Description
Our primary goal in the fourth edition remains the same as in the previous three editions––to offer a cost accounting text that lets the student see the development of cost accounting tools and techniques as a natural response to decision making. We em-phasize the intuition behind concepts and work to minimize the need to “memorize.” We believe that students who develop this intuition will, fi rst, develop an appreciation of what cost accounting is about and, second, will have an easier time understand-ing new developments that arise during their careers. Each chapter clearly establishes learning objectives, highlights numerous real-world examples, and identifi es where ethical issues arise and how to think about these issues. Each chapter includes at least one integrative case that illustrates the links among the topics.
We present the material from the perspective of both the preparer of information as well as those who will use the information. We do this so that both accounting majors and those students planning other careers will appreciate the issues in preparing and using the information. The opening vignettes tie to one of the Business Application features in the chapter to highlight the relevance of cost accounting to today’s business problems. All chapters end with a Debrief that links the topics in the chapter to the decision prob-lem faced by the manager in the opening vignette.
The fourth edition has been updated to include new discussion on the links between activity-based cost management and lean manufacturing and lean accounting, as well as new discussion on strategy and performance.
The end-of-chapter material has increased by almost 10 percent, and much of the mate-rial retained from the third edition has been revised. Throughout the revision process, we have retained the clear writing style that is frequently cited as a strength of the text.
Assurance of Learning Ready
Many educational institutions today are focused on the notion of assurance of learn-ing, an important element of some accreditation standards. Fundamentals of Cost Accounting, 4e, is designed specifi cally to support your assurance of learning initia-tives with a simple, yet powerful, solution. Each test bank question for Fundamentals of Cost Accounting, 4e, maps to a specifi c chapter learning outcome/objective listed in the text. You can use our test bank software, EZ Test Online, and Connect to easily query for learning outcomes/objectives that directly relate to the learning objectives for your course. You can then use the reporting features of EZ Test Online and Connect to aggregate student results in similar fashion, making the collection and presentation of assurance of learning data simple and easy.
AACSB Statement
The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., is a proud corporate member of AACSB International. Recognizing the importance and value of AACSB accreditation, we have sought to rec-ognize the curricula guidelines detailed in AACSB standards for business accreditation by connecting selected questions in Lanen 4e, with the general knowledge and skill guidelines found in the AACSB standards. The statements contained in Lanen 4e are pro-vided only as a guide for the users of this text. The AACSB leaves content coverage and assessment clearly within the realm and control of individual schools, the mission of the school, and the faculty. The AACSB does also charge schools with the obligation of doing assessment against their own content and learning goals. While Lanen 4e and its teach-ing package make no claim of any specifi c AACSB qualifi cation or evaluation, we have labeled selected questions according to the six general knowledge and skills areas; the labels or tags within Lanen 4e are as indicated. There are, of course, many more within the test bank, the text, and the teaching package that might be used as a “standard” for your course; however, the labeled questions are suggested for your consideration.