BUSINESS SCHOOL

Unit of Study Outline

Unit Code BUSS1030
Unit Title Accounting, Business and Society
Semester 2, 2016
Pre-requisite Units: N/A
Co-requisite Units: N/A
Prohibited Units: ACCT1001, ACCT1002, ACCT1003, ACCT1004, ACCT1005
Assumed Knowledge and/or Skills:
Unit Coordinator: Dr Paul Blayney
Address: Room 308, The Business School Building(H69), Darlington NSW 2008
Email: buss1030@econ.usyd.edu.au Phone: 9351 4355
Consultation Hours: See Blackboard for details of all staff consultation times.
Class Day(s): See Blackboard for class times and locations
Required Text / Resources:
Accounting, Business and Society (2015), Pearson, Sydney.
Razeed, Blayney, Hamilton-Jessop and Gouveros (2015), The Integrated Accounting Narrative, Pearson, Sydney.
This unit of study outline MUST be read in conjunction with
The Business School Unit of Study Common Policy and implementation information that applies to every unit of study offered by the
Business School (http://sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/policy). All assessment rules, such as standards used, penalties etc, are
covered.
The Business School Student Administration Manual - for information about all processes such as illness, appeals etc (
http://sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/student_information/student_administration_manual) When deciding applications and
appeals relating to these matters it will be assumed that every student has taken the time to familiarise themselves with these key policies
and procedures.
The Business School seeks feedback from students and staff in order to continually improve all units offered. For information on previously
collected feedback and innovations made in response to this feedback, please see
http://sydney.edu.au/business/learning/planning_and_quality/feedback/student

1. Unit of Study Information

This unit investigates the fundamentals of accounting and aims to provide a broad understanding of the role of
accounting in the context of business and society. The format of the unit is designed to show that there are many
uses of accounting data. The focus moves from accountability to decision making; both functions are explained
through examples such as the 'double entry equation', and from an output (financial statements) perspective.
Some more technical aspects of accounting are outlined, including the elements of assets, liabilities, revenues and
expenses within simple, familiar scenarios. Besides developing an understanding of the role of accounting via
conventional financial reports, recent developments including the discharge of accountability by companies
through the release of corporate social and environmental reports and the global financial crisis, are explored
through an accounting lens.
This unit of study is a compulsory part of the Bachelor of Commerce and combined Bachelor of Commerce
degrees.

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2. Program Learning Outcomes and Unit Learning Outcomes

The Program Learning Outcomes for this Program are located at
http://sydney.edu.au/business/about/accreditations/AoL
Unit Learning Outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes
On the successful completion of the Unit you should be able to:
Demonstrate understanding of the role of accounting in business decision
making through the analysis & interpretation of accounting information.
Prepare and use conventional financial reports - Statement of Financial
Position, Statement of Financial Performance and Cash Flow Statements.
Apply accounting concepts and techniques to new contexts and scenarios.
Analyse and critically interpret Accounting information to inform everyday
business decisions.
Develop technical competency in accounting skills / techniques to
demonstrate their application in a business contexts and scenarios.

Program Learning Outcomes

1. Business Knowledge
1. Business Knowledge
2. Critical Thinking
2. Critical Thinking
3. Business Analysis and
Problem-Solving

3. Assessment

Tutorial Contribution
Assignment
Mid-semester
Examination

Individual
Individual

Mandatory
Mandatory

Program
Learning
Outcomes
Assessed
1, 2, 3, 4
1, 2, 3, 4

Individual

Compulsory

Final Examination

Individual

Mandatory

Assessment Name

Individual/ Assessment
Group
Conditions

Academic Honesty

Length Weight
1000
1500

10%
15%

1, 2, 3, 4

2500

25%

1, 2, 3, 4

5000

50%

Due
Time

Due Date

Closing Date

Weekly
Weekly
Mid Semester
Exam Period
Final Exam
Period
Week 4

Weekly
Weekly
Mid Semester
Exam Period
Final Exam
Period

For the meaning and operation of this table, see policy information in the box on the front page or click here

Assessment details
Tutorial Contribution

Task Description
There are two components to this assessment, namely Component 1: Spreadsheet Homework and
Component 2: Tutorial Homework and Engagement.
Component 1: Spreadsheet Homework
Component 1 requires submission of your completed weekly spreadsheet homework assignment file. This file
will consist of homework questions from the textbook as well as exercises specifically related to IAN (the
Integrated Accounting Narrative). You will be required to read the relevant lecture material and textbook
pages prior to attempting this component. Files will be available on Blackboard and MUST be submitted to
Blackboard by Monday 12 pm starting from Week 3. There are NO marks associated with this component but
failure to attempt and submit this component will void any marks that are obtained from Component 2.
The week 8 submission is optional as there is no mark for tutorial P&E for this week only.
Component 2: Tutorial Homework and Engagement
Your mark for this component will be determined by your tutor. For each tutorial from Week 3 to 13 (excluding
Week 8), you will be awarded a mark of 1 or 0 for active participation. You will be able to receive a maximum
mark of 10 for active participation. Earning this mark requires:
On-time submission of the weekly spreadsheet homework
Engagement in your tutorial session

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This assessment is listed as MANDATORY which means you must undertake the assessment and achieve a
mark above 50% of the available marks in that assessment. Students who fail to achieve this minimum
standard in this assessment, even when their aggregate mark for the entire unit of study is above 50%, will be
given a Fail grade for this unit. As a result a student's academic transcript will show a fail grade and the actual
mark achieved if the final mark of the unit is between 0-49 and a fail grade and a capped moderated mark of
49 for all other final marks.

Assessment Criteria
The assessment criteria for Tute P&E will be applied as described following. Marks will be awarded for
accuracy and effort in relation to:
A. Recording and analysing the the financial impact of various business transactions
B. Preparation of the basic financial statements
C. The application of appropriate accounting concepts and methods to new contexts
D. Displaying technical competency with various accounting skills and techniques.
Feedback - What, when and how feedback will be provided for this assessment
You will receive feedback on your peformance for the Spreadsheet Homework each week. In addition to this,
suggested solutions for selected additional homework questions will be available on Blackboard every Friday
after the last tutorial.

Assignment

Task Description
This assessment task consists of two components. Component 1 (5%) will be assessed in tutorials through
random collection of the additional homework questions (2%) and the week 10 Financial Statement
Preparation group exercise (3%).
Twice during the semester, your attempt at the additional homework questions will be randomly collected and
a mark out of 1 awarded. Earning a maximum mark of 1 for each homework collected will require a complete
attempt of the homework and a substantially correct solutions for each question. You must ensure you are
completing the appropriate homework questions as provided on Blackboard to obtain the available marks. A
maximum mark of 2 is available for this task.
The Financial Statement Preparation group exercise (3%) requires students to work in groups with each group
preparing a complete set of F/Ss (income statement, cash flow statement and balance sheet) from provided
information.
Component 2 (10%) requires use of the on-line MyAccountingLab system. This component requires posting
of your response to the weekly assignments (available with MyAccountingLab link on Blackboard) each week
by Monday 12 pm unless otherwise stated on Blackboard. This assessment starts in Week 3. Responses to
the weekly assignment must be posted for Weeks 3 to 13. Your work will be marked by MyAccountingLab.
Answers may be viewed after the due date using MyAccountingLab's review facility.
The week 8 submission is optional as there is no mark for MAL for this week only. Further information on how
to access MyAccountingLab will be available on Blackboard by week 2.
This assessment is listed as MANDATORY which means you must undertake the assessment and achieve a
mark above 80% of the available marks in that assessment. Students who fail to achieve this minimum
standard in this assessment, even when their aggregate mark for the entire unit of study is above 50%, will be
given a Fail grade for this unit. As a result a student's academic transcript will show a fail grade and the actual
mark achieved if the final mark of the unit is between 0-49 and a fail grade and a capped moderated mark of
49 for all other final marks.

Assessment Criteria

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The assessment criteria for MyAccountingLab will be applied to the weekly assigned questions as described
following. Marks will be awarded for accuracy and effort in relation to:
A. Recording and analysing the the financial impact of various business transactions
B. Preparation of the basic financial statements
C. The application of appropriate accounting concepts and methods to new contexts
D. Displaying technical competency with various accounting skills and techniques

Feedback - What, when and how feedback will be provided for this assessment
You will be able to review your answers after the due date using the review facility in MyAccountingLab

Mid-semester Examination

Task Description
The mid-semester examination on Monday, 12 September 2016, 6 pm and will comprise 25% of the overall
assessment for this unit, This one hour examination will test material covered in the first 6 weeks of lectures,
the tutorial material up to and including week 7 and associated readings. This closed-book examination will be
conducted in several venues. Further information will be posted on Blackboard. You must bring a
non-programmable calculator, a black or blue pen, other approved stationary and your USyd Student Identity
Card to the examination.
Note: The examination is scheduled on the 19th September 2016 at 6pm. You cannot leave the examination
early and all exam formalities will be completed by 8:00 pm.
Assessment Criteria
The mid-semester examination is COMPULSORY. This means you must undertake the assessment. If you do
not undertake the assessment you will receive zero for this assessment.
The assessment criteria for the mid-semester exam will be applied as described following. Marks will be
awarded for completeness and accuracy in relation to:
A. Recording and analysing the the financial impact of various business transactions
B. Preparation of the basic financial statements
C. The application of appropriate accounting concepts and methods to new contexts
D. Displaying technical competency with various accounting skills and techniques.
Feedback - What, when and how feedback will be provided for this assessment
There will be a formal review session for the mid-semester examination. This session will be conducted in the
week following the examination and will provide students with feedback to further improve their learning.

Final Examination

Task Description
The final examination will be held during the University Examination Period will comprise 50% of the overall
assessment mark for this unit. The exact date, time and venue will be available in the university's website later
in the semester when the examination timetable is announced. This closed-book two hour examination (with a
further 10 minutes reading time) may cover topics from the entire unit of study, with a focus on the topics
covered after the mid-semester examination.
This assessment is listed as MANDATORY which means you must undertake the assessment and achieve a
mark above 45% of the available marks in that assessment. Students who fail to achieve this minimum
standard in this assessment, even when their aggregate mark for the entire unit of study is above 50%, will be
given a Fail grade for this unit. As a result a student's academic transcript will show a fail grade and the actual
mark achieved if the final mark of the unit is between 0-49 and a fail grade and a capped moderated mark of
49 for all other final marks.

Assessment Criteria

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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Presentation, communication & style (written)

Analysis
Problem solving
Critical reasoning / critical thinking
Presentation (visual)

Feedback - What, when and how feedback will be provided for this assessment
There will be exam viewing sessions scheduled for students to review their final exam paper. This session will
be conducted in the month following the examination and will provide students with feedback to further
improve their learning.

4. Other Resources for Students

All lectures and seminars are recorded and will be available within Blackboard for student use. Please note the
Business School does not own the system and cannot guarantee that the system will operate or that every
class will be recorded. Students should ensure they attend and participate in all classes.
Further resources and support for students is available on Blackboard under Learning Resources

Pass Program
Peer Assisted Study Sessions. This program helps to improve students' academic performance providing extra
free learning opportunities with trained student facilitators, including problem solving practice where relevant, in
areas directly related to understanding the unit concepts more thoroughly. Students register for PASS online at:
http://sydney.edu.au/business/learning/students/pass Email all enquiries about the PASS program to:
business.pass@sydney.edu.au

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5. Unit Schedule
Week

List of Topics

1
25 Jul 2016

Introduction to Accounting
Chapter 1 pp. 1-20
Key Accounting Concepts
Chapter 1 pp. 20-29
Chapter 2 pp. 64-71
Business Transactions
Chapter 2 pp. 71-96
Chapter 4 pp. 190-203

2
1 Aug 2016
3
8 Aug 2016
4
15 Aug 2016
5
22 Aug 2016
6
29 Aug 2016
7
5 Sep 2016
8
12 Sep 2016
9
19 Sep 2016

Assessments Due
No assessments in week 1
Spreadsheet homework (optional)
MyAccountingLab (optional)

Spreadsheet homework
MyAccountingLab
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
Business Transactions
MyAccountingLab
same as week 3
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
Cash Management and Internal Control
MyAccountingLab
Chapter 6 pp. 317-358
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet)
MyAccountingLab
Chapter 5 pp. 250-291
Tute P&E
Statement of Financial Performance (Income
Spreadsheet homework
Statement)
MyAccountingLab
Chapter 7 pp. 372-408
Tute P&E
Mid-semester exam
Statement of Cash Flows
Spreadsheet homework (optional)
Chapter 8 pp. 468-492
MyAccountingLab (optional)
Chapter 8 pp. 504-509
Tute P&E
Analysis & Interpretation of Financial
Spreadsheet homework
Statements
MyAccountingLab
Chapter 9 pp. 543-581
Common week 26 Sep to 2 Oct

10
3 Oct 2016

Cost Behaviour & Cost Volume Profit Analysis

Chapter 10 pp. 609-612
Chapter 11 pp. 613-637

11
Costing
10 Oct 2016 Chapter 12 pp. 667-697
12
Budgeting
17 Oct 2016 Chapter 13 pp. 717-736
13
Revision and practice exam
24 Oct 2016 To be provided in lectures

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F/S preparation group exercise

Spreadsheet homework
MyAccountingLab
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
MyAccountingLab
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
MyAccountingLab
Tute P&E
Spreadsheet homework
MyAccountingLab
Tute P&E