Hints and Advice About F1, F2, F3 (Part 1) - ACCA Global Accountancy Discussion Forums

ranawadood · 05-05-2008, 06:38 PM

Hi, F1, F2, F3 students,

In May publication there are some hints and advice concerning multiple-choice questions. so see,

The paper-based and computer-based exams for Papers 1 to 4 of the CAT Scheme, and Papers F1 to F3 of the ACCA Qualification, include multiple-choice questions (MCQs). A candidate’s ability to use good exam technique when answering such questions will strongly influence their marks in these papers.

This article provides some practical guidance on how to maximise marks, by setting out some golden rules and emphasising some points that, while not unique to ACCA exams, are key to understanding how ACCA has decided to use MCQs.

Prepare to pass
As with any assessment, the golden rule for success is to prepare thoroughly. Examiners’ reports regularly note that too many candidates attempt exams for which their preparation has been inadequate. Clear evidence of inadequate preparation is an attempt to ‘question spot’, as is the reliance on a small number of ‘pet’ topics. These approaches to preparation are extremely risky and are always strongly discouraged by examiners – for good reason.

By considering why MCQs are used in an exam, the risk attached to these approaches becomes clear. Like any other approach to assessment, there are a number of advantages to using MCQs as an assessment method. Because each MCQ relates to a specific issue within the syllabus, the exam can achieve broad coverage of the syllabus. This means that to maximise your chances of success you must have studied the whole syllabus.

You may be lucky enough to find an MCQ on a topic which was part of your most recent studies, but the chances of finding a large number of questions on one topic in any paper are very low.

As well as studying topics right across the syllabus, it is important to attempt past exam and exam-standard questions. Past paper-based multiple-choice questions can be found for CAT Papers 3 and 4, along with Pilot Papers for all exams on ACCA’s website. Practice computer-based exams for all subjects can be found at http://www.accaglobal.com/students/s...exams/cbe/demo. Three questions for each of Papers F1, F2, and F3 are also published after each exam session, with commentaries from the examiners, on the student channel of the website. It is also recommended that you practise long-form questions, to give a better depth of understanding of issues relating to the subjects.

It is essential that such questions are used carefully and thoughtfully. Candidates preparing for exams often fail to follow-up on questions which they have answered. Whether a question was answered correctly or incorrectly during exam preparation, they provide an opportunity to enhance your understanding of the topic. By reflecting on why a specific option is the correct answer, you can improve your understanding, just as reflecting on why the other options are wrong can help to overcome misunderstanding and eliminate confusion. When attempting questions as part of your preparation, it is useful to remember that a key purpose of the exercise is to enhance your understanding – not just to get the question right.

When reviewing each option, it is important to ensure that you understand exactly what the underlying point is – and to make sure that you reflect on this to enhance your learning.

Read the question
The amount of time, effort, and discussion that is put into each question before it appears in an exam is likely to surprise most candidates. Every question is subjected to a number of rigorous reviews as it progresses from an idea in the writer’s mind to the exam paper. These reviews mean that candidates need to read the question extremely carefully, as the wording has been chosen with care. This care is intended to ensure that the question is unambiguous and does not mislead candidates.

An example of the need to read the question carefully might be the way in which a question communicates cost information. It is not unusual for a question to relate to a production period of, say, three months, but for fixed costs to be stated as an annual figure. To get the correct answer, candidates must have recognised this fact. This is not an attempt to confuse candidates, but rather an attempt to ensure that candidates can apply the technique in a real-life situation, where information must be clearly understood and is frequently communicated in this way.

A further aspect of the care taken when drafting questions is that the answer should be based on the data included in the question. For example, in order to ensure that questions are not too long, the data may have been simplified. To some candidates, this may seem to be unrealistic when compared to a real-life situation. A particular example of this is the way in which the labour cost is described in many questions. More often than not, direct labour is described as a variable cost, with no reference to the cost of laying off staff. For a candidate who has experience of staff rationalisation, this assumption will be totally unrealistic. While a longer question may provide the opportunity to critically examine the underlying assumptions, this is not possible in an MCQ and the question should be answered on the basis of the data provided.

It is imperative that the prompt is read carefully. For example, a question may give information on receivables, irrecoverable debts, and required allowances for receivables. The prompt is often assumed by candidates, but may be any of the movement on the allowance, the closing allowance, the charge to the income statement, or closing receivables, among others.

Think
It is a common fallacy that MCQs are easy. This is based on the fact that one of the options is the correct answer. Therefore, the argument goes, all the candidate has to do is make the correct selection. While it is fair to say that some questions may be easy, that is usually because the candidate already knows the answer – because they have prepared thoroughly. As noted above, this may happen in some questions, but it is more likely that the answer will not be obvious. A question from the Pilot Paper for Paper F1 illustrates this:

SAMPLE QUESTION 1
Which one of the following is consistent with a government’s policy objective to expand the level of economic activity?

A An increase in taxation
B An increase in interest rates
C An increase in personal savings
D An increase in public expenditure

All of the options refer to matters that may be part of a government policy to influence economic activity, so the question is testing candidates’ ability to determine how each of the matters will impact on economic activity. Selecting the correct answer depends on clear thinking.

If direct taxation is increased, consumers will have less disposable income, while if indirect taxation is increased, prices will rise. Either of these will have the effect of reducing consumer demand, and will lead to a contraction of economic activity. Therefore A is incorrect. When interest rates rise, borrowing becomes more expensive. As the majority of businesses and consumers are borrowers, this will (just as an increase in taxation) lead to a reduction in disposable income, and in turn to a contraction of economic activity. Therefore B is incorrect. If the government encourages an increase in personal savings, then consumers will (once again) have less disposable income. Therefore C is incorrect. Therefore option D must be correct, and it is correct because an increase in public expenditure will increase demand within the economy, leading to an increase in economic activity.

It is essential that, having read the question carefully, you think about your response, and that your answer is the result of a considered choice. This is because of the way in which the incorrect options have been constructed. In ACCA exams, MCQs have one correct option and three incorrect options. The incorrect options are referred to as ‘distractors’. This term is used because in writing the question, the examiner attempts to identify the most common mistakes made by candidates and uses these as a basis for the incorrect options. This can be illustrated by a question taken from the Pilot Paper for Paper F2.

SAMPLE QUESTION 2
A company’s budgeted sales for last month were 10,000 units, with a standard selling price of $20 per unit and a standard contribution of $8 per unit. Last month, actual sales of 10,500 units at an average selling price of $19.50 per unit were achieved.

What were the sales price and sales volume contribution variances for last month?

Sales price variance ($) Sales volume contribution variance ($)
A 5,250 Adverse 4,000 Favourable
B 5,250 Adverse 4,000 Adverse
C 5,000 Adverse 4,000 Favourable
D 5,000 Adverse 4,000 Adverse

Sales volume should have been 10,000 units.
Sales volume was 10,500 units.

As volume was greater than anticipated, the sales volume contribution variance must be favourable. Therefore only options A and C can be correct. Also, there is no need to complete the calculation of this variance.

Selecting the correct answer depends on correctly calculating the sales price variance correctly.

to be contnued