Knowledge structures and their relevance for teaching and learning in introductory financial accounting

The structure of knowledge within a discipline has implications for the teaching and learning within the discipline. This research examines how the hierarchical knowledge structure found in accounting impacts on the teaching and learning which takes place in the first-semester introductory financial accounting course. Students used online questionnaires and interviews to explain how they engaged with the discipline and describe the difficulties they experienced during the semester. Bernstein's pedagogic device and Maton's Legitimation Code Theory were used to analyse the structure of knowledge within the discipline and as theoretical lenses through which to view these students’ perceptions. This research provides a theoretical explanation for the impact that a hierarchical knowledge structure has on teaching and learning within the discipline; how students need to develop a “trained gaze” and thereby gain mastery over the “procedures of investigation” to be able to produce the “legitimate text” required for success in the course. This research also explains why some students experience a “code clash” and the implications this has for their success in the discipline. Other pedagogical difficulties which were experienced by these students, as a result of the hierarchical knowledge structure within the discipline, are also discussed. In addition to providing a better understanding of the phenomena that drive or hinder student learning, which could contribute towards improving pedagogy and hence student learning, theorising these concepts provides a common language to enable more informed debate on these issues.