Using Blog Technology For Collaborative Learning Of Accounting And Corporate Governance Issues: Design And Implementation Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Blog

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is to provide design and implementation guidance to those interested in utilizing blogs as a collaborative learning tool in any given field of study.  We created the Sarbanes-Oxley Blog (SoxBlog), a web-based forum for asynchronous student-instructor-expert collaboration.  Given the recent scandals and publication of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX), we increased our emphasis on integrating corporate governance and ethics issues into the financial accounting curriculum.  Students new to financial accounting were asked to research a number of targeted issues related to the accounting environment and corporate governance and to discuss them with their peers, instructor, and experts.  Some of the items to be discussed include: the relationship between task and learning objectives, students’ engagement in the collaboration process, the structuring of the collaboration process, and the technological simplicity of creating and using blogs.  Overall, students perceived the SoxBlog collaboration as a positive learning experience.