Changes in technology across the financial reporting supply chain are impacting the expected information and communications technologies (ICT) competencies and skills of aspiring and professional accountants to perform their roles. Identifying the ICT skills needed by aspiring and professional accountants serves the public interest by enabling the accounting profession to provide high-quality financial reporting, auditing, or other related financial and accounting services in the digital age.
These newly revised International Education Standards address learning and development for information and communications technologies (ICT) and professional skepticism. As market expectation increases for ICT skills and professional skepticism, these standards were developed to address the competencies, skills, and behaviors for both aspiring and professional accountants in these critical areas.
The revised education standards include newly added and revised ICT and professional skepticism learning outcomes that:
In addition to issuing International Education Standards, the IAESB also developes implementation support materials, including videos, webcasts and presentations, and guidance documents. These resources support accounting education and are for use by academics, training providers, professional accounting organization, and employers.
The IAESB has developed this guidance to illustrate how the International Education Standards implementation may be adapted to create curricula that cater to the needs of professional accountants in the public sector.
It is grounded in the Learning Outcomes approach that “embodies the idea that learning and development experiences are most effective when based on what the individual needs to demonstrate." It uses IES 2, Initial Professional Competence – Technical Competence, as a base as that helps establish the common ground.
In this second of a two part series, IAESB member Isaac Njuguna discusses some of the best practices IFAC member organizations are using to implement IES 4 on professional values, ethics and attitudes.
In this first of a two part series, IAESB member Isaac Njuguna discusses some of the challenges that IFAC member organizations have overcome in implementing International Education Standard 4 on professional values, ethics and attitudes.
