This series of 5 problem sets coincides with the 2010 free, online principles of financial accounting textbook by Walther and Skouson and is available from bookboon.com. Problem 1 involves preparing a bank reconciliation. Problem 2 covers the journal entries for a bank reconciliation. The focus of problem 3 is journal entries for handling a petty cash fund. Problems 4 and 5 involve journal entries to account for trading securities. Users must sign up for the bookboon.com newsletter in order to download the materials.
Type of Material:
Open textbook for drill and practice.
Recommended Uses:
Homework or in-class activity.
Technical Requirements:
Browser and Adobe reader.
Identify Major Learning Goals:
To determine whether students can prepare a bank reconciliation and record the necessary adjusting entries.
To provide practice recording journal entries associated with accounting for a petty cash fund.
To provide practice journalizing transactions associated with acquiring and revaluing trading securities.
Target Student Population:
Students enrolled in an principles of financial accounting course in high school or college.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
Basic understanding of concepts associated with the bank reconciliation, petty cash fund, and trading securities.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
Instructions given for each activity are clearly stated. Problems 1-3 coincide with a typical chapter on cash and cash equivalents. Problems 4 and 5 involve recording journal entries for the acquisition of trading securities and the subsequent monthly changes in fair value. Only one investment is purchased in Problem 4, while four different investments are aquired and revalued in problem #5.
Concerns:
The title of the unit is somewhat nondescript, in that current assets covers a broad area and one has no idea from the title which specific activities have been included. In addition, the combination of problems contained in the workbook seem to be oddly paired. Trading securities typically are not part of a chapter on cash and cash equivalents.
While not necessarily a concern, the solution for problem #3 shows one combined journal entry instead of 4 separate entries, which is a more complex approach.
The solution for Problem 3 (petty cash fund journal entries) contains two errors. The first journal entry credits postage expense when Cash should be credited. Journal Entry 2, debits Cash when Postage Expense should be debited.
The third transaction in problem 4 has the wrong amount shown in the solution. It should be $18,000,000 not 2,000,000.
In both of the trading security problems adjustments are made directly to the trading securities account instead of using an investment valuation account.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
The problem sets are suitable for the target audience and provide a quick review of a limited number of current asset transactions (bank reconciliation, petty cash fund, and trading securities).
Each problem has been designed for individual practice using paper and pencil. A student worksheet and the instructor solution are provided for each problem.
The problems could also be used to supplement existing materials provided by other publishers. It would be easy for an instructor to modify the problems in order to create multiple iterations.
Despite the concerns listed below, the exercises do serve a purpose as long as the appropriate adaptions are made.
Concerns:
No learning objectives included.
No prerequisite knowledge is identified and it is critial for knowing how to solve the problems.
The problems provide a very limited review of current assets with no coverage of receivables, prepaids and inventory.
Several errors exist in the problem solutions.
Students can obtain solution online just as easily as the instructor.
Instructors need to be aware of the errors and concerns noted under quality of content for Problem #3 and #4 as well as the atypical approach to Problem #2.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The problems are written at a level suitable for the target population.
The text is easy to read in that it is primarily black font on a white background.
The worksheets are designed nicely, incorporate a touch of color, and are easy to download to reproduce.
Concerns:
No interactivity. Would be nice if students were given the opportunity to submit an answer, receive immediate feedback re correctness, and then a process to re-try and eventually to provide the correct answer.
While the general content of the problem is good, the errors that exist create a negative impact on the usefulness of the learning object.
Finally, the 16 pages of materials have large advertisements interspersed at inopportune points throughout.
Creative Commons:
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