Assessing the Effectiveness of Accounting Concepts in Developing Financial Reporting Skills among Accounting Graduates in Federal Colleges of Education, North-West Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed the effectiveness of accounting concepts in the development of financial in developing financial reporting skills among accounting graduates in the Federal Colleges of Education in the North-West Zone, Nigeria. Three research objectives were set for the study, and the sample size for the study is 150 accounting graduates in   Federal College of Education Kano, Federal College of Education Zaria, and Federal College of Education Katsina, respectively A descriptive survey research design was used, and data was collected using researcher researcher-developed semi-structured self-administered questionnaire. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics for the socio-demographic characteristics of respondents, and simple percentages, frequencies, means and standard deviation were used to analyse the research questions. Inferential statistics of analysis of a one-sample t-test were used to test the hypotheses at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that the money measurement accounting concept has a significant impact on developing financial reporting skills among accounting graduates in federal colleges of education in the north-west zone of Nigeria. The study further revealed that the mean score of 3.27 indicated that accounting concepts were moderately integrated into the curriculum. However, practical application scored lower (mean = 3.12), with concerns over the infrequency of real-world financial reporting tasks. Challenges in teaching accounting concepts (mean = 3.07). It concluded that accounting concepts play a crucial role in enhancing the financial reporting skills of accounting graduates. The study likely found that a strong understanding of accounting concepts such as money measurement, going concern and accounting period concept significantly contributes to the ability of graduates to prepare and analyse financial reports effectively. It is recommended that Practical training provide opportunities for students to gain practical experience through an internship workshop and industry collaboration. Hands-on training will help apply the money measurement concept in real-world scenarios and develop financial reporting skills.