Welcome to Financial Accounting (BA1A)

First Day Handout

Welcome to Financial Accounting at College of the Siskiyous!

During the Fall, 2008 semester, Financial Accounting (BA1A ) is a HYBRID course.

What's a hybrid course, you ask?

In a hybrid course, we combine the personal interaction of a classroom with the flexibility of online instruction.

Our class will meet in person on Mondays from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. in McCloud Hall 4-103 Weed Campus). Yes, it's true, our class will include, for many, the dinner hour! We will have a 20 minute break for students to grab a quick bite to eat. No food will be allowed in the classroom.

In addition, online interaction will take place throughout the week. The web site for this class is http://www.siskiyous.edu/class/ba1a/.

Your online time will be flexible. It will be your responsibility to complete certain assignments between the Monday class and Thursdays at midnight. Assignments will be submitted by email.

You should plan to allocate a total of 12-15 hours per week (including classroom time) to this class. A four unit class is truly a commitment...if you're up for the challenge, read on!

Instructor:

Shawn Eileen Abbott

530-938-5275 (Feel free to call me! I will check messages regularly and try to respond to your calls within 24 hours.)

Email: abbott@siskiyous.edu (Note this address - outside of class, email will be our primary means of communication.) I will check my e-mails Monday through Friday (excluding any school holidays) and respond to you within 24 hours. E-mails received after 11:00 on Fridays will not be answered until Monday morning. Plan your assignments accordingly!

Office Hours - Life Science 17, Weed Campus: (Once again, feel free to stop by! For those students who rarely find themselves on the Weed campus, take advantage of my office hours to reach me by telephone.)

TTh 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

M 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Advisories:

In order to succeed in this class, students will require skills consistent with the following:

Completion of Beginning Algebra (Math 54A/54B or Math 56 or equivalent)
Completion of English 52 or eligibility for English 1A
OA58 (Practical Accounting) is a prerequisite for this course. An OA58 Challenge Exam is available for students who have not completed OA58 but do have relevant backgrounds in accounting.
Familiarity with the Internet and computers in general (I strongly encourage you to read and reflect on the survival information for online classes, available at http://www.siskiyous.edu/tlc/Surveys/survive.htm).

In addition, all students in this course must have access to a computer with a CD drive; access to the Internet; be able to send and receive e-mail; and have a word processing program for preparation of assignments.

Required Text/Materials:

Financial & Managerial Accounting, 8th Edition, Needles, Powers & Crosson
Calculator (Nothing fancy is required. A basic calculator will do the job.)

Course Content:

This four-unit course provides an introduction to financial accounting. The primary goal of this course is to help students discover and understand the information available through financial statements. Through a study of the accounting cycle and financial statement preparation, students will encounter issues related to asset, liability and equity valuation, revenue and expense recognition, and cash flow.

Course Objectives:

Students will:

Develop an understanding of accounting's role in meeting the information needs of businesses, investors, creditors and regulatory agencies
Explore the different types of business entities and business transactions
Identify accounting transactions and record the transactions necessary to prepare financial statements
Analyze the elements included in the primary financial statements as well as the relationships among the financial statements
Discuss the uses and limitations of financial statements and related information
Understand the importance of an accounting information system, and its' design, in achieving desirable outcomes
Examine various ethical issues and their impact on the preparers and users of financial information
Have the opportunity to develop and improve communication, problem-solving and cooperative work skills

Grading:

In order to reinforce one of the objectives of this class (maintaining and understanding quantitative information for use in decision-making), students should keep track of their own points (or scores on assignments) throughout the course. As accounting students, let's practice what we preach. Accurately record your scores on assignments and assess your progress on an ongoing basis. Adjust your study habits as needed based on your analysis of your points. Seek help as needed. Proactively respond to the quantitative information you have regarding your status in the class. Please note that you will NOT be able to locate your grades (or scores on assignments) online. Keeping track of your grades is your responsibility.

The R & R (Research & Reinforcement) assignments will be due, by email, on THURSDAYS, no later than MIDNIGHT. All emails in this class should include BA1A in the subject line.

Points will be earned in the following manner:

12 In Class Quizzes - 10 points each; total value = 100 points (12 will be assigned - your TWO lowest scores will be dropped)
13 R & R activities - 15 points each; total value = 180 points (13 activities will be assigned - your lowest score will be dropped)
Midterm - 60 points
Group Project - 60 points
Final - 100 points

Total points available = 500 points

450 -500 points = A
400 -449 points = B
350 -399 points = C
300 -349 points = D
less than 300 points = F

Withdrawal and Late Work Policy:

Late assignments will not be accepted. Although a hybrid class does provide students with a great deal of flexibility, due dates are not flexible. Self-discipline and effective time-management are essential in order to ensure that you complete your assignments on time! Since computer access is needed in order to complete many of your assignments, waiting until the last minute to complete your work poses additional risks. The potential for technology problems should influence your time-management strategies.

Support Hour Requirement:

The support hour provides students with professional assistance, supplemental instruction and remediation opportunities to help improve student success. Supervised support is offered for reading, writing, math, information technology, computer competency, and other skills outside of our specific course content. During the semester, students will complete a variety of assignments related to this course that will necessitate the services available through the support hour. These tasks will include writing-lab consultation on college-level writing assignments; exploration of the course and text web sites; and the use of Excel software. In addition, students, through support hour resources, are encouraged to strengthen and expand their computer competency skills. Student use of the support hour will be assessed through the assignments outlined in the Grading section. Support hour resources are available (in person) at the Weed Campus in the Academic Success Center. In addition, students may use telephone, fax or email to tap into the professional assistance offered by the staff of the Academic Success Center.

Phone: (530) 938-5325
Fax: (530) 938-5228
E-Mail: writelab@siskiyous.edu

Withdrawal and Late Work Policy:

If you choose to drop this class, it is your responsibility to do so by September 12th or your academic record will ultimately reflect a W or F for this course.

Honesty:

Due to the online component of this class, many assignments (outside the classroom) will be open-book and open-notes. However, any form of dishonesty or plagiarism is unacceptable. If dishonest conduct occurs, a score of zero will be recorded for the relevant exam or assignment.

Special Assistance:

The many services available to students are detailed within the College Catalog. For further information, contact the Learning Services office at (530) 938-5297 (Weed Campus, Eddy Hall 1). If you feel that you need special assistance in this class, it is your responsibility to discuss it with me (by telephone, email or in person) within the first two weeks of class so that we can best accommodate your needs.