Transforming accounting education: A journey with real-world stories

Ever wonder how your first-year accounting course could be more engaging and relevant?

Thanks to the support from the Ako Aotearoa and UC funding - Dr Julia Wu from the UC Business School embarked on an exciting adventure with another two colleagues at UC (Associate Professor Erik Brogt and Dr Sascha Mueller), diving into the world of accounting education to explore the impact of using real-life case studies.

The journey begins

The teaching philosophy of Dr Wu is simple: make accounting come alive by tapping into students' curiosity and voices. To explore the power and use of case studies in the classroom, the three highly intelligent researchers dove into a sea of published case studies and gathered insights from fellow educators. 

What they found

Their journey led to a significant outcome – the development of a live case study using MYOB, which is a live accounting software provides tax, accounting and other business services to small and medium businesses. Imagine learning accounting by actually working with real-world tools. How excited it is! 

The impacts so far

While Dr Wu has successfully implemented this MYOB case study in two accounting courses in UC, she presented the findings of this project at the USA Small Business Association conference in 2020. The response after her presentations was overwhelming, with positive feedback on an initiative to improve accounting teaching and learning experience.

The impact didn't stop there. MYOB New Zealand took notice of this research project, and sought their insights. The research team thus shared their experience with the MYOB Melbourne office, and contributed to the 2021 Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand virtual conference as one of the panellists, strengthening the link between academia and the accounting industry.

With this project, the UC Business School shone as the Education Partner of the Year in 2019, and Dr Wu was honoured as the MYOB Educator of the Year in 2022. These recognitions highlight the growing collaboration between MYOB and UC, showcasing the commitment of UC Business School to advancing accounting education.

What's next?

Dr Wu’s exploration journey is now accessible to everyone. The MYOB project, a beacon of innovation, is freely available online for fellow educators.

This MYOB project is a living entity, evolving each year. Armed with valuable experiences, the next step for the research team is to create even more captivating case studies, ensuring accounting education remains dynamic and relevant.

Join the team in reshaping the way we teach and learn accounting - a journey where every story counts.

Related media

Small Businesses Run The World - MYOB

UC Business School named Education Partner of the Year at 2019 MYOB Partner Awards – University of Canterbury

Using complex case studies to teach law and accounting - AKO AOTEAROA

University of Canterbury’s Post - LinkedIn

UC Business School’s Post - LinkedIn

Outputs

Reports

Wu, Y., Brogt, E., & Mueller, S. (2019). Optimising complex case studies as teaching tools in accounting and law education. Research Report. Optimising complex case studies as teaching tools in accounting and law education » Ako Aotearoa.
 

Conference presentations

Wu, J. (2020). The MYOB project cloud-based accounting and making sense of financial data. In United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE). New Orleans, LA, United States.

Wu, J. (2020). Embedding accounting courses in entrepreneurship education. In United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE). New Orleans, LA, United States.

Wu, Y., Brogt, E., & Mueller, S. (2017). Optimising complex case studies as teaching tools in accounting and law education. In Ako Aotearoa 2017 Southern Hub Projects Colloquium. Christchurch.