Quality in senior high school accounting education in Ghana

Abstract

The issue of quality in the educational enterprise is of paramount interest to all stakeholders in education. Stakeholders in accounting education expend money, effort, time and other scarce resources that have alternative uses. However, once they have chosen accounting education over other competitive choices, there is need for them to get the satisfaction desired. This is the essence of assessing the quality in senior high school accounting education in Ghana to enable the stakeholders evaluate the investments they have made to guide future decisions and actions. The study was a descriptive survey that drew from both quantitative and qualitative methods of research. This involved the use of questionnaire, observation, vignette and documentary analysis. Only 159 accounting teachers and 2242 accounting students in public senior high schools offering accounting education in Ghana were involved in the study. These participants were drawn from Brong Ahafo, Northern, and Western Regions which were randomly selected from each of the three zones as in Southern (Central, Greater Accra, Volta and Western Regions), Middle (Ashanti, Brong Ahafo and Eastern Regions) and Northern (Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions). Descriptive and inferential statistics, content analysis, narratives and themes were used to analyse the resulting data.

The study found among other things that the quality in senior high school accounting education was poor. It was accordingly recommended that accounting teachers inspire enthusiasm in the delivery of cost accounting lessons. On their part, accounting students should disabuse their minds and erase the erroneous mentality that cost accounting is not interesting. School authorities should acknowledge and make provisions for continuous professional development to capacitate accounting teachers to holistically implement the entire curriculum to avoid the selective implementation. They should as well strengthen instructional monitoring and supervisions should be encouraged and strengthened. Other research should focus attention on extensive studies on the teaching and learning resources for accounting lessons delivery.