AICPA
Competency Assessment Site Is A Great Tool For Educators!
Educators
can access a great resource tool by visiting the Student Lounge section of the
Arkansas Society of CPAs website www.arcpa.org/Student/student,
then by clicking on the link to Educator’s
Competency Assessment Tool, or
by visiting www.aicpa-eca.org.
The
assessment tool is provided by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA).
The AICPA provides this resource to help educators integrate the
skills-based competencies needed by entry-level accounting professionals. These
competencies, defined within the AICPA Core Competency Framework Project, have
been derived from academic and professional competency models and have been
widely endorsed within the academic community. Created by educators for
educators, the evaluation and educational strategies resources on this site are
offered for your use and adaptation.
The
ECA site contains a LIBRARY that, in addition to the Core Competency Database
and Education Strategies, provides information and guidance on Evaluating
Competency Coverage and Assessing Student Performance.
To
assist you as you assess student performance and evaluate competency coverage in
your courses and programs, the ECA ORGANIZERS guide you through the process of
gathering, compiling and analyzing evidence and data so that you may document
your activities and progress in addressing the AICPA Core Competencies.
ASCPA Educators’ Conference Coming This Spring
May
17, 2004
ASCPA Conference Center - Little Rock
$50 Member / Non-Member Fee
8 CPE Credit Hours
The
Arkansas Society of CPAs will host its first Educators’ Conference this
spring, on May 17, 2004 at the ASCPA Conference Center in Little Rock AR.
The ASCPA Educators’ Conference will provide a forum for accounting
educators at Arkansas two and four year colleges and universities, to meet with
their peers to hear discussion on
current topics, future trends, teaching strategies and share ideas and concerns.
The
Educator’s Conference will be a great opportunity for educators as well as
accounting professionals, as it will serve as an information exchange to gain a
better understanding of accounting and business concepts needed to succeed in
the CPA profession.
Topics
will include: Overview of ASCPA Student Education Fund Scholarship Program,
Current Trends in Accounting, Implementation of Public Accounting Standards as a
Result of Sarbanes-Oxley, and How to Teach on the Topic of Fraud.
Cost
is just $55 for Members and Non-Members.
As with all ASCPA sponsored 8 hour CPE courses, lunch is provided! Watch
your mailbox for your personal invitation or visit the ASCPA website (www.arcpa.org)
for an online registration form, or contact the ASCPA at (501) 664-8739 or (800)
482-8739 in Arkansas for information.
Planning
To Sit For The New Computerized
CPA Exam?
The
last paper-and-pencil CPA Exam was held in the beginning of November, 2003.
On April 5, 2004, a new computerized version of the exam will be
available to CPA candidates throughout the country at more than 300 Prometric
Testing Centers. To assist future
CPAs with preparing for the examination’s new format, a tutorial and 34-page
bulletin have been developed. Read
below for information on how to access these tools and how they will benefit you
in your preparation to sit for the CPA Exam.
CPA
Exam Tutorial – Version 2
Now Online
The
Computer Based CPA Exam tutorial has been updated and is now available on the
CPA Exam web site at www.cpa-exam.org.
The tutorial is intended to familiarize candidates with the design and
operation of the computer-based exam, as well as review types of questions and
responses used in the computer-based CPA Exam.
This
revised version includes all the material found on the original tutorial, plus:
-
Updated graphics and functionality that reflect the exam's look and feel
-
Enhanced authoritative literature section
-
Buttons to control speed of tutorial
-
New segments on resource tabs and help
All
CPA Exam candidates are strongly encouraged to review this tutorial prior to
taking the computer-based examination. The
tutorial will not be available at exam test centers.
The tutorial does not cover actual examination
content and is not intended as a replacement for study practice materials.
CPA
Examination Candidate Bulletin
Is Here
Check
out the new Uniform CPA Examination Candidate Bulletin.
The Bulletin is only available online.
It may be accessed through www.cpa-exam.org
or
the Student Lounge section of the Arkansas Society of CPAs website: www.arcpa.org/Student/student.htm.
Printed copies will not be mailed or distributed to exam candidates.
To
view or download and print the Bulletin, go to: http://www.cpa-exam.org/cpa/bulletin/html.
Direct links to the bulletin are also on the www.cpa-exam.org
Homepage
under Latest
News
and Breaking
News.
This bulletin replaces the previous Information for Uniform CPA Examination Candidates booklet. The Bulletin provides all the basic information about the computerized CPA Examination that begins April 2004. This document will help candidates understand the changes to the examination and provide guidance on the overall CPA Examination process; how to apply to take the exam, scheduling and taking exam sections, and receiving grades.
2004
Robert Half Salary Guide
The
ASCPA has received copies of the 2004 Salary Guide from Robert Half Finance
& Accounting and Accountemps.
The
Salary Guide projects data on average starting salaries for accounting and
finance professionals throughout the United States.
The Salary Guide also includes information on the hiring outlook, a
public accounting overview, banking trends, interview questions, and salary
negotiations.
To
request your free
copy of the 2004 Salary Guide, contact Robin Harris at (501) 664-8739, or (800)
482-8739 in Arkansas, or e-mail a request to ascpa@arcpa.org.
Building
Your Presentation Skills
Most
people at some time or another feel some trepidation at the idea of delivering a
speech or presentation. Overcoming
this fear can boost your self-confidence, and be a key to career advancement.
Preparation
is critical to building your presentation skills.
The better prepared you are, the more confident you will feel.
The more confident you feel, the better you will be able to convey your
message in a relaxed, professional manner. Here
are some tips:
-
Rehearse - Practice presenting in front of friends or videotape your speech and play it back to see how it can be improved. Be familiar enough with the content so that you do not have to read entirely from your notes.
-
Slow down - Avoid speaking too quickly. Articulate words clearly so they are easily understood and take natural pauses.
-
Focus on your audience’s needs - Think about how you can be of service to your audience, and you will feel less threatened addressing them.
-
Use supporting materials - In addition to flip charts and handouts, take advantage of presentation software to create great visuals, including graphics and flip charts.
After you have given your presentation, ask for feedback from others whose opinion you value.
Remembering
What You Read
The
ability to retain information you read is not only a critical skill for
students, it is a talent that will serve you well into your professional career.
One
method for fully absorbing written information is SQ3R.
The SQ3R approach helps you create a good mental framework of a subject,
into which you can fit facts correctly, separating important information from
irrelevant data. It also prompts you
to use review techniques to fix the information in your mind.
The
acronym SQ3R stands for the five sequential techniques you should use to read:
·
Survey:
Survey the document: scan the contents, introduction, chapter
introductions and chapter summaries to pick up a shallow overview of the text.
Form an opinion of whether it will be of any help.
If it does not give you the information you want, discard it.
·
Question:
Make a note of any questions on the subject that come to mind, or particularly
interest you following your survey. Perhaps
scan the document again to see if any stand out.
These questions can be considered almost as study goals - understanding
the answers can help you to structure the information in your own mind.
Read:
Now read the document. Read through useful sections in detail, taking care to
understand all the points that are relevant.
In the case of some texts this reading may be very slow.
This will particularly be the case if there is a lot of dense and
complicated information. While you are reading, it can help to take notes in a
Mind Map format. A Mind Map is a
two-dimensional structured
diagram of the subject with linkages between related important points, as well
as the raw facts.
·
Recall:
Once you have read appropriate sections of the document, run through it in your
mind several times. Isolate the core facts or the essential processes behind the
subject, and then see how other information fits around them.
·
Review:
Once you have run through the exercise of recalling the information, you can
move on to the stage of reviewing it. This review can be by re-reading the
document, by expanding your notes, or by discussing the material with others.
A particularly effective method of reviewing information is to have to
teach it to someone else!
Source:
Mindtools.com