A WORLD WIDE WEB-BASED ACTIVE
TUTORIAL IN ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES FOR ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY
STUDENTS
Stuart R. Palmer
School of Engineering and Technology,
Deakin University,
Geelong 3217,
Australia
ABSTRACT: This paper presents
a computer-based tutorial in accounting principles for engineering
and technology students. The tutorial is designed to lead students
through existing print-based course material, but rather than
passively transferring this material to the computer screen, internal
links have been created to allow the student to 'actively' control
the progress of the tutorial. The tutorial is designed as a supplement
to traditional on- and off-campus teaching. The tutorial is based
on hypertext markup language (HTML), the authoring language of
the World Wide Web (WWW). HTML allows the creation of computer-based
documents that contain 'hyperlinks' to other parts of the document,
or other documents stored anywhere on the Internet. It is through
the use of hyperlinks that the student controls the progress of
the tutorial, either selecting the next step, or requesting additional
explanation of concepts presented. The accounting tutorial is
presented as a framework for discussing the techniques for developing
such computer-based learning materials, and the benefits and limitations
of such materials.
INTRODUCTION
Accounting is recognised as
one of the skills necessary for a professional engineer to operate
effectively in a modern organisation. All Australian engineering
undergraduate courses are required to include the basic principles
of accounting. This paper presents a computer-based tutorial
in accounting principles based on the hypertext markup language
(HTML). The principles of HTML are presented, and the tutorial
is used as an example of how a computer-based tutorial can be
constructed using HTML.
ACCOUNTING STUDIES FOR ENGINEERING
STUDENTS
To operate effectively in
a modern organisation, the professional engineer needs a knowledge
of accounting skills:
"... it is desirable
to have a broad understanding of accounting, for two reasons.
The first is that engineers need to be able to relate to and
to communicate with managers employed in the accounting and finance
functions. ... A second reason is that engineers need to make
use of accounting information in performing their managerial functions."
[1].
Engineering graduates need
not be experts in the field of accounting, we already have accountants
for that, but they must have a knowledge of accounting principles
and practice.
In addition to this justification,
the Institution of Engineers, Australia (IEAust), the accrediting
body for Australian engineering undergraduate courses, mandates
the inclusion of course material covering the principles of accounting.
Both its 'Accreditation Policies and Procedures relating to Professional
Engineering Undergraduate Courses' [2] and 'National Competency
Standards for Professional Engineers' [3] contain references to
the need to develop skills in the areas of accounting and finance.
COMPUTERS IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION
Despite misgivings about issues
such as cost, lack of co-ordination and lack of teacher skills,
there is wide agreement that computers have a role to play in
education [4], [5], [6] and [7]. For engineering education, computer
applications can include computer programming, numerical analysis,
computer simulation, computer aided design, electronic communications,
information retrieval and computer aided learning and assessment.
The use of computers in education is particularly relevant to
engineering education, as the computer has become one of the central
tools of the practising engineer, whether it be for CAD, project
planning, process control, budgeting, data communications or software
development.
Developments in computer and
communications technology such as the Internet, CD-ROMs, graphical
user interfaces, sound recording and playback, video playback,
high speed modems, etc. have become collectively know as 'new
media' or multimedia. Again, with some caveats of current and
inherent limitations [8], there is an important role for new media
to play in education, including distance education, teleconferencing,
courseware delivery, on-line experiments, high quality simulations,
group collaboration, etc. As well as offering new techniques
for traditional education, these new media will, in the longer
term, revolutionise the nature of education. In the recent review
of Australian engineering education it was noted:
"Right up to the present,
individual lecturers have continued to prepare in detail their
own preferred coverage of each particular subject, and present
it in classic face-to-face lecture mode. ... The monopolistic
approach is about to be swept away. Why should any lecturer continue
to perform in traditional mode year after year when world-best
courseware will be available on the Internet? Why should any
student settle for less than the best?" [9].
THE WORLD WIDE WEB AND HYPERTEXT
MARKUP LANGUAGE
Along with computer-based
assessment and computer aided learning packages, the new medium
that is having the most impact on education is the World Wide
Web (WWW), or 'the Web'. The Web has become synonymous with the
Internet, as it offers in an integrated graphical environment
all of the services of the Internet including email, newsgroups,
Telnet, FTP, Gopher, etc., and extends these services with hypertext
markup language (HTML). The basic unit of information transferred
over the Web is the 'page'. A Web page is composed of HTML statements
that allow a Web browser (such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft
Explorer) to recreate the page for the remote viewer. It is important
to note that HTML documents can exist entirely independently of
the Internet, they can be distributed over a laboratory local
area network or even on a floppy disk.
Web pages may contain any
of the new media elements - text, images, sounds, movies, animations,
3D interactive images and more. Most importantly, Web pages may
contain links to other Web pages or multimedia elements, allowing
'webs' of information with complex links to be constructed as
outlined in Figure 1 below. In the quotation below, for 'Internet-based'
read 'Web-based' or 'hypertext-based', and for 'trainee' read
'student':
"Internet-based training
is modelled on a different learning method. Until recently, most
training was linear: A trainee learned point A, and then point
B. Non-linear learning, enabling a trainee to jump from point
A to point D to point B, is a hallmark of CBT [computer-based
training] and the Internet. Without the constraints of traditional
classroom training, trainees can repeat difficult material or
skip over previously learned material." [10].
The information presentation
and navigation features of the Web and HTML offer many exciting
pedagogical possibilities in education, an excellent treatment
of the possibilities, limitations and implications of hypertext
(sometimes now referred to as hypermedia due to the inclusion
of media other than simple text) is given in Snyder [11].
THE TUTORIAL
The tutorial presented here
is constructed from a series of linked Web pages using HTML statements.
It is comprised principally of text, incorporating some graphic
images. The content presented in the tutorial is an introduction
to accounting principles. The tutorial leads students through
existing print-based course material, but rather than passively
presenting this material in a linear fashion on the computer screen,
the hypertext linking features of HTML have been used to create
internal links to allow the student to 'actively' control the
progress and sequence of the tutorial. So, while minimal new
material has been developed, the existing content has been leveraged
into a hypertext form that can be used in a stand-alone manner,
or to support the print-based material. The remainder of this
section presents aspects of the tutorial as a framework for discussing
the principals of Web design.
The opening screen of the
tutorial is given in Figure 2 below, this provides a brief introduction
and explanation to the tutorial. The remainder of the first Web
page, or 'home page', is shown in Figure 3 below, where the suggested
sequence of the tutorial is given. From this it can be seen that
the tutorial covers setting up the accounting system, processing
financial transactions through to producing periodic financial
reports. While one of the previously claimed benefits of hypertext
is the capability for the student to progress through the material
in the sequence he or she desires, it is important to provide
some structure so students do not become 'lost'. The home page
is a reference and index point that students can always return
to:
"A hierarchical organisation
of a hypertext provides convenient navigation for users who can
use the structure to navigate, thus freeing them to concentrate
more on what is being presented instead of worrying where to go
next." [12].
The underlined entries
in Figures 2 and 3 are hyperlinks to other hypertext entities,
they are activated with a mouse click. Each item in the suggested
sequence is, in fact, a link to the Web page(s) that contain the
relevant material. At the bottom of the page there is an email
link that when activated opens a window in which the student can
type a message and have it automatically emailed to the author.
When one of the sequence links
shown in Figure 3 is activated, the screen format changes to that
shown in Figure 4 below. At the bottom of the screen there is
a reserved area that does not change and cannot be scrolled off
the screen. Here there is a 'navigation button' labelled 'MENU'
that, when pressed, will return the user to the home page. This
button is displayed on all pages, facilitating easy return to
the home page should the user become 'lost'. Above this fixed
area is a scrollable area where course material is presented.
Figure 4 contains some of the material from the 'Establishing
the accounts' section. Individual financial transactions are
presented, and are actually hyperlinks to detailed explanations
of what accounts are affected by each transaction. If a detailed
explanation is not required, students may progress by scrolling
down the top window. When they reach the end of the current page
they may either return to the home page and select the next item,
or they can use the shortcut link to the next page, in Figure
4 this link is labelled 'the chart of accounts'. These shortcut
links are provided at the bottom of each page.
If a user selects one of the
transactions given in Figure 4, a detailed explanation is provided,
an example is shown in Figure 5 below. Note again that the screen
is divided into two parts. The top area provides the learning
material, and the lower area provides navigation aides. This
time a new navigation button is provided that allows the user
to 'RETURN' to the calling page, as well as the 'MENU' button
to jump to the home page index.
DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY
There are many options for
the development of hypertext/Web learning materials. In this
case, the tutorial was developed directly from existing print-based
material by converting it to ASCII text files and then manually
inserting HTML markup tags to recreate the appearance of the original
material and insert the required hyperlinks. This editing was
performed using a wordprocessor. Where the aim is to convert
existing material to Web format, there exist a number of utilities
to perform this task, such as Microsoft's 'Internet Assistant
for Word', which can automatically convert Microsoft Word files
to Web format. There also exist many software packages specifically
designed for authoring new Web/HTML documents from the ground
up, these generally provide advanced document control and multimedia
features.
APPLICATIONS AND LIMITATIONS
OF THE TUTORIAL
The tutorial presented is
but one example of computer-based training/learning. The tutorial
is based on the language of the Web, that is hypertext markup
language. The use of HTML provides a number of benefits:
This application of computer-based
learning (CBL) is relatively simple, incorporating only text and
graphics. It is not intended that this tutorial would ever be
used as a replacement for existing learning materials, rather
it is intended as a supplement only. Nichols identifies appropriate
applications for computer-based training as:
"mathematical skills
... mathematical relations ... troubleshooting skills ...
[and] management skills." [13].
Obviously, many areas include
or are covered by these suggestions, so it is not surprising that
we see a plethora of CBL applications. However, CBL is not the
panacea to all learning requirements, and it is important to understand
the limitations of this approach, including:
CONCLUSION
A Web-based tutorial in the
principles of accounting for engineering and technology students
has been developed. The hypertext markup language was used to
transform existing print-based material from a linear format to
a non-linear, hypertext format where the student plays an active
role in the sequence and content of their instruction. While
no formal evaluation of the tutorial has yet been possible, informal
feedback from students who have used the tutorial indicates that
it is a valuable supplement to traditional teaching.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The tutorial project was one
of the developments arising from a fellowship awarded to the author
by the Deakin Centre for Academic Development (DCAD) for innovation
in teaching learning. The author wishes to thank DCAD for the
fellowship.
REFERENCES
1. Newman, R.L. (1995) Accounting and Management, IN Samson, D. (Ed), Management for Engineers, 2nd edn. Melbourne, Longman Cheshire.
2. Institution of Engineers, Australia (1991) Accreditation Policies and Procedures relating to Professional Engineering Undergraduate Courses. Barton, IEAust.
3. Institution of Engineers, Australia (1993) National Competency Standards for Professional Engineers (Stages 1 and 2). Barton, IEAust.
4. Baliga, B. & Palmer, S.R. (1996) Use of the Internet for Flexible Delivery and Enhancement of Teaching and Learning. Proc. Australasian Association for Engineering Education Eight Annual Convention and Conference, Sydney, Australia, 201-205.
5. Shears, L.W. & Dale, E.C. (1983) Computers in Education, Melbourne, Office of the Co-ordinator General.
6. Nishinosono, H. (1990) International Cooperation for Educational Use of Computers in Asia and the Pacific through UNESCO and Recent Trends in Japan. Proc. World Conference on Computers in Education, Sydney, Australia, 5-10.
7. Russell, G. (1992) Hopes and Disappointments: What Computer Educators Can Learn from the Lessons of the 1980s. Proc. Tenth Annual Australian Computing in Education Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 154-161.
8. Martin, T.B. (1985) Using the Internet and the World Wide Web to Deliver Engineering Education. Proc. 1995 International Congress of Engineering Deans and Industry Leaders, Melbourne, Australia, 229-235.
9. Johnson, P., Chair (1996), Changing the Culture: Engineering Education into the Future. Barton, IEAust.
10. Glener, D. (1996) The Promise of Internet-based Training, Training and Development, 50, 9, 57-58.
11. Snyder, I. (1996) Hypertext: The Electronic Labyrinth. Melbourne, Melbourne University Press.
12. Smeaton, A.F. (1991) Using Hypertext for Computer Based Learning, Computers in Education, 17, 3,173-179.
13. Nichols, G.W. (1996) Applications
of CBT, http://www.ucalgary.ca/~gwnichol/cbt_tut/apps.htm.