The 'Principles of Accounts Curriculum' outlines a three-year teaching framework for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) syllabus, effective from September 2017. It emphasizes diverse teaching strategies to accommodate different learning styles and provides a comprehensive content breakdown for secondary education students across various topics including bookkeeping, financial statements, partnerships, and limited liability companies. The curriculum aims to standardize the education of accounting principles in all secondary schools while promoting practical activities and assessments.

1. PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTS
CURRICULUMFORMS3 - 5
A division of the Caribbean Secondary Education
Certificate Syllabus
Effective September 2017
Based on the followingallocationof periods
Form 3 3 – 35 minutes periods per week
Form 4 & 5 5 – 35 minutes periods per week
BusinessEducationOfficer

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BusinessEducationOfficer
Introduction
This curriculum breaks down the content of the CSEC Syllabus over a three year period. It should be
used in conjunction with the CSEC Syllabus.
Purpose
The purpose is to standardize when the content of CSEC Syllabus is being taught in all secondary
schools.
Teaching Strategies
In order to cater for the different learning styles in the classroom, teachers are urged to use various
teaching strategies and styles to meet the individual needs of their students. Besides the usual “chalk
and talk” teachers should try to incorporate as many of the following strategies:
● Independent Activities
● Cooperative Learning
● Visuals
● Simulations
● Peer Tutoring
● Hands-on
● Technology Integration
● Projects
● Games
Along with the different teaching styles there should be a variety of class activities to evaluate your
lessons to include:
❖ Questions & Answers
❖ Puzzles
❖ Quiz
❖ Games
❖ Web Quest
❖ Test
❖ Book Quest

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BusinessEducationOfficer
FORM 3
SECTIO
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TOPIC CONTENT
1
Term 1
ACCOUNTING
AS A
PROFESSION
a) concept of “Accounting” and “Principles of Accounting
b) accounting as a business practice – the purpose of
accounting
c) internal and external users of accounting information and
their needs
d) Careers in areas such as
i) banking
ii) management
iii) insurance
iv) entrepreneurship
e) Ethical principles of Accounting. For example, Code of
Ethics: objectivity, professional competence, integrity,
professional behaviour, and confidentiality:
(i) appropriate application of the ethical principles.
(ii) inappropriate application of the ethical principles.
f) Appropriate application of accounting principles.
G) Inappropriate application of accounting principles. For
example, fraud, tax-evasion.
h) Results of inappropriate application of accounting principles.
For example, law suits, loss of job, loss of integrity, imprisonment,
and fines.
3
Term 1
Books of Original
Entry
a)The uses of Books of Original Entry
-general journal -purchases day book
-sales day book -returns outwards day book
-returns inwards day book - cash book
-petty cash book
b) Cash and credit transaction
The use of;
-cash -cheques
- credit cards - debit cards

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c) Source documents and the books of original entry to which they
are related
d)Record transactions in the books of original entry using source
documents
e)Treatment of trade discounts and cash discounts
f) Cash discounts- discounts allowed and discount received
- Balancing of the cash book
- Balancing the petty cash book using the Imprest System
g) Posting totals of books of original entry to the general ledger.
2
Term 2
Accounting as a
System
a) Definition and purpose of a Balance Sheet
b) Financial Statements
- Income Statement( Trading and Profit and Loss
Account), Income and Expenditure Account, Balance
Sheets, Cash Flow Statements
c) Software currently being used in Accounting
d) Roles and impact of technology on the accounting process
e) Definition and examples of assets,liabilities, capital
f) Balance Sheet Equation A= C+L
g) Definition and examples of fixed assets,currents assets,
current liabilities, long term liabilities
h) arrangement of assets and liabilities in order of
- permanence - liquidity
i) Effect of transactions on Balance Sheet items – increase
and decrease in items while maintaining the balance sheet
equation
4
Term 2
Ledgers and Trial
Balance
a) Different types of ledgers for recording nominal, realand
personal accounts
- General ledger
- Sales/debtors’ ledger
- Purchases/creditors’ ledger
b) Classification of accounts
- Nominal – expenses and revenue
- Real – assets
- Personal– debtors and creditors

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c) Rules of entry for assets,liabilities, income, capital and
expenses
d) Recording transactions in accounts using double entry
e) Posting to general and subsidiary ledgers
f) Balancing accounts
g) Trial balances
h) Uses and limitations of the trial balance
5
Term 3
The Preparation
and Analysis of
Financial
Statements of the
Sole-Trader
a) The purpose of Financial Statements to satisfy the needs of the
users
b) Preparation of Trading and Profit and Loss account for sole-
traders including adjustment for return inwards and outwards;
carriage- inwards and outwards; closing stock
c) Preparation of Balance Sheets
d) Definition of working capital

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BusinessEducationOfficer
FORM 4
SECTIO
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TOPIC CONTENT
5
Term 1
The Preparation
and Analysis of
Financial
Statements of the
sole-trader (cont’d)
a) preparation of classified Balance Sheet showing
working capital
b) working capital as a basic tool for solvency; working
capital formula
c) treatment of net profit or loss on the Balance Sheet
d) trading results: simple ratios such as stock turn, average
stock, gross profit percentage,net profit percentage
e) Analysis and interpretation of the financial position of a
business using ratios: current ratio; acid test ratio; return
on investment
f) Preparation of simple reports evaluating a business based
on ratios and making recommendations
6
Term 1
Accounting
adjustments
a) The reasons for adjustments; application of the
matching/accruals concept
b) Explain Prudence,accrualand consistency
c) Journal entries for prepaid expenses and advanced
revenues
d) Journal entries for accrued expenses and revenues
e) Journal entries and Ledger accounts for expenses and
revenues
f) The treatment for prepayments and accruals on the
Balance Sheet
g) The reasons for bad debts; aging debtors: creation of

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provision for doubtful debts
h) Accounting entries for bad and doubtful debts: the
treatment of bad and doubtful debts in the Profit and
Loss Account and Balance Sheet
i) Definition of depreciation: causes of depreciation:
factors to be considered when calculating depreciation
j) Straight line method (using formula) and reducing
balance method of depreciation
k) Journal entries for the provision for depreciation: the
maintenance of the provision for depreciation account:
the treatment of accumulated depreciation on the
Balance Sheet: the determination of Net Book Value
l) Capital expenditure; revenue expenditure
m) Journal entries and Ledger accounts for expenses and
revenue
n) The preparation of adjusted Financial Statements.
7
Term
1/2
Control System
a) The need for control systems
b) Uses of control system
c) Common control systems
- Suspense account
- Control accounts
- Bank reconciliation statements
d) Types of errors
e) Uses of the suspense account
f) Correction of errors via journal entries
g) Suspense accounts
h) The effect of errors on the Trading and Profit and Loss
account and the Balance Sheet

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i) Uses of control accounts
j) Sources of information for entries in control accounts
k) Sales ledger control accounts, purchases ledger control
account
l) Meaning (significance) of the balances on control
accounts
m) Identification of the items that cause the difference
between cash book and bank statement balances and
updating of the cash book
n) Uses and construction of the bank reconciliation
statement
8
Term 2
Accounting for
Partnership
a) Definition of partnership: comparison of a partnership
with sole-traders and corporations: types of partners
b) Features of partnership
c) Reasons for formation of partnership- voluntary
association, mutual agency, unlimited liability
d) Features of partnership agreement,including share of
profits, interest on capital and drawings, salaries
e) The capital account of partners- cash and non- cashing
capital resources; types of capital account- fixed and
fluctuating capital accounts and their implications
f) Methods of sharing profit/loss: capital ratio, fixed
percentage,equally
g) The preparation of the appropriation account
h) The current account prepared with items posted from the
appropriation account: columnar form and single
accounts
i) The significance of the debit and credit balances brought
down on the current accounts

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j) The treatment of current account balances on the balance
sheet
9
Term 2/3
Accounting for
Limited Liability
Companies, Co-
operatives and
Non- Profit
Organizations
a) Nature of limited liability companies, co-operatives,
non- profit, public and private organizations
b) Principles of limited liability companies, co-
operatives, non- profit, public and private
organizations
c) Advantages and disadvantages of limited liability
companies
d) Methods of raising capital-equity(preference and
ordinary shares),debt( debentures, bank loans)
e) Issue of shares and debentures
f) Types of shares: rights and privileges of owners of
each type of share
g) Elements of shareholders’ equity share capital,
reserves
h) Calculation of dividend payments
i) Appropriation of profits
j) Final accounts of limited liability companies
k) Calculation and interpretation of accounting ratios

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BusinessEducationOfficer
FORM 5
SECTIO
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TOPIC CONTENT
10
Term 1
Manufacturing and
Inventory Control
a) Methods of inventory (stock) valuation: FIFO, LIFO
and AVCO
b) Calculation of closing inventory (stock) using FIFO,
LIFO, AVCO
c) The effect on profit of different methods of (inventory)
stock valuation
10
Term 1
Manufacturing and
Inventory Accounts
a) Elements of cost: direct materials, direct labour and factory
overheads
b) Preparation of manufacturing account showing
- Cost of raw material consumed
- Prime cost
- Factory overheads
- Work in progress
- Cost of production
c) Calculation of unit cost of items produced
d) Preparation of trading, profit and loss account and balance
sheet of a manufacturer
11
Term 1
Accounting for the
Entrepreneur
a) Use of time cards,time books, electronic clock-in cards,
employee earnings records
b) Methods of payment
- Employees
- Goods and services
- Suppliers
c) Calculation of gross earnings including overtime from
employee records

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d) Preparation of simple sales and production budgets
e) Preparation of a simple business plan for a small
project
f) Preparation of pay roll and wage documents from time
cards,computer records
g) Calculation of statutory deductions and non-statutory
deductions
h) Statutory and non-statutory deductions
Students should be tested using past paper question under exam conditions.
Students should be given clearguidelines on their SBA Projects as outlined in the
Syllabus. The SBA component should begin no later than Term 1 in Form 5.