Accounting, 3rd Edition (Part 1)

Author: (American) Charles T. Horngren et al. (Auth.), Wang Huacheng et al. (Trans.)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-11
Features: "Accounting" (3rd Edition), written by renowned American accounting scholar, Professor Charles T. Horngren of the Stanford University School of Business and others, covers all fundamental knowledge of financial accounting and management accounting, representing the mainstream of basic accounting education. It is an excellent accounting textbook. Additionally, the book primarily teaches readers how to use accounting information, making it very suitable for managers who want to understand how to leverage accounting information for scientific decision-making. This "Accounting" (3rd Edition) by the distinguished American accounting scholars, including Professor Charles T. Horngren of the Stanford University School of Business, covers all fundamental knowledge of financial accounting and management accounting, representing the mainstream of basic accounting education. It is a recognized and highly excellent accounting textbook. The book fully considers the recommendations of the Accounting Education Improvement Committee (AECC) and reflects a spirit of comprehensive innovation. The features of the book are: (1) Emphasis on developing decision-making skills. As the authors point out in the preface: "Our main purpose is to introduce the basic principles of financial accounting and management accounting and to attempt to cultivate students' ability to think actively and make decisions, helping them become decision-makers." This idea runs throughout the entire book. (2) Emphasis on developing critical thinking skills. The "Think," "Comprehensive Exercises," and "Case Studies" sections in the book are designed to help readers develop critical thinking skills. (3) Emphasis on the connection between accounting and the related environment. The opening examples and enterprise examples in the book help readers systematically connect accounting issues with the related environment. (4) Emphasis on ethical education. The book specifically discusses ethical issues in decision-making in the "Knowledge Expansion" section of each chapter. (5) Emphasis on developing communication skills. Each chapter's exercises require readers to write memoranda on decision-making principles, and selected problems also require students to explain how they can help manage the business or evaluate investment projects. The "Group Discussion Plan" can be used in class for oral discussions to develop students' communication skills. In summary, whether students or business managers can accurately use accounting information and continuously improve their decision-making skills through studying this book. Excerpt: We will use Exercise 7 in Chapter 1 to illustrate the above points. This exercise requires you to handle the business activities of Mr. Allison's clinic in terms of accounting and provides cash amounts and other data. Assume it is the end of the month after the clinic opens. Let's answer these two questions: 1. What did you learn from this exercise? Possible answers (there can be many): (1) A business should distinguish its own operations from the personal activities of its owner. (2) A business starts operating with the capital invested by its owner. (3) A business must account for its own purchases and sales activities. (4) Every business activity, such as buying land, is affected by at least two aspects. 2. How will you apply the knowledge you learned to manage a business? (1) Only by distinguishing my personal activities from the business operations of the enterprise can I better evaluate the business's performance. If I mix them together, I will not be able to understand the business's condition. (2) If I were to run a business, I might invest some of my own money, so I would have to be frugal. I might need to borrow from outsiders, and I would need a good credit record. (3) If I want to know the operating condition of my business, accounting is essential. (4) Undoubtedly, the purchase and sales activities of the business have two aspects of impact on the organization because they involve both buyers and sellers, such as buying land. 3. Group Discussion Plan (For teacher reference). To emphasize the importance of business decision-making activities in accounting learning, the authors suggest that teachers conduct group discussions (or similar activities) before class in the following way. Divide all the students into 4 to 5 groups, and each group spends 15 to 30 minutes listing their business plans and incentive measures, then discuss them. Note that each measure should be as specific and detailed as possible, and closely centered around the goal of a profitable business. Of course, teachers can arrange such discussions at any time, but pre-class discussions as a basis for stimulating thinking are more effective. Discussions at the end of the term can summarize all the knowledge learned in the semester. Letting students develop their own business decision-making plans has the following benefits for beginners in accounting: (1) Starting a business is an activity that can stimulate students' interest and is stimulating. (2) Various strategic decisions provide a good background for explaining the relevance of accounting. (3) This abstract training can help students develop their thinking skills—moving beyond the limitations of accounting records. (4) The learning objective is to learn the foundation and structure of a subject. (5) This group discussion can develop students' sense of teamwork as well as their oral and written communication skills. (6) This group discussion makes students active participants in the learning process. However, the discussion plan should be student-centered, not teacher-centered. (7) This exercise is centered on decision-making. We hope students can understand why accountants are more likely to be promoted in businesses than other specially trained employees. Teachers should ask students to constantly use new knowledge to improve their decision-making plans during the learning process. A comprehensive exercise is provided at the end of each chapter to help students integrate the knowledge they have learned. Students should submit memoranda or formal reports.