EFFECT OF AI-POWERED SKILLS ON LEARNING OUTCOMES OF ND/HND ACCOUNTANCY STUDENTS IN FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING IN WAZIRI UMARU FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC, BIRNIN KEBBI

Abstract

This study examined the effect of AI-powered skills on learning outcomes of ND/HND Accountancy students in Financial Accounting in Waziri Umaru Federal Polytechnic, Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria. The study adopted quasi-experimental research design of pre-test post-test non-equivalent control group. Two research questions and one null hypothesis guided the study. The population comprised 210 ND II Accountancy students offering ACC 211 (Financial Accounting I) in 2024/2025 academic session. A sample of 60 students was selected using purposive sampling and assigned to experimental group (30 students) and control group (30 students). The experimental group was taught Company Accounts and Final Accounts using AI-powered skills such as ChatGPT for explaining accounting concepts and adjustments, Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel for automated preparation of Trial Balance, Trading, Profit and Loss Account and Balance Sheet, and Grammarly for audit report writing. Control group was taught using conventional lecture method. The instrument for data collection was Financial Accounting Achievement Test (FAAT) consisting of 30 multiple choice and theory questions covering Company Accounts, Final Accounts, Depreciation, Provision for Bad Debts, Accruals and Prepayments. FAAT was validated by three experts (2 Accountancy, 1 Measurement and Evaluation) and reliability of 0.82 obtained using Kuder-Richardson 20 (KR-20). Mean and standard deviation were used to answer research questions while t-test was used to test hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that experimental group had higher post-test mean score of 68.45 (SD=8.21) than control group mean of 51.20 (SD=9.45), with mean gain of 34.25 for experimental and 17.40 for control. The t-test result showed t-calculated of 4.87 greater than t-critical of 2.00 at degree of freedom 58, p<0.05, indicating significant difference. Therefore, AI-powered skills significantly improved learning outcomes of ND/HND Accountancy students in Financial Accounting. It was recommended that lecturers should integrate AI tools into teaching of financial accounting and other accounting courses such as Cost Accounting and Taxation. Workshops should be organized for Accountancy lecturers on AI integration.