Johns Hopkins University
Financial Accounting (660.203.11)
Summer 2012 Term I
Date/Time:
MWTh 9:00am – 11:45am
Instructor:
Lawrence Aronhime
Contact Information:
104 Whitehead Hall
Aronhime@jhu.edu
Office hours: Mon, Wed, Thu noon – 1:00pm
Course Description:
This course is designed for the non-accountant manager who will be called upon to
demonstrate a practical working knowledge of financial accounting practices in order
to analyze financial statement information and make effective management decisions
for an organization. No prior accounting knowledge or skill is required for successful
completion of this course.
Because accounting is described as the language of business, this course emphasizes
the vocabulary, methods, and processes by which all business transactions are
communicated. The accounting cycle, basic business transactions, internal controls,
and preparation and understanding of financial statements including balance sheets,
statements of income and cash flows are covered.
Required Materials:
Financial Accounting by Thomas R. Dyckman and Glenn M. Pfeiffer, 3rd edition
(ISBN-13: 978-1-934319-60-4)
Course Objectives:
This course seeks to provide the undergraduate business student with a foundation
in financial accounting. Upon completion of this course, the student will be fully capable
of analyzing basic financial statements. Specifically, a student who successfully
completes this course should be capable of analyzing:








business transactions for proper accounting,
the accounting cycle,
elements of profit and loss,
financial assets,
inventories,
plant assets,
liabilities,
changes in equity and cash flows
1
Johns Hopkins University
Financial Accounting (660.203.11)
Summer 2012 Term I
Student Responsibilities:
This is a rigorous course. At a minimum, prior to each class session, students are
expected to have read the assigned chapters and attempt the exercises and issues for
discussion. It is imperative that all assignments and readings by completed prior to
class.
Students are expected to take all examinations and to complete all assignments on the
required dates. Make-up exams may be arranged only at the discretion of the
instructor and the Department.
It is the responsibility of the student to obtain notes and assignments from colleagues
for any classes that were missed.
Group size cannot exceed two without permission of the instructor.
No Senior Options will be offered.
Evaluations:
A
90-100
B
80-89
C
70-79
Plusses and minuses will be used at the discretion of the instructor.
Assignments:
Midterm Examination 1
Midterm Examination 2
Final Examination
Cases/ Homework/ Quizzes
20%
20%
40%
20%
All exams are cumulative.
One sheet of paper hand-written is allowed for each exam.
Cases are assigned according to the attached schedule.
Cases must be submitted in hard copy on time, without exception.
2
Johns Hopkins University
Financial Accounting (660.203.11)
Summer 2012 Term I
Cases:
During a case course, you may find it hard to measure how much you are learning from
the cases. This contrasts with lecture and/or problem courses where experience has given
you an intuitive feeling for how well you are acquiring substantive knowledge of
theoretical concepts, problem-solving techniques and institutional practices. But in a
case course where analytical ability and the skill of making sound judgments are less
apparent, you may lack a sense of solid accomplishment, at least at first. Admittedly,
additions to one’s managerial skills and powers of diagnosis are not as noticeable or as
tangible as a binder full of lecture notes. But this does not mean they are any less real or
that you are making any less progress in learning how to be a manager.
In the process of searching for solutions, very likely you will find that you have acquired
a considerable knowledge about types of organizations, the nature of various businesses
and the range of management practices. Moreover, you will be gaining a better grasp of
how to evaluate risk and cope with the uncertainties of enterprise. Likewise, you will
develop a sharper appreciation of the common and the unique aspects of managerial
encounters. Such is the essence of management, and learning through the case method is
no less an achievement. If throughout the course you can remain open to the diverse
views found in your community of students while developing your own skills of critical
reasoning and decision making, your learning will climb to heights accessible to a select
few.
Excerpted from "Case Preparation for the Beginner: A Nudge Toward an Open Door",
written by Associate Professor William F. Crittenden of Northeastern University, Jan.
1998, p. 41 .
3
Johns Hopkins University
Financial Accounting (660.203.11)
Summer 2012 Term I
Day
Date
Subject
Ch.
5/30
Wed
Introduction to Financial
Statements
1, 2
Exercises
Problems
P1: 35, 41
C1: 45
5/31
Thu
Constructing Financial
Statements
Adjusting Accounts
6/4
Mon
Cash Flows
6/6
Wed
Review
6/7
Thu
Midterm 1
6/11
Mon
Interpreting Financial
Statements
5
M5: 14, 15, 22
E5: 26
P5: 36, 41
Revenue and
Receivables
6
P6: 40, 43
C6: 48
7
M6: 13, 14, 15, 18, 20, 23,
24
E6: 26-34
M7: 17, 18, 19
E7: 26, 28, 29, 30
M8: 12, 13, 14, 19
E8: 22, 23, 24, 30, 31, 32,
35
M9: 17, 18, 19, 20, 23, 24
E9: 36, 37, 39, 41
M10: 12, 13, 15, 16
E10: 23, 24, 25, 28
M11: 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
E11: 39, 42, 47, 50, 51
P9: 51, 52, 55, 59
3
4
6/13
Wed
6/14
Thu
Cost of Goods Sold and
Inventory
Fixed Assets
6/18
Mon
Midterm 2
6/20
Wed
Liabilities
9
6/21
Thu
10
6/25
Mon
Leases, Pensions, and
Income Taxes
Stockholders’ Equity
6/27
Wed
Review Session
6/28
Thu
Final Exam
8
11
M2: 18, 22, 25
E2: 38, 42, 44
M3: 21, 24
E3: 32, 35
M4: 22, 26, 28
E4: 34, 35, 39
P2: 55, 56, 61, 65
C2: 69
P3: 40, 41, 43, 54
C3: 56
P4: 46, 48
C4: 57
P7: 33, 34
C7: 38
P8: 36, 37, 39
C8; 40, 42
P10: 33, 34, 35,
36, 37, 40, 41, 42
P11: 55, 59
The instructor reserves the right to change topics, readings, cases, and assignments in
order to further appropriate course outcomes.
4