UNSW Business School
School of Accounting, Auditing and Taxation

ACCT5908 Auditing and Assurance Services
Term 1 - 2023
Team Topic Quizzes Information
In addition to this Information Sheet, there is also a Team Topic Quiz Instruction Sheet that details how to access
the Team Topic Quizzes each week and how to submit your answers.
In weeks 4, 5, 7, 8 and 9, you are required to complete a Team Topic Quiz. Each week’s quiz relates to material
introduced in and relating to the topic covered in the previous week. For example, in Week 4, you will complete
a quiz relating to material from Topic 3. The Topic Quizzes cover material fundamental to the practice of auditing.
Any deficiencies in understanding the material covered in the Topic Quizzes will put you at a significant
disadvantage in your efforts to achieve the learning objectives in the course.
Quizzes are accessed from the Moodle course website, under the heading of ‘Team Topic Quizzes’ (in the
Assessments Hub). The quiz for each week will be available from 7:00am on the Monday of the week in which
the quiz is to be completed, and must be submitted before 5:00pm on the Friday of that week. The first quiz will
be available at 7:00am on 6 March.
The Team Topic Quizzes involve planning and creative processes. You are permitted to use any resource
(including generative artificial intelligence) to generate initial ideas. However, you must develop or edit those
ideas to such an extent that what is submitted is your own team’s work (i.e., only occasional AI generated words
or phrases may form part of your final submission).
Only one student in a team should submit the quiz.
Please be aware that all quizzes are set up in Moodle as team quizzes. Once one member in your team accesses
the quiz, other members in your team will no longer have access to the quiz. You will, therefore, need to
coordinate who is going to record and submit the team’s response to the quiz
Your team does not need to complete the quiz in one sitting. Indeed, it would be advisable to first look at the
questions, reflect on your responses, enter a draft of your response and edit those responses until such time as
you are happy to submit (remember you must submit before 5:00pm on the Friday in each week). Responses
entered will be saved (without being submitted), so you are able, when re-entering the quiz, to recommence
your work from where you last left off.
In order to be awarded marks in the Topic Quizzes, you will need to demonstrate a very high level of
understanding of the material examined (see below). Repeating material, for example, from the textbook or
from an internet search will not demonstrate a level of understanding necessary to be awarded marks for each
question. In the past, students receiving high marks in the Topic Quizzes have often noted that they took time
to reflect on their answers before submission in order to submit responses that demonstrated the high level of
understanding expected. Marks awarded for the Topic Quizzes will differentiate students demonstrating a level
of understanding at the Distinction and High Distinction levels.
Each quiz is worth 6 marks, giving a possible total contribution of 30 marks to your final grade.
Each Quiz comprises four multiple choice questions with two alternatives (i.e., A or B). For each question, you
are required to select the correct response and, importantly, provide a brief explanation of why the response
selected is correct and why the response not selected is incorrect. It is expected that a satisfactory response can
be provided in approximately 50 words. That is, 50 words on why the response selected is correct and 50 words
on why the response not selected is incorrect. You can write a longer response if you believe that it is necessary,
but only the first 100 words will be read and graded.
Our approach here is informed by evidence demonstrating that challenging students to explain why something
is the case, and why something is not the case, provides an insight into the depth with which the material is
understood.
One and one-half marks (i.e., 1½ marks) are available in each of the four questions in each quiz. Half a mark for
the correct response (i.e., either A or B), half a mark for a strong and clear explanation as to why the response
selected is correct and half a mark for a strong and clear explanation as to why the response not selected is
incorrect. No part marks will be awarded (i.e., responses will be awarded either 0 or ½). Importantly, you can
only earn marks for the explanations if you select the correct response. If you select the incorrect response, your
explanations will not be read, and you will receive 0 for that question.
You can expect that the correct answer (i.e., either A or B) will be relatively easy to identify. However, in drafting
your explanations as to why responses are correct and incorrect, it is important to realise and remember that
your responses must demonstrate a deep understanding of the material underlying the subject matter covered
in the question. As noted above, responses will distinguish students with a Distinction and High Distinction level
of understanding from other students. While students may present an answer that is ‘factually’ correct, no marks
will be awarded unless that answer demonstrates a deep level of understanding.
When explaining why a response is correct, it is important that the explanation relate to the particular response
and not the flaw or error in the alternate response. Moreover, the response must relate to your understanding
of why the response is correct, rather than pointing to a statement / definition in a textbook or other material,
or re-writing the response. Think of the explanation in terms of why the sentiment, idea, opinion, or conclusion
expressed in the response is correct. Similarly, when explaining why the response not selected is incorrect, it is
important to demonstrate that you understand the flaw or error in the response and not merely refer to what
is correct, or re-writing the incorrect statement such that it is correct. Again, think of the explanation in terms
of why the sentiment, idea, opinion or conclusion expressed in the response is incorrect or flawed.
In previous terms, students have expressed concern at the stringent (hard) marking criteria applied to the Topic
Quizzes. Please remember that in response to the nature of the course material requiring a sustained level of
effort, and feedback from students provided through the myExperience process, the assessment structure in
this course comprises a number of smaller assessment tasks completed throughout the term. In a larger
assessment task, it is always the case that some marks are easier to earn than others such that we can
differentiate students performing at different levels of achievement. Similarly, in this course, some assessment
tasks are marked in a more stringent (harder) manner than others. As noted above, it is expected that the correct
answer (i.e., A or B) will be clearly evident and should not present too much of a challenge. You will, however,
need to present a very high quality response in order to be awarded a mark for your explanation for why an
answer is correct and why an answer is incorrect.
To help you understand what is expected, a specimen question is provided over the page with some sample
responses and explanations as to why the response would or would not be awarded a mark. Please note that
other answers may be correct. The purpose of the explanations is to show, by way of example, what meets and
does not meet expectations in order to be awarded a mark.


Which of the following statements relating to auditing is most correct?
A. The objective of an audit is to provide a high but not absolute assurance that the financial statements are
free of material misstatement.
B. When performing an audit, the auditor must assume that client management are lying until such time as
they are able to establish the truth in what they say.


The correct answer is A.

Provided below are some possible (but not exhaustive) responses attempting to explain why A is the correct
answer, together with some comments.

Response Comment
Auditors do not assume that the client is lying. As answer B is
incorrect, answer A must be correct.
Mark: 0
The response must explain why the answer is correct, not why
the alternate answer is incorrect.
Auditors are not required to achieve an absolute level of assurance.
Auditing provides reasonable assurance which means high, but not
absolute. Auditors do not need to find all material misstatements in
an audit. Audit risk must be reduced to a low level but does not
have to be zero.
Mark: 0
While the statements made are factually correct, they are all
rewording of the response in a different way. The answer does
not demonstrate why the statement in the response is correct.
The aim of an audit is to add credibility to the underlying financial
statements and this is achieved by providing the highest level of
assurance that is possible.
Mark: 0
While the statement is factually correct, the explanation does
not address why, if the aim is to provide the highest level of
assurance that is possible, the objective would not be to provide
an absolute level of assurance.
Due to the inherent limitations of an audit, and the level of judgment
and forward looking estimates that underly the preparation of the
financial statements on which the auditor is providing assurance, the
auditor cannot certify with 100% certainty that the financial
statements are free of material misstatement. A high level of
assurance that approaches, but does not reach, an absolute level of
assurance, is the best that the auditor can hope for.
Mark: ½
Demonstrates an understanding of why the statement
expressed in the response is correct. That is, why is the objective
of an audit to provide a high but not absolute level of assurance.

Provided below are some possible (but not exhaustive) responses attempting to explain why B is the incorrect
answer, together with some comments.

Response Comment
Auditors cannot provide an absolute level of assurance, so response
A is correct. Response B is, therefore, incorrect
Mark: 0
The response must refer to why the answer is incorrect, not why
the alternate answer is correct.
The auditor does not need to assume that management are lying
until such time as they establish the truth in what they are saying.
Mark: 0
Explanation simply rephrases the incorrect response so that
what the auditor must do becomes what the auditor must not
do. There is no demonstration of knowledge of why the auditor
does not assume that management are always lying.
Auditors are required to exercise professional scepticism when
conducting the audit. Professional scepticism involves a questioning
mind, to trust but verify, which is not the same as assuming that
management are always lying.
Mark: 0
Explanation discusses what the auditor needs to do, without
reference to why the approach expressed in the response is
wrong.
While auditors do not unquestioningly believe everything that
management tells them and, depending on the auditor’s
understanding of the entity and it’s environment, the auditor may
initially doubt some statements more than others, to approach every
statement made by management assuming that it is a lie would mean
that the conduct of an audit would be impossible.
Mark: ½
Demonstrates an understanding of why the statement is
incorrect. That is, why the auditor shouldn’t assume, in the first
instance, that management are lying.