Using case studies in teaching Accounting - Auditing with the film False Assurance

Over the years, using case studies for teaching in Accounting - Auditing has become a suitable approach. It has been widely deployed by lecturers of the School of Accounting at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) to help students easily access a reality. Continuing to expand this modern method, recently, the School of Accounting has officially applied case studies in the form of the film False Assurance as a new learning material in teaching.

False Assurance is the first training film produced by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), translated into more than 20 different languages, and won many awards from organizations and associations in the training profession. The 38-minute film highlights the importance of professional ethics, professional skepticism, and the need for quality control and information questioning when operating organizations and businesses.

After signing a contract to receive the sponsorship of the right to use ICAEW's film False Assurance, on August 17, 2021, the UEH School of Accounting, in collaboration with ICAEW, co-organized the program "Training on the use of ICEAW False Assurance film in teaching Accounting - Auditing" for faculty members and accounting lecturers of Vinh Long campus.

Speaking at the opening of the program, Dr. Bui Quang Hung - UEH Vice President shared: “Associating the training program with professional organizations and the community is considered an important goal in realizing the sustainability of the training program and the university in general. The University's Leadership Members highly appreciate this activity of the School of Accounting with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) in particular and the international associations of professional organizations in general because these are important partners, helping the University enhance the practicality, globalization and integration in the training program. The film (the case study) is not only for one subject, but it must be approached in the direction of many subjects, with multi-disciplinary and multi-field approaches. Therefore, this training session is not only an introduction to the film, but also an opportunity for lecturers of the School of Accounting in all subjects to exchange practical experiences, skills, and methods of imparting knowledge to learners".

Dr. Bui Quang Hung - UEH Vice President delivered the opening speech

Ms. Dang Thi Mai Trang – Chief Representative of ICAEW Vietnam, emphasized: “ICEAW Vietnam wishes to deploy this film to universities in Vietnam so that lecturers have more tools to support the training more effectively and attractively. It uses information technology, images, and illustrative examples for students to approach reality through the lens of the film".

Ms. Dang Thi Mai Trang - Chief Representative of ICAEW VN shared about the film False Assurance

At the training session, under the guidance of Mr. Phan Vu Hoang, Deputy General Director of Deloitte Vietnam, the lecturers watched 2 turbulent years of a hypothetical company. Before the discussion, Mr. Hoang confided: “Every time I re-watch the film to prepare to share about it, I see a different angle about it. There are psychological and emotional problems in life besides accounting, finance, risk management, auditing, .... I believe that a film that carries "the breath of the times" like False Assurance is not only useful to practitioners but also extremely valuable to students. You may soon be exposed to the atmosphere, working environment and issues surrounding the work that it may take years for us to realize.”

Mr. Phan Vu Hoang led the discussion session which revolved around the film False Assurance

The film received a lot of positive feedback from the lecturers participating in the training session: an excellent script that brings attraction and excitement to the viewers; the film is the brainstorming screen that changes rapidly; the knots have not been removed until the last minute...

The most obvious thing is the excitement of the lecturers when discussing the use of film situations as learning materials. Compared with the traditional case method, this film case method has more advantages. Firstly, the film creates an opportunity for students to have an intuitive and vivid view of the reality of business activities of enterprises, thereby creating motivation and excitement for students in the learning process, helping students absorb the lesson better. Secondly, watching a film also helps students to follow real-time business practices, develop the ability to concentrate, and judge when observing the intertwined situations that arise continuously, at the same time perfecting soft skills, professional skills - things that are difficult for ordinary cases (descriptive passages) to convey fully. Thirdly, this learning material can be used for many subjects, thereby helping students see the relationship between subjects...

Currently, when online training plays a core role, it's even more appropriate to use a film resource like False Assurance in teaching, especially in blended or flipped classes. Lecturers will easily implement the principle of lesson design, ensuring the properties of combination, granularity, reusability, interoperability. Learners will have more initiative in arranging study time, have a freer environment to be creative and complete learning goals.

News, Photo: School of Accounting, Department of Marketing and Communication