ACCTING 2501 - Financial Accounting II

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2017

The aim of this course is to guide students in their acquisition of technical and problem solving skills in the area of corporate external financial reporting. Corporate external financial reporting comprises financial reporting by reporting entities to external stakeholders. It is mandatory for reporting entities to report in accordance with Australian accounting standards. Students in this course will gain skills in reading, interpreting and applying accounting standards. This course builds on introductory financial accounting. The course is essential for all individuals exposed to financial information in the workplace including accountants, auditors, financial analysts, managers, bankers and oversight bodies involved in the preparation or use of company financial statements. It would also be useful for those not wishing to become accountants but who plan to specialise in areas where accounting knowledge would be an advantage such as bankers and finance professionals, journalists, lawyers, and those interested in management positions including engineers and scientists.

Open All

Course Details

Course Code	ACCTING 2501
Course	Financial Accounting II
Coordinating Unit	Adelaide Business School
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 4 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	Y
Prerequisites	ACCTING 1005 or ACCTING 2502,
Assessment	Exam/assignments/tests/tutorial work as prescribed at first lecture

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr Lisa Powell

Location: Room 13.22, 10 Pulteney St
Telephone: 8313 0103
Email: lisa.powell@adelaide.edu.au

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

Read and interpret Australian Accounting Standards;
Identify and apply principles and regulations relating to financial accounting and the preparation of financial statements;
Apply the processes of recognition, measurement and disclosure of accounting information in the preparation of general purpose financial statements;
Critically analyse and interpret case information and be able to develop a convincing argument to present their views on relevant accounting issues;
Work either individually or in a group to solve problems and communicate understanding of issues relating to the preparation of financial statements.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1,3,4,5
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	3,4,5
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	3,4,5
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	1,3,4,5
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	3,4,5

Learning Resources
Required Resources
Text Books
1. Leo, K. J., Knapp, J., McGowan, S. C., and Sweeting, J. W., (2015) Company Accounting, 10th EditionJohn Wiley and Sons Australia Ltd, Milton, Queensland.
2. CAANZ (2017) Financial Reporting Handbook 2017, John Wiley and Sons Australia Ltd, Milton, Queensland.
Recommended Resources
This course includes content that has been drawn from the following sources. Students are not required to obtain copies of these texts, but those seeking to review information beyond the required resources may find the following to be useful resources:
1. Loftus, J., Leo, K. J., Wise, V., and Clark, K., (2013) Understanding Australian Accounting Standards, John Wiley and Sons Australia Ltd, Milton, Queensland.
2. Henderson, S., Peirson, G., Herbohn, K., Artiach, T. and Howieson, B. (2014) Issues in Financial Accounting, 15th edition, Pearson Education Australia/Prentice Hall, French’s Forrest, NSW. (ISBN 9781442561175).
Online Learning

Students are required to regularly access the MyUni website for this course, available at: https://myuni.adelaide.edu.au. Important information will be provided to students on this website including online lectures, answers to self-study and workshop questions, text-book resources, on-line tests, and announcements from the lecturer. All of the resources provided to students from this website are designed to assist in student’s learning and understanding of the information covered in this course.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

Lectures
Each week, students are required to either attend or listen to an online recording (available from MyUni) to a two-hour lecture. If attendance in lectures falls below a minimum threshold of approximately 40 students, future lectures at that time may be cancelled.

Lectures provide students with an overview of the accounting issues that surround the preparation of general purpose financial statements. The lecturer will discuss conceptual issues surrounding the application of Australian accounting standards on particular topics, work through some introductory examples and refer to information found in Annual Reports prepared by companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).

Lectures do not provide all of the necessary information that students are required to be familiar with in order to pass this course. It is essential that students supplement the lecture materials by reading the relevant extracts from the text books, working through examples and extending their knowledge of each topic in workshops and in their own study time. Students should prepare for each lecture by reading from the texts and reviewing the lecture material provided online in MyUni. The material covered in lectures will be discussed and extended in workshops held in the week following the lecture.

Workshops
Workshops of two hours duration will be held weekly commencing in week 1 of the semester. Workshops are an important component of student learning. The communication skills developed in workshops by regularly and actively participating in discussions are considered by the Business School to be very important and are highly regarded by employers and professional bodies.

Questions for discussion in workshops are located in the study guide for the relevant topic, which is available from MyUni. Each week, self-study and workshop questions must be attempted by students prior to attending the workshop. Answers to the self-study questions are available from MyUni for students to review prior to attending class. Attempting the self-study questions and checking the answers provides students with the opportunity to test their knowledge and understanding of the information presented in the lecture and readings. Students’ ability to complete specific workshop questions will be assessed as a component of workshop participation.

Please note that membership of workshop classes is to be finalised by the end of the second week of semester. Students wishing to swap between workshop classes after this time are required to present their case to the course coordinator, but should be aware that such a request may not be approved.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

Each week throughout the semester students are expected to attend or listen online (available from MyUni) to a two-hour lecture and attend a two-hour workshop class. The University expects full-time students (i.e. those taking 12 units per semester) to devote a total of 48 hours per week to their studies (Coursework Academic Programs Policy, s 5). This means that, for this course, students are expected to commit approximately 8 hours per week on average to private study, that is, study outside of regular class times.

Learning Activities Summary

Please refer to MyUni for a full summary of learning activities for Financial Accounting II

Teaching and Learning Activity Learning Outcomes

Lectures 1-5

Workshop discussion 1-5

Articulate storyline modules 1-5

Topics covered:

1. The Australian external reporting environment and overview of financial statement presentation
2. Recognition, measurement and disclosure and the preparation of financial statements
3. Other disclosures
4. Leases
5. Provisions and contingent liabilties
6. Employee benefits
7. Income taxes
8. Property, plant and equipment
9. Intangible assets
10. Impairment of assets
11. Cash flow statements
12. Share capital and reserves
13. Share-based payment

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment Task	Due Date/Week	Weighting	Length	Learning Outcome
Workshop participation	Weekly	10%	N/A	1,2,3,4,5
Online tests	On-going	10%	TBA	2,3,4,5
Mid-semester test	TBA	20%	TBA	1,2,3,4,5
Final exam	Week 14	60%	Three hours	1,2,3,4,5
Total		100%

There are four summative assessment tasks in this course. Each task is designed to provide students with opportunities to demonstrate their level of comprehension and understanding of each of the topics covered in the course as well as their understanding of the overall nature and purpose of financial reporting. All of the assessment tasks for this course will contribute either individually or collectively to the satisfaction of the learning objectives for this course.

Workshop participation 10%
Workshop participation is an essential component of the learning task to be undertaken by students throughout the semester. Workshops provide students with the opportunity to interact with their tutor and fellow students to identify areas of strength and weakness in their understanding of particular topics.

Online tests 10%
Online tests provide opportunities for students to check how well they have understood the technical definitions, principles and regulations relating to financial accounting and the preparation of financial statements that have been presented to them in the lectures and required readings.

Mid-semester test 20%
The mid-semester test is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of key concepts and tecnical accounting issues that have been discussed in lectures and workshops. Students are encouraged to practice their skills in forming an opinion or position and providing evidence to support that opinion in short answer form.

Examination 60%
At the completion of the semester students are required to undertake a three-hour examination that will demonstrate their understanding of every topic covered in the lectures, workshops, on-line resources and other course materials.

Assessment Related Requirements

Workshop participation
Workshop participation marks will be awarded on the basis of workshop attendance and submission of ‘satisfactory’ answers to workshop tests. Full marks for workshop attendance will be achieved if students have attended at least nine workshops and submitted ‘satisfactory’ answers to at least eight workshop questions. Each week, at the commencement of the workshop, students are required to show their tutor an original handwritten copy of their answer to at least two workshop questions (as indicated in the study guide for the topic). During the workshop, tutors will ask a series of questions on the previous week’s workshop topic to assess student’s understanding of key concepts for that topic. Written answers to the tutor’s questions will be marked in the class and then handed to the tutor for review. The answers will be deemed to be either satisfactory or unsatisfactory by the tutor on the basis of whether or not they demonstrate a thorough and reasonable understanding of the key concepts being assessed. Answers will be returned to students the workshops held in the following week.

Online tests
Students are required to complete four online tests throughout the semester. The best three scores achieved will be counted towards the students’ final grade. The tests are to be completed individually by students. Only one attempt is allowed per student for each test. Once a student has commenced a test online, they will be allowed a limited period to complete it. Details of when the tests will become available and how long students will be given to complete a test will be available on MyUni.

Mid-semester test
Students are required to answer questions about technical accounting issues in a manner that demonstrates their understanding of those issues. Details of the specific requirements of the test will be provided to students from week two.

Examination
To gain a pass for this course, a mark of at least 45% must be obtained in the final examination as well as at least 50% in total for all assessment tasks. Students not achieving the minimum exam mark will be awarded no more than 49 for their course grade.

Assessment Detail

The assessment components are as follows:

Workshop participation (all weeks) (10%)
Students are required to attend at least nine workshops and submit at least eight ‘satisfactory’ answers to workshop tests. Date and time: on-going.

Online Tests (TBA) (10%)
Two online tests will be held throughout the semester. The test results will be included in the overall mark for each student. Each test may include materials covered in workshops up-to and including the week the test is held. Date and time: on-going.

Mid semester test (TBA) (20%)
Details will be provided from week two.

Final Exam (60%)
There will be a three-hour examination covering all topics.

Submission

Workshop participation
Weekly tests will be conducted and collected by the tutor in workshops.

Online tests
Tests will be available online.

Mid semester test
Details of the mid semester test will be available from MyUni by week 2.

If students are unable to attend workshops or complete a test within the specified time due to medical or compassionate grounds they must provide appropriate documentation to the course coordinator within seven days of the workshop, test day/time and an alternative time to complete the assessment will be negotiated. The nature and form of the documentation to accompany a request for an extension must be in accordance with the instructions for application for supplementary examinations for ‘medical and compassionate grounds’ located at the following website: http://www.adelaide.edu.au/student/exams/supps.html. Students who fail to submit any piece of assessment and fail to provide adequate supporting documentation to the course coordinator will be awarded a score of zero for that component of the course assessment.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

Feedback from students in previous offerings of Financial Accounting II have indicated that it is necessary to have a solid foundation in the pre-requisite accounting knowledge acquired in previous accounting courses to succeed in this course. It is also very important to keep up to date in accessing and completing all of the relevant learning resources that are available in this course throughout the semester.

There are a range of learning resources available that cater for a range of different learning styles. Please review these materials and select those that most effectively suit your personal learning style. If you find you are falling behind in your learning, contact your tutor or the lecturer for additional support.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator