1AA3 – Fall 2018

Commerce 1AA3
Introduction to Financial Accounting
Fall 2018 Course Outline

Accounting and Financial Management Services Area

DeGroote School of Business
McMaster University

COURSE OBJECTIVE

This course will help students understand the purpose of accounting, its implementation, its
usefulness for decision making, its effect on behaviour and contracts, and its surrounding
controversies over accounting methods.

The specific objectives of this course are:

1) Help students develop a thorough understanding of accounting procedures and the choices
possible in preparing corporate financial statements.
2) Help students become intelligent readers and users of corporate financial reports, which include
the fundamental statements (balance sheet, income statement, retained earnings statement, and
cash flow statement) plus explanatory notes, auditor’s report, etc.
3) Develop students’ appreciation of the usefulness and limitations of financial accounting
information.

INSTRUCTOR AND CONTACT INFORMATION

Sections 1 and 2 Sections 3, 4, 5 and 6

Dr. Emad Mohammad Aadil Merali Juma
Instructor Instructor
[email protected] [email protected]
Office: DSB 317 Office: DSB 318
Office Hours: Monday, Tuesday Office Hours: Tuesday 12-1 pm
and Wednesday: 10-11 and Thursday 3-5:30 pm
Tel: (905) 525-9140 x27432 Tel: (905) 525-9140 x23897
Class Location: Class Location:
C01: TSH 120 C03, C04, C05: ABB102
C02: BSB 147 C06: JHE 264

Student TA
Information to be posted on Avenue

Course website: http://avenue.mcmaster.ca

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COURSE ELEMENTS

Credit Value: 3 Leadership: Yes IT skills: No Global view: Yes

A2L: Yes Ethics: No Numeracy: Yes Written skills: No
Participation: Yes Innovation: Yes Group work: Yes Oral skills: Yes
Evidence-based: Yes Experiential: No Final Exam: No Guest speaker(s): Yes

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course provides an introduction to the fundamental concepts of financial accounting. The focus of
this course will be on how accounting is used for recording economic events and for the financial
reporting, primarily to users, external to business organizations. The course will emphasize underlying
concepts and principles, as well as cover accounting procedures in sufficient detail to enable students
to record accounting transactions and prepare financial statements. A major emphasis in the course
will be on understanding the information in corporate financial reports and its use by individuals,
external to a corporation in making investment and contracting decisions. The course will examine
alternative accounting policies and methods that may legitimately be used in financial reporting, and
motivations that may influence managers in choosing among them.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to complete the following key tasks:

1. Read and understand financial statements.

2. Understand the accounting conceptual framework and relate it to all accounting transactions.
3. Understand the accounting cycle and implement all its steps including analyzing, journalizing and
posting accounting transactions, preparing end-of-period adjusting entries, preparing pre- and post-
adjusting entries trial balance, and preparing closing entries.
4. Prepare financial statements such as the Statement of Earnings, Statement of Retained Earnings,
Statement of Changes in Equity, Statement of Financial Position, Statement of Cash Flows.
5. Analyze internal control issues and employ some procedures to deal with them such as Bank
Reconciliation Statement.
6. Record and measure of individual elements within the financial statements such as accounts
receivable, allowances, contingencies, inventory, long term depreciable and non-depreciable
assets, short term and long-term liabilities, and shareholders’ equity.
7. Analyze and interpret financial statements using ratio analysis and vertical and horizontal ratio
analysis with industry and within the firm over time.

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COURSE MATERIALS AND READINGS

Required:

Course Materials Are Available on Avenue To Learn

➢ http://avenue.mcmaster.ca
$ FREE
Pearson MyAccountingLab
6th Canadian Edition by Harrison, Horngren, Thomas

Option 1: Loose Leaf Version with MyAccountingLab and e-book access code. $ 95.00
Option 2: MyAccountingLab and e-book access code only. $ 67.95

Official Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1AA3Fall2018/

EVALUATION

Missed quizzes/tests/exams will receive a grade of zero unless the student has submitted and been
approved for a Notification of Absence or MSAF. Your final grade will be calculated as follows:

Components and Weights

Midterm Exam Saturday October 20, 2018 @ 12pm for 2 30%

hours

Final Exam 2 ½ hours scheduled through the Registrar 50%

Online Quizzes 8 online quizzes @ 2.5% each 20%

Total 100%

NOTE: The use of a McMaster standard calculator is allowed during examinations in this course. See
McMaster calculator policy.

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Communication and Feedback

Students who wish to correspond with instructors or TAs directly via email must send messages that
originate from their official McMaster University email account. This protects the confidentiality and
sensitivity of information as well as confirms the identity of the student. Emails regarding course issues
should NOT be sent to the Area Administrative Assistants.

Instructors may solicit feedback via an informal course review with students by Week #4 to allow time
for modifications in curriculum delivery.

Course Deliverables
Online Quizzes (20% of course grade)
Since this is a flipped course, online quizzes will be partially covering materials for new chapters
before they are covered in class. The purpose of this assessment is to make sure that students read
the online materials before class. However, only half of the quiz will be based on materials to be
covered. The other half will be based on materials already covered. Each online quiz is worth 2.5% of
your final grade and must be completed only by the student. The quiz will be made available on
Avenue from 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday till 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, unless noted otherwise. If an MSAF
is used for a quiz, then the 2% for that quiz will be added to the final exam. The online quiz release
dates at 9pm are as follows:

Date Coverage
Quiz 1 September 12 Chapters 1, 2, and 3
Quiz 2 September 19 Chapters 3 and 10
Quiz 3 September 26 Chapters 10 and 4
Quiz 4 October 3 Chapters 4
Quiz 5 October 24 Chapters 5 and 6
Quiz 6 October 31 Chapters 6 and 8
Quiz 7 November 7 Chapter 8
Quiz 8 November 14 Chapters 8 and 9

Midterm Exam (30% of course grade)

The midterm exam will be marked individually. The midterm exam will cover material from the textbook,
readings, lectures, online material, tutorials, online quizzes, Learning Catalytics and class discussion.
The format of the test will be True/False questions and Multiple-Choice questions. Past exams from
2013-2017 are available on Avenue for practice. The chapters covered on the midterm exam are:
Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, and 10. Two hours will be allocated for the midterm exam.
If a student files a successful MSAF for missing the midterm, the final exam weight will include the
weight of the midterm exam. In case the instructor chooses not to make the final exam

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comprehensive, students who missed the midterm and filed a successful MSAF will write a final
exam that is comprehensive and different from the final exam for students who wrote the
midterm. The comprehensive final exam will include the chapters on which MSAF students
were not tested.

Final exam (30% of course grade)

The final exam will cover chapters 5,6,8,9, and 11. The final exam will be marked individually. The
exam will cover material from the textbook, readings, lectures, online material, tutorials, online
quizzes, Learning Catalytics, and class discussion. The format of the test will be True/False questions
and Multiple-Choice questions. Past exams from 2013-2017 are available on Avenue for practice.
Students who did not write the midterm will write a cumulative final exam that includes
material from the midterm. The final exam will be for 2 ½ hours and will have the same number
of questions for all students.

The Learning Portfolio (2% bonus on the final exam)

The purpose of the Learning Portfolio (LP) is to develop a means to capture and enhance your
learning journey at McMaster. The LP will help you plan, record, understand and develop on a
personal and academic level throughout your learning journey. The online platform on Avenue will
enable you to track and reflect on your personal learning experiences. The LP is not limited to this
course only; rather you can build your LP as you progress through your studies. At the DeGroote
School of Business, we designed an interface labeled “Learning @ DeGroote”, which rests on four
pillars: Academic Learning, Experiential Learning, Community Learning, and Professional
Development. You are encouraged to start building your own LP by populating these pages with your
own reflections and experiences. Your inputs to the LP will not be marked for credit. I will, however,
reward you with 2 bonus marks added to your final exam at the original weighting if you populate at
least three of the four pages with artifacts and reflections. You must remember to submit the LP for
assessment before the deadline. Moreover, I will be more than happy to spend time with you, either
during or after the term, to give you feedback on your LP entries.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

You are expected to exhibit honesty and use ethical behaviour in all aspects of the learning process.
Academic credentials you earn are rooted in principles of honesty and academic integrity.

Academic dishonesty is to knowingly act or fail to act in a way that results or could result in unearned
academic credit or advantage. This behaviour can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of
zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: “Grade of F
assigned for academic dishonesty”), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university.

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It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty.

For information on the various types of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity
Policy, located at:
www.mcmaster.ca/academicintegrity

The following illustrates only three forms of academic dishonesty:

1. Plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one’s own or for which other credit has been
obtained.
2. Improper collaboration in group work.
3. Copying or using unauthorized aids in quizzes, tests and examinations

AUTHENTICITY/PLAGIARISM DETECTION

In this course we will be using a web-based service (Turnitin.com) to reveal authenticity and
ownership of student submitted work. Students will be expected to submit their work electronically
either directly to Turnitin.com or via Avenue to Learn (A2L) plagiarism detection (a service supported
by Turnitin.com) so can be checked for academic dishonesty. Students who do not wish to submit
their work through A2L and/or Turnitin.com must still submit an electronic and/or hardcopy to the
instructor. No penalty will be assigned to a student who does not submit work to Turnitin.com or A2L.
All submitted work is subject to normal verification that standards of academic integrity have been
upheld (e.g., on-line search, other software, etc.). To see the Turnitin.com Policy, please go to;
www.mcmaster.ca/academicintegrity.

ONLINE COURSE COMPONENTS

In this course we will be using Pearson’s My Accounting Lab and Avenue to Learn. Students should
be aware that when they access the electronic components of this course, private information such as
first and last names, user names for the McMaster e-mail accounts, and program affiliation may
become apparent to all other students in the same course. The available information is dependent on
the technology used. Continuation in this course will be deemed consent to this disclosure.
If you have any questions or concerns about such disclosure, please discuss this with the course
instructor.

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REQUESTING RELIEF FOR MISSED ACADEMIC WORK

Students may request relief from a regularly scheduled midterm, test, assignment or other course
components. Please refer to the policy and procedure on the DeGroote website at the link below;

http://ug.degroote.mcmaster.ca/forms-and-resources/missed-course-work-policy/

STUDENT ACCESSIBILITY SERVICES

Students who require academic accommodation must contact Student Accessibility Services (SAS) to
make arrangements with a Program Coordinator. Academic accommodations must be arranged for
each term of study. Student Accessibility Services can be contacted by phone 905-525-9140 ext.
28652 or e-mail [email protected].
For further information, consult McMaster University’s Policy for Academic Accommodation of
Students with Disabilities:
http://www.mcmaster.ca/policy/Students-AcademicStudies/AcademicAccommodation-
StudentsWithDisabilities.pdf

ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATION FOR RELIGIOUS, INDIGENOUS OR SPIRITUAL OBSERVANCES

(RISO)

Students requiring academic accommodation based on religious, indigenous or spiritual observances

should follow the procedures set out in the RISO policy. Students requiring a RISO accommodation
should submit their request, including the dates/times needing to be accommodated and the courses
which will be impacted, to their Faculty Office normally within 10 days of the beginning of term or to
the Registrar's Office prior to their examinations. Students should also contact their instructors as
soon as possible to make alternative arrangements for classes, assignments, and tests.

POTENTIAL MODIFICATION TO THE COURSE

The instructor reserves the right to modify elements of the course during the term. There may be
changes to the dates and deadlines for any or all courses in extreme circumstances. If either type of
modification becomes necessary, reasonable notice and communication with the students will be given
with explanation and the opportunity to comment on changes. It is the responsibility of the student to
check their McMaster email and course websites weekly during the term and to note any changes.

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The University reserves the right to change the dates and deadlines for any or
all courses in extreme
Circumstances (e.g., severe weather, labour disruptions, etc.). Changes will be communicated
through regular McMaster communication channels, such as McMaster Daily News, A2L and/or
McMaster email.

RESEARCH USING HUMAN SUBJECTS

All researchers conducting research that involves human participants, their records or their biological
material are required to receive approval from one of McMaster’s Research Ethics Boards before (a)
they can recruit participants and (b) collect or access their data. Failure to comply with relevant policies
is a research misconduct matter. Contact these boards for further information about your requirements
and the application process.
McMaster Research Ethics Board (General board): https://reo.mcmaster.ca/
Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board (Medical board): http://www.hireb.ca/

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COURSE POLICIES

Your enrolment in Commerce 1AA3 will be considered to be an implicit acknowledgement of the course
policies outlined above, or of any other that may be announced during lecture and/or on A2L. It is your
responsibility to read this course outline, to familiarize yourself with the course policies and to
act accordingly.

Lack of awareness of the course policies cannot be invoked at any point during this course for failure
to meet them. It is your responsibility to ask for clarification on any policies that you do not understand.

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COURSE SCHEDULE

Commerce 1AA3
Introduction to Financial Accounting
Fall 2018 Course Schedule

WEEK DATE CHAPTER ASSIGNMENT

1 Tue. Sept. 4 Chapter 1 The Financial Statements

2 Mon. Sept.10 Chapters 1 and 2 Recording Business Transactions

Chapter 3 Accrual Accounting and the Financial

3 Mon. Sept.17
Statements

4 Mon. Sept. 24 Chapter 10 The Statement of Cash Flows

5 Mon. Oct.1 Chapter 4 Cash and Receivables

Oct. 8-12 Midterm Recess

6 Mon. Oct. 15 Chapter 4 Cash and Receivables

Sat. Oct. 20 Midterm Exam at 12pm for 2 hours (30%) – Chapters 1,2,3,4 & 10

7 Mon. Oct. 22 Chapter 5 Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold

8 Mon. Oct. 29 Chapter 5 and 6 Property, Plant, and Equipment, and

Intangible Assets

9 Mon. Nov. 5 Chapter 6 Property, Plant, and Equipment, and

Intangible Assets

10 Mon. Nov. 12 Chapter 8 Liabilities I

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11 Mon. Nov. 19 Chapter 8 Liabilities II

12 Mon. Nov. 26 Chapter 9 Shareholders' Equity

13 Mon. Dec. 3 Chapter 11 Financial Statement Analysis

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