Friday, 10 June 2016

We are upgraded!

Hi Guys I will no longer post on this site as I have a brand new site on which I will post. Please visit Chartered Accountants in Training at www.cait.co.za . The site is brand new and will go through many changes in the next year.

Wednesday, 21 October 2015

The Class of 2015

Well done to the class of 2015 and the #feesmustfall movement. You are making a huge difference. Keep on fighting the good fight.

Monday, 29 December 2014

SUS1501 Sustainability and Greed

SUS1501 is a somewhat fun, but also very challenging module. The key success factors in this module is how well you put your thoughts on paper and handing in all the assignments (on time). You have to debate issues for which there are no correct answers. Be careful that you do not neglect your other subjects because you get caught up in this very time consuming module.

There is no exam or study guide for this module you will be divided into groups and you will have access to the discussion material online. Each assignment gives you a story of some sort to read and then there are some requirements that you have to meet.

I will give some tips, use them, don't use them. It is up to you.

General

1. DO NOT USE WIKIPEADIA! Everybody uses it, it's for lazy people! Use the online journals on MyUnisa (Sciencedirect and Academic Search Premier) for articles. Who do you think has better ideas on these topic? You an undergraduate student or a professor who publish their opinions in peer reviewed journals. What is boils down to is that you basically are not allowed to have ideas, everything you say has to be referenced from a source. Have a bibliography at the end of each assignment with at least 3 sources that you consulted.

2. Use the reference technique described in CBC1501 or Google the "Harvard referencing".

3. If somebody in the group makes a very academics statement that  just does not fit in with an undergraduate student, Google the phrases and post the reference so they can get zero. Do not plagiarise or tolerate plagiarism. Some people will copy their whole assignment from articles on the internet. Not fair if you take days to write your assignment and they just steal other people's work.

4. Write academically.

Introduction
"This assignment will investigate the benefits of online education. The following paragraphs will present a short history of online education followed by benefits and some drawbacks. A short case study will be discussed and finally a conclusion will be drawn"
Tell the reader what is going to follow, no ideas just yet.

Body consisting of three paragraphs (History, benefits and drawbacks, case study as mentioned in introduction).
(You will use sentence like)
Author A, states that there a three benefits . These benefits are also mentioned by author B and it is further stated that there are two other benefits especially to undergraduate studies. For online education to be successful it needs to adhere to the following model described by author C. A drawback of this model is that it does not consider people who are not as rich, as the model is based on ivy league schools (Author D)
(You have made the lecturer aware that you have read up and know what you are talking about. You did not state any of your own ideas, but used experts in the field to build your case. Nobody can say you are wrong because you have not stated anything, it is all theory. NOW VERY NB, apply the theory.)
In the given case study no mention is made of any of theses steps that describes a good online education module. The benefits stated by the various authors is evident in ....... One benefit mentioned is not clearly illustrated
(Basically present the theory from journal articles that you are going to use and then apply it to the case study given. Do it for every topic)
One of the more difficult aspects to get right is to make one paragraph flow logically to the next paragraph. At the end you must come to some point and draw a conclusion based on the facts in the paragraphs.

Conclusion
This essay/assignment investigated ... and it was discussed under the topics .....
(links with your intro and add a final thought)

5. Comment as much as you can on other students posts. If the assignment is so bad, do not dignify it with a comment.

Hi xxxx
I have to disagree with you this comment in your assignment "(quote it, because people will change their assignments and make you look stupid)" I think that....

I agree with on "…... " ,but do you not think that ,...... should also be considered.

(If someone chooses option A and you have B as your option, then there is a fundamental difference in the way you see things and this must then be debated. If you know you have a good argument stick to it, but if there is a huge hole and somebody points it out, acknowledge the mistake and try to correct it in you reply comment. It shows that you are learning. Some people will write garbage and then after you point it out to them the will attempt to justify the rubbish they wrote. Don't be like that.)

6 The headings of the paragraphs are closely linked to the question they ask or the words that has to be used. Putting the words in the heading forces you to address the relevant  issues.

7. Give them want. In the initial multiple choice questions there are no wrong answers, but in your portfolio you have to show that you had some change of heart (even if you did not) and change some answers. To show that your outlook and understanding of the world has developed in some way.

Assignment 1

Record your answers and keep them, you are going to use the answers in the portfolio that has to be handed in at the end of the semester. Make sure you keep to the deadlines.

Assignment 2

Read and reread the assignment and then read it again to make sure you understand it.
Answer all the questions.
Analysis of the act using Kant’s steps. If it fails a step, Kant would not agree with it.
Express your opinions clearly and make sure they are coherent and that it flows.
If you think it is acceptable then debate it with the people who said it is not acceptable. Use economic theory if you must, but get your point across.

Some points:
Salary is an incentive.
The gap between rich and poor (gini coefficient)
Some people might think you or a family member of yours earn more they can ever aspire to.
There are many ways to think about this assignment just make sure you can argue the point you want to make.

Assignment 3

Answer all the questions using the keywords
“Utilitarianism is a tradition in which actions are judged as good or bad based on the aggregate good or bad which that act would lead to.”

Assignment 4

What is the best option for me? (not the ethical or correct answer, be selfish)

Assignment 5 and 6

These assignments I will leave up to you to figure out. There are no correct answers just good and bad arguments. The module leader has a PhD in ecology so do not think you are going to fool him with some random argument. (His answer to this question is Why? He has a good argument for it too.)

Assignment 7
Be honest about your impact and what effect you have on the environment. Make sure you apply the theory correctly to this assignment. Read the study material again if you have to.

Assignment 8

Gecko argues that greed is good but he is very critical of the greedy managers. Have a look at assignment 6 and 7 and then think if greed is really good. If greed is good then rhinos have no place in this world (greedy poachers).
Distinguish between greed and self-interest (do not confuse the two).

Portfolio

These are just some ideas, again there is no right or wrong way. What matter most is the quality of your arguments.

Find journal articles to support your new views on the issues you changed your mind on. Keep writing academically and provide support for your views.

Use sentences like:
I changed my answer to X, the reason being.... Considering utilitarianism....
Present analysis on the various options and state why and how your opinion on each has changed or why it has not changed.
Conclude the portfolio with a final conclusion, stating the most important things you have learnt or realised and why it was a fascinating module for you. (Show personal growth).

The portfolio requires quite a lot of time to prepare. The portfolio is due just before the start of the exams so plan so you it does not interfere with you other exams. 





Monday, 22 December 2014

UNISA FAC1502 Study unit 1 and 2

Download the notes for FAC1502 study unit 1 and 2 HERE

Study unit 1 and 2 

What is accounting? 

Accounting is the process of identifying economic transactions, recording these transactions in monetary terms and then communication it to users.

How are the users? 

Investors:
What is the return of my investment going to be at what risk?
Should I buy, hold of sell these shares?
Employees:
Will the company be able to pay me?
Is this business going to be around for long period of time so I can build a career?
Creditors:
Can this business afford to repay me and the interest of the capital?
Management: 
How is the business doing?
What can I learn from the statements so that I can better manage the business?
Governments:
Are they paying the correct amount of tax?

Assumptions 

Two very important assumptions of accounting is the going concern assumption and the that the statements are produced on the accrual basis.
Going concern assumption assumes that the business will still be in business for the foreseeable future. During the next financial year assets will be used as intended to produce income and pay creditors as it becomes due.
Accrual basis means that income and expenses are recorded when the business enters into a transaction and not when the cash is received or paid.