This article focuses on the accounting curriculum of the School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colarado. The faculty of the School began to take a long, hard look at the curriculum which it was offering. Undoubtedily this has been done almost universally by the faculties of schools of business across the U.S. since the publication of these two studies. After long and careful study by the faculty of the School of Business at the University of Colorado, several basic changes have been instituted in the course of study. In order to appreciate the changes which have been made, it will first be necessary to explain the program as it stood originally. The School of Business is a two-year, upper-division school with students being required to take 60 semester hours of work outside of the School, and another 60 semester hours of work within the School in order to fulfill the requirements for graduation.

It is very difficult as well as unsatisfying to speak on the uses of mathematics in accounting for two main reasons. Firstly, because discussions of this nature convey the somewhat false impression that the only impetus toward changes, if any progress is evident in the use of mathematics in accounting instruction and research, has originated from without rather than from within the accounting profession, and that progress has been forced upon the accounting discipline by outsiders. Secondly, because the potential uses of mathematics in accounting are so many, within the time limitations of a meeting one can at best only survey the area. The author in this article did not attempt to explore fully the reasons accountants have not taken advantage of the existing body of mathematical knowledge earlier, but, according to him, he cannot help speculating briefly on this issue. It appears to him that the demands of management for new quantitative criteria of efficiency of operations and decisions both aggregative and partial, are presenting opportunities and pressures that accounting cannot ignore. Mathematical simulation, which has grown to maturity in the last few years, has had a pronounced influence on the design of feedback-control systems.

This article focuses on controversies regarding the construction of financial statements. One of the primary areas of controversy revolves around a misunderstanding as to who should be expected to use financial statements or, stated differently, to whom the statements should be directed. Many people, both accountants and others, seem to be concerned with the notion that financial statements frequently are not clear and comprehensible to the "man on the street" or the uninformed layman. On the other hand, accountants certainly should strive to improve the usefulness of their statements to informed, qualified users. Such techniques as the use of charts and graphs to supplement conventional statements, the use of comparative statements, and the constant search for more meaningful accounting terminology serve as examples of this type of worthwhile endeavor. Equally clearly, the accounting profession has a concurrent duty to educate the public in the proper use of financial statements.

At the May, 1961 meeting of the South-eastern Section of the American Accounting Association, it was the author's privilege to participate in a panel presentation entitled "Teaching Current Accounting Theory at the Undergraduate Level." The discussion centered around the inclusion in accounting curricula of topics receiving current attention in accounting literature, such as accounting for long-term leases, "direct" costing, and "deferred" income tax liability. This paper represents a distillation of some of the more important ideas presented and discussed at that session. There was general agreement as to the propriety of including current topics in college and university accounting programs. The study of current accounting topics certainly has a place in college and university accounting curricula. Treatment of these topics in a separate course is feasible only in institutions with broad, diversified accounting programs. Even in such schools, the desirability of such a course is open to question. The approach to teaching current accounting topics depends in large part on the basic objectives of the accounting program in each college and university.

In relation to the comments concerning the laws of learning and their application to accounting instruction, attention will be focused upon some of the learning methods with which accounting teachers are all generally familiar. These methods are commonly labeled teaching methods by many of the people but, for a more proper designation, should be expressed in terms of learning. Too many instructors in their enthusiasm for subject matter either forget or tend to subordinate the role of the student in the learning process. All too frequently one need to be reminded that one is not just teaching subject matter but rather that one is teaching students. It is readily recognized that there is no effective teaching-taking place if leaning does not result. Accounting is a diverse field and covers a wide range of materials, from basic bookkeeping processes to abstract theoretical concepts. This permits and necessitates an equally wide range in educational methodology. To determine the best learning-teaching method to employ is indeed a complex question. The author believes there is no one best way. A variety of methods is no doubt essential within a given course and even a combination of several methods proves most useful within a single class period.

The Revenue Act of 1962 provides for an "investment credit" which is generally seven per cent of the qualified investment in depreciable property acquired after December 31, 1961. The "investment credit" may be deducted directly from the amount of federal income tax otherwise payable for the year in which the asset was acquired. For any asset on which the credit is given, the basis of the asset is reduced by the amount of the allowed investment credit for the purpose of determining the amount that may be written off as depreciation over the life of the asset. The investment credit, to the extent that it is fully utilized, should be regarded as a reduction in the tax expenses. This statement is based on the fact that the credit is allowed because of provisions of the revenue act and because it can be of benefit to a company only if there is tax, resulting from taxable revenue, from which the credit can be deducted. The net result of the suggested method and its variations is that a company can take advantage of the income tax law related to the investment credit and still present financial statements which are not unduly affected by the amount or the timing of these tax benefits.

Considerable progress has been made recently in clarifying the different effects on the business firm and on financial accounting of changes in general prices on the one hand and of changes in specific prices on the other. Changes in prices in general are assumed to reflect changes in the general value of the dollar and in general purchasing power. Changes in specific prices are assumed to reflect changes in the structure of prices in the economy without changing the general level of prices. The importance of this distinction between general and special price changes stems from the relevancy of at least two concepts of net income, enterprise net income computed on the basis of a common dollar and net operating income excluding gains and losses arising from the holding of assets while theft specific prices change. The latter concept requires adjustments of both general and specific price changes when movements are occurring in the level of prices as well as in the structure of prices, the effect of specific price changes cannot be measured unless the accounts are first adjusted for changes in the general price level.

This article focuses on the "mathematics" of accounting variance analysis. It seems that the managerial significance of accounting data is a rather controversial matter and consequently it should not be left completely to the imagination of the reader. The purpose of this note is to suggest an alternative, and what is believed to be a simpler way of getting the overhead variances and then point out some of the significance of the results. One of the most striking features of present accounting literature may be said to lie in the growing interest paid to the mathematics of variance analysis. This development began in 1953 when Gilbert Amerman published his very famous article on the subject. The variation analysis may be easily tied to an effective budgetary control system by comparing the standard and actual costs of a period with the corresponding budgeted costs. On these lines it is possible to discern the influence that important activity and production mix variations had on the direct materials and labor costs. The budget variance is defined by the difference between the actual costs of the period under investigation and the flexible budget allowance for the actual hours worked.

Reviews the book "Towards a General Theory of Accounting," by R.J. Chambers.

Reviews the book "A Dictionary for Accountants," by Eric L. Kohler.