The Language of Music: A Parable for Accounting Educators

Abstract

This paper presents a parable to provoke thought about how introductory accounting should be
taught. A parable is a story that uses comparison of some kind as a teaching tool. In many
parables, the comparison may be interpreted on multiple levels, depending on the experience,
background, and perspective of the reader. This parable compares the way two different
hypothetical communities encourage children in music appreciation and composition expertise.
The success of these two methods is then compared with teaching the language of business and
conclusions are drawn.