AC 216

International Corporate Financial

Reporting

Autumn

2021/2022

Dr Ekililu Salifu

Email: e.salifu@henley.ac.uk

Phone: 0118 378 7638

1
1. Module Description

Financial reporting may be seen as a way of providing comprehensive information about an

entity’s operations. Financial reporting especially relates to the provision of information
about an entity’s financial performance, its financial position, and the changes to its financial
position over time; information which together is useful to several users in making economic
decisions.

This module closely examines the content and application of a range of international financial
reporting standards in their application in the financial reporting process. The module is
designed for students following a range of degree programmes who already have prior
knowledge of financial accounting.

2. Module Aims

This module aims to develop and add to the knowledge, understanding and skills of financial
accounting and reporting acquired on the level 4 modules Introductory International Financial
Accounting A and B or (AC105a and C105b) and Introduction to Financial Accounting
(A101). The module focuses on the technical and conceptual requirements of the regulatory
framework for financial reporting, with the added task of a critical reflection on the
application of the standards.

3. Learning outcomes

At the end of this module the students should be able to have:

3.1 Assessable learning outcomes:

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Describe, explain and discuss aspects of the regulatory framework affecting the
preparation and presentation of financial statements.

2. Describe, explain and apply the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB)
conceptual framework for financial reporting.

3. Describe, explain, apply and discuss the contents of a number of selected International
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

4. Prepare a complete set of financial statements from accounting data for single entities in
conformity with IFRS.

2
5. Display evidence of the professional skills of assimilating and using information and
structuring problems and solutions; and

6. Demonstrate a critical understanding and awareness of the key debates in modern

financial accounting and reporting.

6.1 Additional outcomes:

The module also aims to encourage the development of effective communicative skills (both
oral and written) and also to support students in enhancing their effectiveness in group
situations. Structured activities are designed to develop independent learning, including
reflective, adaptive and collaborative learning.

7. Teaching and learning methods

The module will be delivered through a combination of lectures and seminar sessions. The
lectures will explore the main areas and themes covered in the module. For the seminars,
students are expected to read the references in the reading list and attempt to solve the
problems and exercises as specified in advance of the seminars.

Formal contact time is organised around two-hour lectures and workshops. Lectures are used
for the exposition of the major concepts, principles and techniques. Workshops focus on the
practical application of learning. You are expected to view all of the lecture recordings,
attend your workshop sessions, undertake the required work, and engage with the learning
process.

This module has been designed such that it will be requiring about 200 hours of study time,
which includes, self-study, lecture/workshop preparation, assessment time, and examination
revision. This equates to about 12 hours of study per week for the duration of the course and
revision weeks.

8. Assessments

1.1 Summative assessment – Examinations:

One 2.5 hours closed book unseen written exam in the summer term, constituting 75%
weighting of the overall assessment of the module. All the topics covered in the module will
be examinable.

1.2 Summative assessment – Coursework:

One group assessment is due in the Autumn term, Week 10 with a weight of 25% of the
overall assessment of the module. You are expected to form your groups within the first 3
weeks of the term. After the third week, those without groups will be randomly assigned into
groups for assessment purposes.

3
1.3 Formative Assessment Methods

Formative assessments are available throughout the course and may take the form of
questions in the textbook or additional practice questions. Exam-style questions will be made
available on Blackboard and students will practise exam-style questions in workshops.
Marking guides and feedback are provided where appropriate so that students can assess their
performance.

1.4 Assessment requirements for a pass

A minimum mark of 40% is required for a University pass.

1.5 Reassessment arrangement

Re-examination takes place in August of the same year.

2. Reading

Required Textbook
Maynard, J. (2017). Financial Accounting, Reporting, and Analysis. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.

Recommended Additional Reading:

Deloitte (2019). IFRS in your pocket 2017. Deloitte. Available at

https://www.iasplus.com/en/publications/global/ifrs-in-your-pocket/2019

Pacter, P. (2016) Pocket Guide to IFRS standards: the global financial reporting
language, IFRS Foundation

PWC (2019). IFRS Overview 2017. Available at https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/audit-

services/ifrs/publications/ifrs-19/pwc-ifrs--overview-2019.pdf

Recommend supplementary textbook:

Elliot B., and Elliot, J. (2015) Financial Accounting and Reporting. 17th ed. London: Pearson

Advanced textbooks:

4
Schroeder, R. G., Clark, M. and Cathey, J. M., (2010). Financial Accounting Theory and
Analysis: Text and Cases. 11th Ed. John Wiley & Sons.

3. General guidelines

7.1 How to prepare in advance to (and during) the module

The best advice we can give you in order to prepare for the module is to read broadly on
issues in financial reporting, and most importantly, practice all of the topics you learnt in
your first year accounting/financial reporting modules. This module builds on what you
studied in the first year, and you will find it difficult if you are not very conversant with
what was taught in the first year.
Reading broadly will also give you an understanding of the bigger issues that are reported in
the business world and the debates surrounding these matters. Developing this broader
understanding is an essential part of developing good technical expertise in Financial
reporting and understanding how Financial Reporting works in practice (as well as its
limitations). This is why we seek to make connections between management and accounting
and wider business issues throughout the module.

7.2 Non-academic text, radio and TV

We recommend that you read the business and financial sections in quality newspapers such
as the Financial Times (FT), Guardian, Independent, Times, and Daily Telegraph and
additional quality newspapers from your home country if you are an overseas student. Also
weekly journals such as The Economist, The Spectator and The New Statesman often give
broader views on the debates surrounding business issues from both right of centre and left of
centre perspectives.
We also recommend that you follow programmes on radio and TV programmes with business
segments (such as the news) and programmes focusing on economic or business analysis. The
BBC is a good starting point across its range of TV channels and also through BBC Radio 4.
Such broad reading will promote in what we call an interdisciplinary understanding of
Management and Accounting. That means that you bring in knowledge from different areas
in order to understand issues of importance. At Business Schools, problems are often
separated into distinct areas of knowledge e.g. Management Accounting, Financial
Accounting, Finance, Management and Marketing, but in the world of business and
organisations, the problems you have to deal with rarely involve just one of these areas. As
decisions have to be made, you find that having a wider understanding helps to deal with
them effectively

7.3 Reading Academic Articles

Starting to read academic articles is a challenging task if you have little or no prior
experience. At the same time reading such articles is an important element in your education
if you are to broaden your understanding of the topics you are studying. Textbooks are very

5
useful, and the textbook is an essential part of our teaching in AC216, especially for
developing technical skills and expertise. However, textbooks are not enough if you are to
develop the kind of broader expert judgement and professional understanding of topics in the
way we outline here. Textbooks and academic articles work well together, and you will be
requiring academic articles for your cousework.
The research reported in academic journals sheds new light on, and often challenges, what we
think we already know, and so is a key means to add to or transform our existing
understandings. In other words, research articles go beyond what the textbook presents. As
such they can help you to see a problem from a perspective you may never have thought of
before, and to see possible solutions you might not otherwise see. Articles also enable you to
access the wider research networks behind the findings presented in a particular paper, and to
extend your familiarity with the sources the authors have used, the articles and books they
have read, and perhaps interviews with key people they have undertaken. Being active in
finding out to learn is a key skill for a researcher. It is also a key skill in pursuing your
studies. Articles can provide you with ideas of how such active learning can be done.
Authors of academic articles can also show you ways of writing persuasive arguments and
presenting the evidence in such a way that the reader can make their judgment of what is
presented. Such skills are not only useful in an academic setting but in business settings as
well. Effective presentation of evidence and argument is essential for writing a good cover
letter for an application, for constructing business policy and strategy documents, and for
writing important emails to colleagues or superiors. Reading and understanding articles will
also help you to better understand the reports published by both national and international
level governmental and business entities. In the UK, the former includes policy papers and
reports from the Central Bank (the Bank of England) and UK Government ‘White Papers’
(policy proposals for legislation). Often the policies presented in White Papers and Bank of
England publications will directly affect a whole industry or the wider economy. Important
reports also come from the business world including company Annual Reports, and also
internationally from bodies such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Accountancy Firms and Professional Institutes (e.g. in the UK, the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in England and Wales [ICAEW] and the Chartered Institute of Management
Accountants [CIMA]) also produce a whole range of research-informed reports and papers.
As a professional, you will be expected to be aware of such bodies and when appropriate to
read their publications as part of developing your professional expertise and judgment.
Finally, all these skills come together in decision-making, whether the decision concerns
replacing machinery, hiring staff, setting up bonus schemes, setting production standards,
negotiating budgets, setting up contracts for the supply of key materials, or outsourcing
production. In all cases, you need to bring together evidence from different sources, both
quantitative and qualitative, and then to decide when you have enough evidence to make an
informed decision. You also need to consider not only the benefits if things go well but also
what to do next if they go badly, or if the decision has unexpected consequences. The world
is complex and uncertain, and often we have difficult dilemmas to confront. We are here to
help you not only to develop your understanding of technical accounting skills, but also to

6
develop a deeper understanding of accounting’s strengths and limitations, and so how to use
accounting effectively and flexibly to manage decisions and events in this complex uncertain
world. The more you develop such broader understandings of management and the business
world during your studies at HBS, the better prepared you will be for your career beyond
your studies, whether you then work in business for a firm or for yourself, or in government
or research, or indeed as an academic.

7.4 Strategic Reading Guide

A good way to start reading a text (this applies to any text e.g. articles and chapters in
textbooks) is first to start with the abstract (if there is one) and the introduction, and then
move directly to the conclusions/final summary. This will give a good overview what the text
is about and the main issues addressed. With this in mind, you can then start reading the main
text. In order to help you further you might consider answering the questions specified in the
Guidelines for Critical Reading below.] These can help you bring out some of the key
elements from the text and so get an initial sense of the overall scope and theme of the article.
Do not worry if you do not understand all the concepts used in the article. Try to focus on the
‘big picture’ of what is being addressed. It is also good to take notes while you are reading,
e.g. noting things you think are interesting, confusing or surprising. Also, consider reading
the same text more than once since this often brings out things you did not notice the first
time around. However, before reading the article again give yourself some time to think and
reflect on it. This will help you to read and see things differently as you now know more than
the first time (or second time etc). Additionally, review and revise your notes while reading a
second time, since this is also useful for further reflection.

7.5 Guidelines for critical reading

We expect you to engage in critical reading of the overall claim/argument to enhance your
understanding of issues in and around financial reporting in a broader and inter-disciplinary
way. This will help you analyse problems - some might be familiar to you but some totally
new - suggest and account for possible ‘solutions’ but also to define new problem areas.
Below you find some suggested questions that can help you conduct critical reading and to
help you summarise the article.

 What is the main research focus/question?

 What is the knowledge gap the article tries to fill? (e.g. What is lacking or not fully
explored in previous research?)
 What kind of references does the article draw on?
 What are the main arguments developed in the article?
 What evidence does the article use to support its claims?
 What connections or ‘hooks’ are constructed to link evidence to claims?

7
  What are the main results of the research?
 What are the limitations of the findings?
 When was the article published?

7.6 Independent learning

7.6.1 Research:
You are strongly encouraged to supplement the lecture-discussion by seeking out books and
research articles that seem relevant or interesting from the Library. The following journals are
particularly useful and are available on-line (through library homepage
https://www.reading.ac.uk/library/):

 Accounting Forum,

 British Accounting Review (BAR),

 Accounting Organisations and Society (AOS),

 Critical Perspectives in Accounting (CPA);

 Harvard Business Review (HBR),

 Information and Organization (IO) and

 Accounting Auditing and Accountability Journal (AAAJ).

 Abacus

 Public Money and Management (PMM)

 Public Management Review

 Accounting Historians Journal (AHJ),

Practitioner's articles may also be found in the CIMA journal Financial Management.
Historical research in accounting can also be found in (except for the journals mentioned
above) Edwards J.R. (ed.) (2000) The history of accounting: critical perspectives on business
and management. London: Routledge.

7.6.2 Self-studies & cooperative learning:

Lecturers in higher learning institutions facilitate and support learning whilst students are
expected to be active participants in the learning process and take full responsibility for their

8
learning. Problems will be discussed by the lecturer during lectures and seminars. To improve
your critical understanding and application of key concepts, models and calculations you
should critically read and engage with recommended readings but also actively seek
academic articles. To develop your technical skill, you are strongly advised to do required
exercises stated for lectures and seminars but also to use the textbook’s relevant exercise
sections. We also post ‘extra’ exercises on blackboard which we strongly advise you to do.
These ‘extra’ exercises are more advanced and will prepare you for the exam and your
professional career.

It is advisable for you to independently form a study group and engage in cooperative
learning with your peers to improve your understanding of the subject. Team working would
help you improve your communication and leadership skills which are transferable to the
workplace. For example, a team member would be responsible not only for learning what is
taught but also for leading discussion and presentation, and helping teammates learn.

Term (time- Event Topic

table) Week

5 (1) Introductory The Financial Reporting System: The theoretical and regulatory
Lecture framework of financial reporting

5 (1) Lecture 2 I. The Financial Reporting System: The Conceptual

framework

II. Company financial statement revision

6 (2) Lecture 3 Company published financial statements

Workshop 1 Theoretical and Regulatory Framework

7 (3) Lecture 4 Statement of Cash flows

Workshop 2 Published Financial Statements: Presentation

8 (4) Lecture 5 Reporting financial performance

Workshop 3 Statement of Cash flows

9
9 (5) Lecture 6 Revenue and inventories

Workshop 4 Reporting Financial Performance

10 (6) Reading Week

11 (7) Lecture 7 Tangible non-current assets

Workshop 5 Revenue and Inventories

12 (8) Lecture 8 Intangible non-current assets and the impairment of non-current

assets

Workshop 6 Tangible Non-current Assets

13 (9) Lecture 9 Liabilities and post-balance sheet events

Workshop 7 Intangible Non-current Assets

14(10) Revision Revision

Workshop 8 Liabilities and post-balance sheet events

10