ICT and Accounting Education. An innovative teaching method: the Practice Enterprise

Abstract

The training of future accountants also needs to take into account the changes which have taken place in the accounting profession following profound transformations at economic level. Most of all, however, it should promote a teaching approach which manages to go beyond traditional frontal lectures in order to facilitate active learning. For all these reasons, the various accounting education syllabuses should be integrated with the use of ICT, thus helping achieve skills which are considered fundamental for employment purposes. These include problem solving, decision making, and team working, which is what the literature about accounting education continuously suggests. This paper is dedicated to discussing how all this can become possible through what is known as the Practice Enterprise methodology. The latter allows students to get to know the company by shaping it, as well as to apply accounting disciplines in a proactive and involved manner, making use of the most advanced ICT tools. The intent of this paper is also to show, also through research outcomes, how this method can reshape the teaching of accounting and allow for students’ training in an environment where they can apply effectively their theoretical knowledge and thus develop new knowledge, skills and competences.