《 人生價值 》

有一個出家弟子跑去請教一位很有智慧的師父，他跟在師父的身邊，天天問同樣的問題：「師父啊，什麼是人生真正的價值？」問得師父煩透了。
有一天，師父從房間拿出一塊石頭，對他說：「你把這塊石頭，拿到市場去賣，但不要真的賣掉，只要有人出價就好了，看看市場的人，出多少錢買這塊石頭？」弟 子就帶著石頭到市場，有的人說這塊石頭很大，很好看，就出價兩塊錢；有人說這塊石頭，可以做稱鉈，出價十塊錢；結果大 家七嘴八舌，最高也只出到十塊錢。弟子很開心的回去，告訴師父：「這塊沒用的石頭，還可以賣到十塊錢，真該把它賣了。」
師父說：「先不要賣，再把它拿去黃金市場賣賣看，也不要真的賣掉。」弟子就把這石頭，拿去黃金市場賣，一開始就有人出價一千塊，第二個人出一萬塊，最後被出到十萬元。

弟子興沖沖跑回去，向師父報告這不可思議的結果。
師父對他說：「把石頭拿去最貴、最高級的珠寶商場去估價。」
弟子就去了。第一個人開價就是十萬，但他不賣，於是二十萬，三十萬，一直加到後來對方生氣了，要他自己出價。他對買家說，師父不許他賣，就把石頭帶了回去，對師父說：「這塊石頭居然被出價到數十萬。」
師父說：「是呀！我現在不能教你人生的價值，因為你一直在用市場的眼光在看待你的人生。人生的價值，應該是一個人心中，先有了最好的珠寶商的眼光，才可以看到真正的人生價值。」

我們的價值，不在於外面的評價，而是在我們給自己的定價。我們每一個人的價值，都是絕對的。堅持自己崇高的價值，接納自己，磨勵自己。給自己成長的空間，我們每個人都能成為「無價之寶」。

工作就像雕一座冰宮，在燈光照耀下，五彩繽紛、光耀奪目，但水晶冰宮最後總會融化。專心從事工作，是非常好的，但是如果心情太過沈重，就會很累、壓力很 大，所以，要用雕冰的心情，輕鬆愉快地完成，不要太執著、太認真，但是要用心雕刻。工作時用心、認真，但不必執著其結果。

***************************************************************************
We should find our value ourselves,when we recognised who are we,then people recognised us as what we bahave and act,therefore finding our own value is important,we exist in this world,so we need to just keep going on searching ourselves and make ourselves precious in our own eye and others eye,i think we need to give ourselves recognition before we expecting others giving us.

Just talk to a girl who wants and decided to study ACCA after her degree in local university which she think she doesn't like what she studied before,but her brother's friends who is an ACCA Affiliate just start pouring cold water on her,told her that don't bother to try coz ACCA is very difficult,how come they just simply do that without giving people a chance to try......

When we decided something and we think it is appropriate,we should just try and go for it,we decide our own destiny and also we choose our own life...

Life is unpredictable!

生命奋斗中最让人刻骨铭心的是遇上困难的时刻，
就犹如晴和的日子里，
突然间吹来了满天的乌云，
突然间来了一阵狂风暴雨，唏哩哗啦的，
打破了人的计划以及生活流程，
然而，当着风雨到来时，
总不能说避开就算数，
风雨会有它的影响，后果，
喜欢不喜欢，总要去面对它，
感受它所带来的冲击，
只要肯坦然的去面对，应变，
再大的风雨总还是会过去，
人生的困难也是这样，
不管它来得多么出乎我们的意料之外，
不管它怎样阻碍着我们的前进，
它总会过去的，
信念要坚强，不可熄灭。

**********************************************************************

Sometime life is just unpredictable,when you think all the problems are settled,
then unexpectedly other problem will come after you,and things won't stop there,
you need to face it,you need to accept it and you need to handle it well......
problem just can't solve itself,you need to solve it and don't let it affect you anymore.
Yes,everything will be over,just giving it and yourself enough time,then you will be fine.
Determination must be strong and we must stay strong.I hope i can handle it and i know
i can.Wish me good luck!

ACCA June 06 Exam Tips

Dear Friends,

The following are the tips that i get from the net and summarized it. However i wish you to take note that all the tips are based on the lecturer's best guess, it is just used for reference and should not be over-concentrated and over-relied.

Finally,accept my greatest wishes in your coming exam and wish that everyone of you pass the papers!

Ching

WARNING: Tips are no substitute for revision!

June 2006 Exam Tips

Paper 1.3 Managing People

• Read examiner’s latest article “Management and Supervision”
• Role of Management/Supervisor
• Recruitment and Selection – a question in every previous exam to date
• Motivation and Leadership
• Effective Communication Practices -counselling
• Authority, responsibility and delegation
• Classical and modern theories of management
• Objective setting; performance indicators; Management by Objectives
• Individual, Groups and Team behaviour
• Training and Development
• Management of Diversity/Equal Opportunities

Paper 2.1 IS

Managing information systems

· Business Strategy and IS/IT alignment

· Delivering information systems – accounting issues

· Project initiation – Project Manager roles and responsibilities

· Project planning – Gantt charts

· Outsourcing

· Legacy systems

· Terms of reference

· Staff roles and responsibilities

Designing information systems

· The information systems development process – Waterfall and Spiral models

· Modelling user requirements – entity life history

· Software package selection – ITT

· External design – User friendly systems,prototyping ,data capture,4GL

· Modelling: business process model; business event model

· Invitation to tender

Evaluating information systems

· Technical IS requirements – Housekeeping and audit trails

· Implementation issues and implementation methods

· Quality assurance in the management and development process – V model

· Relationship of development processes and quality

· Security: physical security; passwords; validation; encryption

· Changeover methods

· Maintenance

ACCA 2.4 Financial Management and Control

· Investment Appraisal; NPV to include tax and inflation, other methods of appraisal (possibly IRR) and possibly capital rationing

· Sources of finance

· Performance measures

· Working capital (probably stock management but possibly debtor management)

· Modern costing techniques

· Sensitivity analysis, risk and uncertainty

· Long term finance and gearing

· Budgeting

· Variance analysis – possibly to include mix and yield variances

ACCA Paper 2.5

Q1:Consolidated balance sheet and/or income statement with one subsidiary and possibly an associate or joint venture.

-adjustments fair values, unrealised profit on inventories or tangible assets, cancellation of intragroup trading, goods/cash in transit, pre-acquisition dividends.

Q2:Preparation/restatement of an income statement and/or balance sheet.

-adjustments for current tax, depreciation, interest and dividends. Other adjustments may relate to debt factoring or other substance over form issues, leases, financial/capital instruments, revaluations, share issues, inventory (stock) valuation, government grants or deferred tax. There may be further disclosure requirements re discontinued operations, movement in reserves or an earnings per share calculation.

Q3:Written question examining theoretical/conceptual areas or accounting standards. This could be on construction contracts, leases, provisions, inflation, intangible assets, accounting policies or substance over form issues with reference to the Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements (Statement of Principles).

Q4:Interpretation and/or cash flow statements. There could also be a discursive part on why, for example, segment or discontinued operations disclosures are useful.

Q5:No specified format or content and will cover other areas of the syllabus. The examiner frequently includes a 'mixed bag' question, which examines three or four different accounting standards.

Possibilities this sitting include: deferred tax, construction contracts, segment reporting, events after the balance sheet date, governments grants, financial/capital instruments, discontinued operations or substance over form issues.

ACCA 2.6 Exam Tips

• Management Letter on Purchases/Payroll/Computer Controls,very similar in substance to that produced by an external auditor
• Non-current (fixed) assets, bank/cash and receivables (debtors)
• Systems and controls –the purchases/payables and sales/receivables systems looking the most likely.
• Planning and risk assessment
• Professional ethics – Independence and Confidentiality
• Audit/ Assurance Reports –Audit Work and Audit Reporting regarding Going Concern
• Parts of questions –fraud, management representations, audit regulation, materiality, e-technology
• Corporate Governance - Role of Audit Committees
• Internal Audit - compared with External Audit / role in Risk Management

ACCA 3.1 Exam Tips

Q1 & Q2 :

· Risk assessment, risk management and audit strategy.

· Assurance services - prospective financial information, or reporting on non-financial information.

· Control suggestion and/or evaluation

· Audit evidence on Paper 2.5 accounting areas (see also Q3 suggestions)

· Group audit issues (including audit work on fair values)

· Planning/practice management/quality control issues

• Assurance services, e.g. performance measurement or prospective financial information

Q3. Matters and evidence - 3 scenarios.

Likely to be several scenarios covering various Paper 2.5 level accounting standards, e.g:

• Events after the balance sheet date
• Provisions
• Impairments
• Earnings per share
• Segment information
• Related party disclosures
• Deferred tax
• Discontinued operations
• Standard costing
• Intangible assets
• Revenue recognition
• Borrowing costs

Q4. Audit reporting - Opening balances and Comparatives.

Q5. Professional and ethical matters / practice management, quality control issues scenario question.

Q6. Current issues, e.g:

• Fraud and auditor liability
• International convergence
• Audit exemption for small companies
• Risk-based auditing
• Related parties
• Corporate governance
• Laws and regulation

ACCA 3.2(MYS) Exam Tips

Compulsory (must read) (80%-100%)

1. Real Estate Investment Trust (must know S4(a),S33,S34,S34(6) n S39)
2. Residence Status Individual + Islamic Finance (such as I-ijara n bai-Bithatman Ajal)
3. Alowance for increased export (OHQ,R&D)
4. Contract Payment (S107,S4A-WitHoldingTax)
5. Interest restriction
6. Company restructuring

Important (50%-80%)

1. Tax Planning for Individual (JA,separate assessment,all the relief,settlement,income splitting)
2. Personal Finance
3. Private Residence Exemption (RPC,Exchange,para 17(1)(a)
4. Tax Audit n Investigations
5. Labuan
6. Stamp Duty Exemption

If got time then read (30%-50%)

1. Club
2. Co-operation
3. Charitable Institution
4. Pioneeer, RA, Investment Tax Allowance
5. Property Development
6. Leasing

Another lecturer's spot:

Paper 3.2

1. REIT, Leasing, Property Development
2. Personel Finance
3. Incentive - Allowance for increased export, RA, OHQ, RPC, IPC
4. Withholding Tax (S109B, S107A), Reinvestment
5. Real Property Company
6. Interest Restriction
7. Tax planning for company (transfer of biz)
8. Tax planning for Individual (resident status, company and tax implication)

ACCA 3.3 Exam Tips

There will be new areas in the syllabus for June 2006;

· Ansoff's growth vector matrix

· BCG matrix

· Porter's five forces model

· Budgeting (short term planning)- heavily numerical with a small written element (performance measurement)

· Contribution based decision-making

· Practical aspects of pricing policy

· Performance evaluation – ROI and RI

· The learning effect

· The strategic framework – specifically a question based around the examiner’s recent article on “Business Strategy and Performance Models” (Student Accountant – April 2006)

ACCA 3.4 Exam Tips

Change Management – Lewin’s approaches to change,application of how an organisation can manage change using an unfreeze, change and refreeze approach . An article appearing in Student Accountant in November 2005 may be a useful indicator here.

Global business strategies

Systems Development – the examiner may look at alternative approaches to soft systems methodology, or perhaps look for a comparison or evaluation of different methods

E-commerce – this always creeps into questions, but a big question looking at the benefits and risks is possibly overdue

SWOT analysis – ability to determine the issues which affect the business using and internal and external focus

MacFarlan/Peppard’s Strategic grid – possible application to a case study with the comparison of competing projects

Intranet – development of a system to support internal operations

Business and IS/IT alignment

BPR and the implications of changing business operations

E-commerce – development of web sites and their impact on both business and individual customer usage

ACCA 3.5 Exam Tips

Section A

Manufacturing environment

· A discussion of the relative merits of different ways of making strategy

· Stakeholder analysis and objective setting

· Application of strategic analysis models

· Evaluation of strategic objectives, using the numbers included

· Marketing issues

Section B

· Marketing, including new product development

· Human resources.

· Globalisation strategy.

· Ethics and corporate social responsibility.

· Corporate governance issues

ACCA 3.6 Exam Tips

Section A

The preparation of a group income statement is due, as is the translation of foreign subsidiaries and cash flow statements.

-adjustment for 4 or 5 marks on another area such as pensions, financial instruments, assets 'held for sale' or incorrect accounting entries.

Section B

Possibilities for examination include:

• 'Events' questions such as shutdown of an operation, switch to IFRS, natural or deliberate disaster, bringing in areas such as: impairments, provisions, events after the balance sheet date, non-current assets held for sale, discontinued operations, pension scheme curtailment effects, etc

• 'Mixed' questions where a range of standards are covered in separate unrelated parts of the question, such as related parties, recognition and impairment of tangible and intangible assets, foreign currency transactions, revenue recognition, leases, changes in accounting policies or deferred tax.

• Single topic questions in more detail (theoretical aspects followed up with calculations) such as segment reporting, earnings per share, first-time adoption of IFRS (IFRS 1) or financial instruments (see examiner's articles below)

• Questions on topical areas, such as the continuing attempts to bring about international harmonisation and the effect on a company's accounts of applying IFRS, possibly linked with IFRS 1, recent exposure drafts on the planned changes to groups and provisions and share-based payment

• Group reorganisations, especially if question 1 is a cash flow statement question

• Performance and valuation measures, how they are changing and how they are affected by accounting policies often appear in the exam.

• A discussion question looking at current developments in corporate reporting. Topics that could appear here include: social and environmental reporting, Corporate Social Responsibility, business ethics, accounting standards for small and medium-sized entities and reporting on the internet.

ACCA 3.7 Exam Tips

Section A:

•Overseas NPV: Ability to perform a basic overseas NPV/FCF calculation. Including one off cash flows, annuities and perpetuity calculations and the knowledge of the specific issues that relate to foreign direct investment. perhaps combined with currency hedging or international cash management would seem a likely candidate for the compulsory section. The examiner will expect you to be able to discuss political risks in this context.

• Risk management: Currency Risk / Interest rate risk and hedging

• Company Valuation within the context of Merger and Acquisitions: A possible question that requires a valuation under various methods like NAV, DVM, P/E Ratio and FCFs. (maybe within the context of Going Private.) Also review the share for share exchange style questions.

• Corporate Restructuring:Valuation

Section B:

• Economic Value Added – EVA

• Dividend Policy

• Portfolio Theory and CAPM - summary and alpha tables

• International economics – I.M.F., Treasury Management. Balance of payments deficits.

• Adjusted Present Value:

• Free Cash Flow feature regularly as does Black Scholes.

The ultimate 3.1 guide

For many of those choosing to sit it, Paper 3.1 has become a stumbling block on the road to becoming a chartered certified accountant. This need not be the case.

The reason the pass rate has been so low is simple: the candidates are not giving the examiner, Kim Smith, what she is looking for.

Kim Smith has been explicit about what she expects from her candidates and how they should tackle her paper. She has written numerous articles in the magazine Student Accountant, some on technical topics (often followed by a discussion question on the same topic) and others on exam technique. These are top-priority reading for any student who wants to pass this paper: the examiner has set ideas about what she is looking for in a candidate’s answer, and the articles give us a unique insight into this. Don’t ignore these valuable resources.

Also high on the list of priorities are the examiner’s comments, which are often substantially longer than those of other examiners. You should take advantage of this excellent opportunity to ‘get to know the examiner’ better!

Danger
Many students sit Paper 3.1 at the same sitting as Paper 2.6 Audit and Internal Review. This is a dangerous strategy. It was not ACCA’s (nor the examiner’s) intention that the two papers be sat together. While there is a fair amount of overlap in terms of knowledge base, the skills being tested in the two papers are very different. Passing Paper 3.1 requires not just a solid audit and ethical foundation, but also a level of maturity and practical business experience to be able to make sensible professional commentary on the scenarios.

Standard format
Candidates have been fortunate in the past in that the paper has followed pretty much the same format since its inception. Based on the examiner’s comments at the Teachers’ Conference, the good news is that this format looks set to continue (although there is no guarantee):

Q1 Risks (audit, financial statement or business risks) and
audit evidence

Q2 Risks, again of any of the above types, and associated
controls

Q3 Audit matters to consider and audit evidence on several
Paper 2.5 accounting issues

Q4 Auditors’/assurance reports

Q5 Ethical, professional and quality control issues

Q6 Discussion question based on current auditing issues.


Questions 1 and 2 have often also included other aspects such as group auditing, audit strategy in a given scenario and performance measurement.

Risky business
The Paper 3.1 exam usually features at least one, if not two, scenarios with requirements relating to risk. Having so many past questions to attempt - and so many sittings’ worth of examiners’ comments to read - should make these a real mark winner, but many candidates fall down by discussing the wrong type of risk.

Audit risks (the most common) are, ultimately, risks that the audit opinion will be wrong for whatever reason. They are made up of inherent, control and detection risk, although that distinction, while it might be useful for generating ideas, is more of a paper 2.6 issue.

An example of an audit risk is that the value of a company’s perishable inventories might be overstated if held at cost.

Business risks are risks that the entity, not the auditor, will not achieve its objectives. Many of these translate into audit risks, hence the reason why the ‘Big 4’ auditors follow a business risk-driven approach to identifying audit risks.

However, this is not always the case. For example, an airline that does not refurbish its planes could lose custom in the future (a business risk) because flying in ‘old’ planes makes us think they are unsafe, but this has no direct impact on the financial statements in the current period. The above example of the inventories could also be mentioned as a business risk, but it would have to be worded differently, e.g. that the inventories might not be saleable because they are out of date or not stored properly.

For business risk, imagine yourself in the shoes of management, not the auditor: they might not be worried if their inventories are overstated in the balance sheet - they might just see it as accounting nonsense or might even be delighted because overstated inventories increase their profits - but they would be rightly concerned about inventories that are unsaleable.

Financial statement risks are risks that the financial statements will be wrong. Again, there is an overlap here with the other types of risk, but it is important in the exam to ‘sell’ your risks to the examiner as being financial statement ones. How? By explaining how the financial statements could be wrong if the risk occurred.

An example here is non-disclosure of a contingent liability affecting the company. In this example, the figures themselves are not affected (although they often are by financial statement risks), but there is a definite risk that the financial statements do not comply with accounting standards.
Also note that although the word ‘risk’ will appear in the requirement, it is absolutely certain that in an exam at this level, the examiner does not want you to explain the risk model in accordance with the ISA. So don’t do it.

Vague

Sometimes people leave the exam hall after sitting Paper 3.1 feeling confident – and then get an unpleasant surprise when results come out. Why is this?

The most common mistake in this paper is ‘not answering the question set’. For example, if there is a question about considerations as to whether to take on a particular assignment as an auditor, it needs to be answered in the context of the scenario in the question - very few, if any, marks will be given for listing out general considerations you may have learned. Another complaint from the examiner and markers is that points are often ‘too vague’. If you are asked to specify ‘principal audit work’, it’s not enough to just say, ‘review board minutes’ without saying what you are looking for and, whatever you do, don’t say ‘check’ unless you explain how you would do it!

Higher skills
One of the syllabus objectives of this paper is to ‘demonstrate the skills expected at Part 3’. One of those is the idea of demonstrating higher skills, and this is one of the things that distinguish the paper from Paper 2.6.

The general marking scheme for the paper awards ½ a mark for a point of knowledge, extended to 1 mark for application of that knowledge, and extended to 1½ marks for demonstrating a higher skill on the same point.

It is also worth noting that you would not be able to pass a question by listing a series of points of knowledge for ½ a mark each: marks are capped, and, indeed, the examiner explained at the conference that where a question is worded ‘Identify and explain…..’ (eg, business risks where there is ½ a mark for identification and 1 mark for explanation), in many cases the identification ½ mark cannot be given unless it is accompanied by an explanation, because the identification is implicit in the explanation itself.

Top tips for success at Paper 3.1
Read the examiner’s Student Accountant articles

Read through recent examiner’s comments

Pass paper 2.6 before attempting paper 3.1

Practise past exam questions and note down the points you didn’t get from the model answer

Get some practical business experience (if possible) and keep up to date by reading a quality newspaper

In your answer, try to go that one step further to bring out the implication, but don’t stress about trying to find it for every point

Don’t be scared of the discussion question: the marking scheme is generous

Make sure you take a calculator

Written by BPP Paper 3.1 tutors Ben Wheaton and Jennie Bruce

Straight from the horse's mouth

Find out what the ACCA examiners had to say at the Glasgow teachers' conference

Paper 1.1

Preparing Financial Statements
Examiner: Neil Stein
December pass rate: 61%

He outlined his core areas of the syllabus:
* Preparation of financial statements for limited liability companies for internal purposes and for publication.
* Preparation of financial statements for partnerships and sole traders (including incomplete records).
* Basic group accounts – consolidated balance sheet for company with one subsidiary.
* Book-keeping and accounting procedure.
* Accounting conventions and concepts.
* Interpretation of financial statements.
* Cash flow statements.
* Relevant accounting standards.

PAPER 1.2

Financial Information for Management
Examiner: David Forster
December pass rate: 52%
The key areas of the syllabus are:
* Cost classification and behaviour.
* Material, labour and overhead costs.
* Absorption and marginal costing.
* Process costing.
* Standard costing.
* CVP analysis.
* Limiting factors.
* Relevant costs for decision making.

Forster's aim is to ensure that every study session is tested within every exam. He revealed that section B questions are set first. Section A questions (MCQ) are set to complement the section B questions.

Paper 1.3

Examiner John Ball kicked off his session explaining the five key topics of the 1.3 syllabus. They are, he said:
1) Management and team development.
2) Recruitment and selection.
3) Training and development.
4) Motivation and leadership.
5) Effective communication.

For the next three sittings the paper will continue to follow the existing format. Question 1 is a compulsory scenario-based question and can draw from any part(s) of the syllabus. Questions 2 to 6 follow the five topics in the order in which they appear in the syllabus. Students choose four.

When it comes to exam technique, or the lack of it, Ball said there were some serious issues. He emphasised that making the assumption that experience and/or guesswork will suffice in a paper of this kind was "just not good enough". If he had his way, on the front of every exam paper it would say in big bold letters: 'Read the damn question!'
Many candidates are not addressing the theory/practice of the exam topics and some simply do not understand the words.

Ball stressed that the questions are carefully worded. "They are deliberate, if I name a writer I want that writer back, not someone else," he said.

On far too many scripts students also don't put down what question they have answered. The examiner pointed out that candidates need to guide the markers to where your marks are.

Ball was disappointed with the December 42 per cent pass rate. "There is no excuse for this. There is a body of literature such as model answers and passed papers." He felt Question 2 (the management roles question) was a gift. He also wondered how students could struggle with a question asking them about the purpose of an application form and what information was expected on it.

Paper 2.1

Information Systems
Examiner: Steve Skidmore
December pass rate: 51%

Looking at the good and bad in December 2005
The good:
* Models and modelling.
* Opportunities for computerisation.
* Stages in the SDLC
* Project network charts.
* Software packages.

The bad:
* Models and modelling.
* Standards and quality assurance.
* Measurement and monitors.
* Feasibility report.
* Project quality plan.

Paper 2.4

Financial Management and Control
Examiner: Tony Head
December pass rate: 44%

Examiner Tony Head's key areas of the syllabus are:
* Financial management objectives.
* Sources of finance.
* Capital investment appraisal.
* Costing systems and techniques.
* Standard costing and variance analysis.
* Budgeting and budgetary control.
* Performance measurement.

Paper 2.5

Paper 2.5 has traditionally had one of the better exam pass rates and December was no exception. Examiner Steve Scott was pleased with the 2 per cent jump on June to 53 per cent. In fact he revealed that a number of his markers thought the exam too easy.

However, he said both students and the ACCA's own Exam Review Board had felt the December questions were fair and for the most part on core topics.

Scott revealed many exam centres produced very high pass rates and there were some high individual marks. He was happy that the basics of important topics such as groups, company reporting and cash flows were well understood.

When it comes to failure he was concerned that many candidates only appear to study 'expected topics' and have no breadth or depth to their knowledge. "This meant question 3 and 5 were poorly answered," he explained. There also appears to be no progression from paper 1.1. And, by adopting a mechanical approach, they send the signal to markers that they have no real understanding of what they have calculated.

Add to this poor layout, confused referenced workings and aggregation of figures without workings and you can see why the other 47 per cent of sitters failed!

When it came to the important areas of the syllabus Scott pointed out that there was always going to be a question on group accounting and one on the preparation of financial statements.
Future papers will also see a greater emphasis on examinable recent standards.

Accounting principles are one of Scott's key topics. That includes the statement of principles, revenue recognition and substance of transactions (FRS5).

Also on his core list is the ability of candidates to deal with equity, debt and convertible debt.

The treatment of finance costs income statements and classification, and carrying value in the balance sheet are also on his list. He said questions may also specify the category of a financial instrument. Candidates will then be expected to deal with the carrying amount and any gain or loss.

Scott said there was a problem that many items he examines now come under FRS 25/26. His main advice is that the level of knowledge for these items is unchanged. He emphasised it was unlikely that irredeemable preference shares will be examined, but redeemable will.

Paper 2.6

Alan Lewin started by telling delegates at the conference that students who have 'done an audit' will do better in his exam. He then outlined the key areas of the exam:
* Professional ethics.
* Understanding the nature of auditing.
* Risk assessment and internal controls.
* Practical application of audit techniques.
* Newer areas including corporate governance, ISAs, etc.

Without stating the obvious he said there are just three diets left for this paper and he promised no major changes.

Lewin said his question style will remain scenario based, sometimes with five mark intros. The whole syllabus will be examined, Lewin stressed. However, there are 27 syllabus areas and he only has 18 questions left.

Lewin pointed out that there were ways for candidates to improve their chances of passing. "They must practice clear and precise presentation," he said. Lewin went on by saying student have to practise answering questions in full.

When reading model answers in the revision phase, he suggested it will help to write down the points that you have missed. Lewin pleaded for candidates in June to write legibly and said that a clear heading does assist in making a point clearly.

Paper 3.1

Examiner Kim Smith is a passionate woman when it comes to auditing and she came to the Teachers' Conference desperate to understand why her paper pass rate was so low this time around. "We are now nine sessions on and I will keep on examining the same topic areas, I just wish I didn't have to see the same students sitting this paper again and again."

There are, she explained, lots of reasons why students are failing the paper, the most common one being not answering the question set. Students are also dealing with generalities instead of specifics.

Another problem is the 'auto pilot' candidate. This is the students who see a word and away they go. Regurgitation of the text book or simply copying out the question details gets you zero marks!

Smith's markers have adopted special acronyms for the reason pages and pages of a script have no mark on them!
There is what you don't want on your script:
* TV (too vague).
* CQ (contradicts question).
* X (wrong!) .
* So? (failure to conclude).

Smith was shocked with how poorly candidates were performing – she believes her paper is very predictable. She does want students to be better read. "They can't just rely on Student Accountant and a manual," she stressed. That is especially true when it comes to current issues.

She expects students to consolidate their 2.6 knowledge and expand on it. There is a problem here, however, as some students could actually be sitting papers 2.6 (the other auditing paper) and 3.1 at the same time.

Students also had to understand there aren't many rote learning marks available at 3.1.

Smith said to some extent her hands are tied by DTI regulations: "This is the last auditing exam a trainee sits and there are standards we have to maintain."

Paper 3.3

The key areas of Johnson's paper are:
* Management accounting systems.
* Performance indicators.
* Performance assessment.
* Process costing.

The examiner asked students to avoid question spotting. "Given that 60 marks are compulsory it is a risky strategy to question spot," he told delegates to the conference.

Johnson acknowledged that those three hours in the exam hall can be the fastest three hours of you life.

During the Q&A session he also said students should go back more than six months when looking for relevant articles in Student Accountant.

There have been some recent additions to the syllabus. From June 2006 students can be examined on:
* Ansoff's grwoth vecxtor matrix.
* Boston Consulting group matrix.
* Porter's five forces model.

Turning to the December exam he felt many candidates still entered the exam hall inadequately prepared. Johnson was concerned that many PQs lack the lower level (assumed) knowledge. The also had the sense of students playing the wrong options.

PAPER 3.4

Business Information Management
Examiner: George Bakehouse
December pass rate: 46%

Bakehouse provided the key areas of the paper:
* Organisational information requirements.
* Knowledge management and information systems.
* IS and the strategic planning process.
* Business systems, systems thinking and systems analysis.
* Gap analysis and business case development.
* IS and competitive position.
* Electronic commerce, internet as a strategic business tool.
* Implementing change.
* Impact of IT on work practices.

Paper 3.5

Examiner Ralph Bedrock set his first paper in December 2003. During that time the paper's structure has remained the same and pass rates have consistently remained above 50 per cent.

He said the key skills remain strategic analysis, choice and implementation. The problem for 3.5 sitters is centred round the candidates' ability (or inability) to choose and use appropriate models. He wanted students to take the opportunity to explore new areas and he couldn't hide his disappointment that students avoided new topics which they deemed 'difficult'.

Turning to the December sitting Bedrock the bulk of those who pass (80 per cent) achieve marks between 50 and 60 per cent.
He said that as a general rule of thumb candidates who don't 'pass' the compulsory question generally fail 3.5. His big complaint was question hopping, where students answer parts A and B of Question 1 and then go onto an option question. They then return and answer part 1C before moving onto another optional question. Finally part 1D is answered. This all becomes very complicated for markers - the people you really want to impress.

Paper 3.6

The average pass rates world wide for this paper is 50 per cent. However, Holt revealed that there are significant differences in centre pass rates.

A major factor which causes failure, he said, is the lack of understanding. For instance Holt is amazed at the number of students who don't know the difference between an associate and subsidiary.
Other reasons for failure were students not reading widely enough and poor study skills.

Holt said if he asks for a report then that's what he wants. He stressed that marks are even allocated for the layout.

He also warned students that if they perform poorly on a question they can expect that subject area to reappear! Deferred tax and pensions comes to mind here.

Holt explained that FRED 32 will keep popping up. FREESE is also important (he said that about 13 times). Even the OFR is still examinable. "There are lots of issues about its demise," he said.
Holt stressed that every marginal script was looked at (between 45 and 50 per cent) to see if students should pass.

Students simply don't help themselves here if they have only answered three out of four questions. Holt is concerned at the number of candidates who are not attempting the correct number of questions.

Paper 3.7

Examiner Scott Goddard is worried he is going soft in his old age. At 49 per cent this is the best performance of any cohort sitting a Goddard exam. Apparently, the only people who complained were the marking team, who had more marks to add up this time around.

Interestingly, the next three papers will be the last Goddard sets for the ACCA – he will not be an examiner for the new syllabus.

He stressed that this final ACCA paper was equivalent to a masters degree, which is not always realised by candidates. Too many exam papers are filled with superficial answers and low level analysis, he said. And he claimed that there was often poor use of information and data in the question. Another worry was the lack of evidence of reading or use of real-world examples. "Have students not heard of the Financial Times and The Economist?" he asked.

December saw a much better performance by candidates compared to June. Good marks were earned on the compulsory questions (which was felt to be more user-friendly). Question 1 was the best answered question, with students showing a good understanding of investment decisions. There were some problems with the timing of cash flows and some confusion about risk and the cost of capital. Goddard also pointed to the 12 marks available for discussion.

The key five areas of the syllabus are not going to change in the three exams left, and they are:

* Investment decisions.
* Risk analysis.
* Global financial management.
* Treasury management and financial forecasting.
* Strategy formulation.

Goddard promises a rough policy of covering all these every four sittings. His advice to students was to focus on past papers and solutions for guidance. He pleaded with them not to produce ridiculous answers, eg options prices in excess of the value of the underlying asset. Candidates also had to attempt all parts of questions and display analytical skills. Ultimately, he and his 31 markers want to be provided with evidence that you are capable of offering good professional advice.