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Readability of professional accounting examinations – evidence from South Africa.

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Title: Readability of professional accounting examinations – evidence from South Africa.
Authors: Phesa, Masibulele1 (AUTHOR) PhesaM@ukzn.ac.za, Lemma, Tesfaye T.2 (AUTHOR), Matemane, Reon3 (AUTHOR)
Source: Accounting Education. Jun2026, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p351-374. 24p.
Subject Terms: *Readability (Literary style), *Readability formulas, *Competency tests (Education), Accounting exams, Accountants, South Africans, Professional competence
Geographic Terms: South Africa
Abstract: The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), the preeminent professional accounting body in South Africa, administers two staggered sequential qualifying examinations – the Initial Test of Competency (ITC) and the Assessment of Professional Competency (APC) – to licence candidates as chartered accountants. Analysing the readability of the exams using the Gunning Fog Reading Index (GFRI) and Flesch Readability Ease Index (FREI), we find that both exams are difficult to read. We also find that the ITC exams are more difficult to read than the APC exams. These findings hold even when different parts of the exam are considered separately. While a difficult level of readability might be necessary to at least some extent due to the technical nature of the content being assessed, our findings raise concerns about potential construct-irrelevant variance (CIV), which could impact the validity, fairness, and reliability of the qualifying exams. Considering that a substantial portion of the candidates are non-native English speakers, these findings highlight the potential role of readability in ensuring equitable access to the chartered accountancy profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Accounting Education is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Readability of professional accounting examinations – evidence from South Africa.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Accounting+Education%22">Accounting Education</searchLink>. Jun2026, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p351-374. 24p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Readability+%28Literary+style%29%22">Readability (Literary style)</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Readability+formulas%22">Readability formulas</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Competency+tests+%28Education%29%22">Competency tests (Education)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Accounting+exams%22">Accounting exams</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Accountants%22">Accountants</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22South+Africans%22">South Africans</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Professional+competence%22">Professional competence</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22South+Africa%22">South Africa</searchLink>
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  Data: The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), the preeminent professional accounting body in South Africa, administers two staggered sequential qualifying examinations – the Initial Test of Competency (ITC) and the Assessment of Professional Competency (APC) – to licence candidates as chartered accountants. Analysing the readability of the exams using the Gunning Fog Reading Index (GFRI) and Flesch Readability Ease Index (FREI), we find that both exams are difficult to read. We also find that the ITC exams are more difficult to read than the APC exams. These findings hold even when different parts of the exam are considered separately. While a difficult level of readability might be necessary to at least some extent due to the technical nature of the content being assessed, our findings raise concerns about potential construct-irrelevant variance (CIV), which could impact the validity, fairness, and reliability of the qualifying exams. Considering that a substantial portion of the candidates are non-native English speakers, these findings highlight the potential role of readability in ensuring equitable access to the chartered accountancy profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Accounting Education is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/09639284.2025.2480550
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 24
        StartPage: 351
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        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Readability formulas
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Competency tests (Education)
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      – SubjectFull: Accounting exams
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Accountants
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      – SubjectFull: South Africans
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Professional competence
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      – SubjectFull: South Africa
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      – TitleFull: Readability of professional accounting examinations – evidence from South Africa.
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            NameFull: Phesa, Masibulele
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            NameFull: Lemma, Tesfaye T.
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              M: 06
              Text: Jun2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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