Student adoption of a non-traditional teaching method in accounting: How previous experience impedes willingness to change

Abstract

This research paper examines a new teaching method consisting of a real-life case study that is used in accountancy and its introduction at two universities. The research was conducted at universities that specialise in preparing students to become managers. The main focus of the study is to examine the different ways that students might accept the new teaching method. We consider the utilisation of an active form of teaching, as opposed to a passive form, which is the more prevalent form of teaching accountancy in the Czech Republic. Since the use of active forms of teaching brings a range of advantages, case studies are rarely used, so we were interested to see the students’ reaction. The research was conducted over two consecutive academic years and the main factors that were examined to assess the introduction of real-life case studies were country, gender and previous experience with accountancy education at secondary school. The results clearly show that men accept the new way of teaching better than women. Students with previous experience perceived case studies negatively. The results of the study indicate that when introducing changes to teaching, the need to introduce the changes must be appropriately clarified.