Abstract:

Auditing students are often overwhelmed with the high volume of auditing and accounting standards they need to learn and apply to achieve success in this wordy subject, where teaching and learning techniques tend to focus on explanations and examples using text via PowerPoint slides supported by learning through independent study using text books, journals and on line media to capture current views.

Through virtual reality students are provided with the opportunity to immerse in an auditing case study where they are asked to virtually visit a client’s premises to identify potential implications on the audit of inventory and how those issues could affect audit opinion.

Two groups of auditing students are introduced to virtual reality during their usual two hour auditing lecture for a group of c100 undergraduate students and a group of c25 post graduate students. During the lecture students used a QR reader to access the virtual client premises on the web, which they viewed through google cardboard headsets and completed an exercise that had already been provided in advance on the University’s learning platform (Blackboard).

Both cohorts were very positive in using virtual reality as they thought it enhanced their learning and recognised its unique immersive experience through problem based learning (PBL) where they were able to better understand how to apply an auditor’s professional scepticism in a “real world” scenario.

Furthermore, although most students had not used virtual reality technology before they thought it enhanced their learning experience and found it fun to use. Students also recognised the benefit of the PBL exercise to aid their professional training as an Auditor and how it could enhance their employability skills. Further benefits from using virtual reality were students increased understanding of a builder’s merchant business, the true value of inventory items and the benefits from working in small teams during the client visit.

Keywords:

Virtual reality, auditing, immersive learning, problem based learning.