Abstract Reviews the book "Specialized Accounting Systems," by H. Heaton Baily.

Abstract The article presents information about teaching methods in accounting systems. Any student with normal intelligence and aptitude can comprehend the general topics of elementary and advanced accounting and their associated relationships. However, when the student advances to specialized accounting courses, such as cost accounting, accounting system design and installation and auditing, he often loses perspective and fails to grasp the associated relationships present in the specialized courses. Often a student is half way through a specialized course before these relationships comprising the complete course are unfurled in fairly clear fashion. If the student is confused on this matter in the classroom, then how much more confused is he going to be when he takes an accounting position in a going concern? While it is true that the student first of all must know the why of it in all accounting courses from an academic viewpoint, it is also equally true that he must know the how to do it when he obtains a position after graduation. This latter point is particularly true if the student is to make rapid advancement in his chosen work.