Unit Outline*

ACCT2242
Accounting Information Systems

Semester 2, 2011
Crawley Campus

Unit Coordinator: Mr Kevin Burns

Business School
www.business.uwa.edu.au

* This Unit Outline should be read in conjunction with the Business School Unit Outline Supplement
available on the Current Students web site http://www.business.uwa.edu.au/students
1

ACCT2242 /Crawley/KB/19.07.11

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licence administered by Copyright Agency Limited (CAL), granted to the University of Western
Australia pursuant to Part VB of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth).
Copying of this material by students, except for fair dealing purposes under the Copyright Act,
is prohibited. For the purposes of this fair dealing exception, students should be aware that the
rule allowing copying, for fair dealing purposes, of 10% of the work, or one chapter/article,
applies to the original work from which the excerpt in this course material was taken, and not
to the course material itself.
The University of Western Australia 2011

UNIT DESCRIPTION
Introduction
Welcome to Accounting Information Systems ACCT2242, a unit typically undertaken by students majoring
in Financial Accounting or Managerial Accounting. For accounting students, it is the unit that will show you
why you are studying accounting as it shows the role of accounting systems within an organization and puts
material you have learnt in other accounting units into context. For non-accounting students, it will provide
you with an overview of what accounting systems do and what you can expect from them as a user.

Unit content
This unit is about the interplay between accounting information and business processes within
organisations. Data is gathered from business processes as they happen. The data is stored, processed and
reported to provide information from which decisions are made that, in turn, affect how business processes
operate. Some generic cycles of activities are found in most organisations and these are analysed. Tools
that make it possible to explore specific aspects of the business processes are introduced.
Accounting information is also used for statutory reporting and computer based systems are used in most
organisations to provide the basis from which these requirements can be satisfied. Such systems are
considered without getting really technical.
Lastly all reporting depends on the quality of the information, which in turn is determined by corporate
governance and the internal controls built into the systems that collect and store the data. Ethical issues
and basic safeguards for each type of business cycle are explored.

Learning outcomes
In successfully completing this unit students should:

Build on their understanding of the role of accounting within an organization.

Accept a view of accounting as an information system.
Independently learn to use a computer based accounting information system to record
transactions typical to the needs of a small to medium enterprise.
Analyse, describe and document aspects of business processes that are relevant to accounting
information systems.
Recognise threats to the quality of accounting information and identify appropriate controls.
Become aware of the issues involved in the analysis and design of computer based systems for
accounting information.
Use and further develop problem solving and teamwork skills.

UNIT STRUCTURE
Overview
This unit has been structured to give you practical experience and theoretical study in computer based
accounting information systems. There is work that you are required to complete individually and work
for which you must collaborate with other students in a team. Some of the coursework is strictly factual
while other parts introduce tools that you have to learn to use. You are encouraged to embrace all
aspects of the unit. In particular, some students do not relate easily to the modelling tools presented
especially where it is necessary to draw diagrams rather than describe business processes in words.
However, any extra effort that will be needed should be rewarded in the future when you use these skills
in your professional life.

Lectures
There are two lectures (no repeats) each week, both in Wesfarmers Lecture Theatre:
Monday 10 am

Wednesday 8am

Lectures will follow the textbook quite closely with some additional material where necessary. Both
Powerpoint slides and OHP(visualiser) material will be recorded and made available through Lectopia.

Workshops
The tutorials for this unit have been designed to be a mixture of discussion and class work. You should
have recorded your time preferences using OLCR. Each class will have around 30 students.
It is important that you prepare for the workshops by reading and reflecting on the chapter for that week.
In addition, the timetable below specifies which chapter questions should be prepared ahead of the
workshop. This is to prepare you to take part in the workshop activities and should not be regarded as the
only topics of value in the chapter. Workshops provide you with an opportunity to get answers to
anything that puzzles you. Please take advantage of this by attending and asking your tutor to answer your
questions. You could even email your questions to your tutor or the lecturer ahead of the class to ensure
that your problem is dealt with.

TEACHING AND LEARNING RESPONSIBILITIES

Teaching and learning evaluation
You will be asked to complete the Students Unit Reflective Feedback (SURF) during this unit. SURF is
completed online and is a university wide survey and deals only with the unit. You will receive an email
from the SURF office inviting you to complete the SURF when it is activated. You are encouraged to
complete the forms as your feedback is extremely important and can be used to make changes to the unit
or lecturing style when appropriate.
You are also encouraged to provide informal feedback to the lecturer or tutor at any stage during
semester especially if you would like more time on a topic or have a particular interest that you would
the unit to encompass. For instance, a more structured introduction to MYOB has been added to
course this semester as a result of comments from students. Changes can often be effected within
current semester if you make your views known.

the
like
the
the

Attendance
Two lectures and one workshop are scheduled for you each week. No class is compulsory but
participation in class, whether it be listening to a lecture or getting involved in other activities, is an
important part of the learning process. The classes are designed to support your learning and you should
take advantage of the opportunity to have personal contact with teaching staff. Treat them as a resource
for which you have paid and should therefore use to best advantage. There is a high correlation between
regular attendance and good grades in all university units.

CONTACT DETAILS
Students are required to access their student email accounts regularly. Important information regarding the
unit is often communicated by email and will not be automatically forwarded to private email addresses.
You are encouraged to communicate with any of the academic staff working on this unit. If you choose to
use email PLEASE remember to put ACCT2242 in the subject line AND include your student number in
the email.
Unit coordinator/lecturer
Name:

Mr Kevin Burns

Email:

kevin.burns@uwa.edu.au

Phone:

(08) 6488 5846

Consultation hours:

By appointment

Lecture times:

Monday, 10am; Wednesday, 8am

Lecture venue:

Wesfarmers Lecture Theatre

Tutor

Name:

Mr Paul Lloyd

Phone:

(08) 6488 2906

Consultation hours

TBA

TEXTBOOK(S) & RESOURCES

Unit Website
All unit material will be available through WebCT. Lectopia may be accessed through WebCT. If you are
enrolled in the unit you will automatically have access to the WebCT pages for this unit. If you do not have
this unit in your list of units either adjust your enrolment or speak to the lecturer.

Required text(s)
The textbook this year is the same one as that used last year but revised to the 3rd Edition. There is
overlap between 2nd and 3rd editions but also many differences especially with respect to databases. If you
choose to use 2nd edition you must use the copies of 3rd edition that are in closed reserve to work out
what has changed. The exam will be based on the 3rd edition.
Considine, B, Parkes, A, Olesen, K, Speer, D, & Lee, M 2010, Accounting Information Systems:
Understanding Business Processes 3rd edn, John Wiley & Sons, Milton QLD.

ASSESSMENT MECHANISM
Summary
Item

Weight

Due date

Remarks

Mid Semester Exam

40%

TBA

1hr 15 mins: Multiple Choice

Final exam

60%

TBA

2 hours + 10 mins reading

Note 1: Results may be subject to scaling and standardisation under faculty policy and are not necessarily
the sum of the component parts.
There are a number of reasons for having assessable tasks as part of an academic program. The assessable
tasks are designed to encourage you to explore and understand the subject more fully. The fact that we
grade your work provides you with an indication of how much you have achieved. Providing feedback on
your work also serves as part of the learning process.

Assessment components
Mid Semester Exam (40%)
The mid semester exam will be for a duration of 1 hour 15 minutes. No reading time will be given. The
exam will consist of multiple choice questions only and will cover topics in the first 6 (six) weeks of the
semester. The date, time and venue of the exam will be announced in week 2 (two) of the semester on
Web CT. It will be a closed book examination.
Final Exam (60%)
The final exam will be 2 hours with 10 minutes reading time. There will be some, but not all, multiple
choice questions. Any topic covered in lectures or the nominated chapters of the book may be included.
Sample questions will be discussed during lectures and workshops in the last week of semester.
Later in the semester, you should check faculty notice boards or the UWA website for details of the time
and location of the final exam. Applications for a deferred final exam must be made to the Sub-Dean, Mr
Paul Lloyd.

UNIT SCHEDULE
Week

Chp

1
1 Aug

2
8 Aug

3
15 Aug

Introduction to major project

D1.6; P1.3; P1.5; P1.9

Business Processes

Process Modelling

D6.4; P6.4; P5.3; P5.2 (not physical DFD)

7&8

Internal Controls I

7&8

Internal Controls II

9-11

Payment, Revenue and Production cycles

9-11

Payment, Revenue and Production cycles

7
12 Sept

No workshop in week 1

D2.7; P2.4; P2.14

6
5 Sep

Introduction to AIS, Systems, Data and

Information

ERP(Enterprise Information Systems)

5
29 Aug

D5.3;D5.8;P5.1

D7.9; P7.6; D8.2; P8.2

8
19 Sept

GL and reporting cycles

9
12

HR and payroll cycles

10

15

Auditing of Accounting Information

Systems

10 Oct

16

Ethics, Fraud, and Computer Crime

3,4

Databases

14

System Development

11
17 Oct
12
24 Oct
13
31 Oct

AB Hi-Fi case questions at the end of

chapters 9-13; D8.5;P8.6; D9.3; D9.4;
D10.3; D11.5

Non-Teaching Break 26 Sept-30 Sept

NTB

3 Oct

Workshop
Read chapter and prepare questions

4
22 Aug

Topic

D11.4;P11.12

D12.4; D12.6;P12.11
D15.3; P15.4; D16.4; D16.5; P16.1
D3.4; P3.2; P4.1; P4.3
D14.11; P14.1

Revision - Questions

Questions from last years exam paper

Student Guild
Phone: (+61 8) 6488 2295
Facsimile: (+61 8) 6488 1041
E-mail: enquiries@guild.uwa.edu.au
Website: http://www.guild.uwa.edu.au

Charter of Student Rights and Responsibilities

The Charter of Student Rights and Responsibilities outlines the fundamental rights and responsibilities of
students
who
undertake
their
education
at
UWA
(refer
http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/undergraduate/poliproc/policies/StudentRights).

Appeals against academic assessment

The University provides the opportunity for students to lodge an appeal against assessment results and/or
progress status (refer http://www.secretariat.uwa.edu.au/home/policies/appeals ).