Culverhouse College of Commerce: AC210 Fall 2012

Course number and title: AC 210 Introduction to Accounting.
Course description: Introduction to accounting and financial reporting concepts and the use of accounting information in financial and managerial decisions.
Credit hours: Four hours, including a one-hour required lab. Prerequisites: EC 110.
Instructor: Lisa McKinney Office address: 364 Alston Hall
E-mail address: lmckinne@cba.ua.edu Phone number: 348-6679
Office hours: MW 9:30am – 11:00am. Other times by appointment.
Instructor: Dr. Xiaochuan (Kelly) Huang Office address: 361 Alston Hall
E-mail address: xhuang8@cba.ua.edu Phone number: 348-0577
Office hours: TR 1:00pm – 1:45pm & TR 3:30pm – 4:45pm. Other times by appointment.

Instructor: Kelsey Brasel Office address: 329 Bidgood Hall
E-mail address: krbrasel@crimson.ua.edu Phone number: 348-0150
Office hours: TR 11:00am – 12:15pm. Other times by appointment.

Instructor: Amanda Beck Office address: 329 Bidgood Hall
E-mail address: aebeck@cba.ua.edu Phone number: 348-0150
Office hours: MW 2:00pm - 3:15pm. Other times by appointment.

Required text: Phillips, Libby, and Libby, Fundamentals of Financial Accounting, 3rd edition, 2011, McGraw-Hill Irwin, hardcopy or loose-leaf option. Also, you will need a Pass Code for Connect, the online homework program that accompanies the text. A Pass Code for the online homework is only valid for one semester so you cannot purchase a used version of the Pass Code. Choose any combination of the following options:

ISBN 0077617096 Best value: Loose-leaf Binder Ready text with Connect Plus code (e-book included)
ISBN 0077269632 Connect Pass Code alone (no e-book included), if purchase used textbook in either hardcopy or loose-leaf version.
ISBN 0077269659 Connect Plus Pass Code (e-book included), if purchase used textbook in either hardcopy or loose-leaf version.
ISBN 0077398203 Hardcopy of textbook plus Connect Plus Pass Code (e-book included)
ISBN 0077344936 New hardcopy of textbook alone, no Pass Code.
ISBN 0077405175 Used loose-leaf binder of textbook alone, no Pass Code
Note that purchasing the Connect Plus code in connection with a hardcopy or looseleaf book will be more expensive because you will be purchasing two copies of the text: one hardcopy and one electronic in e-book format. (Plus option indicates inclusion of e-book). You do not need two copies for this course, but may purchase them if you wish to have both versions.

Connect Registration: When you are instructed to do so, you will go to the following URL listed below register the Connect Pass Code you purchased. Registration of the code is open beginning Wed 8/22/12. A video at this URL walks you through the registration process.
URL: http://connect.mcgraw-hill.com/class/ac210fall2012
Course objectives: This course introduces the concepts and terminology of accounting and financial reporting for modern business enterprises. The course will help you learn to analyze and interpret accounting information for use in making decisions about organizations. Upon completion of this course, you will be able to: 1. understand basic accounting concepts, 2. record basic accounting transactions, 3. understand the relationship between accounting information and business activities, 4. analyze the accounting reports of most businesses to assess how well they are performing, and 5. identify major strengths and weaknesses revealed by the reports.

Topical outline: • Business Decisions and Financial Accounting • Reporting Investing and Financing Results on the Balance Sheet • Reporting Operating Results on the Income Statement • Adjustments, Financial Statements, and Financial Results • Financial Reporting and Analysis • Internal Control and Financial Reporting for Cash and Merchandise Sales • Reporting and Interpreting Inventories and Cost of Goods Sold • Reporting and Interpreting Receivables, Bad Debt Expense, and Interest Revenue • Reporting and Interpreting Long-Lived Tangible and Intangible Assets • Reporting and Interpreting Liabilities • Reporting and Interpreting Stockholders' Equity • Reporting and Interpreting the Statement of Cash Flows

Use of E-Learning
The course requires that you check your E-Learning mail on a frequent basis. Various items will be posted on E-learning for you: the course syllabus, the assignment schedule, solutions to textbook homework problems, powerpoint slides, and other important documents. In addition, periodic class messages will be sent out, which may contain critical information about assignments or exam material. You are responsible for checking E-learning frequently during the week; you will be held responsible for announcements posted there. These announcements are often very critical.
Evaluation:
|Exam 1 |25% |
|Exam 2 |25% |
|Exam 3 |25% |
|Online Homework |10% |
|Quizzes & Lab Participation |15% |
|Total: |100% |

A grade of C minus or better is required by the College of Commerce and Business Administration for students planning to apply for admission to C&BA. Students in other majors should check with their departments to determine grade requirements. The following percentages are used to assign letter grades: A+, 97% and up; A, 93-96%; A-, 90-92%; B+, 87-89%; B, 83-86%; B-, 80-82%; C+, 77-79%; C, 73-76%; C-, 70-72%; D+, 67-69%; D, 63-66%; D-, 60-62%; and, below 60%, F.
If a grade of "F" is earned in a required course, the student must repeat the course and earn a passing grade in order to receive credit that will be applied to the requirements for the degree. Grades of "I" ("Incomplete") must be removed within 12 months of the end of the term in which they were awarded but prior to the student's graduation, or the grade of "I" will be changed to "F." The "I" may not be used as a means to re-enroll in a course during a subsequent semester. A grade of "I" may not be used to satisfy a prerequisite requirement.
Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend all classes and labs. “Attending” means being there promptly at the beginning of class (not 5 minutes late) and remaining for the entire class. In addition, while in class or lab, students are expected to show respect for the instructor and their classmates. It is highly recommended to attend class; grades are almost always significantly lower for those who do not attend class on a regular basis. Furthermore, students are responsible for all announcements, syllabus revisions, assignments, and any other material discussed in class meetings and/or communicated via E-Learning mail.
Office Hours: The instructor is available during office hours to deal with administrative issues, give guidance, and to answer specific questions about lecture, textbook, or problem material. If your instructor’s office hours conflict with your schedule, make an appointment via e-mail or phone.
All lab instructors/teaching assistants (“TA’s”) will also have office hours this semester. You may go to the office hours of your TA or any other AC210 TA, so you have 22 hours available to you each week. Office hours for all TA’s are posted on E-learning. The TA’s are not available to work your online homework for you; they are only permitted to assist you in working through a particular problem that you have already attempted.
Assignments: Assignments include (1) reading the textbook, (2) working assigned exercises and problems in the textbook, (3) reading introductory notes prior to each lecture section (called “Synchrosummaries”) (4) completing homework assignments on-line, and (5) preparing for quizzes.
(1) Chapters should be read in the textbook before an attempt is made to work textbook problems. It is critical that students keep up with reading assignments. Material in the course builds on itself. If you skip a step or fail to understand material in one chapter, you will find material in subsequent chapters very difficult to understand. Students who do not read the chapters thoroughly and repeatedly do not succeed in the course.

(2) Exercises and problems at the end of each chapter in the textbook should be completed as preparation for each day’s lecture. These assignments are not turned in but provide valuable practice in using the concepts and methods explained in the chapters. Solutions to the exercises and problems are available through E-Learning.
(3) Synchrosummaries: Prior to each lecture class, it is required that you review that chapter’s Synchrosummary. These are partially-completed class notes that will introduce the chapter and provide structure to that day’s lecture. These are posted in E-learning.
(4) Homework will be completed each week via the Connect online homework program. You will be given a set time frame in which to complete each homework assignment for each chapter. You must complete the assignment during this time frame under all circumstances.
You can complete the homework assignment from any computer that meets the system requirements (see http://connect.mcgraw-hill.com/connectweb/branding/en_US/default/html/support.html). You will be able to complete the assignments even if you are out-of-town for business, academic, athletic, or personal reasons. There are no make-up assignments or re-takes. Do not request that an assignment be made available to you outside of the time frame or that a make-up assignment be given; these requests will not be granted. Homework is due by 11:59pm on the due date set forth in the course schedule.
There will be TWO DROP homework assignments for every student; the lowest two homework grades will be dropped at the end of the semester in our grade book. It is strongly recommended that you save this opportunity to drop an assignment in the event of a possible illness or any other circumstance which requires you to miss the assignment. If you miss more than two assignments for ANY REASON (illness, overslept, family emergency, family death, University event, personal crisis, flat tire/car accident), you will only be able to drop two of the missed assignments. There are no exceptions to this policy. If you do not purchase the Connect code in time to complete the first assignment, that will constitute one of your two drops.
However, because a generous time frame will be given to complete each assignment, you should only run into this circumstance in extreme situations (e.g., extremely severe illness or accident) which would merit consideration of dropping the course itself. Waiting until the last couple hours before an assignment is due to begin the assignment is your decision and is done at your own risk; if your computer fails or other circumstances occur which do not allow you to complete the assignment, you will not be allowed a re-take or be given extended time. If you choose to use your drops because you simply choose not to do an assignment one week and you encounter an emergency situation for a subsequent assignment, you will not be given extended time to complete the subsequent assignment. It is strongly recommended you save your drops for an emergency situation or technical problem.
Prior to and subsequent to the due date for the homework assignment, you will be able to use the homework assignment to practice for the quiz and exam. Each attempt on the homework you undertake will include new versions of previous questions and/or entirely new questions with new numbers and facts; it is an algorithmic program with a bank of questions from which to choose. No two attempts will be exactly alike. Because your best score is taken as your final score, you can complete the assignments as many times as you wish. If you score higher prior to the due date, your higher score will replace your best score, which will become your final score for the assignment. If you score higher after the due date, your original best score at the time the assignment was due will remain as your score. If you score lower prior to or after the due date of the assignment, your grade on the assignment will not be affected. The sole purpose of the homework assignments is to learn the material as preparation for quizzes and exams.
(5) Quizzes will be given in lab. Quizzes are based on the on-line homework problems, the textbook homework problems, and the conceptual lecture material from the text. The quizzes will be in multiple choice format. The dates and material covered for each quiz are set forth in the assignment schedule. The content of each quiz will be announced in class and posted in E-learning at the beginning of the week for that quiz or earlier.
There are no make-up quizzes; do not request make-ups even if you have an “excused” reason. There will be TWO DROP quizzes for every student; the lowest two quiz grades will be dropped at the end of the semester. It is strongly recommended that you save this opportunity to drop a quiz in the event of a possible illness or any other circumstance which requires you to miss the quiz. If you miss more than two quizzes for ANY REASON (illness, overslept, family emergency, family death, University event, personal crisis, flat tire/car accident, etc.), you will only be able to drop two of the quizzes. In this event, you should consider dropping the course as you will have missed a significant portion of the semester. In addition, you must take the quiz in your own lab section. There are no exceptions to these policies.
The quiz will be given at the beginning of each lab; the remainder of the lab period will be used to work problems and analyze specific concepts from that week’s lecture material. The participation component of the “Quizzes and Participation” portion of your grade will be determined based on your participation in lab immediately following the quiz. Each quiz will count as 80 points of a total 100 assigned to that lab class. The remaining 20 points for the class will be based on your attendance and participation in lab. If you leave immediately following the quiz or during the subsequent lab time (even 5 minutes early), 20 points will be deducted from your score for that day automatically. Deductions will also be taken for any of the following activities during lab: sleeping or napping, texting or other use of cell phone or PDA, use of iPod through earphones, excessive talking, or similar behavior. You must take your quiz in your lab section or you will receive a zero for the quiz and participation points; there are no exceptions. Lab is a required part of this course and you must attend the lab for which you are registered.
Your overall quiz score reported in E-learning for the quiz will be reported as a total, consisting of the two components added together: hardcopy quiz score (maximum of 80) plus lab participation score (maximum of 20). As with drop quizzes, no excuses will be accepted for lab participation.
Extra Credit: For each of the 3 exams, you will be able to earn a maximum of 4 bonus points to your exam score (out of 100). You will be able to earn 4 bonus points for Exam 1 if you complete the LearnSmart study modules for chapters 1-4 in Connect. Four bonus points for Exam 2 will be available for completing LearnSmart study modules for chapters 5-8. Four bonus points for Exam 3 (the final exam) will be available for completing LearnSmart study modules for chapters 9-12. For each exam, you will earn 1 bonus point for each of the 4 chapters you complete; no points will be given for partial completion of any module. For example, if you complete 100% of Chapter 1, 80% of Chapter 2, 100% of Chapter 3, and 90% of Chapter 4, you will earn 2 bonus points to add to your score for Exam 1 (out of 100). Exam 1 modules for chapters 1-4 will be available for completion on 8/22/12 8:00am and due by 9/27/12 11:59pm. Exam 2 modules for chapters 5-8 will be available for completion on 9/28/12 8:00am and due by 11/1/12 11:59pm. Exam 3 modules for chapters 9-12 will be available for completion on 11/2/12 8:00am and due by 12/7/12 11:59pm. It has been estimated that each chapter will take between 30-60 minutes to complete (average time ranging from 40-50 minutes).
LearnSmart is a study product, the goal of which is to help you learn the topics presented in each assignment. LearnSmart will ask you a series of questions that will adapt to your strengths and weaknesses to guide you through the material you need to learn. By answering questions correctly, you work towards completing your assignment. However, you are not penalized for getting a question wrong. You will be given the opportunity to answer a question on the same topic later in your study session. If you are willing to put in the time, you can always achieve 100% completion on your assignments.
Research has shown that you need to repeat the same material several times to really learn it. LearnSmart encourages you to return to topics to study them again. You may see topics that you got wrong yesterday again today when you are working to complete your assignment. You may return to assignments you have already finished to refresh some of the harder material. You can also review your performance in the reports to see which modules and sections were most challenging and make practice quizzes. Please refer to the FAQ at http://www.mhlearnsmart.com/einsteinmt/help/FAQ.html for any questions about the product.
Exams: Exams will be administered during lecture time. You have 75 minutes to complete each exam, including the final exam. You must take your exam in your lecture section or you will receive a zero; this includes the final exam, so make travel arrangements accordingly. The final exam schedule is posted at http://registrar.ua.edu/exam/.
The exams will consist of multiple choice questions. The problems will be based on on-line homework problems, textbook homework problems, quizzes given in lab, and the conceptual lecture material from the text. You must read the chapters, work the textbook problems assigned and/or reviewed in class – “assignments” posted for each chapter on E-learning, and attend class to succeed. You must read the chapters thoroughly and repeatedly.
There are no make-up exams, except in very extreme circumstances. Contact your instructor immediately if you run into an emergency. If you fail to contact your instructor by the day of the exam, you may be denied the opportunity to take a make-up exam. If you are granted a make-up exam, you will receive a different exam than the original exam, which may include short answer or essay questions, in addition to multiple choice and problems. You will also be given a date and time to take the make-up exam in a proctored environment; this time will be within 2 school days of the missed exam unless you are hospitalized. (A missed exam on a Thursday will be made up on the following Monday.)
No student will be allowed to leave the classroom while an exam is in progress. In addition, only nonprogrammable calculators can be used during the exams and quizzes. This precludes the use of programmable calculators (i.e., TI 85, etc.), cell phones, PDAs or any other electronic devices where text can be stored. You must bring your ACT card, a pencil, and an acceptable calculator to all exams.
The University of Alabama Policies • Academic Honor Code: The Academic Honor Code appears on the back page of the registration worksheet used by each student during registration periods. Students are required to read and sign the honor code. You can find more information on the Academic Honor Code in the Student Handbook: http://www.studenthandbook.ua.edu/. • Academic Honesty Policy: All acts of dishonesty in work constitute academic misconduct. This includes, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, fabrication of information, and abetting any of the above. Plagiarism involves copying the words of any work published by another person, including text on the internet, and presenting that work as your own. Any assignment committing plagiarism or other academic misconduct will be assigned a grade of zero with no opportunity to repeat the assignment. The Code of Academic Conduct and Academic Misconduct Disciplinary Procedures will be followed in the event that academic misconduct occurs. Students should refer to the Student Handbook: http://www.studenthandbook.ua.edu/.

Reasonable Accommodations: In keeping with its mission and in accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, The University of Alabama is committed to providing persons with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from all programs and services conducted or sponsored by the University. Inquiries concerning ADA requirements and compliance may be directed to Ms. Gwendolyn Hood, 171 Rose Administration Building. If you need special assistance, please talk with your instructor and/or Dr. Olivia Kendrick, 101 Doster Hall, 205-348-6150. To request disability accommodations, please contact the Office of Disability Services at 348-4285. It is the student’s responsibility to make arrangements for accommodations on a timely basis. Special arrangements for exams must be made at least one week prior to the exam date. Due to limited space available in ODS, it is highly recommended that you make your reservations for all exams, including the final exam, at the beginning of the semester.
Severe Weather Protocol: In the case of a tornado warning (tornado has been sighted or detected by radar, sirens activated), all university activities are automatically suspended, including all classes and laboratories. If you are in a building, please move immediately to the lowest level and toward the center of the building away from windows (interior classrooms, offices, or corridors) and remain there until the tornado warning has expired. Classes in session when the tornado warning is issued can resume immediately after the warning has expired at the discretion of the instructor. Classes that have not yet begun will resume 30 minutes after the tornado warning has expired provided at least half of the class period remains.
UA is a residential campus with many students living on or near campus. In general classes will remain in session until the National Weather Service issues safety warnings for the city of Tuscaloosa. Clearly, some students and faculty commute from adjacent counties. These counties may experience weather related problems not encountered in Tuscaloosa. Individuals should follow the advice of the National Weather Service for that area taking the necessary precautions to ensure personal safety. Whenever the National Weather Service and the Emergency Management Agency issue a warning, people in the path of the storm (tornado or severe thunderstorm) should take immediate life saving actions.
When West Alabama is under a severe weather advisory, conditions can change rapidly. It is imperative to get to where you can receive information from the National Weather Service and to follow the instructions provided. Personal safety should dictate the actions that faculty, staff and students take.