Enhancing students’ understanding and performance in a distance-learning setting: evidence from an audit simulation at a GCC university

Nader Elsayed, Hazem Ramadan Ismael and Shahriar M. Saadullah

Accounting Research Journal, 2023, vol. 36, issue 1, 1-20

Abstract: Purpose - Drawing on experiential learning theory (ELT), this study aims to examine students’ performance and perceptions after performing an experiential learning activity (ELA) by completing a mini-audit simulation (AS) on the purchase and cash disbursement processes in a distance-learning environment at a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) university. Design/methodology/approach - Adopting a mixed-methods approach, we collected quantitative and qualitative data from 176 students using the grade centre on Blackboard and their responses to a semi-structured questionnaire. Findings - The pre-and post-simulation tests indicate significant improvement in students’ understanding and performance after performing the mini-AS. The students’ responses also provide robust evidence of student engagement, active participation and positive recognition of the AS’s value. Practical implications - This study has several implications: for the accounting education literature, how AS strengthens in-depth learning through the lens of ELT; for professional accounting bodies, informing the need to maximise the awareness and benefits of adopting simulations in accounting education and examination; and for educators, considering simulations in their ELAs to enhance student learning. Originality/value - This study introduces a new authentic mini-AS instrument that can be adapted to a distance-learning setting, adds to the very limited studies in AS using ELT, uses a mixed-methods approach and explores students who learn in an Arabic-speaking country.

Keywords: Audit simulation; Distance learning; Experiential learning; Student performance; Mixed-methods; GCC region (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:arjpps:arj-12-2021-0359

DOI: 10.1108/ARJ-12-2021-0359

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