THE ROUTLEDGE COMPANION TO ACCOUNTING EDUCATION edited by Richard M.S. Wilson First published by Routledge in Abingdon and New York in 2014 760 pages ISBN: 978-0-415-69733-0 (hbk) and 978-1-315-88980-1 (ebk)
Author of the review: Antti Miihkinen Affiliation: Aalto University School of Business, Department of Accounting Current: Fulbright visiting scholar at the University of Florida (Fisher School of Accounting) Contact information: 125 SW 5th Terrace, Apt. 3207, 32601 Gainesville, Florida, US tel: +1-352 278 3328 and +358-50 546 9573 email:
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Book review THE ROUTLEDGE COMPANION TO ACCOUNTING EDUCATION edited by Richard M.S. Wilson First published by Routledge in Abingdon and New York in 2014 760 pages ISBN: 978-0-415-69733-0 (hbk) and 978-1-315-88980-1 (ebk)
Routledge’s accounting education handbook covers seven sections, 30 chapters and supplementary appendices dedicated for honored accounting educators. As such, with its 760 pages, it is a huge book which creates big challenges for editing the book in a consistently manner. The physical size of the book may even ‘scare’ the reader to start reading it. At one point I was even joking with my friends that the size and weight of the book facilitates effective upper body exercises between reading the chapters. However, the book succeeds in filling its objectives very well. Most importantly, reading it is a pleasant experience. This is so because the book is skillfully edited. Apparently there has been enough cooperation between the authors of the individual chapters and the editor. I felt that the individual chapters form a consistent wholeness. Although there was some overlapping between the chapters I was still reading the same story all the time. The editorial team and authors have been able to keep the thread of the story clear throughout the individual chapters. Of course, the size of the book requires that the reader devotes enough attention to it. This book is not for easy reading in the bedside table light. It is reading with concentration in your office. By following these principles it is easy to note that the book provides for its reader and excellent source of information on all essential topics of accounting education in an understandable way. The book is dedicated to the three important accounting educator on ‘whose shoulders their successors have stood’. There are separate ‘tribute sections’ in the book devoted to Professors William Threipland Baxter, Raymond J. Chambers, and Stephen A. Zeff. These appendix
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sections bring nice variation to the book and are also able to show how these professors are seen by their colleagues. The foreword for the book is written by Peter W. Wolnizer who is the Chairman of the International Accounting Education Standards Board and the Professor Emeritus of the University of Sydney. He acknowledges the editor and the associate editors, and the 67 scholars from 24 countries who have contributed to the impressive scope and depth of the book. He hopes that the book gives impetus to a new wave of innovation and improvement in accounting education to the mutual benefit of current and future generations of professional accountants and the stakeholder and public communities they serve. The forewords are followed by Richard M.S. Wilson’s editorial introduction. It begins with the introduction of the main aim of the book which is the following: “To provide an authoritative reference work which defines the domain of accounting education, and which provides a critical overview of the state of this domain (including emerging and cutting-edge aspects) as a foundation for facilitating improved accounting education scholarship and research as a means of enhancing the educational base of accounting practice.” Editorial introduction is a good guide for understanding the structure of the book, and equally importantly, to comprehend the rationale for writing this kind of book for the accounting community. With good reason, it also presents those parties who have contributed to the book. 46 authors of the main chapters, seven writers of prefaces, five authors of tributes, one authors of the foreword and the editorial team consisting of 10 members. It goes without saying that the editor Richard M.S. Wilson has taken a huge challenge when taking this project and he would not have survived without the other parties involved. The editor and his associates have been able to create a feeling of flowing reading experience
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throughout the chapters despite the amount of varying topics and authors involved in the process. This is a significant merit for the book. All sections start with a preface to the topic in discussion. Moreover, every chapter begins with a summary of the contents of the chapter, brief abstract, keywords and introduction to the topic. I found these chapter beginnings effective in increasing the readability and understandability of the topic. It is much easier to dig deeper in the chapter details when you can first get an overall picture of the covered topic. I see this kind of presentation technique as a form of metatext which helps the reader forward and also facilitates easy recapping of the covered topic. I also liked that every chapter ending includes a brief description of the author(s) of the chapter. There are seven sections in the handbook: cornerstone considerations, student-related considerations, curriculum considerations, pedagogic considerations, assessment considerations, contextual considerations, and institutional considerations. Section A (Cornerstone considerations) consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 summaries where accounting education is as ‘field of intellectual enquiry’. It is concluded that despite good development in recent decades we need more explicitly theoretical accounting research which transcends the individual level of analysis. The following chapter continues by presenting how accounting education can be modelled. For example, Bloom’s taxonomy (Bloom et al., 1956) and Needles and Anderson’s (1994) comprehensive model of accounting education is presented in in this chapter. Chapter 3 introduces concept ‘financial literacy’ to the reader and chapter 4 discusses on the criticisms of accounting education and drivers of change within it. Finally, the last chapter of the section takes a critical view on the past agendas for improving accounting education. The authors conclude that accounting education programs should return to the basics, that is, teaching fundamentals of accounting instead of emphasizing ‘soft skills’ like critical thinking, communication skills, and ethics. In my opinions both hard and soft skills are important but I agree with the authors that soft skills should be emphasized after the primary objective 3
of learning accounting is met. However, in my opinion we should not forget that university graduates should be able to think critically and communicate effectively with other people. Critical thinking is the ‘competitive advantage’ that university education can give to graduates in the job market. Devoting enough time for ‘core accounting’ and softer skills requires careful curriculum planning from the side of curriculum developers. Section B (Student-related considerations) continues with five chapters. This section looks accounting education from the viewpoint of students who are the most important stakeholder in the tertiary education.
First, perceptions of accounting are elaborated within constructivist model of
learning. This chapter also reviews the literature on students’ perceptions of accounting and explores the relationship between students’ perceptions of accounting, approaches to learning, and learning outcomes. Second, in line with the constructivist approach of learning, the role of prior accounting education and work experience is examined next. The chapter for example points out the inconsistent findings regarding the impact of prior study on subsequent performance. There is still lot of room for additional research around the topic. Third, learning styles and approaches in accounting education have been examined in chapter 8. This chapter for instance introduces to the reader the three approaches to learning that students can adopt: deep approach, surface approach and strategic approach (Marton and Säljö, 1976; Ramsden, 1979). Fourth, the following chapter gives a summary of the growing literature that addresses student’s choice of accounting as a study major, and also discusses on the factors that may impact this choice. Finally, the last chapter provides viewpoints about the future of the accounting profession in a global environment. Personally, I liked section B a lot because it was written from students’ perspective. Some chapters were a little bit overlapping. I took it positively because it increased understanding. Section C (Curriculum considerations) includes five chapters. Chapter 11 focuses on accounting education from the perspective of the first accounting course. The first course is ‘a gateway’ course which 4
should raise the attention of potential future accounting professionals. In addition, there should be diversity of potential pathways to the profession if we want to fill the increasing demand for accounting graduates. Chapter 12 discusses on the liberalization of accounting curricula and chapter 13 continues by discussing on the generic skills within the accounting curriculum. Chapter ends by asking: “How might we do things differently in the future?” Chapter 14 provides viewpoints for the integration of the accounting curriculum. It is suggested to integrate accounting and finance education and incorporate a sustainability module within an International Financial Accounting and Reporting course. Interestingly, the author states that most undergraduate and graduate accounting programs do not teach their students a user’s perspective in financial and management information reporting but focus only on a preparer’s or an auditor’s perspective. My critical comment on this statement is that this is probably true in most of the cases but there are still many accounting programs world-wide which present the concept ‘decision usefulness’ in their teaching and devote time for the user perspective in their accounting curriculums. Lastly, chapter 15 introduces the main points of accounting education in 21 different countries. Section D (Pedagogic considerations) comprises four chapters. First, authors discuss their views on technology in accounting education. Topic is covered both at the curriculum level and from an individual teacher’s perspective. I saw this chapter very topical. For example, during my post-doc visit in the Fisher School of Accounting one of their assistant professors (Paul Madsen) was awarded with Judy Fisher Teaching with Technology Award. I also agree with authors’ argument that because accounting is heavily intertwined with utilization of IT, it should also be integral part of accounting education. The use of experiential learning in accounting education is covered in the next chapter and then, chapter 18 is devoted for the concept ‘critical thinking in accounting education’. What it is and how it can impact on continuing professional development? This chapter is important reflecting against my earlier comments on the relation between critical thinking and university education. Finally, chapter 20 5
provides a critical overview of the use of teaching resources in accounting education. The chapter discusses the lack of surveys on the employed teaching methods in accounting courses, and provides recent empirical evidence on the topic in the U.K. and Irish setting. Section E (Assessment considerations) digs deeper in assessment by examining the topic in three chapters. Determinants of students’ performance in accounting programs is discussed in chapter 20. I found this chapter one of the most interesting in the whole handbook. Literature review on several potential factors behind learning and critical analysis on the weaknesses and inconsistencies of prior studies were intriguing to read, and provoked new research ideas. I also liked the closing remarks of the author where he outlines the future directions for accounting education research as follows. First, future research should be based on a theoretical framework which considers the prior research to date. Second, measurements of the variables should be clearly explained and justified. Third, sampling and contextual differences and particularities should be explicitly discussed. Chapter 21 continues by examining outcome assessment in accounting education. It continues from previous chapters which have touched on outcome assessment by elaborating the topic much more in detail. For example, the practical hints for implementing outcomes assessment are provided in this chapter. ‘Assurance of learning’ is very topical issue in business schools. Hence, this chapter should be very helpful for academics needing additional information for improving their assessment methods, curriculums and for applying quality accreditations at the university level. The following chapter complements the previous one by considering assessment from the evaluation perspective. Coherent Administrative Control System (ACS) is presented in this chapter. Section F (Contextual considerations) is a nice ‘niche’ to the topic. First, the impact of financial crises on accounting education is examined, and that is followed by discussion on ethics and accounting education. Third chapter considers the role of internships in accounting education and chapter 26 ends 6
the section by comparing accounting education internationally and by giving detailed examples from 15 selected countries. Altogether four chapters is devoted for the last section (G: Institutional considerations). Chapter 27 provides a detailed overview of the development of several accounting education relating institutions during the preceding 50 years. Important steps like the Bedford Committee report and the Big-8 White Paper are covered in this chapter. It also provides interesting information on the standards of the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB). Chapter 28 reviews the history of cooperation and disagreement between accounting academics, professional accounting bodies, and accounting practitioners. It also provides suggestions for achieving more positive interface based on mutual understandings and cooperative relations between the parties. Chapter 29 continues from the assessment chapters (20-22) by discussing the role of accreditation in accounting education and training. I was thinking that maybe this chapter could have been provided already earlier together with the other chapters on the topic. Finally, chapter 30 examines the state of professional accounting education and training. For example, concepts initial professional development and continuing professional development are covered in this context. Overall, the handbook provides an inclusive view on accounting education in an easily understandable way. I have mostly positive comments on the handbook and only few critical. Perhaps the book could have had a little bit broader view on education literature at some points. Seminal papers around the educational literature (e.g. Marton and Säljö, 1976) can be found from the references of the book but sometimes in certain chapters I missed some references to journals like Higher Education and Studies in Higher Education. I was asking from myself are we looking this topic too much from accounting perspective or would it be better to break the barriers between the disciplines and try to examine the common educational dilemmas around the tertiary education from a broader perspective. 7
Maybe this could be also one way to base future research on more rigorous theory development as suggested in the handbook. Other minor comment relates to determinants of students’ performance (p. 458 in the handbook). It is stated that procrastination can adversely affect academic performance and reference is given to Rotenstein et al. (2009). This study is published in Journal of Accounting Education. However, I do not find one of the most important predictor of academic performance provided in the previous education and psychological literature, that is, conscientiousness. Procrastination and conscientiousness are typically examined together and I would have liked to see that happen in this book as well. Prior literature documents that procrastination is strongly predicted by conscientiousness. 1 Maybe this minor detail is an additional hint on the lack of broad enough view on education literature at certain points of the book. With saying that I must give positive feedback on the fluent and consistent way in which prior literature is referred to throughout the book. The effective use of metatext and careful editing gave me a feeling that I was reading the same book all the time. To sum up. This book is a comprehensive handbook on accounting education. It gives deep understanding on the history and current stage of the accounting education. In my opinion this book contributes to accounting education literature because it is able to summarize what we know and what we do not know at the moment. In this respect it is a good reference book for scholars interested in accounting education topics. In addition, it gives lot of useful information and motivation for lecturers who want to supplement their accounting education knowledge, and for curriculum developers who pursue improvements in the quality of their accounting programs. The assessment movement in business education has increased the number of universities that apply quality accreditations for their business programs. Awareness on the history of assessment and knowledge on the implementation of outcomes
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More discussion and references on the relation between procrastination and conscientiousness can be found from the following link: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/201001/personality-homework-behavior-and-academicperformance (Accessed 28.2.2015)
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assessment is beneficial for all people who are involved in the process of seeking quality accreditations for business schools. Altogether, the handbook was an enjoyable reading experience and I would recommend it to anybody who wants to deepen her/his accounting knowledge. This book really succeeds in honoring the three accounting educators to whom it is dedicated.
References:
Bloom, B.S., Engelhart, M.D., Furst, E.J. , Hill, W.H., and Krathwohl, D.R. (eds) (1956) Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals. Handbook 1: Cognitive Domain, New York: David McKay. Marton, F. and Säljö, R. (1976) On qualitative differences in learning I: outcomes and processes, British Journal of Educational Psychology, 46 (1), 4-11. Needles, Jr., B.E. and Anderson, H.R. (1994) A Comprehensive Model for Accounting Education, Bainbridge Island, WA: AECC. Ramsden, P. (1979) Student learning and perceptions of the academic environment, Higher Education, 8 (4), 411-427. Rotenstein, A., Davis, H.Z. and Tatum, L. (2009) Early birds versus just-in-timers: the effect of procrastination on academic performance of accounting students, Journal of Accounting Education, 27 (4), 223-232.
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