Teaching accounting to law students.

1. Successful methods of teaching
Accountancy for Law Students
2015 Southern African Law Teachers Conference
1

2.  Accounting is often perceived by students as being
 somewhat lacklustre and
inapplicable to law,
boring or difficult
 Students commence their accounting module with a
negative mind-set
 Accounting is a necessary life skill which will add
academic value to the student as a whole
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Introduction

3. 3

4.  Students are our customers/consumers,
 End user of an educational service
 delivery of accounting should be an
exciting,
informative and
educational journey
sound knowledge and
tangible skills
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Introduction continued

5. 5
Introduction continued
 Accounting lecturers for law have a responsibility to
encourage academic as well as legal skills during the
transfer of knowledge.

6. 6
Introduction continued
 Dual methods
 Lecture-Based Learning
(LBL) = teacher centred
 also known as:
 Banking Method or
 Chalk and Talk or
 Teaching and Learning
 Problem-Based Learning
(PBL) = student centred
 also known as:
 Learning and Teaching

7. 7
Introduction continued
 Flipped Classroom
 inverts traditional
teaching methods

8. 8
Lecture-Based
Learning
Problem-Based
Learning
Flipped
Classroom
Online
Blended

9.  Educational academic delivery is
slow to react to the changes in
the consumers’ needs and
wants.
 In addition to which any changes
in the academic material
requires a process of change
which is time consuming and
fraught with ‘red tape’
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Background

10. 10
http://www.wavuti.com
Background continued
 Added to the academic dinosaur restraints
Current cohort of educators

11. 11
 Education is faced with students who are
‘professional’ scrutinisers of academic delivery
 Students have a right to their opinions, needs,
wants and desires to be taken into consideration
Background continued

12. 12

13.  A study done and reported in The Quarterly Review of Distance
Education it was found that “69% of the students interviewed
preferred learning difficult concepts online to the traditional
classroom instruction approach”
(Robison, 2003, p. 264)
 Data shows that “accounting students prefer the blended learning
method over the traditional face-to-face approach” reinforcing the
concept of accounting lecturers using more than one single
method of instruction.
(Robison, 2003, p. 267)
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Student Perceptions

14. 14

15. 15

16. 16
Teaching
Content
 Students to take
responsibility for their
studies
 Responsibility and
accountability is a life
skill
 Students responsible for
their own failures
 Students are studying to
be law practitioners not
accountants

17. 17
Teaching Content continued
 As a lecturer, competence in the subject content is of
paramount importance
 Lecturers must have required subject knowledge and
skills (verbal and non-verbal)
 Don’t try to wing it……..the students will pick up on this
straight away and your reputation will be compromised
 Thorough preparation of academic material will further
add to the positive perceptions of the students that the
lecturer is competent.

18. 18
Lecturing accounting to law students
 Some students are under the expectation that if they
attend lectures, they will absorb the material through
a process of osmosis i.e. lecturer is active, no effort
required on their part!
 Students seem to be ignorant as to the impact that
accounting has on their day to day life or on the
impact that it will make on them as entrepreneurs
and/or employees.

19. 19

20.  To master accounting it takes practice and many hours
of practice.
 Initiate each lecture very briefly on prior knowledge
e.g. what does Reconciliation mean?
 Continually link learning to the manual throughout
the lecture.
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Lecturing accounting to law students
continued

21. 21
Lecturing accounting to law students
continued
 Encourage social media linkages
and research – “name different
banks in SA”.
 Clarify and break down content to
the knowledge level of the
students.
 Never assume
knowledge/understanding of
words, definitions or concepts e.g.
Provisions.
 Use body language and
expressions of students to monitor
your effectiveness.

22. 22
Lecturing accounting to law students
continued
 Students should not leave a lecture with the thoughts:
 “Why on earth did we have to learn this”?
 “Of what value was that lecture?”
 “I will never use this information!”
 “I had no idea what was going on!”

23. Lecturing accounting to law students
continued
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 There is no reason why any Learning Unit should not
be able to be linked to real life practical situations
e.g. non tangible assets = branding.
 Paramount that lecturers are able to forge a link
between academic theory and practical application.

24. 24
Encouraging student participation
 A professional yet relaxed academic environment will
be conducive to interaction and participation by both
student and lecturer.
 Relevant humour, graphics, ‘story telling’ and ice
breakers will retain students focus and attention.
 Learn student’s names
 Open ended and closed questioning

25.  Three learning styles that are generally evident are
(Education.com, 2013):
Visual
information is absorbed by seeing it in and storing the
images in the brains
Auditory
verbal language is the prime form for exchanging
information and
Kinaesthetic
learn best by doing: practical application
25
Encouraging student participation
continued

26. Encouraging student participationcontinued
 Auditory + Visual
Students listen and watch the lecturer solve a problem;
 Kinaesthetic
Students then given a task to do which involves the
physical solving of a problem i.e. working through a
task/exercise.
Students whose first language is not the language of instruction are
also accommodated as all three learning styles are incorporated
into the transfer of academic knowledge. Lecturers are cautioned to
be aware of socio-cultural and socio-economic mix in the group and
recognise the spectrum of students in the group when using real life
examples.
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27.  Discussions are a vital part of sharing information and
knowledge e.g. concept of Depreciation.
 Variety engendering interest, intrigue, partition and
interest.
 Where feasible, lecturers are encouraged not to
‘lecture’ (LBL) for more than 10 minutes without
engaging the students in some form of activity
27
Encouraging student participationcontinued

28. Academic Feedback
 Ongoing academic support to
students and lecturers.
 Two way stream.
 Shouldn’t be restricted to
formative evaluations.
 Must be positive, of a guiding
nature and be relevant.
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29.  Feedback which occurs long after the evaluation can
be ineffective in the learning cycle.
 Regular feedback in chunked (broken down) portions
is invaluable in reinforcing the academic content.
 E.g. accounting equation.
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Academic Feedback continued

30. “Exam-driven learning is very often the
result of overcrowded curricular,
reliance on textbooks and teachers’
preference for transmission-orientated
instruction”. (Boris Handel, 2011)
Lecturers should avoid this lecturing
trap as it will not enhance learning
beyond basic knowledge.
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Academic Feedback continued

31. Self-Study
 Pacers and timetables, more often than not, do not
allow for deviations and inclusion of additional learning
and teaching tools.
 Group work has its rightful place when students are
working on exercises/assignments – Trust Funds is ideal
study area for paired working.
 Group work can work well if all participants contribute
equally and no one student dominates the
group/activity or being passive.
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32.  ‘Study buddy’ system.
 Encourage the weaker student to ‘teach’ the more
advanced student and in this way the advanced
student can guide the weaker student.
 Students who obtain part time employment with law
or accounting firms show a distinct advantage over
students who do not obtain employment.
 Create networks
 Introducing them to workshops and conferences e.g.
FASSET, SASSETA
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Self-Study continued

33. Summary
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https://www.pinterest.com/pin/113856696805953219/

34. References, readings & graphics
 Boris Handel, L. W. (2011). Students' Expectations of Teaching: the Business, Accounting and Economics Experience.
e-Journal of Business Education & Scholarship of Teaching Vol. 5, Issue 1, 17.
 Education.com. (2013, October 28). Different Learning Styles in Education. Retrieved from Education.com:
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Teaching_Tips/
 Ewamg, F. (2008). Teaching Law to Accounting and Business Students: A Cumulative Dual Model. Journal of
University Teaching & Learning Practice, 5(2), 37.
 Howe, N. (2014, April 9). The Millennial Generation. Retrieved from www.forbes.com:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/neilhowe/2014/09/04/the-millennial-generation-keep-calm-and-carry-on-part-6-of-
7/
 Inc, K. (2014). What comes after Y. Retrieved from http://www.knoll.com:
http://www.knoll.com/knollnewsdetail/what-comes-after-y-generation-z-arriving-to-the-office-soon
 Kingston, A. (2014, July 15). Get ready for Generation Z. Retrieved from Maclean's:
http://www.macleans.ca/society/life/get-rady-for-generation-z
 Knewton. (2014). Flipped Classroom. Retrieved from Knewton.com: http://www.knewton.com/flipped-classroom/
 Robison, D. M. (2003). Case 4 Blended Learning in an Accounting Career. The Quarterly Review of Distance
Education Vol. 4. No. 3. 2003, 261-269.
 http://staceylloydteaching.com/5-simple-ways-engage-students-first-minutes-lesson/
 http://lifedestiny.net/using-facebooks-statistics-page-to-understand-gen-y
 http://www.wavuti.com/2014/10/american-generations-baby-boomers-gen-x.html
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35. Successful methods of teaching
Accountancy for Law Students
2015 Southern African Law Teachers Conference
35
Presented by:
Alison Engelbrecht
Act. Vice Principal – Student Support
Varsity College Pietermaritzburg Campus
aengelbrecht@varsitycollege.co.za
033-3862376