Thesis (M.Ed.(Curriculum Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / The liability for the decline in performance in Grade 12 Accounting learners in Ehlanzeni District has been levelled against lack of resources in schools, teachers’ inability to execute their duties and poorly trained teachers. Arising from this indictment, this study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of assessment methods used for Grade 12 Accounting learners in Sikhulile and Mgwenya Circuits in Ehlanzeni District of Mpumalanga Province. A qualitative survey case study was used as a research design. Data was collected using one-to-one interviews among five Accounting teachers, five Heads of Department and five Principals. Qualitative data was presented using thematic and narrative analysis. The key findings were: (1) inadequacy of Accounting workshops and non-attendance by teachers, (2) lack of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) by Accounting teachers, (3) Accounting content gaps among learners and difficulties in the content area such as Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement, (4) shortage of Accounting Learning Teaching Support (LTSM), (5) inadequacies in pedagogical technological devices for teaching, learning and assessment in Accounting, (6) poor teaching and assessment methods used in Accounting and (7) inadequate support from the Department of Education. The study recommends increased frequency of workshops and making attendance compulsory, strategies to improve the pedagogical content knowledge of Accounting teachers, providing in-service training in Accounting to EMS teachers, improved supply of educational resources, improving the schools’ digital infrastructure such as internet connectivity and accessibility to digital devices, improving teachers’ pedagogical skills and digital skills and palpable Departmental support to teachers

One of the most critical challenges facing South Africa is the shortage of skills. The Financial Services Sector, of which banks form part, is also affected by this problem and this poses a risk in achieving the targeted Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The quality and level of education offered in South African Higher Education Institutions is perceived as being insufficient to that which is required in the industry and is a possible contributing factor towards the skills shortage problem. The study was motivated by the concerns raised by some scholars concerning the relevance of the management accounting syllabus as compared with the technical skills required in the banking industry. Investigating this is important as the Financial Services Sector, which includes the banking industry, is one of the largest employers of management accountants in South Africa and there is a paucity of research in this area. The aim of the study was to determine whether management accounting technical skills provided by an ODeL University in South Africa meet banking employers’ expectations. A qualitative research approach was used to conduct interviews with nineteen participants from three banks and ten academics from the ODeL University and includes a qualitative documentary analysis to review and analyse the study material for four management accounting modules and the mapping of the management accounting syllabus to the SAICA competency framework. The results reflect the data obtained from the interviews. The analysis of the interviews is organised under five main themes as follows: Function of management accounting within the banking sector; recruitment of graduates and development of management accounting technical skills; identified technical skills lacking in new graduates employed by banks; bank specific training at an ODeL institution (an academic perspective) and strategies to bridge the gap. The results of the analysis conducted on the management accounting study material from the ODeL University are presented in four categories; Costing, Financial Management, Accounting Data Processing and the SAICA Competency Framework. The results indicate that bank employers acknowledge the work achieved by higher education institutions in providing students with basic management accounting skills, which enable them to start working in management accounting positions in banks. However, bank participants were concerned with graduates’ inability to link theory with practical application and further confirmed that graduates lack a number of relevant technical skills. Academics confirmed that the management accounting syllabus does not give much attention to banks and other financial service industries; it is dominated by activities and case studies related to manufacturing industries. The analysis of the prescribed study material supports this and indicates that there are insufficient activities related to service companies and very few references to financial services sector entities. Several recommendations were made by participants which, inter alia include incorporating relevant activities and case studies into the management accounting syllabus and greater reciprocity between the banking industry and universities. This study contributes to the literature on management accounting technical skills’ relevance to banks and by extension, the financial services sector. It provides insights on the management accounting technical skills that are currently lacking in graduates. Additional areas warranting further research are also identified. / Omnye weyona micelimngeni enobuzaza ojongene noMzantsi Afrika kukunqongophala kwezakhono. ICandelo leeNkonzo zezeMali, apho iibhanki ziyinxalenye zalo, nalo liyachaphazeleka yile ngxaki kwaye oku kubeka umngcipheko ekuphumezeni iMveliso yeKhaya ePheleleyo (iGDP). Umgangatho nenqanaba lemfundo ezinikezelwa kumaZiko eMfundo ePhakamileyo aseMzantsi Afrika zibonwa njengezingonelanga kwinto efunekayo kushishino, kwaye ibonwa iyinto enempembelelo kwingxaki yokunqongophalo lwezakhono. Uphando lwakhuthazwa yinkxalabo ephakanyiswe zezinye izifundiswa malunga nokuhambelana kolawulo lwesilabhasi yobalo-mali (accounting) xa kuthelekiswa nezakhono zobugcisa ezifunekayo kushishino lwebhanki. Ukuphanda oku kubalulekile njengeCandelo leNkonzo yezeziMali, nelibandakanya ishishini lebhanki, elingelinye labaqeshi abakhulu labacubunguli bobalo-mali eMzantsi Afrika, kwaye kukho ubuncinane bophando kulo mcimbi. Injongo yophando yayikukufumanisa ukuba ingaba izakhono zobuchule bokuphatha ezobalo-mali ezinikezwa yiYunivesithi ye-ODeL eMzantsi Afrika ziyahlangabezana nokulindelwe ngabaqeshi beebhanki. Inkqubo yophando esemgangathweni yasetyenziswa ukwenza udliwanondlebe nabathathi-nxaxheba abalishumi elinesixhenxe abaphuma kwiibhanki ezintathu kunye nabafundisi/abahlohli abalishumi kwiYunivesithi ye-ODeL, kwaye ibandakanya nokucazulula idotyhumentari esemgangathweni ukwenza isincomo-gxeko nokucazulula izixhobo zokufunda kwiimodyuli ezine zolawulo lwezobalo-mali kunye nokuzoba isilabhasi yolawulo lwezibalo-mali kwisakhelo sesikhokelo sezakhono kwi-SAICA. Iziphumo zibonisa idatha efunyenwe kudliwanondlebe. Ucazululo lodliwanondlebe luhlelwe phantsi kwezihloko ezihlanu eziphambili ngolu hlobo lulandelayo: Umsebenzi wolawulo lwezibalo-mali ngaphakathi kwecandelo lokulondoloza(banking); ukufunwa kwabafundi abathweswe izidanga kunye nokuphuhliswa kwezakhono zobalo-mali; ukuchongwa kwezakhono zobugcisa ezinqongopheleyo kubafundi abatsha abaqashwe ziibhanki; uqeqesho olukhethekileyo lwebhanki kwiyunivesithi ye-ODeL (umbono wemfundo) kunye nezicwangciso zokuvala isikhewu. Iziphumo zohlalutyo olwenziweyo kwizixhobo zokufunda zolawulo lwezobalo-mali kwiYunivesithi ye-ODeL zivezwa ngokwamanqanaba amane; Ukubiza indleko, ukuPhathwa kwezeMali, ukuPhathwa kweDatha yezoBalo-mali (Accounting) kunye neSakhelo sezakhono ze-SAICA. Iziphumo zibonisa ukuba abaqeshi bebhanki bawunika ingqalelo umsebenzi owenziweyo ngamaziko emfundo ephakamileyo ekuboneleleni ngezakhono zolawulo lwezemali, into eyenza abafundi ukuba bakwazi ukuqalisa ukusebenza kwizikhundla zobalo-mali kwiibhanki. Nangona kunjalo, abathathi-nxaxheba bebhanki babenenkxalabo yokungakwazi kwabafundi ukudibanisa i-thiyori kunye nendlela yokusebenza kwaye baphinda baqinisekisa ukuba abafundi abaphumeleleyo bayasilela kwizakhono ezininzi zobugcisa ezifanelekileyo. Abahlohli baqinisekisile ukuba isilabhasi yolawulo lobalo-mali ayiniki ngqalelo enkulu kwiibhanki nakwamanye amashishini enkonzo yezemali; ilawulwa yimisebenzi kunye nezifundo ezinxulumene nemizimveliso. Uhlalutyo lwezixhobo zokufunda ezimiselweyo ziyakuxhasa oku kwaye zibonisa ukuba ayonelanga imizekeliso esetyenziswayo enxulumene neenkampani zenkonzo kunye nezalathiso ezimbalwa kakhulu kumacandelo enkonzo yezemali. Izindululo ezininzi zaye zenziwa ngabathathi-nxaxheba bathi, phakathi kwezinye izinto zibandakanya ukongezwa kwemizekelo efanelekileyo kunye nezifundo zokufundwa (case studies) kwisilabhasi yolawulo lobalo-mali kunye nokusebenzisana okukuko phakathi kweshishini lebhanki neeyunivesithi. Olu phando lunegalelo kuncwadi lolawulo lwezakhono zobuchule bobugcisa bobalo-mali obufanelekileyo kwiibhanki nakwicandelo leenkonzo zezezimali jikelele. Lunika ingcaciso kwizakhono zolawulo zobalo-mali ezisasilelayo okwangoku kwabo banezidanga. Iindawo ezongeziweyo ezisafuna uphando olongeziweyo nazo zikwachongiwe. / Ye nngwe ya ditlhohlo tše di nyakago tekolo ka tlhokomedišišo tše Afrika Borwa e lebanego natšo ke tlhokego ya bokgoni. Lekala la Ditirelo tša Ditšhelete, leo dipanka di lego karolo ya lona, le lona le angwa ke bothata bjo gomme se se hlola tšhošetšo ya go fihlelela palomoka ya ditšhelete tša dithoto le ditirelo tšeo di tšweleditšwego nageng (GDP). Boleng le boemo bja thuto yeo e rutwago ka go Diinstitušene tša Thuto ya Godingwana tša Afrika Borwa di tšewa go ba tšeo di sa kgotsofatšego go ena le tše di nyakegago diintastering gape ke ntlha yeo e ka hlolago bothata bja tlhaelo ya bokgoni. Thutelo ye e hlohleleditšwe ke dipelaelo tšeo di hlagišitšwego ke baithuti ba bangwe malebana le maleba a lenaneothuto la tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho ge go bapetšwa le bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša mešongwana ye e itšeng intasering ya go panka ditšhelete. Go nyakišiša se go bohlokwa ka ge Lekala la Ditirelo tša Ditšhelete, le le akaretšago intasteri ya go panka ditšhelete, e le ye nngwe ya bathapi ba bantšintši ba batho bao ba fago khamphani datha le tshedimošo ka ditšhelete gore di dirišwe kgodišong ya kgwebo ya yona ka Afrika Borwa efela go na le dinyakišišo tšeo di sego tše ntši go sehlogo se. Maikemišetšo a thutelo ye e be e le go šupa ge eba bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho bjoo bo rutwago ke yunibesithi ya ODeL ka Afrika Borwa bo kgotsofatša ditetelo tša bathapi ba dipankeng. Mokgwatebelelo wa nyakišišo ka go utolla mokgwa wa bophelo bja setšhaba se itšeng o dirišitšwe go phethagatša ditherišano le batšeakarolo ba lesomesenyane go tšwa dipankeng tše tharo le dirutegi tše lesome go tša yunibesithing ya ODeL gomme o akaretša tshekatsheko ya kanegelo ya ditiragalo ya go kwešiša mabaka le dikgopolo go lebelela le go sekaseka ditlakelo tša thuto tša mebotšulo ya tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho le go tswalanya lenaneothuto la tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho le tlhako ya botsebi ya SAICA. Dipoelo di laeditše datha yeo e hweditšwego go tšwa ditherišanong. Tshekatsheko ya ditherišano e beakantšwe go ya ka merero ye mene ka mo go latelago: Tiro ya tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho ka go lekala go panka ditšhelete; kalatšo ya dialoga le kgodišo ya bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho; bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša mešongwana ye e itšeng tšeo di šupilwego tšeo di se nago dialoga tše mpsha tšeo di thapilwego ke dipanka; tlhahlo ye e lebanego go tša dipanka institušeneng ya ODeL (tebelelo ya borutegi) le maano a go tswalela sekgala seo. Dipoelo tša tshekatsheko yeo e phethagaditšwego go ditlakelo tša thuto tša tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho go tšwa yunibesithing ya ODeL di hlagišitšwe ka magoro a mane; Kakanyatshenyegelo, Bolaodi bja ditšhelete, Phetolelo ya datha go popego yeo e ka dirišwago ka go Tšhupamatlotlo le Tlhako ya Botsebi ya SAICA. Dipoelo di bontšha gore bathapi ba dipankeng ba amogela modiro wo o fihleletšwego ke diinstitušene tša thuto ya godingwana wa go fa baithuti bokgoni bja motheo bja tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho bjoo bo ba kgontšhago go thoma go šoma maemong a tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho dipankeng. Le ge go le bjalo, batšeakarolo dipankeng ba be ba tshwenywa ke go se kgone ga dialoga go tswalanya teori le tirišo ya ka mehla gape ba tiiša gore dialoga di hloka bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša mešongwana ye e itšeng. Dirutegi di tiišitše gore lenaneothuto la tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho ga e fe šedi ye ntši go dipanka le diintasteri tše dingwe tša tirelo ya ditšhelete; go go dirwago gagolo ke ditiro le dithutelo tša ditiragalo tše itšeng tšeo di sepelelanago le diintasteri tša tšweletšo. Tshekatsheko ya ditlakelo tša thuto tše di kgethetšwego baithuti di thekga ntlha ye le go šupa gore go na le ditiro tšeo e sego tše ntši tšeo di tswalanego le go direla dikhamphani le ditšhupetšo tše mmalwa go dipopego ka boikemelo bja tšona tša lekala la ditirelo tša ditšhelete. Batšeakarolo ba file ditšhišinyo tše mmalwa tšeo ka morago , gare ga tše dingwe, di akaretšago ditiro tša maleba le dithutelo go ditiragalo tše di bilego gona ka go lenaneothuto la tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho le go fana ka bogolwane gare ga intasteri ya go panka le diyunibesithi. Thutelo ye e na le seabe go sengwalwa ka ga maleba a dipanka go bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša mešongwana ye e itšeng tša tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho gapegape le go Lekala la Ditirelo tša Ditšhelete. E fa tshedimošo ka ga bokgoni le tsebo tšeo di nyakegago go phethagatša tshekatsheko ya matlotlo a kgwebo go thuša bolaodi go dira diphetho tšeo di hlaelago go dialoga. Mafelo a tlaleletšo ao a hlokago dinyakišišo tše dingwe le ona a šupilwe. / Finance, Risk Management and Banking / M. Ph. (Accounting Sciences)

The study was prompted mainly by the need for and possibility of collaboration or even mutual accreditation of practising chartered accountants and auditors in the countries of Southern Africa. In establishing common ground between these countries of Southern Africa it was found that the countries share not only geographical space but also strong and increasingly important trade links, movement of people between the countries and in some instances a common history, culture and language in the form of English. The current harmonisation process of accounting standards worldwide enhanced this process. A literature study was done emphasising South Africa as part of the Southern African region, with a special emphasis on accountancy education. An analysis of current international co-operation was done with special reference to the current international harmonisation process. As part ofthe background an analysis was done of the current status of the accountancy profession in each Southern African country. As this study was done from a South African perspective, the emphasis was on the views of members of the accounting profession in public practice with regard to greater cooperation in the region in the accountancy field. This was achieved by means of an empirical survey. It was found that the aforesaid professionals are overwhelmingly in support of greater cooperation in the region. They believe that it would enhance the status of individual accounting bodies worldwide~ that costs, information and infrastructure could be shared; and that it would enhance professionalism and improve service to clients. Specific areas were identified where co-operation could be improved, namely that academic training should be harmonised, practical tralning should be interchangeable and agreements should be reached with individual countries. Some concern was expressed that above all, control should be maintained over the standards of academic and practical education. It is recommended that the bodies governing the accountancy establishment in South Africa, especially the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Public Accountants' and Auditors' Board, should increase their current efforts to establish greater formal relations with other countries in the Southern African region. / Auditing / D. Compt. (Accounting Science)

South Africa is experiencing a financial skills shortage with a severe shortage of accountants and chartered accountants in particular. The aim of this study was to measure accessibility of public higher education in South Africa, in general and specifically relating to accountancy programmes with special emphasis on chartered accountancy programmes in South Africa, by making use of selected accessibility indicators. Although some of these indicators have been used to measure accessibility of higher education in general both locally and internationally, they are not often used to measure accessibility of a programme for a particular profession such as accountancy or chartered accountancy. This study aimed to fill this gap by measuring the selected accessibility indicators and providing subsequent rankings of the four public universities selected for this study. The results can be used by institutions that offer accountancy and chartered accountancy programmes as well as the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants, as the profession’s Education and Training Quality Assurance body, to evaluate the accessibility of accountancy as well as chartered accountancy programmes. / Financial Accounting / M. Compt. (Applied Accountancy)

The aim of the study was to investigate strategies that could be used to equip Grade 10 teachers to teach accounting effectively. The aim was addressed by conducting the relevant literature survey and an empirical investigation. A qualitative approach which was modeled on the interpretive perspective was used to explore challenges faced by accounting teachers and learners. Five schools were selected in the Johannesburg Ekurhuleni District. Here, three HODs and two Grade 10 teachers were interviewed and observed while teaching. Strong and weak Grade 10 learners from each school were interviewed. The data was analysed and findings presented. The findings revealed that Grades 8 and 9 lack accounting exposure due to 40% weighting on financial literacy on the syllabus which then causes problems in Grade 10 from both the teaching and learning perspectives. The main recommendations arising from this study are that the Department of Education must relook at the syllabus and involve teachers in the planning of the curriculum in order to bridge the gap between the syllabuses. Accounting teachers should use variety of learning and teaching strategies, and create a supportive effective classroom environment in order to increase the learner’s interest. / Further Teacher Education / M. Ed. (Didactics)

The study was necessitated by the fact that the throughput rates of accounting students studying at distance learning institutions in South Africa are disturbingly low when compared to students studying at residential universities. Bearing in mind the magnitude of the University of South Africa’s (Unisa’s) market share of accounting students in South Africa, it was pivotal to comprehend the unique challenges related to retention and throughput of these students. This thesis reports on a case study of the use of mobile phones in an Accounting module by applying the theories of didactic conversation and transactional distance to understand the retention and throughput rates of the Accounting students in an open distance learning (ODL) environment. Considering the landscape of accounting education in South Africa, the specific challenges faced by accounting students at Unisa and the recent scholarly discourse on retention and throughput of distance education students, this study contributes to the limited theoretical understanding of students’ retention and throughput rates in an Accounting module at Unisa. This theoretical understanding has been obtained through combining the transactional distance theory of Moore (1973) and the didactic conversation of Holmberg (1982) in a single conceptual framework. By applying this framework, this thesis makes an original contribution to the deepening understanding of the retention and throughput rates of accounting students in an ODL environment. The study has shown that retention and throughput rates can be improved through the lessening of the transactional distance between facilitator and student and by improving the quality and extent of the two-way didactic conversation in the learning process. To this effect, the study provided empirical evidence of the successful use of various complementing technology interventions, suitable for accounting students with time constraints, to enhance the learning process. / Management Accounting / D. Com.

The aim of the study was to investigate strategies that could be used to equip Grade 10 teachers to teach accounting effectively. The aim was addressed by conducting the relevant literature survey and an empirical investigation. A qualitative approach which was modeled on the interpretive perspective was used to explore challenges faced by accounting teachers and learners. Five schools were selected in the Johannesburg Ekurhuleni District. Here, three HODs and two Grade 10 teachers were interviewed and observed while teaching. Strong and weak Grade 10 learners from each school were interviewed. The data was analysed and findings presented. The findings revealed that Grades 8 and 9 lack accounting exposure due to 40% weighting on financial literacy on the syllabus which then causes problems in Grade 10 from both the teaching and learning perspectives. The main recommendations arising from this study are that the Department of Education must relook at the syllabus and involve teachers in the planning of the curriculum in order to bridge the gap between the syllabuses. Accounting teachers should use variety of learning and teaching strategies, and create a supportive effective classroom environment in order to increase the learner’s interest. / Further Teacher Education / M. Ed. (Didactics)

South Africa is experiencing a financial skills shortage with a severe shortage of accountants and chartered accountants in particular. The aim of this study was to measure accessibility of public higher education in South Africa, in general and specifically relating to accountancy programmes with special emphasis on chartered accountancy programmes in South Africa, by making use of selected accessibility indicators. Although some of these indicators have been used to measure accessibility of higher education in general both locally and internationally, they are not often used to measure accessibility of a programme for a particular profession such as accountancy or chartered accountancy. This study aimed to fill this gap by measuring the selected accessibility indicators and providing subsequent rankings of the four public universities selected for this study. The results can be used by institutions that offer accountancy and chartered accountancy programmes as well as the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants, as the profession’s Education and Training Quality Assurance body, to evaluate the accessibility of accountancy as well as chartered accountancy programmes. / Financial Accounting / M. Compt. (Applied Accountancy)

Online learning has grown exponentially within higher education in the past decade, especially at community colleges. As online course offerings expand community colleges need to assess student learning in order to ensure quality learning experiences for students and for accreditation purposes. The purpose of this study was to compare the assessment methods of community college faculty who teach the same course in both face-to-face and online formats, in order to determine the similarities and differences that exist in assessment practices. This study stemmed from the constructionist and pragmatic perspectives of the researcher. Additionally this study asked how community college faculty perceive the effectiveness of different assessment methods on student learning. The method for this research was a qualitative multiple case study in which community college accounting faculty were interviewed to explore how they assess student learning in both the online and face-to-face formats. Homework problems, exams, quizzes were the most commonly used methods of assessment of student learning in both formats by the study participants. Furthermore, exams and quizzes were believed to be most effective in assessing student learning, among the community college faculty members interviewed. Another discovery from this study included the prevalent use of publisher's software,called My Accounting Lab, among community college accounting faculty in administering assessments to students. Additional concerns around assessing online students effectively, managing online student group work, and mitigating online student cheating were also revealed during interviews with study participants. / Graduation date: 2013

The accounting profession continually has problems with hiring and keeping qualified staff; and many accounting scandals have shown a lack of ethical behavior on the part of Certified Public Accountants (CPA). This suggest a misfit between those in the profession and the ethics that the profession strives towards. Research has shown that the congruity of personal values with organizational values, person-organization fit (P-O fit), is an important factor in the hiring, socialization, and retention of employees. In addition, ethical behavior has been found related to P-O fit. Accounting educators have been called upon to address these problems by inculcating accounting students with the values of the accounting profession. This research firstly reports on the results of a comparison of the personal values of upper level accounting students in Georgia with the personal values of CPA leaders in Georgia. Personal value priorities were measured with the Rokeach Value Survey (RVS). The findings indicated that these samples of Georgia CPA leaders (N = 193) and accounting students (N = 516) significantly differed in the priority given to 24 of the 36 (66.7%) RVS values. This result suggests a lack of P-O fit between accounting students and the accounting profession. Secondly, this research reports on the effectiveness of two education interventions designed to improve the P-O fit of accounting students: a Curriculum Modification Intervention and a Value Self-Confrontation (VSC) Intervention. These education interventions were delivered online as part of the content of two distance learning classes on accounting ethics. The curriculum of both classes were augmented with content aimed at increasing the priority given to the value of courageous. The two classes were designated as either Group 1 or Group 2. Group 1 received only the Curriculum Modification Intervention. Group 2 received both the Curriculum Modification Intervention and the VSC Intervention, which was targeted at increasing the priority given to the four values of capable, courageous. honest, and responsible—values related to the Code of Professional Conduct and Bylaws (2012) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The results indicated that Group 1, from the beginning to the end of class (short-term value change), did not increase the priority given to courageous. Thus, the stand-alone Curriculum Modification Intervention did not result in the desired effect. Group 2, on the other hand, did increase the short-term priority given to all four of the targeted values. Moreover, Group 2 increased the long-term priority given to two of the four targeted values: capable and courageous. The higher priority given to these values at the end of class persisted for 15-16 weeks. The effect sizes indicated practical significance. These results suggest that the VSC Intervention was effective at inducing both short-term and long-term value change in the priority given to values of importance to the ethics of the accounting profession. These findings have implications for CPA firms, specifically with regard to hiring ethically “fitting” staff and fostering an ethical culture in accounting firms. The results of this research also provide input that may be helpful in improving accounting pedagogy, especially the pedagogy of accounting ethics education and distance education. Key words: person-organization fit, P-O fit, CPA firm turnover, personal values, value change, value self-confrontation, VSC, Rokeach Value Survey, RVS, Certified Public Accountant, CPA, ethics education, accounting students, online education, distance learning. / Business Management / D.B.L.