Copyright 2011by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved.

School of Business

Course Syllabus
ACC/290
Principles of Accounting I
Course Start Date: November 3, 2011
Course End Date: December 8, 2011
Miami Learning Center
11410 NW 20 Street
Miami, FL 33172
(305) 428-4910
Thursday Evenings 6 PM to 10 PM
November 3, 2011
November 10, 2011
November 17, 2011
December 1, 2011
December 8, 2011
Please print a copy of this syllabus for handy reference.
Whenever there is a question about what assignments are due, please remember this syllabus is considered the ruling
document.
Copyright
University of Phoenix is a registered trademark of Apollo Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
Microsoft, Windows, and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other
countries. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of
these marks is not intended to imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation.
Final exams contain third-party copyrighted materials. Portions are:
Copyright 2011 University of Phoenix. All rights reserved.
Copyright 2011 Wiley & Sons. All rights reserved.

2
Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix editorial standards and practices.

Course Description

This course covers the fundamentals of financial accounting as well as the identification,
measurement, and reporting of the financial effects of economic events on an enterprise. Students
will learn to examine financial information from the perspective of management. Other topics
include decision-making, planning, and controlling from the perspective of a practicing manager.
Policies
Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies
contained within the following two documents:

University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document.
Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum.

University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class.
Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have
recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality.
Course Materials
Kimmel, P. D., Weygandt, J. J., & Kieso, D. E. (2011). Financial accounting: Tools for business decision
making (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
All electronic materials are available on the student website.

Week One: Basic Accounting Principles and Concepts

Details

Objectives

1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4

Readings

Read Ch. 13 of Financial Accounting.

Read this weeks Electronic Reserve Readings.

Participation,
Discussion
Questions, and/or
Quizzes

Participate in class discussions; respond to questions, and/or

quizzes.

Nongraded
Activities and
Preparation
Online Practice
Tutorial

Complete the Online Practice tutorial.

Due

Points

11/3/11

Identify the four basic financial statements.

Classify transactions using the rules of debit and credit.
Journalize basic transactions.
Post transactions from journals to ledgers.

Click the Online Practice for Students link on the student

website.
Log into the Online Practice system.
Your facilitator may provide you with a course code to

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register for your specific course section. The code is not
required to use the Online Practice system.
Complete the tutorial in Online Practice.
Note. Online Practice access for the ACC/290 and ACC/291 courses
is for a total of 15 weeks. If you have taken an extended break, or
withdrawn from ACC/290 or ACC/291 and are retaking the course,
you may find your access has expired. You are notified when you log
in and may be prompted to purchase additional access to Online
Practice. Please do not purchase Online Practice access for your 5week course, as the access is provided by the University of Phoenix
as part of your course. To have your access reinstated, contact
Online Practice support directly at support@aleks.com or call 714245-7191

Individual
Financial
Statements Paper

Write a 700- to 1,050-word paper in which you do the following:

11/3/11

Identify the four basic financial statements.

Describe the purpose of each of the four financial
statements.
Discuss how the financial statements would be useful to
internal users, such as to managers and employees.
Discuss how the financial statements would be useful to
external users, such as investors and creditors.
Format the paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Week Two: Starting the Accounting Cycle

Details

Objectives

2.1 Differentiate between accrual basis and cash basis accounting.

2.2 Create adjusting entries.
2.3 Prepare an adjusted trial balance.

Readings

Read Ch. 4 (Timing Issues & The Basics of Adjusting Entries

sections) of Financial Accounting.
Read this weeks Electronic Reserve Readings.

Participation,
Discussion
Questions, and/or
Quizzes

Participate in class discussions; respond to questions, and/or

quizzes.

Nongraded
Activities and
Preparation
Online Practice

Resources: Online Practice

Continue working on the T & FS and Journal Ent. sections of Online
Practice.

Individual

Resource: Ch. 3 of Financial Accounting

Complete Exercises E3-4 and E3-9.

Due

Points

11/10/11

11/10/11

10

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Week Two
Problems and
Exercises

Complete Problems 3-5A and 3-6A.

Submit as either a Microsoft Excel or Word document.

Learning Team
Learning Team
Reflection

Discuss the objectives for Week One. How do they relate to the
practice of accounting and its uses in business?

11/10/11

Due

Points

11/17/11

11/17/11

Identify the four basic financial statements.

Classify transactions using the rules of debit and credit.
Journalize basic transactions.
Discuss how financial statements would be useful to
external users such as investors and creditors.
Write a 350- to 500-word summary of your Learning Teams
discussion.

Week Three: Completing the Accounting Cycle

Details

Objectives

3.1 Prepare closing entries, reversing entries, and a post-closing

trial balance.
3.2 Prepare a classified income statement, retained earnings
statement, and balance sheet.

Readings

Read Ch. 4 (The Adjusted Trial Balance and Financial Statements to

Appendix 4A sections) of Financial Accounting.
Read Appendices AC of Financial Accounting.
Read this weeks Electronic Reserve Readings.

Participation,
Discussion
Questions, and/or
Quizzes

Participate in class discussions; respond to questions, and/or

quizzes.

Nongraded
Activities and
Preparation
Online Practice

Complete the T & FS and the Journal Ent. sections of Online

Practice.
Consider printing a copy of your progress report for your own
records.

Individual
Week Three
Problems and
Exercises

Resource: Ch. 4 of Financial Accounting

Complete Exercise BE4-1.
Complete Problems 4-2A and 4-3A.
Answer the following summary question: Commercial accounting
and generally accepted accounting principles, generally prescribe
the accrual basis of accounting over the cash basis. Describe both
bases of accounting and explain the differences.

Submit as either a Microsoft Excel or Word document

Learning Team
Learning Team
Reflection

Discuss the objectives for Week Two. What do you think will be the
most important of the skills learned when you are in an accounting
position?

11/17/11

Due

Points

12/1/11

Differentiate between accrual basis and cash basis

accounting.
Create adjusting entries.
Prepare an adjusted trial balance.
Write a 350- to 500-word summary of your Learning Teams
discussion.

Week Four: Inventory

Details

Objectives

4.1 Analyze the elements in the cost of goods sold calculation.

4.2 Record the transactions that involve the purchase and sale of
merchandise.
4.3 Calculate ending inventory value using the LIFO, FIFO, LCM,
and average cost methods.
4.4 Analyze the impact of inventory methods on net income or loss.

Readings

Read Ch. 5 & 6 of Financial Accounting.

Read this weeks Electronic Reserve Readings.

Participation,
Discussion
Questions, and/or
Quizzes

Participate in class discussions; respond to questions, and/or

quizzes.

Nongraded
Activities and
Preparation
Online Practice

Continue working on the Closing, Cash, and Merchand. sections of

Online Practice.

Individual
Week Four
Problem

Resource: Ch. 4 of Financial Accounting

Complete Problem 4-8A.
Submit as either a Microsoft Excel or Word document.

12/1/11

Learning Team
Learning Team
Reflection

Discuss the objectives for Week Three. How do they relate to the
practice of accounting and its uses in business?

12/1/11

Prepare closing entries, reversing entries, and a postclosing trial balance.

Prepare a financial statement worksheet.
Prepare a classified income statement, retained earnings

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statement, and balance sheet.
Write a 350- to 500-word summary of your Learning Teams
discussion.

Learning Team
Financial
Reporting
Problem, Part 1

Browse the Internet to acquire a copy of the most recent annual

report for a publicly traded company.
Analyze the information contained in the companys balance sheet
and income statement to answer the following questions:

12/1/11

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What are the companys total assets at the end of its most
recent annual reporting period? Why is this important?
What are the total assets at the end of the previous annual
reporting period?
How much cash and cash equivalents did the company
have at the end of its most recent annual reporting period?
What amount of accounts payable did the company have at
the end of its most recent annual reporting period?
What amount of accounts payable did the company have at
the end of the previous annual reporting period?
What are the companys net revenues for the last three
annual reporting periods?
What is the change in dollars in the companys net income
from its most recent annual reporting period to the previous
annual reporting period?
What are the companys total current assets at the end of its
most recent annual reporting period?
What are the total current assets at the end of the previous
annual reporting period?
What in the information above would be important to a
potential investor, employee, and so on?
Summarize the analysis in a 1,050-1,400 word paper in a Microsoft
Word document.
Include a copy of the companys balance sheet and income
statement.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Week Five: Internal Controls

Details

Due

Points

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Objectives

5.1 Summarize strengths and weaknesses of an internal control

system.
5.2 Recommend improvements to internal control systems.
5.3 Explain the effects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 on internal
controls.

Readings

Read Ch. 7 of Financial Accounting.

Read this weeks Electronic Reserve Readings.

Participation,
Discussion
Questions, and/or
Quizzes

Participate in class discussions; respond to questions, and/or

quizzes.

Nongraded
Activities and
Preparation
Online Practice

Complete the Closing, Cash, and Merchand. sections of Online

Practice.
Keep a copy of your progress report for your own records.

Individual
Final Examination

Resources: Financial Accounting: Tools for Business Decision

Making.
Click the link to the Final Examination on your student website
available from the end of Week Four through the end of Week Five.
Complete the Final Examination. You are allowed one attempt to
complete the exam, which is timed and must be completed in 3
hours. Results are auto graded and sent to your instructor.

12/8/11

12/8/11

15

12/8/11

12/8/11

Note. Final Examination questions are adapted from Financial

Accounting: Tools for Business Decision Making.

Individual
Week Five
Exercises

Resource: Ch. 57 of Financial Accounting

Complete Exercises BE51, BE52, BE6-5, BE6-7, and BE7-4, 7-5,
and 7-6.
Answer the following summary question: What is the role of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in relation to the types of internal
controls used by corporations such as those illustrated in Exercises
7-4, 7-5, and 7-6?
Submit as either a Microsoft Excel or Word document.

Learning Team
Learning Team
Reflection

Discuss the following:

In the wake of all the accounting scandals over the past
several years, how has the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002
affected the practice of accounting? What is the role of internal
controls in complying with SOX (2002)?
Write a 350- to 500-word summary of your Learning Teams
discussion.

Learning Team
Financial
Reporting
Problem, Part 2

Access the Internet to acquire a copy of the most recent annual

report for the publicly traded company used to complete the
Financial Reporting Problem, Part 1 assignment due in Week Four.

12/8/11

Analyze the information contained in the companys balance sheet

and income statement to answer the following questions:
Are the assets included under the companys current assets
listed in the proper order? Explain your answer.
How are the companys assets classified?
What are cash equivalents?
What are the companys total current liabilities at the end of
its most recent annual reporting period?
What are the companys total current liabilities at the end of
the previous annual reporting period?
Considering all the information you have gathered, why
might this information be important to potential creditors,
investors, and employees?
Summarize the analysis in a 1,050-1,400 word paper in a Microsoft
Word document.
Include a copy of the companys balance sheet and income
statement.
Format your paper and presentation consistent with APA guidelines.

Copyright
University of Phoenix is a registered trademark of Apollo Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
Microsoft, Windows, and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All
other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of these marks is not intended to
imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation.
Final exams contain third-party copyrighted materials. Portions are:
John Wiley & Sons 2011 All rights reserved.
Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix editorial standards and practices.

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