journal of accounting education

Journal of Accounting Education

Volume 4 • Issue 4

• ISSN: 0748-5751

Editor-In-Chief: Natalie Churyk

The Journal of Accounting Education (JAEd) is a refereed journal dedicated to promoting and publishing research on accounting education issues and to improving the quality o… Read more

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The Journal of Accounting Education (JAEd) is a refereed journal dedicated to promoting and publishing research on accounting education issues and to improving the quality of accounting education worldwide.

The Journal provides a vehicle for making results of empirical studies available to educators and for exchanging ideas, instructional resources, and best practices that help improve accounting education. The Journal includes four sections: a Main Articles Section, a Teaching and Educational Notes Section, an Educational Case Section, and a Best Practices Section. Manuscripts published in the Main Articles Section generally present results of empirical studies, although non-empirical papers (such as policy-related or essay papers) are sometimes published in this section. Papers published in the Teaching and Educational Notes Section include short empirical pieces (e.g., replications) as well as instructional resources that are not properly categorized as cases, which are published in a separate Case Section. Note: as part of the Teaching Note accompany educational cases, authors must include implementation guidance (based on actual case usage) and evidence regarding the efficacy of the case vis-a-vis a listing of educational objectives associated with the case. To meet the efficacy requirement, authors must include direct assessment (e.g grades by case requirement/objective or pre-post tests). Although interesting and encouraged, student perceptions (surveys) are considered indirect assessment and do not meet the efficacy requirement. The case must have been used more than once in a course to avoid potential anomalies and to vet the case before submission. Authors may be asked to collect additional data, depending on course size/circumstances.

The Best Practices section includes individual and institutional practices related to, for example, student recruitment, student advising, student retention, alumni relations, and efforts to integrate accounting practice and accounting education. These articles are typically shorter in length than Main Section (i.e., research-based) articles. While such papers do not need evidence obtained on the basis of an experimental design (e.g., pre- versus post-test comparison), some evidence regarding the value or benefit of the best practice should be included, along with a discussion of relevant costs (out-of-pocket as well as opportunity costs, such as faculty time, practitioner involvement, etc.). Finally, note that the JAEd publishes manuscripts on all topics that are relevant to accounting education, including uses of technology, learning styles, assessment, curriculum, and faculty-related issues.

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• EXTRA CREDIT

Accounting education research reveals benefits of active learning strategies in the classroom

Try these active learning strategies in your courses..

• Accounting Education

The use of active learning strategies offers educators proven approaches to advance student learning. Trends in the literature point to a continued focus on the benefits of unique student projects, experiential learning, and the use of social media.

I have summarized a sampling of recent research in this area from top-ranked accounting education journals to provide key findings for busy educators. Citations are provided for those who want further details. A list of additional recent articles is included for those interested in reviewing other active learning strategies.

Experiential learning project prepares students for real-world audits

Jelinek, K. (2016). Wax on, wax off: Transfer of learning through an experiential learning project. Accounting Educators’ Journal, (26), 35-39.

The term “transfer of learning” refers to the application of knowledge, skills, or information received in one situation and successfully transferred to another. Author Kate Jelinek states that the theory, developed by Perkins and Saloman in 1992, is infrequently used in accounting education, and supports the use of active learning strategies, such as an experiential learning projects, to prepare students for future careers in the accounting profession.

Jelinek’s research relied on transfer of learning theories in a real-world learning project implemented in a graduate level, advanced auditing course. The project involved a review of attorneys’ expense reimbursements in federal court. The expenses were generated in association with an actual class action lawsuit where over 2,000 cases were filed, with specific restrictions and guidelines for reimbursable costs. Students performed “agreed-upon procedures” to determine if plaintiff attorneys complied with federal court guidelines for $2.5 million in expense reimbursements. The judge in charge of the case spoke to students in their classroom both before and after the project, demonstrating the significance and legitimacy of their work.

Before the project, instructors administered a pretest about student understanding of the project learning objectives. They compared results from the pretest to the test responses of students at the end of the project. The post-test revealed significant improvements in areas such as familiarity with sample selection, specific sampling techniques, and the required reports associated with the engagement, which suggests a strong transfer of learning and indicates increased student knowledge with actual audit techniques. Post-tests showed that students felt more prepared for real-world auditing, which prepared them to enter the profession, thus transferring the “overlapping tasks” of audit or agreed-upon procedures from the experiential class project to future experience with an actual audit.

The article provides several suggestions for classroom use, indicating that projects such as this can be an important way to supplement student internships, which considered the more traditional method of obtaining real-world experience. The author recommends contacting local nonprofit and governmental agencies for potential accounting projects. Jelinek also encourages faculty to stress the importance of real-world projects to students before they begin, possibly through a tour of the project location or, as in this situation, a visit from involved individuals associated with the project.

Active learning assignments improve pass rates and students’ skills

Huber, M., Law, D., & Khallaf, A. (2017). Active learning innovations in introductory financial accounting. Advances in Accounting Education: Teaching and Curriculum Innovations (21) 123–166.

Authors Martha Huber, Dave Law, and Ashraf Khallaf analyzed 10 years of data on student grades and pass/fail/withdraw rates before and after course modifications to their introductory financial accounting courses. They replaced their traditional course grading (such as homework, exams, and quizzes) with three new assignments. First, the “financial statements user interview” required students to explore the different ways financial statements are used in all areas of business. The “internal control paper” required students to select a company they had worked or volunteered for and to provide an analysis of whether it had strong or weak internal controls. Finally, the “financial statement analysis project,” which replaced the final exam, required students to work on a team project examining two publicly traded companies. The authors developed these assignments using the Pathways Commission’s call for accounting education change, the AICPA Core Competency Framework’s list of skills and competencies, and Dee Fink’s significant learning dimensions .

Results of their study showed a 12% increase in passing rates compared to the use of traditional assignments. Additionally, the study revealed that, based on students’ self-assessment at the end of the course, the innovative projects contributed more toward increasing students’ skills and competencies.

Surveys of both faculty and students revealed a more positive attitude in both teaching and participating in the revised introductory financial course. Students not only felt their competencies and skills increased compared to the traditional course, but also showed a greater appreciation for the profession.  

Using social media to enhance managerial accounting courses

Holmes, A.F., & Rasmussen, S.J. (2018). Using Pinterest to stimulate student engagement, interest, and learning in managerial accounting courses.  Journal of Accounting Education , 43, 43–56.

Students’ interest in social media presents a unique opportunity to engage them in their coursework. This study, by Amy Holmes and Stephanie Rasmussen, analyzes the use of Pinterest in an introductory managerial accounting course. They required students to “pin” an article, website, video, etc., from the internet to a Pinterest board related to the assigned course content. Each student needed to create one pin along with a description of the pin’s relevance. Additionally, students were required to comment on at least one other pin, with both requirements totaling 5% of the students’ grade.

The article analyzed 783 pins from 258 students attending two universities during the 2016–2017 academic year. It discusses how this assignment builds interest and provides a deeper understanding of managerial accounting concepts. Pins and other social media participation also were found to create interesting topics for class discussion and oral presentations.

Student surveys showed 71% of students thought the project was worthwhile with comments ranging from those that showed increased interest and impact, to negative feedback that the assignment was busy work, pointless, and too time-consuming. ESL (English as a second language) students showed the greatest interest and expressed the strongest positive benefits from the assignment, consistent with research on the learning styles of this student population. Based on the results of the study, the authors suggest that the use of a social media platform for course assignments enhances student interest and provides a positive impact on student understanding of complex accounting concepts.

Additional articles published on active learning strategies in accounting education

Accounting Education: An International Journal

Wynn-Williams, K., Beatson, N., & Anderson, C. (2016). The impact of unstructured case studies on surface learners: a study of second-year accounting students.  Accounting Education , 25(3), 272–286.

Adelopo, I., Asante, J., Dart, E., & Rufai, I. (2017). Learning groups: the effects of group diversity on the quality of group reflection.   Accounting Education , 26(5/6), 553–575. 

Mihret, D.G., Abayadeera, N., Watty, K., & McKay, J. (2017). Teaching auditing using cases in an online learning environment: the role of ePortfolio assessment.  Accounting Education , 26(4), 335–357.

Sithole, S. (2017). Instructional strategies and students’ performance in accounting: an evaluation of those strategies and the role of gender. Accounting Education, 27(6), 613–631

Bautista-Mesa, R., Molina Sánchez, H., & Ramírez Sobrino, J.N. (2018). Audit workplace simulations as a methodology to increase undergraduates’ awareness of competences.   Accounting Education , 27(3), 234–258.

Coetzee, S.A., Schmulian, A., & Coetzee, R. (2018). Web conferencing-based tutorials: Student perceptions thereof and the effect on academic performance in accounting education .  Accounting Education , 27(5), 531–546.

Cloete, M. (2018). The impact of an integrated assessment on the critical thinking skills of first-year university students.   Accounting Education , 27(5), 479-494.

Peng, J., & Abdullah, I. (2018). Building a market simulation to teach business process analysis: effects of realism on engaged learning.   Accounting Education , 27(2), 208–222. 

Seow, J.L., & Shankar, P.L. (2018). Effects of team-skills guidance on accounting students with lone wolf tendencies. Accounting Education , 27 (3) 309-332

Sridharan, B., Muttakin, M.B., & Mihret, D.G. (2018). Students’ perceptions of peer assessment effectiveness: an explorative study.   Accounting Education , 27(3), 259–285. 

Advances in Accounting Education

Downen, T., & Hyde, B. (2016). Flipping the managerial accounting principles course: effects on student performance, evaluation, and attendance . Advances in Accounting Education (21) 61-87.

Wooten, T. (2016). Leveraging online testing to enhance student learning . Advances in Accounting Education (21) 141-163.

Issues in Accounting Education

Phillips, F. (2016). The power of giving feedback: Outcomes from implementing an online peer assessment system.  Issues in Accounting Education , 31(1), 1–15.

Sudhakar, A., Tyler, J., & Wakefield, J. (2016). Enhancing student experience and performance through peer-assisted learning.   Issues in Accounting Education , 31(3), 321-336.

Lento, C. (2017). Incorporating whiteboard voice-over video technology into the accounting curriculum.  Issues in Accounting Education , 32(3), 153–168.

Riley, J., & Ward, K. (2017). Active learning, cooperative active learning, and passive learning methods in an accounting information systems course.   Issues in Accounting Education , 32(2), 1–16.

Journal of Accounting Education

Bergner, J., Filzen, J.J., & Simkin, M.G. (2016 ). Why use multiple choice questions with excess information?   Journal of Accounting Education , (34) 1–12.

Chan, S. H., Song, Q., Rivera, L. H., & Trongmateerut, P. (2016). Using an educational computer program to enhance student performance in financial accounting.   Journal of Accounting Education , (36) 43–64.

Calabor, M.S., Mora, A., & Moya, S. (2018). The future of “serious games” in accounting education: A Delphi study.  Journal of Accounting Education , (46) 43-52.

McCarthy, M., Kusaila, M., & Grasso, L. (2018). Intermediate accounting and auditing: Does course delivery mode impact student performance?   Journal of Accounting Education , (46) 26-42.

The Accounting Educators’ Journal

C. Harrington, W. Smith, R. Bauer (2016). Influencing business student intent to use a personal budget. The Accounting Educators’ Journal , (26) 135-153.

Solsma, L.L., Njoroge, J., & Bartlett, G.D. (2018). The efficacy of online homework systems in introductory financial and managerial accounting courses. The Accounting Educator’s Journal , (28) 33-51.

— Cynthia Bolt-Lee, CPA , is head of the department of accounting and finance and professor of accounting at The Citadel, Charleston, S.C. To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Courtney Vien, a JofA senior editor, at [email protected] .

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Issues in Accounting Education A Quarterly Journal of the American Accounting Association

Issues in Accounting Education  publishes research, commentaries, and instructional resources that assist accounting faculty in teaching and that address important issues in accounting education. It prints quarterly in February, May, August, and November and is a top journal indexed in both Scopus and ESCI. 

Click here  to view the Issues in Accounting Education Editorial Board. For additional journal data and citation analysis, see the Issues in Accounting Education Journal Information Packet . 

Senior Editor: Janet A. Samuels Issues in Accounting Education Arizona State University E: [email protected]

Editorial Office: [email protected]

AAA Senior Managing Editor: Nate Smith P: 941.556.4128 E: [email protected]

How to Submit a Manuscript:

Step 1 : Pay submission fee online (VISA, MasterCard, American Express). If you are unable to pay by credit card or have any questions, please contact the AAA Member Services Team at 941.921.7747 or  [email protected] .  You will need your invoice number, highlighted below in yellow, when submitting to the journal .

Step 2 :  After you receive your Order Confirmation , read the Editorial Policy and Manuscript Prep Guide to ensure your manuscript is ready for submission.

Recommended pre-submission check: Paperpal Preflight

Prior to submitting, we recommend that you run your manuscript through the Paperpal Preflight screening tool, which instantly checks your manuscript, helps you address common errors and omissions, and performs a language quality review.

Step 3 : Submit manuscript to the Issues Peer Review System .

Additional Information

• Registered Reports – Submissions open Jan. 1, 2022 through March 31, 2022
• Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice in Accounting Education – Submissions due Nov. 30, 2021

Requests for reprint permission should be directed to the Copyright Clearance Center at www.copyright.com .

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Auditing: A Journal of Practice & Theory  ( AJPT ) is available electronically to members of the Auditing Section. If you are a AAA member and would like to join the Auditing Section, please contact  AAA Headquarters .

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Accounting Education

Subject Area and Category

Publication type.

09639284, 14684489

1992-1996, 1998, 2000-2023

Information

How to publish in this journal

The set of journals have been ranked according to their SJR and divided into four equal groups, four quartiles. Q1 (green) comprises the quarter of the journals with the highest values, Q2 (yellow) the second highest values, Q3 (orange) the third highest values and Q4 (red) the lowest values.

The SJR is a size-independent prestige indicator that ranks journals by their 'average prestige per article'. It is based on the idea that 'all citations are not created equal'. SJR is a measure of scientific influence of journals that accounts for both the number of citations received by a journal and the importance or prestige of the journals where such citations come from It measures the scientific influence of the average article in a journal, it expresses how central to the global scientific discussion an average article of the journal is.

Evolution of the number of published documents. All types of documents are considered, including citable and non citable documents.

This indicator counts the number of citations received by documents from a journal and divides them by the total number of documents published in that journal. The chart shows the evolution of the average number of times documents published in a journal in the past two, three and four years have been cited in the current year. The two years line is equivalent to journal impact factor ™ (Thomson Reuters) metric.

Evolution of the total number of citations and journal's self-citations received by a journal's published documents during the three previous years. Journal Self-citation is defined as the number of citation from a journal citing article to articles published by the same journal.

Evolution of the number of total citation per document and external citation per document (i.e. journal self-citations removed) received by a journal's published documents during the three previous years. External citations are calculated by subtracting the number of self-citations from the total number of citations received by the journal’s documents.

International Collaboration accounts for the articles that have been produced by researchers from several countries. The chart shows the ratio of a journal's documents signed by researchers from more than one country; that is including more than one country address.

Not every article in a journal is considered primary research and therefore "citable", this chart shows the ratio of a journal's articles including substantial research (research articles, conference papers and reviews) in three year windows vs. those documents other than research articles, reviews and conference papers.

Ratio of a journal's items, grouped in three years windows, that have been cited at least once vs. those not cited during the following year.

Evolution of the percentage of female authors.

Evolution of the number of documents cited by public policy documents according to Overton database.

Evoution of the number of documents related to Sustainable Development Goals defined by United Nations. Available from 2018 onwards.

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