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Welcome to GCSE Accounting. Accounting has become an essential part of business life, and the knowledge and skills that you will learn in your studies will give you a broader and more experienced view of business life.

The course has been written to match the AQA syllabus 3122. It is also largely suitable for other Accounting GCSE syllabuses. The AQA syllabus does not require coursework. Full details are given below.

Although this course has been specifically written for students studying Accounting for GCSE, the course can also be seen as a general introduction to Accounting. It can, therefore, be studied with advantage by students who are interested in obtaining a grounding in Accounting but who do not wish to take an examination.

This Introduction gives advice and guidance on many aspects of your studies, and you should keep it beside you for reference whenever you are working on the course.

The first few lessons concentrate on the book-keeping aspects of Accountancy, although it must be remembered that these are becoming less important compared to the accounting aspects as more and more companies use computers for their book-keeping. However, no accountant can hope to be good unless he has a firm understanding of the underlying principles and consequently these early lessons are of importance and must be studied in depth.

There has been some change of emphasis in recent examinations and examiners as well as requiring the production of standard accounts now expect students to show an awareness of the information contained in these accounts. Correction of errors and interpretation of accounts now form an important area of study even at this stage — understanding of what you are doing is therefore vital.

Currency figures in the course are all quoted in United Kingdom currency. The numbers have been kept deliberately simple, perhaps at the loss of being completely realistic in some places. This has been done in order to keep the mathematics and arithmetic as simple as possible. Hence the price of a new car might be quoted as being £10,000, whereas a more realistic price would be £9,995! Although this might make the accounts seem a little artificial, it does mean that the student will not be confused by too many figures.

The primary aim of this course, therefore, is to enable all students to obtain a thorough understanding of the principles of accounts and to enable those students working for an examination to pass it.

 

The course must be viewed as a complete entity of which the Self-Assessment Tests and Tutor-marked Assignments form an integral part:

At the end of each lesson, you will normally find a Self-Assessment (or ‘practice’) Test. As far as possible you should attempt these tests without referring to the lesson notes or textbooks, but when you find a question very difficult then make use of the lesson notes, books, etc., before referring to the specimen answers. A vital aspect of your studies is understanding the material. Never leave a lesson part understood — accountancy is a developing subject and lack of understanding will handicap your progress.

Your answers to the Self-Assessment Tests should NOT be sent to your tutor for assessment. They are to enable you to judge whether you have fully understood each lesson. If you find the Self-Assessment Test for any lesson impossible to complete, or you find that your answers bear little or no resemblance to those given, it is a sign that you have not understood that lesson. When this happens, you need to go through that lesson again, rereading any relevant sections from the textbook.

While Wood is in general an excellent text book for this level, there are a number of other text books which are equally good. You may find that a particular author is better for particular topics and the following list of books is given for this reason. It is not suggested that you need to read all or even any of the text books mentioned in the list but you may find some of them helpful if they can be borrowed from your local library.

Austin: Practical Accounting ...........McGraw-Hill.

Baston: Elements of Accounts ...........Cassell.

Johnson & Whittam: A Practical Foundation in Accounting......Allen & Unwin.

Miller: Objective Tests in the Principles of Accounts .......Hodder & Stoughton.

The AQA syllabus (or "specification") 3122 (set for the first time in 2003) is ideal for distance learners.

The Scheme of Assessment comprises two components/exam papers. Foundation candidates sit Papers 1 and 2. Higher candidates sit Papers 3 and 4. You do not need to decide at this stage which category you are in!

These papers consist of several short answer questions. All questions are compulsory.