WASSCE Candidates’ Weaknesses In Financial Accounting And Remedies | Extract From Chief Examiners Report Towards WASSCE 2023
Teachers preparing students for any examination are always worried about the potential weaknesses in answers that their students will provide during the examination. Fortunately, the main examining body, the West Africa Examination Council always provide WASSCE candidates’ weaknesses in Financial Accounting during the last held examinations.
WAEC Summary of 2021 WASSCE Financial Accounting Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1) Candidates were able to correctly explain the term “accounting concepts”.
(2) The majority of candidates correctly explained the business entity concept and going concern concept.
(3) Most candidates successfully apportioned the common expenses in the Departmental Trading and Profit and Loss Account.
(4) Candidates rightly deduced sales and purchases figures from a data of incomplete records.
(5) Candidates correctly explained entrance fees and subscriptions as sources of funds of not-for-profit making organizations.
(6) Candidates were able to explain the following banking terms:
- Bank charges;
- standing order;
- dishonoured cheques;
- unpresented cheques;
- uncredited cheques.
(7) Candidates rightly prepared with appropriate workings ledger accounts on the issue of shares.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(1) The majority of candidates failed to appropriately describe balances carried down and balances brought down.
(2) Most candidates failed to correctly describe the items in ledger accounts.
(3) Most candidates were unable to prepare the Revaluation Account upon the admission of a new partner into the firm.
(4) Most candidates failed to properly explain the following accounting concepts:
- consistency concepts
- periodicity concept
- historical cost concept
(5) Candidates failed to adequately explain the operation of petty cash book using the imprest system.
(6) Most candidates could not compute the profit element on goods Invoiced by Head office to Branch at cost plus a predetermined percentage.
(7) Candidates wrongly explained accrual concept as matching concept.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES
- Candidates should learn the significance of accounting concepts and assumptions by reading beyond their definitions.
- Candidates should learn the advantages and disadvantages as well as the significance of the payment voucher in the operation of the petty cash system.
- Candidates should be engaged more on the calculation of the various bases of transferring goods from the head office to the branches.
- Teachers should lay more emphasis on the on the correct descriptions of corresponding accounts in the preparation of the ledger accounts.
- Candidates should read on the various methods of payment especially that of credit transfer and they relate to the preparation of bank reconciliation statements
WAEC Summary of 2020 WASSCE Financial Accounting Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1) Candidates were able to list the source documents used for the specified transactions.
(2) Candidates explained the term ‘not-for-profit making organisation.
(3) Most candidates outlined the differences between a ‘not-for-profit making organization’ and ‘for-profit making organization’.
(4) Candidates have correctly stated conditions that would result in a change in a profit and loss sharing ratio of a partnership.
(5) The majority of candidates correctly outlined the circumstances that would give rise to the creation of goodwill in partnership.
(6) Candidates have correctly identified the users of accounting information.
(7) Most candidates have correctly classified transactions under the headings statement of capital, statement of recurrent expenditure and statement of revenue.
(8) Candidates were able to prepare the Manufacturing, Trading and Profit and Loss Account of a manufacturing company.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(1) Candidates failed to appropriately describe the balance on the accounts.
(2) The majority of candidates failed to deduce sales and purchases from incomplete
accounting records.
(3) Most candidates were unable to identify source document of salaries.
(4) Most candidates failed to fully explain entrance fees and life membership fees as sources of funding for not-for-profit making organization.
(5) Candidates failed to list the books of accounts used in public sector accounting.
(6) Some candidates disregarded the type of monetary denomination in the question and stated all currencies in Ghana Cedis.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES
(1) Teachers should emphasize the need to prepare Sales Ledger Control Account and Purchases Ledger Control Account in order to ascertain sales and purchases figures when preparing final accounts from incomplete records.
(2) Candidates should be guided on how to distinguish between items preferably in tabular form. Emphasis should be placed on correct pairings.
(3) Candidates should take keen interest in learning the theory aspect of the public�sector accounting with coverage of topics such as books of accounts and features of these accounts.
(4) Candidates should always prepare departmental accounts showing the total column unless explicitly stated in the question that total column is not required.
(5) Candidates should make efforts to learn various terminologies in not-for profit making organization. Capital should not be substituted for accumulated fund
WAEC Summary of 2019 WASSCE Financial Accounting Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(i) Candidates were able to explain how an increase or a decrease in provision for doubtful debts is treated in the final accounts.
(ii) Most candidates showed clear distinction between a branch and a department.
(iii) Candidates have demonstrated good understanding in preparation of Profit and Loss Appropriation Account and Partners’ Current Account.
(iv) Candidates have displayed an improvement in the calculation of the basic accounting ratios.
(v) Most of the candidates explained how accrued expenses, prepaid expenses and accrued incomes are treated in the balance sheet.
(vi) Candidates were able to state the effects of drawings on the business of a sole proprietor
(vii) The majority of the candidates correctly prepared Customers’ Accounts in the Sales Ledger.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(i) The majority of candidates could not explain or state the treatment of provision for discount on debtors and provision for discount on creditors.
(ii) Most candidates failed to identify items of transactions that are to be posted to adjusted cash book. A few of them were not sure of which side of the account to post the transactions.
(iii) Most candidates failed to prepare the journal entries in respect of:
(a) a credit note of Le 148 sent to a customer for returns was overlooked;
(b) payment of sundry expenses of Le 640 had been omitted from the trial balance.
(iv) Most candidates fared poorly in the topics such as Cash Float, Contra Entry and Imprest System
(v) Majority of the candidates performed poorly in the correction of errors and preparation of suspense account.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES FOR THE WEAKNESSES
(i) Teachers should emphasize the treatment of provisions for discount on debtors and provision for discount on creditors when preparing of candidates for the examination.
(ii) Candidates should practice a lot of past questions so that they can be conversant with the treatment of most items in the adjusted cash book
(iii) Candidates should devote much time in studying the fundamentals of the subject since candidates’ answers suggest that they lack the understanding of the basic topics of financial accounts. Topics such as provisions on debtors, correction of errors and suspense accounts needs to be mastered well by candidates preparing for anexamination.
It is the hope of our team that candidates will perform better when teachers and candidates go through this summary of strengths, WASECE candidates’ weaknesses in Financial Accounting and remedies and apply same
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