Abstract
This paper reviews the evolution of e-learning in accounting programmes in Hong Kong and, as a case study, reports an evaluation of the effectiveness of e-learning in one of the programmes. The fast pace of economic development in Hong Kong since the 1960s has created an increasing demand for qualified professional accountants, who have been facing rapid challenges from the global socio-economic changes. To equip the future professional accountants to cope with the required competences, the tertiary institutions in Hong Kong have been employing e-learning as an important blended learning mode of knowledge-sharing and motivating the accounting students to develop lifelong learning skills. This paper covers the historical background and adoption of e-learning in accounting education during the past decades, showing how its evolution has been in line with the overall technological developments in education delivery as well as the accounting industry. On this basis, the e-learning practice of an accounting programme was evaluated for its effectiveness. The findings showed that students were satisfied with the overall quality of the e-learning facilities provided on campus, but technical support was an area which may hinder the effective use of the facilities.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. http://www.hkicpa.org.hk
Australian Society of Accountants.: History of the ASA. The Society, Melbourne (1982)
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. http://www.accaglobal.com/hong-kong
Association of International Accountants. http://www.aiaworldwide.com/hong-kong
Hong Kong School of Commerce. http://www.hksc.edu.hk
Lui. O., Yau, J.: Accounting, education & training. SCMP Education Post (2015). (in Chinese)
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. http://www.polyu.edu.hk/web/en/about_polyu/history
Chen, T.T.: University accounting education in Hong Kong: An analysis of tri-partite perceptions. (Thesis). University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR (2010). http://dx.doi.org/10.5353/th_b4588182
HKU School of Professional and Continuing Education. http://hkuspace.hku.hk
Ng, A.: Accounting education in Hong Kong: suggestions for change. HKIER. Educ. J. 21(1), 53–58 (1993)
Boyce, G., Greer, S., Blair, B., Davids, C.: Expanding the horizons of accounting education: incorporating social and critical perspectives. Account. Educ. 21(1), 47–74 (2012). doi:10.1080/09639284.2011.586771
Chen, T.: Is Hong Kong ready for accounting education reform: an analysis of tri-partite views. Account. Res. J. 27(3), 249–265 (2014). doi:10.1108/arj-11-2013-0078
Riley, T.J., Simons, K.A.: The written communication skills that matter most for accountants. Account. Educ. 25(3), 239–255 (2016). doi:10.1080/09639284.2016.1164066
Siriwardane, H.P., Durden, C.H.: The communication skills of accountants: what we know and the gaps in our knowledge. Account. Educ. 23(2), 119–134 (2014). doi:10.1080/09639284.2013.847329
Bloun, Y., Abedin, B., Vatanasakdakul, S., Erfani, S.: Integrating enterprise resource planning (SAP) in the accounting curriculum: a systematic literature review and case study. Account. Educ. 25(2), 185–202 (2016). doi:10.1080/09639284.2016.1138136
Rackliffe, U.R., Ragland, L.: Excel in the accounting curriculum: perceptions from accounting professors. Account. Educ. 25(2), 139–166 (2016). doi:10.1080/09639284.2015.1126791
Dellaportas, S., Kanapathippillai, S., Khan, A., Leung, P.: Ethics education in the Australian accounting curriculum: a longitudinal study examining barriers and enablers. Account. Educ. 23(4), 362–382 (2014). doi:10.1080/09639284.2014.930694
Jorge, M.L., Peña, F.J.A., Muriel de los Reyes, M.J.: Factors influencing the presence of ethics and CSR stand-alone courses in the accounting masters curricula: an international study. Account. Educ. 24(5), 361–382 (2015). doi:10.1080/09639284.2015.1051562
Cameron, R.A., O’Leary, C.: Improving ethical attitudes or simply teaching ethical codes? The reality of accounting ethics education. Account. Educ. 24(4), 275–290 (2015). doi:10.1080/09639284.2015.1036893
Wynn-Williams, K., Beatson, N., Cameron, A.: The impact of unstructured case studies on surface learners: a study of second-year accounting students. Account. Educ. 25(3), 272–286 (2016). doi:10.1080/09639284.2016.1165125
Daly, A., Hoy, S., Hughes, M., Islam, J., Mak, A.S.: Using group work to develop intercultural skills in the accounting curriculum in Australia. Account. Educ. 24(1), 27–40 (2015). doi:10.1080/09639284.2014.996909
Huff, P.L.: The goal project: a group assignment to encourage creative thinking, leadership abilities and communication skills. Account. Educ. 23(6), 582–594 (2014). doi:10.1080/09639284.2014.974198
Kiboss, J.K., Tanui, E.K.: Effects of e-learning program in accounting on students’ achievement and motivation to learn double entry bookkeeping. J. Educ. Pract. 4(9), 50–57 (2013)
Osgerby, J.: Students’ perceptions of the introduction of a blended learning environment: an exploratory case study. Account. Educ. 22(1), 85–99 (2013). doi:10.1080/09639284.2012.729341
López-Pérez, M.V., Pérez-López, M.C., Rodríguez-Ariza, L.: Blended learning in higher education: students’ perceptions and their relation to outcomes. Comput. Educ. 56(3), 818–826 (2011). doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2010.10.023
Hon, S.: Innovative teaching and online course development in HKU SPACE. In: HKU SPACE E-learning Workshop (2017)
Zhuang, Y., Ma, H., Xie, H., Leung, A.C.M., Hancke, G.P., Wang, F.L.: When innovation meets evolution: an extensive study of emerging e-Learning technologies for higher education in Hong Kong. In: Wu, T.T., Gennari, R., Huang, Y.M., Xie, H., Cao, Y. (eds.) SETE 2016. LNCS, vol. 10108, pp. 574–584. Springer, Heidelberg (2017)
Lam, J.Y.C., Chan, R.K.H., Yan, K.Y.K.: A report on the online learning experience of students in accounting course. Int. J. Serv. Stand. 10(4), 192–210 (2015)
ACCA.: ACCA survey. Accountancy Futures 13 (2016)
Acknowledgement
The work described in this paper was partially supported by a grant from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (UGC/IDS16/15).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Wong, B.TM., Li, K.C., Wong, B.YY., Yau, J.SW. (2017). E-learning in Accounting Programmes in Hong Kong: Evolution and Effectiveness. In: Cheung, S., Kwok, Lf., Ma, W., Lee, LK., Yang, H. (eds) Blended Learning. New Challenges and Innovative Practices. ICBL 2017. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 10309. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59360-9_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59360-9_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-59359-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-59360-9
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)