A framework for the integration of computerised accounting into high school accounting curriculum

Abstract

Technological innovations have become a large part of people’s daily lives. Computers have changed the way the workforce perform their duties. In this regard traditional manual systems have progressively been replaced with computer technology. As such education institutions are under consistent pressure to integrate technology in their learning and teaching. Depriving high school learners exposure to technological ways of performing tasks widens the gap between real life employment demands and what the education sector supplies. In this regard, higher education institutions have already taken advantage of the abundant benefits of technology integration into the curriculum, but school level education lags behind. Computerised accounting can be classified as a subject-specific technology residing within technology content knowledge in the iTechnological, iPedagogical, and Content Knowledge i(TPACK) model. This is a research study strived to understand the concerns of accounting teachers and how they foresaw such technological integration as an additional pedagogical tool for accounting in high schools. This study developed a framework for the integration of computerised accounting into the high school accounting curriculum delivery in a South African context. A case study design using qualitative approach was used to investigate the issues related to introducing computerised accounting into high school curricular. The study is located within one educational district in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The sample consisted of nine accounting teachers who were purposefully selected. The selection was based on the fact that the accounting teachers are the ones responsible for the curriculum delivery in high schools and are therefore better knowledgeable of the current pedagogical tools they use and how technologically based pedagogical tools such as computerised accounting can be successfully integrated in the learning and teaching of accounting. The data for this study was collected using one-on-one semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Semi-structured interviews were appropriate for understanding deeply the concerns of accounting teachers in relation to the integration of computerised accounting into the accounting curriculum delivery in high schools. Document analysis was used to facilitate the development of the framework to integrate computerised accounting into the curriculum delivery of accounting in schools. The study found mitigating factors that traversed policy, human, and material aspects. Concerns of the accounting teachers were about the availability of technology resources that will enable the integration of computerised accounting, their lack of background knowledge and experience of using computerised accounting, and assessment inequalities that might emanate from such an integration. The study uncovered several benefits that can be reaped by integrating computerised accounting in high schools. A spark emanating from this study focuses on initiating new debates of using subject-specific technology as an additional pedagogical in learning and teaching across subjects in school education. This study has contributed to the body of knowledge by developing a proposed framework model that can be used to successfully integrate computerised accounting into the learning and teaching of accounting in Grades 8 to 11. The proposed framework provides guidelines of the key areas to consider when attempting to integrate computerised accounting for teaching at school level.