Incorporating Sustainability into Accounting Curricula: Lessons Learnt From an Action Research Study

Abstract

This paper chronicles the journey of two projects that sought to incorporate principles of sustainable development into predominantly technical postgraduate accounting curricula. The design and delivery of the projects were informed by Freirian principles of praxis and critical empowerment. The first author introduced sustainability-related material into a core technical accounting unit and created an elective unit. The second author participated with students to evaluate critically social reports of employers, current and potential. In terms of an objective of bringing reflexivity into the classroom, both projects were marked by some success, but efforts to create permanent curriculum change were hampered by the predominantly vocational orientation of student cohorts. In addition, the traditionally technical focus of the professional bodies and competing educational reform agendas (such as vocational skills) add to the difficulties for sustainability in penetrating already overcrowded curricula.

Keywords:

• Professional education
• action research
• critical consciousness
• sustainability

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial assistance and pedagogical material provided by Macquarie University's Graduate School of the Environment and the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage. The comments of Jan Bebbington, Barbara Flood and participants at the 2005 Environmental Justice and Global Citizenship conference at the University of Oxford are acknowledged. The authors appreciate the encouraging comments and support of the two anonymous referees and the Associate Editor.

Notes

Descriptions of the project objectives and bases of participant selection can be found in Tilbury et al. (2004).

Owing to the success of the roundtable meeting for the business ethics unit, the researcher attempted to replicate the process in a large undergraduate unit with approximately 750 students. Approximately 100 invitations were sent but only seven students volunteered to participate so the planned sessions were not held. It was noted by support staff involved in this process that some incentive (such as movie tickets) might result in an acceptably high response rate.

The choice of some students not to participate in the assignment for Project Two might be attributed to its insignificance in terms of course assessment. The assignment was one of 10 weekly assignments to which 15% of the course assessment was allocated. Several participating students complained that the effort required for the assignment and presentation warranted more marks.