Undergraduate accounting and finance students’ perception of an individualised assignment: an exploratory case study

Abstract

It is well documented that the impact of assessments on students’ learning is profound. There have been initiatives to incorporate innovative assessments in accounting and finance education to enhance students’ learning experience in various ways. However, there is limited research investigating whether and how the students’ learning experience is affected by individualising assessments (IAs). In this paper, we investigated students’ learning experience where the design of the summative assessment includes elements unique to each individual student in a finance module delivered to accounting and finance undergraduate students. We conducted phenomenological research using a focus group interview to explore this cohort’s collective and individual experiences. The results of the IA assessment used in the case study were analysed and found to be comparable with equivalent module outcomes. The focus group participants found the IA to be more challenging in terms of their skills to construct individualised tasks compared to the common tasks inherent in conventional written assignments that the students encountered when progressing an individualised assignment. Furthermore, students highlighted how effective IA was in helping them to develop a wider range of research and employability skills needed for their future study and employment prospects. Our analysis revealed the differential emotive experience that students have encountered in progressing their IAs. Our findings suggest accounting and finance educators who are contemplating designing and using IAs to ensure that students’ prior learning is sufficiently developed. We call for further research into the emotive implications of IAs on students’ learning experience.

Keywords:

• emotive implications
• individualised assignment
• phenomenological research
• students’ perception

Reviewing Editor:

• Sammy King Fai Hui, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Subjects:

• Finance
• Business, Management and Accounting
• Study Skills
• Higher Education

Disclosure Statement

There are no relevant financial or non-financial competing interests to report.

Table 1. Students’ performance comparison across equivalent level modules