Backward Design for Intermediate Financial Accounting 2

Abstract

The accounting curriculum is overburdened by a nearly-impossible scope of material, as textbooks attempt comprehensive coverage of CPA exam material. The effective professor, however, must make tough choices about what to focus on - and even more importantly, what not to focus on. Backward Design provides a framework in which to make these choices. Under Backward Design, assessment is planned before the design of learning-experiences and instruction-plans. This paper describes how an Intermediate Accounting 2 professor used Backward Design to consciously choose to de-emphasize CPA exam coverage and to emphasize the informational role of financial statements.