ACC 260 Ethics in Professional Accounting

1. ACC 260 Ethics in Professional Accounting By: Frank J. Ball Sr.

2. Instructional Topic Students will review both previous and current ethical violation case studies and complete the course with a thorough knowledge of Pronouncements from the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and SEC as well as a complete understanding of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002. All aspects of due diligence and proficiency explicitly spelled out in the AICPA Statements on Auditing Standards are also covered.

3. Performance Based Objectives Students will identify and explain the "five" ethical violations in the case study using the 3-2-1 model with 100% accuracy. Students will answer in writing responses to the ethical questions posed and respond to four peer or instructor replies with no less than a proficient rating according to the rubric.

4. Key Discussion Topic • May 2012 FaceBook offers IPO (Initial Purchase Option) and takes their stock public. • FaceBook executives overstate their assets. • Morgan Stanley underwriters leak this information to KEY major investment brokerages and mutual fund managers. • FaceBook IPO drops from $38 per share at opening to $19.96 per share within 36 hours. • Thousands of individual investors lose hundreds to thousands of dollars due to this. • List the ethical violations that the underwriters committed in leaking the private information that caused the stock price to tumble. • List the ethical violations that FaceBook executives committed by overstating assets trying to drive up the opening bids during the Initial Purchase Option (IPO). • Students will look at this case study and several others and decide if these violations were just unethical or if someone committed an illegal act by the standards governed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

5. Instructional Strategy • Indirect Instruction mainly student-centered. • Forming Hypothesis • Investigation • Observation • Critical Thinking • Independent Study, fostering: • Initiative • Self-reliance • Self-improvement The instructor will arrange the learning environment, provide the support and resources. The instructor will peak the students’ interest and curiosity to generate critical thinking skills within the business world concerning ethical practices. The instructor will foster the students’ initiative with guidance, discussions and assignment feedback.

6. Formative Assessment Enter/Exit Assessment – Students will be asked at the beginning of the course to present their goals and expectations for the course. In week eight students will be asked to complete a brief assessment of what they received from the course and whetherthe course met their expectations. Weekly Journal – Students will keep a weekly journal where they will keep their hypotheses for the weekly case study. They will use a higher level of critical thinking to support their findings in the case study and record any questions they still may have about it. Case Study Discussion – Each week the instructor will present a different ethical case study. The instructor will ask a specific targeted question for discussion. Students will post writing responses to the ethical questions posed and respond to four peer or instructor replies with no less than a proficient rating according to the rubric.

7. References: AICPA Professional Standards Code of Conduct (provided online) Sarbanes-Oxley Act Section 404 (pdf copy provided by instructor) Case Studies all materials supported and provided by college library