Introduction to Financial Accounting

Reviewed by Margarita Maria Lenk, Associate Professor, Colorado State University on 1/7/16

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The content of this textbook matches the content and organization of most introductory financial accounting textbooks. It is written by Canadian authors, but is relevant to US students. The text begins by explaining the role of financial accounting in society, and then describes the underlying structure of double entry accounting systems and the process of recording economic events that impact the value of the organization through the journals and the ledger. The records of these events are then summarized into the primary financial statements. The numeric subtotals and totals on these statements are used to calculate standard financial measures and ratios used to evaluate the organization's performance. The text's organization then proceeds sequentially through the balance sheet accounts, explaining in more detail how the accounting for each category of economic value is recorded and reported. The author's decision to move the most complex content to the end of the book matches how most faculty choose to organize their coverage of these topics.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

My reviewed resulted in highest marks regarding accuracy. The only possible concern I would mention here is that the authors use a commonly used technique in chapter two which sometimes leads to students misunderstanding that revenues and expenses are not part of owners' equity until the revenues and expenses are closed at year end to retained earnings. It is my preference to teach introductory students that revenues and expenses are distinct and separate from equity, and then explain that revenues and expenses ultimately get closed to equity. So, this is not an inaccuracy by the authors, just a point that some instructors may want to know before adopting the textbook.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

It is my opinion that the content of this textbook will be relevant and current for at least a decade. Any changes made to accounting principles, Canadian or International, will be very easy and straightforward to update.

Clarity rating: 5

It is my opinion that the clarity of this text is very high. The authors are succinct and use visuals often to highlight the theoretical structures.

Consistency rating: 5

This test is very consistent with the framework that is set up by the authors in the beginning of the text.

Modularity rating: 5

The textbook is very clearly divided into separable modules, making it easy for both students to read and for instructors to choose which modules to include in their course.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The content of this textbook matches the content and organization of most introductory financial accounting textbooks. It begins by explaining the role of financial accounting in society, and then describes the underlying structure of double entry accounting systems and the process of recording economic events that impact the value of the organization through the journals and the ledger. The records of these events are then summarized into the primary financial statements. The numeric subtotals and totals on these statements are used to calculate standard financial measures and ratios used to evaluate the organization's performance. The text's organization then proceeds sequentially through the balance sheet accounts, explaining in more detail how the accounting for each category of economic value is recorded and reported. The author's decision to move the most complex content to the end of the book matches how most faculty choose to organize their coverage of these topics.

Interface rating: 5

The online text worked perfectly in my Chrome browser. The end of chapter exercises and problems are perfectly formatted on the screen. All assessment materials (quizzes, exams, etc.) are located on a different site that requires registration to have access.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I found the grammar to be very clear, concise and very effective. Because the book is written by Canadians, expenses are sometimes referred to as revenue expenditures, which does not match how US textbooks refer to expenses, but is perhaps a better learning tool, as the expenses are always recorded in the period in which they match the revenue generation, so I support the authors' choices regarding how they refer to the difference between assets (capital expenditures) and expenses (revenue expenditures).

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The textbook adequately refers to the international accounting standards. That is the only cultural relevance which is relevant to introductory financial accounting.

I found this textbook and its exercises to be a useful teaching and learning tool. Instructors and students have access to pre-made PowerPoint slides, exercises and problems, and there is the option to enrol in an online service for online assessments, which seem to have student feedback capabilities in addition to assessment gathering capabilities.