ACCT101 Financial Accounting G12, G13, G14 Course Outline 2011/2012 Term 2 A. General Information Assistant Professor Young Jun CHO Level 4 Room 4019 School of Accountancy Tel: (65) 6808-5232 Email: yjcho@smu.edu.sg Course website: https://elearn.smu.edu.sg (the combined section: ACCT 101-Financial Accounting-G12-13-14) Consultation times: Monday 3:30PM 5:30PM or by appointment Teaching Assistants G12 (Monday 12:00PM - 3:15PM) G13 (Tuesday 8:30AM - 11:45PM) G14 (Tuesday 3:30PM - 6:45PM) Tarini NAYAK [tarininayak.2009@economics.smu.edu.sg] Vince TAN Jun Jie [vince.tan.2010@accountancy.smu.edu.sg] Vince TAN Jun Jie [vince.tan.2010@accountancy.smu.edu.sg] TA consultation times: TBA B. Course Prerequisites: None C. Course Description This course provides students with a basic understanding of accounting as the language of business. It introduces students to the basic concepts, principles, procedures and approaches underlying the accounting process. This basic understanding facilitates the interpretation of financial information, which is necessary for making business decisions. In addition, coverage of accounting cycle will show how business transactions impact financial statements, and ultimately the analysis of financial information for decision-making. D. Learning Goals, Course Objectives and Skill Developments All School of Accountancy courses are designed to meet certain learning goals and objectives. Some learning goals are addressed at course level, some at overall program level. This course specifically contributes to the development of the following course level learning goals: LG1.1 Our students can recognize, develop, measure, record, validate and communicate financial and other related information. LG1.2 Our students can analyze, synthesize and evaluate financial and other related information for decision making in a management context. Students are expected to demonstrate the following technical accounting competencies upon successful completion of this course: Understand the role of accounting and the framework for financial reporting, including the fundamental principles, qualitative characteristics and assumptions underlying financial accounting. Demonstrate familiarity with the typical contents of an Annual Report and basic financial reporting/disclosure requirements. Transform transactional data into useful accounting information, including adjusting entries and closing entries, leading to the preparation and presentation of financial statements. Account for cash, receivables, inventory and non-current assets, liabilities and changes in equity. Make inferences based on reasonable examination of financial statements, notes to the accounts and other disclosures, of the financial position, financial performance and changes in financial position of an entity. ACCT101 Financial Accounting AY2011/2012 Term 2 Young Jun CHO (G12 G14) Page 1
Analyse and communicate financial information to users. Develop an ability to independently learn, unlearn and re-learn relevant updates on accounting standards, corporate regulations and other financial reporting and disclosure requirements. In addition, the various class activities are designed to further develop students analytical skills [through case discussions and analysis], communication skills [through class participation and written report], active learning skills [through the accounting project and other class exercises] and professional ethics [through understanding role of ethics in accounting judgements]. Students must be prepared to go beyond prescribed cases, readings and textbooks. E. Learning Approach The pedagogical approach to this course consists of three interlocking elements: Instructor-facilitated Learning: Facilitation, Clarification, Synthesis Individual Learning: Preparation, Analysis, Action Collaborative Learning: Teamwork, Discussion, Sharing Learning activities are planned to take into account these three elements of learning. Both the technical learning and skills objectives will be developed through a blend of theory and practice. An understanding of basic accounting knowledge on major elements of financial statements is a prerequisite for any future studies of accounting. Thus, each topic will start with a session on basic technical knowledge, followed by a practical session, using exercises, discussions, case analysis, and other class materials to enforce students understanding of the topic. The role of the instructor is to facilitate, provide clarification of critical concepts, not to read out pages of the textbook to you. Often, it is important to be able to see the trees from the forests and synthesise on why certain things matters are just as important as how specific processes/procedures are performed. Students are reminded that their individual contribution to learning starts before class. Students should prepare by pre-reading, analysing the materials/tasks/cases to be covered before coming to class and actively participate in class discussions. Preparation is the prerequisite for analysis which will allow you to take action in your individual learning. Collaborative learning elements are developed through your contribution to your classmates learning experiences, either through teamwork in tackling your project or other assigned tasks, and being willing to contribute to class discussions and share your findings and work so others will benefit. Naturally, your individual preparation, analysis and action will determine how much you are able to contribute to collaborative learning. F. Textbook and Other Resources Primary Text: Harrison, Horngren, Thomas and Suwardy (2011), Financial Accounting: International Financial Reporting Standards, 8 th edition, Pearson Case Book: Suwardy (2010), Understanding Financial Statements: A Case-Based Approach, Pearson Prentice-Hall FA Learning Objects: Suwardy (2006), numerous e-learning resources is available in D2L There are numerous basic financial accounting books in the library that you can further consult for additional references. You may require access to www.asc.gov.sg or www.ifrs.org for selected insights into applicable ACCT101 Financial Accounting AY2011/2012 Term 2 Young Jun CHO (G12 G14) Page 2
accounting standards. In addition, a good summary of accounting standards ( IFRS in Your Pocket 2010 ) is available from IASPLUS http://www.iasplus.com/dttpubs/pocket2010.pdf. Whilst you will not be expected to know all accounting standards in any great detail in your first financial accounting course, you should have an appreciation of the relevant accounting standards covered in this course. Due to the nature of the coverage on emerging issues, students will be expected to ready widely from professional, business publications and newspapers. G. Lesson Plan Class sessions are of 3-hour duration and will include a review of study materials, class discussions and other learning activities. All course materials will be published in e-learn. A brief outline of course schedule is provided below. Accounting Framework & Financial Statements Recording Business Transactions Processing Accounting Information Completing Accounting Cycle Cash and Receivables Merchandising Operations and Inventory PPE (Property, Plant and Equipment) and Intangibles Liabilities Owners Equity and Income Statement Cash Flow Statement Financial Statement Analysis H. Assessment and Evaluation To pass the course, students are required to obtain a TOTAL mark of 50% or better. The assessment components are listed below: Components Weight 1. Class Activities 20% 1-1) Homework (10%) A+ >=86 % 1-2) Participation (10%) A 83-85% A- 80-82% 2. Progress Assessment 20% 2-1) Quizzes (10%) B+ 77-79% 2-2) Mid-term Exam (10%) B 74-76% B- 70-73% 3. Group Assignments 10% C+ 66-69% C 63-65% 4. Final Exam 50% C- 60-62% D+ 53-59% Sum 100% D 50-52% F <=49% 1. Class Activities Homework (10%) Assigned homework must be submitted before class starts and must be hand-written. Any printed copy will not be accepted. The solutions to homework problems will be ready on course website after the collection of homework. Participation and Class Behavior (10%) ACCT101 Financial Accounting AY2011/2012 Term 2 Young Jun CHO (G12 G14) Page 3
A part of the course grade would be allocated to class participation and discipline. You will get participation points by providing constructive feedbacks. Maintain proper discipline and conduct yourself in a responsible manner. Students are encouraged to raise questions and to participate in the class (e.g., suggestions, comments, etc). There are several specific behavioural codes for this class: 1) Absolutely NO CELLPHONE (including SMS), 2) Prudent use of notebook computer (you may use notebook computer only for class related purpose), 3) Obtain permission from the professor for absence of the class in advance. 2. Progress Assessment Quizzes (10%): Four short quizzes will be given in class. There will be no make-up quizzes; however, the lowest of the four quiz scores will be dropped before calculating your overall grade. Mid-term Exam (10%): There will be a closed-book midterm exam worth 10% of total grade. 3. Group Assignments (10%) Teamwork is an essential quality for professionals in the business world. In this class, you will have the opportunity to work within a team extensively. Students will be assigned into groups (of 4-6 members) for case analysis. Further information on group assignments will be provided as the term progresses. 4. Final exam (50%) The final exam is on Monday, 23 April 2012 (from 8:30AM to 11:30AM). The exam covers topics from the entire course and is closed-book. Requests by students to take the final exam on other than the officially scheduled date/time will not be approved except under extremely extenuating circumstances entirely beyond the student s control. Students who believe they may be unable to take the final exam on the scheduled date and time should not enrol for this course this term. I. Other Course Policies 1. Academic Integrity All acts of academic dishonesty (including, but not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, facilitation of acts of academic dishonesty by others, unauthorized possession of exam questions, or tampering with the academic work of other students) are serious offences. All work (whether oral or written) submitted for purposes of assessment must be the student s own work. Penalties for violation of the policy range from zero marks for the component assessment to expulsion, depending on the nature of the offense. When in doubt, students should consult the instructors of the course. Details on the SMU Code of Academic Integrity may be accessed at http://www.smuscd.org/resources.html. 2. Quiz / Exam Policy Students should not share the quiz/exam contents with others (including students in other sessions) until exam grading has been fully completed. There will be no make-up for quizzes and exams unless a well-written medical document for true emergency is provided. 3. Copyright Any copy-righted materials posted on the course website or distributed in class are for students learning purpose only. The copyrights belong to the respective authors/publishers. Students usage of the material is governed by the law. ACCT101 Financial Accounting AY2011/2012 Term 2 Young Jun CHO (G12 G14) Page 4
4. Other comments The general approach of this course is lecture, problem-solving, and discussion of cases relevant to the topic. Students who read the chapter ahead of attending class will benefit most from the class presentation. As an alternative, students may study the lecture notes ahead of the class. Please check the course website regularly in order not to miss important announcements. Although major announcements will be made both in classroom and course website, it is the sole responsibility of the students to find out what has been announced during their absence from class. I strongly encourage you to let me know any problems related to this course as soon as they arise. Please do not allow problems to accumulate because it will be more difficult to solve them later. In this course, each chapter builds on the previous chapters. It is like constructing a building the foundation first, then the ground floor, then the first floor so on. If you have problems in the earlier parts, you will not be able to understand the later parts. Moreover, the level of difficulty increases as lectures progress. It is much easier to get high marks in the earlier quizzes, but it would be difficult to get even a decent grade in the final exam. Hence, it is very important to be serious with your studies right from the beginning. Prepared by Young Jun CHO, 21 Dec 2011 Approved by Themin SUWARDY, 27 Dec 2011 ACCT101 Financial Accounting AY2011/2012 Term 2 Young Jun CHO (G12 G14) Page 5