Accounting teachers’ curriculum perspectives towards the accounting syllabus

Abstract The purpose of this study is to gain insight into teachers’ interpretation of the accounting syllabus key components so that the alignment with the syllabus design orientation meant to address the accounting curriculum goals can be deciphered. The theory of curriculum orientation was employed as a lens through which the data were generated and analysed. The study is guided by the two research questions as follows: How do accounting teachers interpret the key components of the syllabus? What is the accounting curriculum design orientation? A qualitative case study design was employed in which the participants were purposively selected. The data were generated through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The findings reveal that the teachers view accounting syllabus as a tool meant to develop practical and intellectual skills as well as helping learners to acquire content knowledge. The teachers’ perspectives seem to be aligned with the accounting curriculum design orientation since the analysis of the syllabus confirms that it has drawn from both the curriculum for social efficiency and academic rationalism.


Introduction
Lesotho General Certificate of Secondary Education (LGCSE) accounting syllabus was introduced in 2014 under the "O" level localisation reform intended to address issues of quality and relevance. The accounting curriculum document introduces the syllabus explicitly as "tailor-made to instil entrepreneurial culture in the learners and to form a sound base for further learning in the Commercial field" (Minstry of Education and Training (MOET), 2018, p. 2). Given the high rate of unemployment and socio-economic challenges in Lesotho as described in the Poverty Reduction Strategy paper (Government of Lesotho, 2012), curriculum developers seem to view accounting as a tool intended to promote business knowledge through development of financial literacy in learners. The syllabus aims are therefore centred on this orientation.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Mahlompho Retselisitsoe Tsiane is a lecturer in the department of Language and Social Education at the National University of Lesotho. She teaches Business Accounting and Management of Business courses and supervises research at undergraduate level. Her research interests include curriculum studies in Accounting, Business Studies and Business Entrepreneurship. Bonane Motebanglectures courses in curriculum studies in Accounting at the National University of Lesotho. She has participated in the country's curriculum development, implementation and evaluation activities; undertaken research in business education and accounting curriculum as well as teacher education. She has also taught business subjects in secondary education.
The rationale behind the LGCSE accounting curriculum is to prepare learners for the global business world which is faced with economic challenges and recurring economic recessions. Such prepared learners would find their rightful place in the business world and be able to contribute and participate meaningfully in society (MOET, 2018). However, Nketekete and author (2008) highlight that the development of entrepreneurship education in a school setting has been contested since it implies a paradigm shift in methods and practice of teaching and how knowledge is conceived. Given that the accounting curriculum upholds both development of learners' entrepreneurial culture, which calls for certain classroom practices, and learners' preparation for further learning in the commercial field, the teachers might focus on the latter as it involves the assessment of learners' performance. The teachers' emphasis on standardized achievement tests as opposed to the development of practical skills has also been underlined by the Curriculum and Assessment Policy of 2009 (CAP 2009) document as follows: Examinations still wield a great influence on curriculum and to a large extent assessment is still mainly pen and paper activity geared towards selection and certification. It has been observed that due to high stakes nature of examination, practical skills and attitudes that are not examined tend to be neglected at the school level and teacher training institutions regardless of their envisaged contribution towards attainment of national goals (MOET, 2009, p. 4).
Effective implementation of curricular innovation such as the accounting curriculum requires, as (Tanriverdi & Apak, 2014) argue, in-service training workshops focused on teachers' curriculum perspectives since they are the key participants of curriculum implementation. They further suggest that the focus should be on developing teachers' knowledge and understanding of the new approaches recommended. Furthermore, (A. C. K. Cheung et al., 2022) underline the role of teachers' curricular orientation and belief systems as crucial in providing a personal guide through which teachers understand and interpret the curriculum.
The arguments by (Tanriverdi & Apak, 2014; A. C. K. Cheung et al., 2022) imply that teachers' professional development, without taking into consideration the teachers' curriculum orientations, can do little in realising the anticipated curriculum goals. This does not mean teachers' orientations should by definition be the standard for successful implementation of educational reform; instead it entails that an innovation intended to change teachers' practice has to make an attempt to study teachers' curriculum orientations and address them (Van Driel et al., 2007). Essentially, teachers' curriculum perspectives inform their curriculum decisions and classroom practices (Cheung & Ng, 2000;Jenkins, 2009;Tanriverdi & Apak, 2014). The current study therefore explored existing curriculum orientations among the LGCSE accounting teachers with the intention to provide information that could enhance professional development for successful implementation of the LGCSE in accounting syllabus.
The preceding argument indicates that the effectiveness of curriculum implementation largely depends on the teachers' curriculum orientation. Curriculum theorists generally agree that the concept of curriculum orientation is used to explain what is valued in teaching and learning (Singleton, 2013). On this subject, Miller 1983 as cited in (Cheung, 2000a) underlines four main important functions as thus: • To help teachers clarify their teaching and learning approaches.
• To clarify the conceptual base of curriculum documents.
• As a vehicle for staff development.
• Providing a guiding framework for curriculum developments as well.
It is because of the above functions that the researchers embarked on this study. Studies have been undertaken on teachers' curriculum orientations as shown in the literature review below. However, to our knowledge there are no studies on the interpretation of the accounting curriculum using the curriculum orientations as tools of analysis. Therefore, the study is intended to gain insight into teachers' interpretation of the accounting syllabus key components so that alignment with the syllabus design orientation meant to address the ultimate accounting curriculum goals can be deciphered. The study is guided by the following research questions: (1) How do accounting teachers interpret the key components of the syllabus?
(2) What is the accounting curriculum design orientation?

Theoretical framework
The study employs the theory of curriculum orientation as a lens through which to collect and analyse data. Curriculum orientation is defined as a "set of personal beliefs about the intent, content organisation, teaching methods, learning activities and instructional assessment of curriculum" (Cheung, 2000b, p. 71). In other words, curriculum orientation refers to a collective set of perspectives about the four basic curriculum elements, which are aims/goals, content, instructional activities and assessment.
Even though the term curriculum orientations can also be referred to as curriculum ideologies, curriculum beliefs, educational value orientations and concepts of curriculum, the paper consistently uses the term curriculum orientation. Regrettably, the classification scheme and terminology used is still not standardised in the literature on curriculum. Curriculum theorists have proposed various classification schemes for curriculum orientations; each orientation represents a distinct set of beliefs about the purpose of knowledge in the school curriculum.
This study adopts (Schiro, 2008 classification scheme as it encompasses all the orientations. Therefore, based on Schiro, curriculum orientations are identified as Scholar Academic, Social Efficiency, Learner-centred and Social Reconstruction. Scholar academic will be used synonymously with what other scholars refer to as academic rationalism, and learner-centred with humanism. Each of the four curriculum orientations is briefly explained. Each orientation represents a distinct conception of curriculum design and reflects a set of values about what is important in education (Cheung & Wong, 2002) 1.1.1. Academic rationalism Academic rationalism's priority is to transmit discipline-specific knowledge for the purpose of developing discipline-specific thinking, which is considered to be the essence of the academic discipline.  states that according to the academic rationalists, the main purpose of education is to facilitate learning of the accumulated knowledge of the academic disciplines.
The academic rationalists' view is that the structure or logic of each of the scholarly disciplines offers a way of learning the discipline itself (Schwab, 1964;Foshay, 1970). The adherents of academic rationalism believe that Schwab's (1962) substantive and syntactical structure of the discipline in particular, guides teaching and learning. For instance, in teaching and learning, the understanding of the discipline's key concepts and processes is considered fundamental for the purpose of guiding teaching. The advocates of this orientation believe that there is no need for a learning theory that is separate from the discipline .
The value of assessment of learners within the orientation is to rank learners with a view to certifying them as future members in the discipline. Thus, the tests and national assessments are major tools employed for assessing student mastery of discipline knowledge and separating them, not according to what they know but based on who knows it best .

Social efficiency
Social efficiency orientation is of the view that the main purpose of schooling is to meet the interests of society by preparing learners for a meaningful adult life in a society. The school curriculum, therefore, is largely driven by statements about equipping learners with specific knowledge and skills, and "subject matter consists primarily with knowledge and skills justified by reference to occupation, profession and vocation" (Deng & Luke 2008, p. 70).
The advocates of social efficiency view a teacher as a supervisor of instructional activities.  explains that as a supervisor, the teacher makes sure that the learners work towards the achievement of pre-specified objectives. According to Gagne (as cited in , the purpose of this supervisory teaching is to ensure efficient learning, which is the greatest change in learners' behaviour within the shortest period of time. Emphasis on the latter attracts the label of technological for some scholars. The students are assessed on acquisition of skills and the ability to correctly apply the knowledge acquired (Cheung, 2000b). Unlike academic rationalism, the purpose of students' evaluation is to determine whether they meet certain standards such as pre-specified assessment objectives representing the syllabus objectives, hence some scholars prefer behavioural orientation. The learners' performance is certified as pass or fail; not in a ranking form .

Humanism
Humanism orientation advocates for self-actualisation; the needs and aspirations of the learner therefore become the crucial source of curriculum development. It is the needs and interests of the learners that determine what knowledge to include in the curriculum (Eisner & Vallance as cited in Deng & Luke, 2008). For the humanists, the main purpose of the subject matter is to help learners develop and discover their unique innate capabilities.
The humanists emphasise that the function of the curriculum is to provide each student with intrinsically rewarding experiences to enhance personal growth and development (Cheung & Wong, 2002). In the same vein, (Jenkins, 2009) highlights that teachers and students work together to create an environment where learning is not directed but explored in an open and communicative setting to foster learners' personal development as unique individuals. It is thus reasonable to argue that learner-centred orientation subscribes to curriculum as a process since the assumption is that the learners make unique responses to the learning experience, which is consistent with this orientation. The educator's role is to carefully create environments or units of work which stimulate growth in learners as they construct meaning for themselves (Eisner, 2002); hence the educator is regarded as a facilitator. According to (Schiro, 2008), evaluation is meant for diagnosing students' abilities so as to facilitate growth and self-actualisation.

Social reconstruction
The central concern of this orientation is development of problem-solving skills, required to address existing inequality and injustices in society (Marulcu & Akbiyik, 2014). Curriculum design is, therefore, oriented towards socio-cultural contexts than individual differences and needs. The central focus of curriculum for social reconstruction is the emancipation of the individual members of the society from the problems which emanate from unequal power relations.
According to (Schiro, 2008), social reconstruction orientation regards the purpose of the curriculum as to facilitate the construction of a new and more just society that offers maximum satisfaction to its members. In essence, teaching and learning should therefore be to provide students with opportunities to develop critical consciousness and social responsibility. Social reconstructionists aim at the development of learners that can critically analyse social problems confronting the society, make rational decisions, and act to bring into existence the envisaged society. Moreover,  asserts that the educator adapts the curriculum and plays the role of a colleague in an attempt to effectively share the educational vision. Social reconstruction educators advocate for formative assessment, which measures students' progress with respect to their ability to apply the knowledge and skills learned in solving contemporary societal issues. Similarly, (Cheung, 2000a) emphasises that the assessment is mainly carried out to evaluate extent to which the students have acquired the required skills in terms of interpreting societal problems and ability to make well-reasoned decisions.
The curriculum orientations discussed in this section are summarised in the Table 1 below, which presents the Analytical Framework adopted for the study.

Literature review
From the theoretical standpoint, curriculum orientations discussed in the foregoing paragraphs seem to be conflicting and mutually exclusive. The review of literature confirms that generally, teachers draw on multiple-curriculum orientations (Miller as cited in Ashour, Khasawneh, (Ashour et al., 2012;Karaduman & UÇar, 2020;Salleh et al., 2015). According to (Cheung & Wong, 2002), all the curriculum orientations are mutually harmonising rather than mutually exclusive. The authors illustrated that teachers do not subscribe to one orientation; instead, they tend to draw on more than one orientation based on the benefits of such orientations and how they complement one another. They further demonstrated that curriculum orientations are "substantially interconnected and psychologically interconnected" in the mind of a teacher (Cheung & Wong, 2002, p. 238). The complementary interconnections of curriculum orientations will be discussed in the following paragraphs. However, (Cheung & Wong, 2002) also expound that " . . . operationalisation of a curriculum orientation in a school environment is affected by a lot of situational factors Table 1. Key components of curriculum within curriculum orientations Academic Rationalism

Social Reconstruction
Accounting knowledge As a discipline knowledge that develops students' discipline thinking ways.

Accounting knowledge
As a tool for developing accounting skills to be transferred to the world of work.

Accounting knowledge
As an integration of cognitive, affective and psychomotor domain for personal growth and development.

Accounting knowledge
As a tool for social development.

Content organisation
Accounting logical structures determine content selection

Content organisation
Behavioural objectives determine the content selection organised into accounting process towards attainment of accounting skills.

Content organisation
Learners' needs and interests determine accounting content selection and organisation.

Content organisation
Contemporary social issues determine accounting content selection and organisation.

Instructional activities
Teacher-centred approaches Learning is a function of teaching

Instructional activities
Systematic ways of teaching and learning accounting process skills (sequentially planned activities).

Instructional activities
Learner-centred approaches Learning is a function of an interaction between a learner and his environment.

Instructional activities
An issue based approach that incorporates accounting content (corporative activities, group work and decision making exercises).

Assessment
Learner's mastery of accounting content. Determine the amount of accounting knowledge students have acquired. Ranks students from those with greatest intellectual gain to those with the least.

Assessment
Learner's ability to apply the accounting knowledge and skills acquired. Indicate whether or not students can perform accounting skills. Its purpose is to certify students' competence to perform specific tasks.

Assessment
Learner's ability to use accounting knowledge for personal development.
It is primarily for the learners' benefits, not comparing learners with each other or measuring them against predetermined standard.

Assessment
Learner's ability to apply accounting knowledge to interpret social issues.
Comparison of students' performance with their capabilities.
This framework includes material adapted from (Cheung, 2000a) and (Schiro, 2008  (p. 230)". As such, researchers should not confuse the concept of curriculum orientation with the operational curriculum found in schools.

Curriculum meta-orientation
The studies on teachers' beliefs have revealed that teachers value all the curriculum orientations to various degrees. In the words of (Cheung, 2000a), p.152, "Curriculum analysts generally agree that in any categorical scheme, the specific curriculum orientations are interconnected, forming a meta-orientation". Meta-orientation refers to a cluster of several specific orientations (Miller as cited in Cheung, 2000b). Nevertheless, the examples of meta-orientation discussed are beyond the limits of the current study. The study on measuring teachers' meta-orientations to curriculum by (Cheung, 2000a) in Hong Kong revealed that teachers generally support the academic, humanistic, and social efficiency, (the latter being referred to by the author as technological) orientations more than the social reconstruction. The research findings of (D. Cheung et al., 2000); (Ashour et al., 2012;Cheung & Wong, 2002;Salleh et al., 2015;Singleton, 2013;Tanriverdi & Apak, 2014); and (Alsalem, 2018) are consistent with (Cheung, 2000a) in that teachers favour all the orientations; and thus, confirm the existence of teachers' complementary pluralism or meta-orientation. This is what Joseph Schwab identified as eclectic approach or orientation. These findings therefore support the assertion by Miller (1983) as stated earlier.
However, (Cheung, 2000a) further demonstrates that the degree of correlation between the academic and social efficiency was the highest. The findings show that teachers who valued academic orientation tended to support a technological orientation as well. A study by (Tanriverdi & Apak, 2014) in North West Turkey on the other hand reports that pre-service teachers adopting technological orientation, that is social efficiency in this study, also subscribe to humanistic curriculum orientation and vice versa. The humanist orientation was also found to be popular among pre-service teachers by (Karaduman & UÇar, 2020) in Turkey. The researchers undertook a study looking at the impact of Science Education Programme on the pre-service teachers' curriculum orientations and educational philosophies. The findings indicated that although the humanist orientation was popular among the teachers, it declined over the teachers' progression in the programme, replaced by the cognitive curriculum orientation. In other words, teachers who believe in education that develops a child holistically also support integration of technology in curriculum for effective learning which could finally mould efficient members in society. This is also in line with the current educational practices as they put more emphasis on learner-centred pedagogy and information and communication technology in instructional activities.
Although (D. Cheung et al., 2000); and (Jenkins, 2009) findings as well confirmed curriculum meta-orientation, the most theoretically opposed curriculum orientations were also strongly confirmed to be practically opposed for Hong Kong and United States science teachers respectively. Following (D. Cheung et al., 2000) study on science teachers' beliefs about curriculum design in Hong Kong, it was found out that teachers who advocated for academic rationalism did not subscribe to social reconstruction, and vice versa. Against this background, those teachers who emphasise the mastery of discipline-specific concepts for purposes of developing disciplinary thinking ways did not include societal issues such as inequality and marginalised groups in teaching and learning of the subject matter. Unlike (D. Cheung et al., 2000), (Jenkins, 2009) study discovered that teachers endorsing social reconstruction seemed not to draw on social efficiency, which was referred to as behavioural orientation, and vice versa. This implies that those teachers who view curriculum as a tool for solving social issues and improving society did not believe in focusing towards finding efficient means to a set of predetermined behavioural objectives with an intention to equip learners with skills needed for the world of work or adult life in general.
Collectively, studies on curriculum orientations validate that teachers support several orientations to curriculum concurrently, notwithstanding that some orientations are more preferred than others, and that there are some that might be found to be incompatible. However, (D. Cheung et al., 2000) underscore that implementing the meta-orientation in a classroom context is challenging. They further highlight that for promotion of learners' science literacy in particular, metaorientation could be reflected in the intended curriculum as well as implemented curriculum. As a professional studies subject, while at the same time considered to be an academic discipline, the foregoing research findings of science teachers raise a question as to which orientations are advocated by the LGCSE accounting curriculum design.

Curriculum design orientation
Curriculum is designed with a view to achieve the ultimate purpose of education as articulated in educational policy. The four basic curriculum elements already mentioned are developed drawing on the curriculum orientation that aligns to the realization of the educational policy goal. However, (Cheung, 2000a) underlines that the curriculum designers' orientations are influenced by their background, culture, experiences, priorities, as well as conceptions of curriculum, teaching and learning. The analysis of the curriculum elements therefore reveals the orientation towards which the curriculum has been designed hence, curriculum design orientation.
With respect to curriculum design orientation, (Cheung & Wong, 2002) state: The eclectic nature of teacher beliefs about curriculum design implies that a curriculum, irrespective of subject areas, that has been designed on the basis of particular curriculum orientation is not likely to receive enthusiastic teacher support. (p. 242) Similarly, (Jenkins, 2009) reports that curriculum design that draws on a single orientation, which does not align with the teacher's curriculum orientation, raises a conflict for that teacher. Jenkins therefore concludes that curriculum design orientation does matter to teachers' practice, and further proposes a study on understanding how that conflict influences the teaching and learning process. However, underpinned by curriculum meta-orientation, (Cheung & Wong, 2002) further illustrate that curriculum design orientation does not have a significant impact on teachers' classroom practice. Therefore, they argue that it is of little value to battle over which of the curriculum orientations should be prioritised. In contrast to (Cheung & Wong, 2002;Jenkins, 2009;Singleton, 2013) explains that when there is misalignment between the way in which the curriculum is designed and a teacher's curriculum orientation, such a teacher reverts to what works best for the situation along with the curriculum requirements. Unlike (Singleton, 2013), Bas (2013) remarks that if a curriculum is developed on the basis of a learner-centred design orientation yet the teacher favours subject-centred design orientation, it will not be possible for the teacher to put the curriculum into practice in a classroom on voluntary basis without any supervision. The argument by Bas (2013) is congruent with (D. Cheung et al., 2000). The present study seeks to understand the accounting teachers' interpretations of the accounting curriculum key elements and alignment with the curriculum design orientation as this can enhance appropriate teacher professional development in an endeavour to realise the curriculum aims and hence the educational policy goal.
Furthermore, (Cheung & Wong, 2002) recommend that in recognition of the contested nature of the curriculum, one approach would be to spread each orientation across the grade levels or design multi-oriented curriculum that can combine the advantageous features of all curriculum orientations to allow implementers to choose a curriculum that aligns with their views. Unlike Cheung and Wong (2002), one would argue that teachers' orientations should not serve as standards for curriculum design but professional development. The orientations would be aimed at studying teachers' curriculum orientations with a view to making them aware of the implications of the orientations they uphold. Therefore, a study on teachers' orientations would facilitate their curriculum implementation by enabling them to focus only on the advantageous features of all curriculum orientations.

Methodology
The researchers followed a qualitative approach in exploring the accounting teachers' perspectives towards the key elements of the syllabus. (Creswell, 2009) explains qualitative research as a means for exploring and understanding the meaning individuals and groups ascribe to a phenomenon. An interpretivist research orientation was employed, and within this orientation, (Cohen et al., 2007) highlight that the researchers seek to understand the participants' actions and interpretations in a natural setting and attempt to give them meaning. Thus, the study sought to use interpretivism in order to understand the perspectives of accounting teachers operating in differing school environments and contexts.
Purposive sampling strategy was used to select five accounting teachers from three schools in Maseru district with different academic performance levels and ownership. In other words, the study took into consideration that their school environments and operating contexts differ. The factors considered were the national examinations performance. Academically some schools are described as best performing, others as average while others are considered as below average. Our classification was based on the schools' performance as reported in the Examiner's reports of 2016, 2017examinations (Examinations Council of Lesotho 2016, 2017. Moreover, the study was undertaken at government and church-owned schools and hence different ownership. However, it should be noted that the selection of schools was not meant for representativeness but to ensure variety as recommended by (Stake, 2006). As a result, the findings of this study are not to be generalised to a wider population. In choosing these cases, our belief was that understanding them will lead to a better understanding of the phenomenon as highlighted by Stake, (2005). It is also worth noting that the cases were not compared. Basically, our interest in this study was to understand how accounting teachers interpret the key elements of the accounting syllabus. The study primarily focused on the accounting teachers who were teaching the subject at the time the research was conducted. For ethical considerations, pseudonyms have been used to protect the identity of the participants.
In an endeavour to answer the research questions guiding the study, interviews and document analysis were adopted. We employed one-to-one semi-structured interviews to get insight into teachers' interpretation of the key components of the accounting syllabus. As underlined by (Cohen et al., 2005), the semi-structured interviews enabled us to ask open-ended questions, and we were able to prompt and probe the participants to enhance clarification. All the interviews were audio-recorded and accompanied by field notes which captured non-verbal expressions as well. The audio-recorded interviews were later transcribed. Before the interviews were conducted, we had an informal conversation with the participants to establish a mutual trust. We explained the purpose of the interview for the study. However, we made it explicit that their involvement was voluntary at all times, hence they had the right to refuse to participate or withdraw at any time during the research process (Cohen et al., 2005).
We considered it significant to analyse the following documents: accounting syllabus, scheme and record of work done and teachers' lesson plans with a view to enhancing the understanding of the teachers' interpretation of the key components of the accounting syllabus. However, it became a challenge to access the teachers' scheme of work as most of them explained that due to the teachers' industrial action, which happened just before the study began, they were behind schedule and therefore they only agreed on the topics to be covered as they progressed with classroom teaching. As a result, we had to rely on the lesson plan review, though one teacher still could not provide it. The use of document as a data generation technique has advantages because it "represents data to which participants have given attention", and also "enables the researcher to obtain the language and words of participants" (Creswell, 2014, p. 243). Document analysis therefore illuminated the interview data.
The analysis of the syllabus was considered fundamental in understanding how the teachers view and interpret its key components. This is premised on the fact that a syllabus is an official document; which in our view, inevitably guides teachers' classroom practice in implementing educational goals. Therefore, the syllabus's review was mainly aimed at understanding its design orientation and drawing insights for enhancing validation and analysis of teachers' interpretation of the key components of the accounting syllabus. Document analysis provided a valuable cross-validation of data from interviews and thus enhanced data triangulation (Robson, 2002). The data generation was guided by the concept of curriculum orientations as described by the analytical framework.
The data analysis process employed hermeneutic strategy. This data analysis process aims at making sense of the hidden meaning in the apparent meaning. Therefore, in analysing the data, we as researchers searched for interpreting the levels of meaning implied in the literal meaning of the text (Ricoer as cited in Nieuwenhuis, 2007b). In other words, the interview data analysis, alongside the document review, was aimed at understanding how the teachers interpret the syllabus components with a view to interpret their curriculum perspectives and thus the teachers' curriculum orientations. In making sense of the raw data, we followed the qualitative data transformation procedure, which involves description, analysis and interpretation as described by (Wolcott, 1994). As interpretive researchers, it cannot be overlooked that our experiences and perceptions as accounting education lecturers might have coloured the way we understood the data we collected, and hence influenced interpretations (Creswell, 2014;Leedy & Ormrod, 2010). (Nieuwenhuis, 2007a) highlights that the researchers' understanding of the phenomena usually impacts on the type of questions they ask as well as the way they undertake their research. However, we made some efforts to ensure trustworthiness.
In an attempt to ensure that the results are trustworthy, we used multiple data collection techniques with a view to enabling data triangulation, and hence reduce the possibility of bias as suggested by Maree (2011). For the purpose of ensuring credibility and dependability, we formulated open-ended questions which enabled the participants to express themselves in detail and as qualitative researchers, we personally interacted with the participants during the data collection phase. Furthermore, we avoided imposing our interpretations on the participants' words or editing quotes by reproducing enough text for the readers to make their own conclusions. In view of this, (Basit, 2003) discourages the writing up of summary notes from tape recordings since the researchers' bias is likely to result in taking note of only the points that seem relevant and interesting to the researcher. Therefore, in relation to interview data analysis, we listened to the interview tapes repeatedly alongside reading through the transcripts to ensure that the participants' responses were transcribed verbatim.
Content analysis was performed in analysing the data gathered from the documents. This is a systematic approach which involves "a process of looking at a data from different angles with a view to identifying key messages in the text that will help us to understand and interpret the raw data" (Nieuwenhuis, 2007a, p. 100). The LGCSE accounting syllabus was analysed to identify the key messages underlined by the content of aims, subject matter, instructional activities and assessment; as the key components of the syllabus. The syllabus was analysed for the purpose of understanding its design orientation and validating teachers' responses regarding their interpretation of it. The review of the lesson plan helped us to understand the key messages contained by the lesson objectives, instructional activities and assessment. Therefore, the analysis of the lesson plan components also enabled us to understand teachers' interpretation of the accounting syllabus.

Ethical considerations
The participants' identity was treated as confidential and anonymous in that in reporting the findings, pseudonyms are used to refer to the participants throughout the manuscript. In addition, excerpts of data from the transcript are unidentified. Since one of the researchers was personally involved in generating and analysing the data, precautionary measures were undertaken to ensure that nothing from the research activities tarnished the participants' views and ideas throughout the entire process.

Practical knowledge in the accounting syllabus
The participants underlined that the accounting syllabus is intended to equip learners with accounting knowledge and skills that would enable them to earn a living. With respect to accounting skills, Teacher D specifically mentioned record keeping skills. In articulating her understanding of the syllabus aims, she said: Aims . . . you could have told me to bring along the syllabus. The aim is that Basotho children should be able to keep books of accounts whenever there is a need in whatever they will be doing; they should at least have an idea of how to keep the records of companies they will be working for or their own companies.
Correspondingly, Teacher A with uncertainty said: "The main aim of the syllabus is to help a Mosotho child to earn a living by applying the skills acquired from accounting." Teacher C interpreted the syllabus as aimed at preparing learners to take part in trade and industry both nationally and internationally. He expressed his understanding: Ehh . . . as I see accounting syllabus given to us, actually, they are saying we should prepare learners for . . . economic system. According to my observation it is not only for Lesotho economic system, but rather beyond.
The analysis of these perspectives reflected the following syllabus aims: • Develop knowledge and understanding of the principles and purposes of accounting for individuals, businesses, non-trading organisations and society as a whole.
These syllabus aims demonstrate that accounting is intended to provide the learners with accounting knowledge and skills that would be applied in the preparation of the accounting information needed for various purposes by individuals, world of work and life in general. The analysis indicated that most of the syllabus aims, that is, six of the eight syllabus aims support the development of practical knowledge, which exemplifies social efficiency. Notwithstanding the fact that the teachers' views confirm the syllabus aims, none of the teachers participating in this study mentioned in specific terms this component of the syllabus.

Development of learners' practical knowledge
Some of the teachers stated that according to the syllabus, accounting classroom teaching should emphasise the practice. Teacher A articulated his understanding of how the instructional processes should be carried out by stating that the local examples should be employed for the purpose of making learners see the practicality of the accounting subject matter. He went to the extent of saying, "even the figures used should be realistic, we should try to bring it to real-life and put aside our assumptions." He continued: . . . bring the local examples in teaching of the content, and the theory learnt should be put into practice. As part of the teaching, learners should be taken to the businesses; . . . try as much as possible to make it real so as to enable them to see its practicality. The students should be placed on internship (Teacher A).
Teacher A's description of the instructional processes seemed to be aligned to the recommendation made by the syllabus to the teachers regarding the teaching of accounting content. The syllabus underlines that: Teachers are expected to relate the content of the syllabus to local and national events. It is important that learners understand the importance of accounting in the daily lives of individuals and in the running of the business (MOET, 2018, p. 3).
Although Teacher D emphasised the significance of practice exercises in accounting lessons, she went further and indicated the need for accounting learners to be involved in projects. She indicated that instructional activities should not be confined to classroom teaching: I have to emphasise the practicality of the subject so that practically, they should know how to record transaction. It shouldn't just be a classroom activity and end there. (Emphasised) they have to practice it; for instance, selling of sweets at school and learning how to make records of their transactions (Teacher D).
She highlighted the recording of transactions based on practical activities such as projects. This implied that the learners should be engaged in accounting activities such as the recording of financial transactions and the preparation of financial statements of actual business projects, however small they may be. This suggests that the classroom activities would be aimed at providing learners with practical skills in processing the accounting information, which is indicative of the social efficiency view.
Teacher C as well underscored the importance of practice in teaching and learning of accounting. However, he explained that emphasis has to be on efficiency and proficiency for the purpose of producing the kind of results required by the accounting practice. He articulated his views thus: We should emphasize correctness and precision . . . because if you are not efficient you are going to commit a lot of errors, which accounting normally prohibits. So, as we teach, we try as much as we can to lay our emphasis on efficiency. Next to that is proficiency, because if you cannot reproduce what you are asked in relation to correct content of accounting, then what sort of accounting are you doing or studying? Sincerely speaking, the practice is more important than content but we cannot practice (what you do not know) all the time. Even though most of the times some people say the interest of the child should be considered since they are stakeholders, at this point we are only educating them to achieve a particular outcome (Teacher C).
Teacher C's view of instructional processes reflected one of the syllabus aims: "Encourage attitudes of accuracy, orderliness, logical thought and an appreciation of professional ethics" (MOET, 2018, p. 2).
Teacher C talked about "efficiency and proficiency" that is required in undertaking the accounting processes. Furthermore, the teacher implied that the learners' interests and needs are of secondary importance; thus, central focus should be on development of accounting knowledge and skills. Therefore, Teacher C's understanding of the instructional process reveals social efficiency view as he emphasised practice and achievement of a particular outcome. The teacher's response echoed an element of industrial educational model, where the learner is viewed as the raw material to be turned into a finished product needed by the society. Based on his response, the ultimate goal is realisation of a specific outcome, in the most efficient way, which is a learner that can prepare accounting information efficiently and proficiently as he indicated, and hence social efficiency orientation. Moreover, according to social efficiency educators, the learners' ability to act appropriately and efficiently is considered more important to learn than the critical analysis and interrogation of the action perceived to be correct.
We reviewed the teachers' lesson plans to complement the findings from the interviews. The analysis of the lesson plans confirmed that the teachers interpret the accounting knowledge in terms of activities learners can perform. The lesson plan objectives were stated in behavioural terms and were sequentially planned.

Teacher B's lesson plan extract
At the end of the week, students would be able to: (1) Define general journal (2) Identify transactions to be recorded in the general journal (3) Record transactions in the general journal.

Teacher D's lesson plan extract
(1) By the end of the lesson the students should be able to mention and explain the uses of cash book.
(2) By the end of the lesson students should be able to mention and explain source documents for cash book.
(3) By the end of the lesson students should be able to draw structure of cash book.
The action verbs define, mention and explain reflect emphasis on acquisition of factual information, that is, accounting concepts; while the action verbs identify, record and draw are intended for development of accounting processes. Thus, the emphasis implied curriculum for social efficiency. With this orientation, the behavioural objectives determine the selection of content and instructional activities with a view to attaining the desired skills.

Accounting processes determine the content organisation
The analysis demonstrated that all the participant teachers understand that the accounting topics prescribed by the syllabus should be organised based on the logical structure of the subject. They explained that the syllabus does not inhibit them to organise the content the way they find it to be effective for learners to grasp the accounting content. They emphasised that the topics should be organised according to their relations based on how the accounting process is carried out. Others stated clearly that the topics have to be organised according to the accounting cycle. Teacher A explained: "Teachers are free to arrange the topics the way they find it appropriate. I normally arrange the topics based on the accounting cycle so that learners are able to follow." Teacher C confidently said: If ledger is the first topic in the syllabus and subsidiary books listed as number five, I think I better start with subsidiary books in order for them (learners) to follow. The criterion . . ., is according to how accountancy is dealt with. (With laughter) if you come and tell me ledger is the first, I will not accept that.
Teacher E declared: "No, we choose the order in which we think the topics are related for the learners to easily follow up." Teacher D as well pronounced: You are free to divert or to change because one topic may be related to another topic down on the list so I can teach this one and go down there. My arrangement is based on relations, how one topic is related to another.
The teachers seemed to share the same sentiments regarding the accounting content organisation. They signified the importance of topic relations to enhance learning. The analysis revealed that the teachers value the logical sequence of the topics for effective learning. This could mean that the knowledge of a certain topic is considered to be a prerequisite for the purpose of understanding the succeeding topic. For instance, Teacher C said: "I think I better start with subsidiary books in order for them (learners) to follow." This could be attributed to social efficiency orientation; the social efficiency educators value prerequisite learning. The assumption is that learners can learn any intellectual skill provided they have learnt the prerequisites. However, it is important to note that the approach disregards the humanist orientation with emphasis on beginning with material that the learners are familiar with.
The content organisation indicated by the teachers endorses the sequence of the topics in the syllabus. Our analysis of the syllabus revealed that the topics which are related and interconnected are grouped under the same theme. The content is arranged based on the logical relationships of the topics; and the themes are arranged according to the accounting process. The accounting processes refer to the accounting cycle, which involves source documents, recording the transactions in the appropriate Journal, posting journal entries to the Ledger accounts, preparation of the Trial Balance, preparation of the Financial Statements and Analysis and Interpretation of the Financial Statements. The syllabus extract below shows the themes under which the accounting subject matter has been organised.

Syllabus extract: Syllabus content
The accounting content is organised into eight themes as follows (1)  Based on the organisation of the topics in the syllabus, it is observed that the content organisation follows the accounting process; one could say the accounting curriculum upholds the curriculum for social efficiency. However, the interview with the teachers has indicated that it has not been dictated that the sequence of the topics in the syllabus has to be followed in teaching and learning of the accounting topics.

Assessment of learners' practical knowledge
The participating teachers briefly explained the purpose of assessing learners as aimed at evaluating their attainment of syllabus objectives and application of accounting knowledge and skills. According to the teachers, the assessment of learners' accounting knowledge should be intended to determine the learners' ability to make the accounting records. They articulated their understanding of the assessment recommended by the syllabus in this manner: "To see whether we have achieved our objectives, the ones stated in the syllabus" (Teacher D). Similarly, Teacher E said: "To see if the students have understood what was taught and are able to apply it when questions are asked." "The purpose of assessment is to work on the learning outcomes because if you don't know what to achieve then it won't be possible to assess" (Teacher C).
Teacher B corroborated that the assessment has to focus on learners' ability to apply accounting basic concepts though she went further by mentioning that the learners' assessment should employ homework, tests and classroom exercises. She had this to say: When assessing the learners, the syllabus recommends the tests, homework and exercises and the focus should be on learners' understanding of the concepts and ability to apply them . . . Through assessment, the learners should be able to master the basics of accounting concepts; and be able to apply the accounting concepts and international accounting standards.
The responses reflect that the assessment of learners' accounting knowledge should focus on their ability to apply the accounting content knowledge and skills by making the accounting records. Some of the responses by the teachers echoed that the objectives predetermined by the syllabus should serve as a standard against which the learners accounting knowledge is certified; and hence, curriculum for social efficiency.
The teachers' understanding of the purpose of the learners' assessment was also demonstrated by their instructional assessment revealed by the lesson plan analysis. For instance, Teacher A's lesson on the final accounts of partnership was concluded by giving the learners a practice exercise which required them to prepare the partners' Appropriation Account. In other words, the learners' assessment was solely focusing on their ability to prepare the appropriation account though the lesson activities covered the advantages, disadvantages, and partnership deed. The assessment was not evaluating the learners' understanding of the accounting content but their ability to apply the content learnt, particularly content in the partnership deed, by preparing the Appropriation Account, which reflects a typical example of curriculum for social efficiency. As shown on the analytical framework, the social efficiency educators assess learners' competency in performing a specific task. The review of the syllabus assessment revealed that it does not cater for diversity of learners but uniformity since the learners are assessed on cognitive skills and factual content knowledge only.

Academic knowledge in the accounting syllabus
The syllabus analysis revealed that two of the aims advocate for the disciplinary knowledge, stated as follows: • Develop an understanding of accounting principles, procedures, techniques and terminology • Develop an excellent foundation for advanced study (MOET, 2018, p. 2).
The aims highlighted above indicate that the syllabus is also intended to provide learners with a deeper understanding of the accounting disciplinary knowledge in the process of preparing them for further learning in the commercial field. The notion of developing learners' understanding of the accounting content is also observable in the syllabus assessment objectives in that the assessment requires learners to have knowledge and understanding of the accounting facts, terms, principles and techniques. Among other syllabus assessment objectives, the syllabus stipulates that learners should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of facts, terms, principles and techniques appropriate to the syllabus • Demonstrate understanding of knowledge through numeracy, literacy, presentation and comprehension (MOET, 2018, p. 2).
The aforementioned syllabus aims and assessment objectives underscore the significance of understanding the accounting content. The analysis therefore indicates that both the syllabus aims and assessment objectives have an element of advocating for the curriculum that upholds the disciplinary knowledge, with emphasis on mastery of content knowledge and thus academic rationalism view of curriculum. The academic rationalists prioritise understanding of the content and development of intellectual skills over practical skills.
During the interviews with the participants, it transpired that the teachers were only conversant with the content component as one of the key components of the syllabus. This was more observable in Teacher B's response regarding the syllabus aims since she referred to them as the list of topics to be taught. She hesitantly said "the aim of the syllabus is to organise the topics to be taught at a certain time." One of the researchers, who conducted the interviews, tried to probe the teacher in reference to what she meant by the syllabus aims; then she laughed and said, "I will look at it." In view of Teacher B's response, her central focus was on the content component of the syllabus. One could surmise that her interpretation of the syllabus aims is grounded on the transmission of the prescribed accounting subject matter to the learners. Thus, this implies a view of curriculum oriented towards academic rationalism, given that the content becomes a central concern of the academic rationalists.
Teacher C stated that in teaching and learning of accounting, teachers have to try to maintain the generally existing teaching practices of accounting, though there may be challenges from learners that could call for teachers' attention. He also mentioned the role of a learner as an observer and a listener during the instructional processes. He expressed his views thus: As a teacher, you know how best to maintain effective practices of teaching and learning of this particular subject, notwithstanding the fact that there are some challenges which can come from the students that would make us . . . to open our eyes . . . As a learner, of course you are always listening, observing and brainstorming.
Teacher C highlighted that the teachers should maintain the existing ways of teaching accounting in particular. This echoes that according to him, accounting has inherent teaching methodologies and as a result, instructional activities should be based on the logical structures of accounting as a discipline of knowledge and also emphasises the understanding of accounting concepts. Perhaps this could suggest that the teacher's job is "to consult the existing knowledge that has been sanctioned by an academic discipline" (Schiro, 2013, p. 20); and hence indicative of academic rationalism. Although he explained that there might be some ideas coming from the learners during instructional processes that should not be ignored, he stated that the teacher is in control. This portrays a teacher as transmitter of accounting knowledge from the syllabus to the students, which is an academic rationalism conception of a teacher's role. Moreover, Teacher C's response portrays the teacher as an authority in the teaching of accounting as a discipline.
With respect to assessment, Teacher A explained that the syllabus recommends that the learners should be assessed taking into consideration the different levels of assessment as well as their ability to inquire about the accounting information. He articulated: "My understanding is that the assessment should address different levels and should be inclusive of exploration". The teacher mentioned exploration by learners, which indicates that learners' assessment should also include discovery. This could mean that learners' assessment has to incorporate evaluation of their ability to make inquiries about accounting information based on the key accounting concepts and processes that guide research in accounting.
The emphasis on the development of the learners' academic knowledge demonstrates a typical feature of academic rationalism. This view reflects that the teachers understand accounting syllabus as aimed at preserving the continuation of the accounting discipline by guaranteeing the existence of the members of the discipline who will carry on the traditions and further the epistemic development .

Accounting curriculum design orientation
Our own analysis of the accounting syllabus confirms the teachers' perception in that it shows that its design has drawn on curriculum for social efficiency as well as academic rationalism. This indicates an opportunity for accounting teachers to implement their curriculum orientations within a broad scope with a view to attaining the purpose of accounting curriculum the way they perceive it. As some studies show, curriculum design based on a specific orientation which does not align with the teacher's orientation is likely to raise conflict for that teacher (Jenkins, 2009). The twoway oriented design of the accounting syllabus therefore implies that teachers' classroom implementation is not likely to encounter challenges attributed to misalignment between the teacher's curriculum orientation and curriculum design orientation. In view of the findings, however, it is important to note that the accounting syllabus design has been dominated by the social efficiency in particular, which is the orientation mostly endorsed by the accounting teachers as reported by the work of (Tsiane & Motebang, 2022). Furthermore, with regard to the instructional processes as the crucial part of the syllabus enactment, the syllabus does not restrict the teachers from conducting their classroom teaching and learning based on their perceptions of the purpose of accounting curriculum. Nonetheless, it states clearly that teachers are expected to contextualise the syllabus content. The review of the syllabus assessment revealed that it does not cater for diversity of learners but uniformity since they are assessed on cognitive skills and factual content knowledge only. The work of (Mak et al., 2018) on the review of the curriculum at Hong-Kong underlined that the curriculum guide for early childhood stage stipulates clearly that standardized assessment should be avoided when assessing children's abilities and performance. Likewise, the accounting curriculum could mandate the inclusion of formative assessment with a view to enhance assessment of entrepreneurial skills. With regard to learners' development of entrepreneurship envisaged by the syllabus, its assessment raises a concern since it seems not to be aligned with this goal. Entrepreneurship emphasises development of creativity and innovative skills among others. By inference, the dominance of the social efficiency view, as already indicated, suggests that since the syllabus is an official document that guides teaching and learning, the teachers are likely to focus on accounting skills that the learner could reproduce during the examinations or equip them with skills and knowledge that could merely enable them to execute their duties in the world of work as instructed by their managers as opposed to the entrepreneurial skills. Nevertheless, the syllabus recommendation in relation to teaching and learning states: "It is important that learners understand the importance of accounting in the daily lives of individuals and in the running of the business" (MOET, 2018, p. 3). This implies the intent to develop learners' financial literacy, which could enhance the development of some of the aspects of business entrepreneurship.

Teachers' general understanding of the aims of accounting syllabus
Based on the analysis of the teachers' interpretation of the key components of the accounting syllabus, the teachers who participated in the research seemed to emphasise content at the expense of other components of the syllabus such as syllabus aims, instructional activities and assessment objectives. The only component they were conversant with was the content prescribed by the syllabus. We found this to be common among all the participants. Perhaps the teachers' perceptions of the accounting syllabus aims are thus grounded on the significance of the content to be delivered to the learners. The teachers' focus on the subject matter signifies that their central concern is transmission of the accounting content to the learners with effective teaching methods. This was even more observable in one participant's interpretation of the syllabus aims, which she expressed as the list of topics to be covered within a specified period. Some of the teachers declared that they would have to revisit the syllabus for the purpose of reviewing the aims. The implication could be that the teachers' focus is on transmission of content knowledge to the learners in preparation for national examination and, subsequently, further studies in the field of accounting as they are not aware that the syllabus aims at developing entrepreneurial culture as well.

Teachers' preferred instructional activities
The teachers' views about the instructional activities reflected both the curriculum for academic rationalism and social efficiency. The teachers put more emphasis on assigning learners practice exercises with a view to giving them an opportunity to process the accounting information by employing the accounting skills to be acquired. They also indicated the role of a learner as an observer and a listener during teaching and learning. Therefore, the teachers' inclinations towards the instructional activities in the teaching of accounting implied both academic rationalism and social efficiency. The results are consistent with the findings of the studies undertaken by (Cheung, 2000a) and (Alsalem, 2018) where they identify a positive relationship between the academic rationalism and social efficiency. The studies show that teachers who value academic rationalism orientation tend to support a social efficiency orientation too. However, it is important to note that these studies were not on accounting teachers as Alsalem's (2018) study focused on Arabic Language teachers. Similarly, the accounting teachers' views could suggest that while they uphold curriculum for social efficiency, which emphasises acquisition of practical skills, they perceive accounting as a discipline knowledge that focuses on understanding key concepts and processes of the subject. This could be explained by the mixed feelings about the nature of accounting in which some scholars view accounting as a vocational subject while others identify it as a discipline of knowledge (Demski, 2007;Fellingham, 2007;Hopper, 2013;Zeff, 1989). In addition, the issue of accounting curriculum design orientation and its goal of developing entrepreneurs can best be explained as accounting as a subject that equips learners with skills for processing financial information. Therefore, a tentative explanation could be that although the curriculum designers worked towards realisation of the development of entrepreneurship skills as one of the Lesotho educational policy goals, the nature and structure of accounting does not conform to this entrepreneurship in its entirety.
However, the findings seemed to be incongruent with the general findings from the previous studies reviewed in that the accounting teachers' interpretation of the syllabus showed preference for academic rationalism. The findings by (Tsiane & Motebang, 2022) on teachers' perceptions of the purpose of accounting on the school curriculum indicated that accounting teachers view the subject's purpose as the development of both professional and practical knowledge and personal development. In addition, they reported that the participants in general advocate for the learners' development of entrepreneurship as recommended by the syllabus. The inconsistency regarding the findings from the previous study by (Tsiane & Motebang, 2022) could mean that the teachers view the syllabus design orientation as entailing the deeper understanding of the key concepts and processes. One can therefore speculate that the instructional processes are not geared towards the development of entrepreneurship skills as envisioned by the syllabus.
Consequently, the teachers' views imply that the accounting classroom practice should not only emphasise the understanding of the key concepts and processes of accounting but should go beyond that by engaging learners in practice exercises that could equip them with the practical knowledge and skills, which would be transferred to the world of work. It should be noted however that our analysis of the syllabus revealed that the instructional activities, as one of the key components of the syllabus, have not been catered for in the syllabus. With respect to this syllabus component, there is a statement that recommends the teachers to incorporate the local examples and national events in the teaching of the syllabus content. The assumption could be that in accounting, the learners' acquisition of content knowledge overrides the learning processes, which resulted in the omission of pedagogy as one of the key components of the syllabus. In describing the process of designing the curriculum for academic rationalism,  articulates that "subject matter comes first, and the choice of curriculum content can be made independent of instructional methods . . ." (p. 10). A tentative explanation for the omission of the instructional processes in the syllabus could also be that the accounting syllabus is examination-oriented. This omission could have contributed to teachers valuing of content knowledge. In the same way, it may imply that the syntactical and conceptual structure of accounting provides the teaching and learning strategies.

Teachers' views about the assessment of learners
The analysis revealed that the assessment of learners' accounting knowledge should be based on the syllabus objectives. The teachers emphasised that the learners' assessment should focus on the understanding of the accounting content, the mastery of the accounting skills, ability to apply the concepts and to explore in the process of acquiring the accounting knowledge. The teachers' views about the assessment of learners reflected that the teachers uphold social efficiency and academic rationalism. Though the teachers' understanding of the purpose of accounting as reported by (Tsiane & Motebang, 2022) showed no regard for academic orientation, their general views about the accounting curriculum emphasised the importance of learners' understanding of the accounting content and concepts. The findings confirm the previous results in that the teachers tend to draw on multiple orientations; they do not subscribe to one particular orientation because the curriculum orientations are interconnected in the mind of every teacher (A. C. K. Cheung et al., 2022;Cheung, 2000b;Cheung & Wong, 2002;Karaduman & UÇar, 2020).
The participant teachers seemed not to subscribe to both social reconstruction and humanism view of curriculum. The results with regard to social reconstruction could suggest that the teachers do not conceive accounting knowledge as a tool for development of learners' social responsibility for the purpose of addressing the inequalities and injustice in society. These findings confirm (D. Cheung et al., 2000) study on science teachers' beliefs about curriculum design in Hong Kong as well as those of (Jenkins, 2009) on the cross-discipline study. (D. Cheung et al., 2000) also indicate that teachers who advocate for academic rationalism do not subscribe to social reconstruction, and vice versa. The plausible explanation is that since the accounting syllabus design orientation upholds both academic rationalism and social efficiency, it could be that the understanding of the nature of accounting does not conform to the issue-based approach, which is advocated by the social reconstructionists in the teaching and learning of the subject matter. This implies that the accounting teachers are not in a position to develop students who can question the mismanagement of the state economic resources. The study also indicates that the accounting syllabus does not subscribe to the holistic development and self-actualisation of the learners, which is the central focus of the curriculum for humanism.

Conclusions and recommendations
The teachers' general views about the key components of the syllabus confirmed that they do not subscribe to one particular orientation. Their responses indicated that the social efficiency view of curriculum was highly favoured. The teachers' views about the syllabus underlined practice of accounting skills and that the learners should be assessed on mastery of the skills and ability to apply the accounting content knowledge in processing the accounting data in real-life situations. However, academic rationalism was observable in that the understanding of accounting content and concepts was also emphasised by the teachers when articulating their understanding of the syllabus instructional processes and purpose of assessing learners' accounting knowledge. Academic rationalism was also evident in that all the teachers' focus seemed to be on the content component of the syllabus. It emerged that the teachers were not conversant with the other syllabus components, particularly aims of the syllabus and assessment objectives.
With respect to the general goals of the accounting syllabus and the syllabus design orientation, the findings revealed that there is a discrepancy that could be attributed to the nature of accounting and national examinations requirements, which require understanding of the concepts and processes in addition to mastery of the accounting skills.
The study therefore suggests that there is a need for in-service teacher professional development with a view to make teachers aware of the significance of educational documents such as syllabus towards the contribution of the development of the envisioned Mosotho child alongside the attainment of educational goals. The Ministry of Education and Training through the National Curriculum Development Centre in particular, could organise regular workshops for teachers with the intention of making them aware of the educational goals and the accounting curriculum aims. However, such professional development should be preceded by research on teachers' curriculum orientations.

Teacher beliefs and implications for curriculum design orientations
The above discussion shows that although the teachers' curriculum orientations do not fully match the curriculum design orientation, there are some aspects of the key components of the curriculum which were found to be congruent with the teachers' beliefs. This has implications for the curriculum of the teacher training institutions and curriculum developers. The teachers' formation of curriculum orientations spans the entire experiences of their educational trajectory. It is likely that by the time the teachers reach the teacher education phase of their professional journey, some aspects of the curriculum orientations they embrace already form a firm foothold of their outlook.
The teacher education programmes form one component of the teachers' experiences which shape their beliefs. It is within the programmes that the teachers may be encouraged to reflect on and interrogate their beliefs in relation to the orientation of the curriculum they are preparing to teach. The reflective practice may be extended to the teaching practice during which the pre-service teachers may also reflect on their own beliefs in relation to the curriculum design orientation and the situational factors, particularly in-school institutional structures that impact on their instructional strategies. It is within such a model of reflective practice that the teachers may develop conscious awareness of their own beliefs and the wider educational fraternity within which they function; and also that they may consciously make an effort to change hence edge closer to the curriculum design orientation. The reflective inquiry approach to curriculum implementation may also provide valuable information to curriculum developers in terms of the feasibility of the design orientation of the curriculum in practice.

Limitations and future research
The focus of the study was on the accounting teachers' interpretations of the key components of the accounting syllabus. The researchers employed semi-structured interviews and document analysis to generate data. Although the teachers' lesson plans and the syllabus were analysed in order to confirm and complement the teachers' views, the findings would have been more informative with classroom observations. Also situational factors in schools impact on the teachers' classroom practices, it would have been interesting to extend the study to the impact of the contextual factors on the teachers' curriculum implementation strategies. The limited resources and the scope of the study however, restricted the study to the outlined methods and scope. Finally, given that a very small number of teachers were interviewed, the major limitation of the study, as already indicated in the methodology section, is that the findings cannot be generalised to the whole population of accounting teachers in this country. However, as an initial attempt to understand how accounting teachers interpret the accounting syllabus, the study provides a fertile ground from which further studies on accounting teachers' interpretation of the syllabus carried out on a large scale and how the teachers implement the curriculum could be carried out.