Abstract The article discusses the content of a training program in internal auditing. An internal auditor is an employee of a particular firm. The internal auditor helps assure the accuracy of financial reports. He functions as an element of management control, reviewing and appraising other management controls to make sure they are operating according to plan and in an effective manner. Textbooks, case problems, and other materials with which to teach a course in internal auditing have been prepared over the years by The Institute of Internal Auditors and its members. Current practices are reported in the Institute's quarterly journal, The Internal Auditor, and in the published proceedings of its annual conferences. The available material is more than adequate to provide a challenging course in internal auditing. Moreover, many teachers who recognize the desirability of the accounting student learning something about internal auditing are convinced that the required amount of knowledge can be presented in a lecture or two in the basic auditing course. Such coverage may possibly be sufficient to alert the prospective public accountant to the existence of the internal auditor and the necessity of reviewing his program on an audit assignment. But it is insufficient to present the philosophy and responsibilities of the growing field in internal auditing.

Reviews the book "Internal Auditing," 2nd ed., by Victor Z. Brink and James A. Cashin.

Abstract Considerable attention has been given in recent years to the preparation of candidates for the CPA examination. A recent and comprehensive part of the studies have been made and others are in process, which cover far more cues and hence give results, which may be more significant statistically as to the experience of CPA candidates in general. But it seems worth noting that of 186 persons who have taken one or more sections of the Alabama CPA Review Course, and whose present addresses are known, it is certain that 115 are now CPAs, while the status of forty is unknown. Of the 136 who returned the questionnaire, a total of 105 are CPA's. This is not to imply that those who succeeded did so entirely because of the review course. However, many students have given the course credit for providing that final boost which may often make just the difference that leads to a passing grade. The course is not a panacea guaranteed to get all and sundry through the CPA examination. However, it has proved to be most worthwhile for serious candidates who have already prepared themselves as well as they can through college courses, correspondence courses, or in other ways, and who still need a final lift to help them through.

Abstract To summarize briefly, it appears that the accounting teacher is usually pretty well occupied with teaching, counseling students, helping with administrative and committee work, directing graduate students in their projects, conducting research, writing, participating in the activities of his professional organizations, and taking part in his church and community affairs. The busy teacher may still feel a need for obtaining or continuing practical experience to keep him on his toes and abreast of current developments in accounting. He may be led into outside practice primarily for financial reasons. There are a variety of ways in which the teacher may practice. Those which permit him the fullest exercise of his learning and ability with the least routine or recurring procedures appear most likely to increase his effectiveness as a teacher, provided always that they are not too time-consuming in the aggregate. Those which involve repetitive book work seem more likely to dull his intellect. Accepting too much personal responsibility to clients may lead him to spend too much time and energy handling their work instead of performing his academic duties. This is particularly detrimental to his effectiveness as a teacher and should be avoided. Teachers and administrators should work together to develop a reasonable policy for their school concerning outside work. In conclusion, the answer to our question, "Should the accounting teacher practice accounting?" may be either "yes" or "no" depending on the circumstances. Practice should neither be required nor prohibited as a condition of employment. Arbitrary limitations should not be set on the type or amount of outside work an accounting teacher is permitted to do. Each assignment and the work of each teacher should be considered on its merits.

Abstract The article focuses on coordinating sections of courses in elementary accounting. With college enrollments on the increase, many schools are having to offer more sections of elementary accounting courses. As the number of sections of any course increases, problems of planning and coordination are likely to arise or to become more acute. Different solutions to these problems have been attempted, with varying success. At the University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama, a somewhat unusual method of coordination has been developed for the second semester of the elementary accounting course. Its successful operation over the past three years suggests that others might find it beneficial in their schools. One difficulty, where seven instructors are teaching sections of the same course simultaneously, lies in keeping the pace of the work somewhat uniform. Some schools attack this problem by having a weekly lecture for the entire group, followed by discussion and perhaps laboratory periods in smaller sections. Many teachers feel, however, that the lecture to the large group is almost a complete waste of time, and refuse to adopt this expedient.

Abstract A careful review of the course outlined above discloses that much of the material included in the typical accounting survey course is covered. In spite of its novel beginning, it ultimately provides the student with an orthodox picture of double entry bookkeeping. By the time section nine is reached, we are using the accrual basis of accounting, with four common special journals, plus a general journal, a complete general ledger, and controlling accounts and subsidiary ledgers. Inventory problems and accounting for notes and interest are explained. Payroll preparation and employee earnings records have previously been covered, as have property taxes. Sales tax, use tax, privilege license tax, and the individual income tax are covered in subsequent sections. The balance sheet and statement of income and expense have been shown in several uses. Methods of analyzing published corporate reports are explored, and governmental financial problems and reports are considered. In addition to this coverage of traditional material, our course has the advantage of offering specific helps in some of the more common financial and record keeping problems an individual is likely to meet. Designed as it is for students in fields other than commerce, it may provide theft only exposure to the subjects of credit, insurance, and taxation. While coverage of these matters is by no means comprehensive, it should serve to answer the more general questions and to indicate the point beyond which professional counsel should be obtained. As noted above, perhaps the most significant feature of the course is its approach to accounting instruction. Without preliminary discussion, the student begins to record data in a combined cash journal. Through this approach, the student finds himself at the very outset keeping a practical record whose immediate usefulness to him in his present situation he can readily understand.

Abstract Accounting lectures can be made more understandable and more interesting to the students by the use of suitable "props" illustrating practical accounting situations. Students often have difficulty understanding the operation of a petty cash fund and visualizing the petty cash count. After the subject has been studied in the text and discussed in class, it creates immediate interest among the students for the instructor to produce a petty cash box and ask one of them to audit the fund in the presence of its custodian. The student should be instructed to behave exactly as if he were in a client's office. The audience should be cautioned not to offer suggestions during the course of the count. All should be given a chance to view and examine the contents of the box so that they may comment on the auditor's findings after he has finished. This experience will impress the petty cash count on the minds of the students as no amount of talking about it can do. Other "props" can frequently be obtained to enliven the presentation of ace counting procedures. Worthless securities may be used by students in making a securities count. The handling of actual stocks and bonds gives the student a sense of seriousness and will command his attention much more fully than a textbook problem can do.

Abstract The size, diversity, and complexity of financial activities of present day Federal Government and the need for efficient management and reporting of these activities is of vital concern for every citizen. A purposeful, productive campaign has been underway for some ten years to modernize the entire concept of management in government. This movement has been spearheaded by officials within government and has received impetus and support from citizens' groups, notable among which are the various Hoover Commission Task Forces. Each individual, each institution, and each collective group of individuals has a responsibility to contribute to the effort of achieving effective management of taxpayers' money. Colleges and universities can be particularly helpful and can contribute substantially to this effort by expanding their curricula to include more comprehensive instruction with respect to the application of modern management principles and practices, especially as these relate to activities of the Federal Government. The writer has presented in this paper the framework of a suggested graduate course which would emphasize the management controls necessary to carry out effectively objectives of the legislative and executive branches of the Federal Government. The suggested course might well supplement or complement other Business Administration, Political Science, or Public Administration offerings customarily given by colleges and universities.

Abstract This article presents information the teaching methods of accounting. Beyond the first few weeks of the elementary course, too little emphasis is placed on the fundamental accounting equation. As a result the student threads his way through the first year of accounting at best understanding certain relationships in vacuo but probably in most cases accepting them on faith. He then proceeds to memorize these relationships and hopes that the examination situation will be sufficiently similar to the one he learned by rote so that he can cope with it. Perhaps the ideal solution to this difficulty is one which places greater stress on the equation in the first course in accounting, but this probably would require a fundamental revision of course structure with the concomitant sacrifice of other worth-while materials. One result that follows from this lack of stress on the equation is the necessity to spend the first part of the second course in accounting on a general review of the basic accounting process.

Abstract This article presents a project report of the 1954 task committee on internal auditing education. In 1951, the American Accounting Association set up a Committee on Cooperation with the Institute of Internal Auditors. As one of its first activities, this Committee conducted a survey of college courses in internal auditing. In view of the increasing interest in internal auditing courses evidenced by this survey, it seemed appropriate to give further thought to the place of the internal auditing course in the college curriculum, and the problems of organizing and establishing such a course, its content, and manner of presentation. In view of the present crowded condition of the undergraduate accounting curriculum and the much-discussed dangers of excessive specialization, a recommendation for the addition of a new course such as internal auditing cannot be given in a light or casual manner. As the large corporation becomes a more and more significant element in the economy, internal auditing is receiving increased recognition as a valuable aid to top corporate management.