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Accountants’ perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills in advisory discussions : bridging practice and accounting education

Niels Garwig (UGent) , Evelien Opdecam (UGent) and Patricia Everaert (UGent)
(2025) ACCOUNTING EDUCATION.
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Abstract
his qualitative study explores accountants' perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills during advisory discussions with client entrepreneurs. Although communication skills are widely addressed in accounting education, pedagogical skills for accountants have received little attention in previous research. Drawing on the Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) concept, this study addresses this gap by exploring accountants' perspectives on whether and how they apply pedagogical skills during advisory discussions with clients about their financial statements. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten accountants from a Belgian mid-sized organisation serving small and medium-sized enterprises. A hybrid coding approach was used to analyse the data. The findings reveal that accountants report applying basic pedagogical skills, such as using non-technical language, providing examples, and employing visual aids, which reflect elements of the PCK concept in practice. However, the reported limited attention to client entrepreneurs' expertise levels during explanations, reliance on generic prompts or body language to assess understanding, and lack of targeted comprehension checks suggest that accountants intuitively apply these skills. This study contributes to accounting education by identifying pedagogical skills as a component of professional skills, and offers recommendations on how these skills can be integrated into curricula to better prepare accounting students for advisory roles.
Keywords
Accountants, advisory discussions, professional skills, pedagogical skills, PERFORMANCE, MANAGERS

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MLA
Garwig, Niels, et al. “Accountants’ Perspectives on Their Use of Pedagogical Skills in Advisory Discussions : Bridging Practice and Accounting Education.” ACCOUNTING EDUCATION, 2025, doi:10.1080/09639284.2025.2603225.
APA
Garwig, N., Opdecam, E., & Everaert, P. (2025). Accountants’ perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills in advisory discussions : bridging practice and accounting education. ACCOUNTING EDUCATION. https://doi.org/10.1080/09639284.2025.2603225
Chicago author-date
Garwig, Niels, Evelien Opdecam, and Patricia Everaert. 2025. “Accountants’ Perspectives on Their Use of Pedagogical Skills in Advisory Discussions : Bridging Practice and Accounting Education.” ACCOUNTING EDUCATION. https://doi.org/10.1080/09639284.2025.2603225.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
Garwig, Niels, Evelien Opdecam, and Patricia Everaert. 2025. “Accountants’ Perspectives on Their Use of Pedagogical Skills in Advisory Discussions : Bridging Practice and Accounting Education.” ACCOUNTING EDUCATION. doi:10.1080/09639284.2025.2603225.
Vancouver
1.
Garwig N, Opdecam E, Everaert P. Accountants’ perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills in advisory discussions : bridging practice and accounting education. ACCOUNTING EDUCATION. 2025;
IEEE
[1]
N. Garwig, E. Opdecam, and P. Everaert, “Accountants’ perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills in advisory discussions : bridging practice and accounting education,” ACCOUNTING EDUCATION, 2025.
@article{01KEH04K9P2KB2Q149PAPKW5KZ,
  abstract     = {{his qualitative study explores accountants' perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills during advisory discussions with client entrepreneurs. Although communication skills are widely addressed in accounting education, pedagogical skills for accountants have received little attention in previous research. Drawing on the Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) concept, this study addresses this gap by exploring accountants' perspectives on whether and how they apply pedagogical skills during advisory discussions with clients about their financial statements. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten accountants from a Belgian mid-sized organisation serving small and medium-sized enterprises. A hybrid coding approach was used to analyse the data. The findings reveal that accountants report applying basic pedagogical skills, such as using non-technical language, providing examples, and employing visual aids, which reflect elements of the PCK concept in practice. However, the reported limited attention to client entrepreneurs' expertise levels during explanations, reliance on generic prompts or body language to assess understanding, and lack of targeted comprehension checks suggest that accountants intuitively apply these skills. This study contributes to accounting education by identifying pedagogical skills as a component of professional skills, and offers recommendations on how these skills can be integrated into curricula to better prepare accounting students for advisory roles.}},
  author       = {{Garwig, Niels and Opdecam, Evelien and Everaert, Patricia}},
  issn         = {{0963-9284}},
  journal      = {{ACCOUNTING EDUCATION}},
  keywords     = {{Accountants,advisory discussions,professional skills,pedagogical skills,PERFORMANCE,MANAGERS}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{26}},
  title        = {{Accountants’ perspectives on their use of pedagogical skills in advisory discussions : bridging practice and accounting education}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1080/09639284.2025.2603225}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}
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