IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v63y2023i1p403-425.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Developing critical thinking: An examination of contemporary practices in accounting

Author

Listed:
  • Elisabeth Sinnewe
  • Daifei (Troy) Yao
  • Laura De Zwaan

Abstract

Employers and professional bodies call for higher education accounting courses to emphasise the importance of critical thinking skills. This study provides an in‐depth assessment of how critical thinking is currently taught and assessed across an entire accounting degree. Our study contributes to our understanding of how teaching and assessment can support students in developing their critical thinking. Using a case study approach, we identify resource restraints and disruptions to traditional forms of engagement as key challenges to developing critical thinking skills in accounting education. We conclude with suggestions for teaching practice, such as formative scaffolds and teacher‐led discussions.

Suggested Citation

  • Elisabeth Sinnewe & Daifei (Troy) Yao & Laura De Zwaan, 2023. "Developing critical thinking: An examination of contemporary practices in accounting," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 63(1), pages 403-425, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:1:p:403-425
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.13054
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13054
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.13054?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paul De Lange & Beverley Jackling & Anne‐Marie Gut, 2006. "Accounting graduates’ perceptions of skills emphasis in undergraduate courses: an investigation from two Victorian universities," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 46(3), pages 365-386, September.
    2. Chad N. Loes & Ernest T. Pascarella, 2017. "Collaborative Learning and Critical Thinking: Testing the Link," The Journal of Higher Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 88(5), pages 726-753, September.
    3. Peipei Pan & Hector Perera, 2012. "Market relevance of university accounting programs: Evidence from Australia," Accounting Forum, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(2), pages 91-108, June.
    4. Butler, Maureen G. & Church, Kimberly S. & Spencer, Angela Wheeler, 2019. "Do, reflect, think, apply: Experiential education in accounting," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 12-21.
    5. John Dumay, 2014. "Reflections on interdisciplinary accounting research: the state of the art of intellectual capital," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 27(8), pages 1257-1264, October.
    6. Rebele, James E. & St. Pierre, E. Kent, 2019. "A commentary on learning objectives for accounting education programs: The importance of soft skills and technical knowledge," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 71-79.
    7. Pan, Peipei & Perera, Hector, 2012. "Market relevance of university accounting programs: Evidence from Australia," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 91-108.
    8. Denise Jackson, 2020. "Gauging the development of innovative capabilities in Accounting and Finance students: can they drive the national innovation agenda?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 60(3), pages 2689-2715, September.
    9. repec:eme:maj000:02686909710180698 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Yves Levant & Michel Coulmont & Raluca Sandu, 2016. "Business simulation as an active learning activity for developing soft skills," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(4), pages 368-395, July.
    11. Binh Bui & Brenda Porter, 2010. "The Expectation-Performance Gap in Accounting Education: An Exploratory Study," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1-2), pages 23-50.
    12. Alan Reinstein & Mohamed E. Bayou, 1997. "Critical thinking in accounting education: processes, skills and applications," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(7), pages 336-342, October.
    13. Phil Hancock & Neil Marriott & Angus Duff, 2019. "Research–teaching yin–yang? An empirical study of accounting and finance academics in Australia and New Zealand," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 59(1), pages 219-252, March.
    14. Wolcott, Susan K. & Sargent, Matthew J., 2021. "Critical thinking in accounting education: Status and call to action," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    15. Marie H. Kavanagh & Lyndal Drennan, 2008. "What skills and attributes does an accounting graduate need? Evidence from student perceptions and employer expectations," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 48(2), pages 279-300, June.
    16. John Dumay, 2014. "Reflections on interdisciplinary accounting research: the state of the art of intellectual capital," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 27(8), pages 1257-1264, October.
    17. repec:eme:aaaj00:aaaj-05-2014-1714 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Christina Chiang & Paul K. Wells & Peter Fieger & Divesh S. Sharma, 2021. "An investigation into student satisfaction, approaches to learning and the learning context in Auditing," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(1), pages 913-936, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Peggy Coady & Seán Byrne & John Casey, 2018. "Positioning of emotional intelligence skills within the overall skillset of practice-based accountants: employer and graduate requirements," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(1), pages 94-120, January.
    2. Monique Micallef & Cheryl Mifsud & Lauren Ellul & Peter J. Baldacchino & Simon Grima, 2023. "The Skill Set Required in the Accounting Workplace: Perspectives of Accounting Graduates and Warrant Holders," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(4), pages 117-145.
    3. Hamood Mohammed Al-Hattami, 2021. "University Accounting Curriculum, IT, and Job Market Demands: Evidence From Yemen," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(2), pages 21582440211, April.
    4. Sandra Scott, 2017. "From Plagiarism‐Plagued to Plagiarism‐Proof: Using Anonymized Case Assignments in Intermediate Accounting," Accounting Perspectives, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(4), pages 247-268, December.
    5. Mel Timpson & Leopold Bayerlein, 2021. "Accreditation without Impact: The Case of Accreditation by Professional Accounting Bodies in Australia," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 31(1), pages 22-34, March.
    6. Palazuelos, Estefanía & San-Martín, Paula & Montoya del Corte, Javier & Fernández-Laviada, Ana, 2018. "Utilidad percibida del Aprendizaje Orientado a Proyectos para la formación de competencias. Aplicación en la asignatura «Auditoría de cuentas»," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 150-161.
    7. Arquero, José Luis & Fernández-Polvillo, Carmen & Hassall, Trevor & Joyce, John, 2017. "Relationships between communication apprehension, ambiguity tolerance and learning styles in accounting students," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 13-24.
    8. Ștefan Bunea & Flavius-Andrei Guinea, 2023. "Stakeholders’ Perceptions of the Vocational Competences Acquired by Students Enrolled in Accounting Master’s Programmes in Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-28, April.
    9. Komarev, Iliya & Preobragenskaya, Galina, 2022. "A framework of market-relevant accounting competencies for the Gulf Cooperation countries (GCC)," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    10. Lin Mei Tan & Fawzi Laswad, 2018. "Professional skills required of accountants: what do job advertisements tell us?," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(4), pages 403-432, July.
    11. Atanasko Atanasovski & Marina Trpeska & Zorica Bozinovska Lazarevska, 2018. "Accounting Students' and Employers' Perceptions on Employability Skills in the SEE Country," European Financial and Accounting Journal, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2018(3), pages 55-71.
    12. Bernadette Smith & William Maguire & Helen Haijuan Han, 2018. "Generic skills in accounting: perspectives of Chinese postgraduate students," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 58(2), pages 535-559, June.
    13. Carla Carvalho & Ana Carlos Almeida, 2022. "The Adequacy of Accounting Education in the Development of Transversal Skills Needed to Meet Market Demands," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-18, May.
    14. Sargent, Matthew J. & Winton, Bradley G., 2023. "Cognitive ability and performance in accounting students: The importance of data analytics assignments," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    15. Plant, Kato & Barac, Karin & Sarens, Gerrit, 2019. "Preparing work-ready graduates – skills development lessons learnt from internal audit practice," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 33-47.
    16. Škrinjarić Bruno, 2023. "Competence Proximity to Employers’ Requirements and Labour Market Success of Economics and Business Graduates," South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 18(2), pages 140-161, December.
    17. Gittings, Lara & Taplin, Ross & Kerr, Rosemary, 2020. "Experiential learning activities in university accounting education: A systematic literature review," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    18. Walaa Wahid ElKelish*, 2023. "Accounting for Corporate Human Rights: Literature Review and Future Insights," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 33(2), pages 203-226, June.
    19. Sugahara, Satoshi & Cilloni, Andrea, 2021. "Mediation effect of students’ perception of accounting on the relationship between game-based learning and learning approaches," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    20. Binh Bui & Hien Hoang & Duc P. T. Phan & P. W. Senarath Yapa, 2017. "Governance and compliance in accounting education in Vietnam – case of a public university," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(3), pages 265-290, May.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:63:y:2023:i:1:p:403-425. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.