Pervasive skills, also known as soft, generic or employability skills, are those competencies and behaviours that are required by a graduate to be successful in the work environment (Barac & Du Plessis 2014; Collet, Hine & Du Plessis 2015; De Villiers 2010). For accounting professionals, that working environment will mostly be within a changing context where effective interaction with people, leadership skills and business acumen are necessary attributes (Barac & Du Plessis 2014; De Villiers 2010).

Since 2000, when Albrecht and Sack called for a reform of accounting education, investigations have looked into what skills accounting graduates should possess apart from pure technical knowledge (Barac 2009; Jackling & De Lange 2009). The gap between what employers expect from a graduate and the skills that they possess upon entry into the workplace (Bui & Porter 2010; Webb & Chaffer 2016) and whether the academic programme, the training programme or the workplace is responsible for the development of these skills (Barac & Du Plessis 2014; De Villiers 2010; Strauss-Keevy 2014; Tymon 2013) has also been examined. Further research has also considered the suggested teaching methods to incorporate them in educational programmes (Andre & Smith 2014; Brenner, Jeancola & Watkins 2015; De Villiers 2010; Grimm & Blazovich 2016; Levant et al. 2016; Viviers et al. 2016).

Some of these suggested teaching methods incorporate case studies, group work, problem-based learning, as well as games and simulations into the accounting curriculum (Levant et al. 2016). All of these methods are based on the pedagogical foundation of active learning where the student is at the centre of learning and actively participates in creating knowledge and meaning (Levant et al. 2016). The educator is thus a facilitator who accompanies them along this learning journey (Carenys & Moya 2016). An active learner is an engaged learner, displaying confidence in their learning and a strong involvement in the learning process (Lee, Shifflett & Downen 2019). These learners will also follow the process of transforming their experiences so that knowledge is created and recreated (Kolb 1984; Kolb & Kolb 2005). By playing educational games, learners are actively involved in the learning process (active learning), they have to act and experience the effects of their actions and choices (experiential learning) and create meaning and knowledge in their own way (constructivist learning) (Levant et al. 2016). The game environment also presents opportunities for learning pervasive skills (De Freitas & Routledge 2013), as it is situated within the constructivist learning theory (Schunk 2012).

Qian and Clark (2016) defined game-based learning¹ as:

Different types of games exist, for example, serious games, entertainment games, digital games and business simulations.

A serious game, also referred to as an educational game, is a broad concept that encompasses all games, digital or otherwise, and has a specific learning objective or educational purpose (Carenys & Moya 2016). Such games have been specifically designed to boost learning and are not merely an adaptation of an existing game (Boyle et al. 2014).

Entertainment games, on the other hand, have been adapted from their original content and principles to teach students specific concepts. Examples include traditional board games such as Monopoly, the well-known television quiz show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’ and even the Wii dance game (Boyle et al. 2014; Tanner & Lindquist 1998).

A digital game is any learning game played on a computer or online. It can include games either specifically designed for educational purposes or those adjusted from the entertainment genre (Carenys & Moya 2016).

A business simulation is one in which students in different groups run an online company within a specific business environment. They need to make real-time decisions as managers of the business and solve problems that managers will experience, all safely protected from the risk of real mistakes (Fito-Bertran, Hernandez-Lara & Serradell-Lopez 2014).

The use of games has several benefits. It can improve the knowledge of a student in a specific subject area, whilst removing any anxiety regarding a specific aspect of the curriculum (Silva, Rodriques & Leal 2019). It evokes intense involvement and engagement, mostly within a very social and collaborative setting (Carenys & Moya 2016; Nitkin 2011). It is further beneficial in promoting effective learning as it is problem-based and immediate feedback is possible (McEacharn 2005; Qian & Clark 2016). However, these benefits of game-based learning are not universally accepted and critics have called for more extensive research to determine whether meaningful learning indeed occurs (Qian & Clark 2016). Huang and Hsu (2011) argued that games in education should be ‘designed as a supplement, rather than as the core instructional method’.

Game-based learning has been successfully used in accounting education, with most of the recent efforts occurring in the digital gaming arena (Carenys & Moya 2016). Huang and Hsu (2011) used free online games to teach their students personal finance concepts and found that the games achieved significantly higher learning outcomes – but only if used as a learning aid. Murphy (2005) created Word- and Excel-based Jeopardy! boards for teaching governmental accounting. The students who were surveyed found the learning process to be more interesting, felt more involved in the learning process and were forced to think more critically. Lee et al. (2019) also used Jeopardy! to teach accounting students Excel shortcuts and students reported an enjoyable learning experience. Silva et al. (2019) created the ‘Accountingame’ and the ‘Marketingame’, digital board games that require each player to answer a set of 200 questions, thereby increasing a student’s knowledge of accounting and marketing subject areas. Seow and Wong (2016) created Accounting Challenge (ACE), a mobile app with a financial accounting and management accounting module, consisting of multiple choice questions. At the end of a game session, students can review their answers and learn from their mistakes.

Business simulations are another type of game often used in accounting and business courses. Towler, Lean and Moizer (2009) introduced their final-year students at a United Kingdom (UK) business school to the Business Strategy game. This game is based on a global business involved in the manufacture and sale of athletic footwear. The student teams compete against each other and are scored, based on predetermined metrics such as profit or market share at the end of the game. Similar to Xu and Yang (2010), they found that simulations encourage high-order thinking in students and require them to solve diverse problems quickly and collaboratively.

On the non-digital side, Tanner and Lindquist (1998) used the actual game of Monopoly in a group format and, after several turns, required teams to record their activities in the accounting records, to ultimately prepare an income statement and balance sheet. Similarly, Nitkin (2011) developed a board game, The Game of Business, for an introductory accounting class to reinforce the steps in the accounting cycle. Viviers et al. (2016) established a tax game, The Amazing Tax Race, in which student teams race against time to complete tax-related activities at several stations across campus. All these studies found tremendous value in the group structure of the games and reinforced the importance of cooperative learning.

The specific games played by students at the higher education institution where the study was conducted, as well as the undergraduate degree in which these modules are presented will be further explored.

In South Africa, the training of a CA commences with a 3-year undergraduate programme. At the SAICA-accredited university at which the study was conducted, this programme is called a Bachelor of Accounting (BAcc) or Baccalaureus Commercii (BCom) (Accounting). These programmes are designed in consultation with the SAICA to provide a well-rounded, technically focused education that equips graduates with the technical knowledge, proficiency and pervasive skills needed by the chartered accounting profession (SAICA 2019). The BAcc programme is recognised as the first requirement in the training of a student who desires to eventually practise as a CA. The programme is designed to prepare students for the Initial Test of Competence (ITC) with the SAICA². In the undergraduate degree that is the focus of this study, two games are played: one in the first year of the programme and the other in the second year. In the first year, a board game is played as part of the Commerce 100 module. This is a formal game, developed in consultation with one of the major South African audit firms. In the second year, 60 Seconds (adapted from 30 Seconds) is played as part of the Accounting 200 subject. This is an informal game, played by students in one of their tutorial classes.

A mixed-methods methodology was considered appropriate (Tashakkori & Creswell 2007) to gain insights into students’ experiences and perceptions of the pervasive skills acquired through the playing of two games in their undergraduate degree. The mixed-methods design used for this inquiry meant that quantitative and qualitative data were integrated into the interpretation phase. This was done to determine the extent to which the findings from one data collection method complemented the findings of the other. The approach of combining quantitative data with comments and open-ended questions, enhanced the results, providing a richer perspective (Merino & Aucock 2017; Viviers et al. 2016). Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire using a purposive sampling technique (Palys in ed. Given 2008). Both closed- and open-ended questions were included in the questionnaire. Closed-end questions were asked to limit students’ responses for more consistency and better comparability of responses. The open-ended questions were included in the questionnaire for deeper insight into the students’ perceptions of the development of pervasive skills through their participation in the games.

A link to the web-based questionnaire was emailed to the participants in the second semester. The students eligible to participate in the study had to be academically in their second year of study and must have been exposed to the two educational games in their undergraduate degree. The questionnaire consisted of two sections:

An independent statistician analysed the quantitative data by means of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Data from the open-ended questions were analysed through a process of thematic content analysis (Henning, Van Rensburg & Smit 2004). The thematic analysis followed several phases (Braun & Clarke 2006) and started with gaining familiarity with the data, generating codes that would lead to themes, reviewing the themes and then defining and naming those themes.

The response rate was 32%, which was higher than other web-based questionnaires administered in SA (Eiselen & Nkoutchou 2012). It was also within the range of 25% – 38%, which has been specified by Marx (2008) as an acceptable questionnaire response rate in South Africa. Thus, the response rate of 32% was considered sufficient for the purposes of this study.

It should be noted that none of the questions in the questionnaire were compulsory and participants could refrain from answering a particular section or question if they wished so. For that reason, participants did not necessarily answer all the questions.

Ethical clearance was obtained from the Faculty of Economic and Financial Sciences Ethics Committee to distribute the questionnaire to the students. To ensure individual confidentiality, data were recorded based on the principle of anonymity. Participants were also informed that their participation was voluntary and that they had the option to withdraw from the study at any time without prejudicing themselves. To ensure the confidentiality of the data, electronic consent was obtained from the participants and all data were collated and reported on as a unit. The questionnaire was pilot-tested by a selected group of students and two academics to gauge the questionnaire’s perceived face validity. The questions were drawn from the literature, which led the researchers to believe that the instrument displayed content validity.

A total of 113 responses were received from the student population. Of this sample, 54 (47.8%) were female respondents, 58 (51.3%) were male respondents and one (0.9%) was non-binary. The majority of the respondents, 76 (67%) spoke an indigenous South African or African language. English was spoken by 25 (22.1%) of the respondents, Afrikaans by seven (6%) and European or other languages by two (1%) of the respondents as a home language. The majority of the respondents (97.3%) were between the ages of 18 and 22 years and only 34 (30.1%) were first-generation students, that is, the first from their families studying at a higher education institution. Statistical analysis indicated that there were negligible variances in the responses between the demographical groupings of the population that would have any meaningful insight into the responses from students.

One of the open-ended questions asked students to describe the skills that they think a successful CA should possess. Their views are captured in the four themes here.

Based on the students’ views of the pervasive skills that a successful CA should possess, this study further considers which of these skills the students perceive to have been developed through participation in the games. The qualitative and quantitative findings for the board game are combined in this section to show the perceptions of students on the development of skills and what they learned from playing the game in their first year of study. Table 1 shows the skills that students believed were best developed through the board game. These are ranked according to the mean for each of the 12 skills as described in the SAICA Competency Framework and discussed in the introduction to the article.

Based on the given results, students perceived that strategic thinking, critical thinking and professionalism were the top three skills that were most developed through the board game. This is a reasonable conclusion as the game requires students to think critically and strategically when responding to risks, opportunities and world events relating to their chosen company. During the game, students are required to listen to facilitators regarding instructions on how to play the game; they are also required to interact and communicate with other students. Thus, the students also perceived the skills of verbal and listening communication to be the fifth and seventh most developed skills in this project.

The open-ended question on this game asked students whether they enjoyed playing it and if so, what was the main lesson learnt from playing the game. The question generated a highly positive response from the majority of students, showing that they indeed enjoyed playing the game. Only five negative responses were recorded. Unfortunately, the students did not elaborate on the reasons for this, except for one response which stated: ‘no, it was quite stressful and I didn’t gain anything valuable from it’.

The gains that the students derived from playing the game could be summarised in three main themes, namely, skills were developed, learning was collaborative and fun and a connection to real life was established.

The qualitative and quantitative findings (mixed method) for the 60 Seconds game were also combined in this section to show the perceptions of students regarding the development of skills and what they learned from playing the game in their second year of study. Table 2 shows the skills that students believed were developed the best through the 60 Seconds game, ranked according to the mean for each of the 12 skills.

The results indicate that students perceived teamwork to be the most developed pervasive skill in this short, informal game. This was followed closely by communication (listening) in second place and time management in third place. This is a reasonable deduction as the game required students to work in teams, listen to descriptions given by their team members in order to formulate their answer within a time limit of 60 Seconds. Critical thinking and strategic thinking were ranked as fifth and sixth, respectively, showing that students understood that these skills were important in a game of this nature in which time was limited and had to be maximised in order to obtain the most correct answers in the limited time given. Leadership and written communication were ranked as the least developed skills. This stands to reason as the game does not create an opportunity for leadership and written communication is not needed as the game is based on verbal communication with team members.

As with the board game, the same question was asked to the students regarding the 60 Seconds tutorial game. The game received an overwhelmingly positive response from the students, with only one student indicating that he or she did not enjoy the game or learn anything from it. The main benefits derived from the game can be summarised in three themes, namely, knowledge creation, development of communication skills and an appreciation that accounting can be fun.

The difference between the mean of the highest and lowest ranked pervasive skills in the board game was narrow at 0.9, with a slightly larger difference of 1.15 indicated between the means of the highest and lowest ranked pervasive skills in the 60 Seconds game. This could indicate that students perceived that both the board game and the 60 Seconds game developed pervasive skills, but that the board game developed all the pervasive skills, more so than the 60 Seconds game.

On comparing the perceptions of the participants between the two games, no significant differences were noted (the p-values were not smaller than 0.05). Other comparisons between age groups, gender and language groups were also considered, but no statistical difference was observed.