McGraw Hill)

Draft Standards projects - analysis (IFRS or FASB)

Concept Maps - visual representations of concepts and therelationships among them. (See Simon, J. 2007. ConceptMapping in a Financial Accounting Theory Course.Accounting Education:

an International Journal. September. v. 16(3). 273-308)



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (3):Assignments and Projects A project comparing U.S. GAAP with IFRS and non-

IFRS standards with the goal of developing a beststandard by using components from around the

world. It requires review of academic and industryliterature, databases, and the political processesaffecting standards setting.

Research papers: Newspaper article about a businessand use accounting research to explain the situation

Requirement to organize and present seminarsexamples from student groups seminars



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Pedagogical Technique Example: SampleStudent Group Presentation - Experiment

Manager

Honest (H) Distort (D)

InvestorBuy (B) 60, 40 20, 80

Refuse to Buy

(R)35, 20 35, 30

Investor: to buy or not to buy Manager: Honest or Distort

Assumptions:

One-period game

Non-cooperative Rational Individuals


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Pedagogical Technique Example: SampleStudent Group Presentation - Debrief of theExperiment Nash Equilibrium:

Rational investors would not invest

Rational managers would distort information

Suboptimal points for both parties

Solutions: Cooperative agreement (auditor)

Enron: Unethical managers and auditors

Short-run profit> long-run costs Regulations: Government, courts, standard setters


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Pedagogical Technique Example: StudentGroup Presentation Slide


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Pedagogical Technique Example: StudentGroup Executive Compensation Activity


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Pedagogical Technique Example: StudentGroup Activity Explanation (1)Your group represents one of four groups: 1. CEO/Executive Team 2. Shareholders 3. Compensation Committee A

4. Compensation Committee B

For the CEO/Executive and Shareholder Teams, yourgoal is to persuade the compensation committee tochoose a compensation package that is most beneficial

to you. For the compensation committees, your goal is to

understand the arguments from the two sides anddecide a reasonable compensation package. (It doesnot have to be right in the middle.)


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Pedagogical Technique Example : StudentGroup Activity Explanation (2) Two Rounds of Discussion

1st Round Compensation Team A and CEO/Executives

Compensation Team B and Shareholders

2nd Round

Compensation Team A and Shareholders Compensation Team B and CEO/Executives


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Student Group Role Play: Scene One (1)Role play illustrating agency theory

Lilian as Manager Lindy as Owner


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Student Group: Scene One (2) The PERFORMANCE REVIEW


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Student Group Role Play Setting (3):HUGE LOSS!


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Student Group slide illustrating how AGENCYTHEORY worked in the Role Play Example (4)


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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (3):Ways of Increasing Student Motivation/Enrollment Students participate in performance evaluations. Students take turns leading the discussion

Students have to write journals on each reading

Discuss current issues in relation to course - big picture

Link to career functions and cases (Z. Swanson- AECM)

The course is a graduate-level course in our Master of Accounting(MAcc) program. I changed the title from Accounting Theory toEmerging Accounting Issues without changing content orstructure and enrollments increased.

I find that introducing current articles into the discussions tends

to make the idea of accounting theory more meaningful.



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (4)Performance Evaluation - ExcerptGroup Members:Seminar Number:Last four digits of your student number: Irene

Circle only one numberHOW EFFECTIVE WAS THE GROUP IN: for each comment.

PoorExcellent

|_____________________________________|CONTENT OF SEMINAR:1. Highlighting the main points of the readings through

seminar discussion, brief overview or summary? 1 2 3 4 5

2. Linking the seminar topics tocurrent business developments? 1 2 3 4 5

3. Using visual aids and/or handouts to providesupport and insight into today's topics? 1 2 3 4 5



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (5):Other Techniques Means for tracking participation

Get Out of Jail Free



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (6):Selected TextbooksAuthor Country GAAP Focus

Schroeder, Clark,Cathey (Wiley) U.S.

U.S. /someIFRS

Framework

Wolk, Dodd, Rozycki(Sage)

U.S U.S. Framework

Scott (Prentice Hall) Canada IFRS/U.S. Economic

Deegan (McGraw-Hill) Australia/Europe IFRS Mixed

Godfrey et al (Wiley) Australia IFRS/Aus Mixed



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (7):Selected Textbooks - Major Topics


Schroeder Wolk Scott Deegan GodfreyConceptual Framework X X X X

Uses of Accounting Info X X X

Income Concepts/Valuation Bases

X X X XX

F/S and A&L Topics XXX XXX X

Regulation ofFinancial Accounting

X X X

Economic Theories XXX X X

Social Responsibility X X

Behavioral Research X X

Critical Perspectives X

Intl Accounting X X XX XX X


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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources (8):Other Resources Wall Street Journal - instructor mailing list

http://ProfessorJournal.com

AECM mailing list and archives (http://www.aecm.org) MAAW http://www.maaw.info/

Smartest Guys in the Room video

Accounting Horizons/Accounting Perspectives

Senate Hearings IASB/FASB - discussion papers and roundtables



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Pedagogical Techniques and Resources ( 9):Other Resources Annual testimony by Chairman of SEC,

PCAOB, and FASB to U.S. House ofRepresentatives.

The Wall Street Journal Financial Times

Lexis-Nexus

Google Scholar FASBs Accounting Standards Codification

Larger CPA firms websites



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Strategies for Teaching the AccountingTheory Course: Summary Points Very helpful as a complement to the rest of the

curriculum

Cover why and judgment questions

Big Picture

Critical Thinking Content

Lots of choice: conceptual framework, valuationbases, controversies, current research; all of the above

Assessment Can encompass presentations, debates, papers,

research, journals, experiments

Range of resources available

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