EXPERIENTIAL ESG LEARNING FOR GEN Z ACCOUNTING STUDENTS: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR FUTURE ESG-READY ACCOUNTING PROFESSIONALS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJMOE.831038Keywords:
Accounting Education, ESG Accounting Education, Experiential Learning, Generation Z, Sustainability-Oriented UnderstandingAbstract
The growing importance of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting has reshaped expectations of the accounting profession, requiring future accountants to possess not only technical knowledge but also sustainability-oriented understanding and stakeholder awareness. At the same time, Generation Z students increasingly dominate higher education environments and demonstrate distinct learning preferences that favour interactive, practical, and technology-supported learning experiences. Although ESG content is progressively being incorporated into accounting curricula, existing educational approaches remain largely focused on theoretical knowledge acquisition, with limited emphasis on experiential engagement. This conceptual paper develops an input–process–outcome framework grounded in Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) to explain how experiential ESG learning may strengthen sustainability-oriented understanding among Gen Z accounting students. The framework positions Gen Z learning preferences as the educational input, experiential ESG learning as the pedagogical process, and sustainability-oriented understanding as the educational outcome. Drawing upon literature from accounting education, sustainability education, and experiential learning, the paper argues that activities such as ESG simulations, sustainability reporting projects, industry engagement, and reflective learning exercises can facilitate deeper understanding of ESG-related accounting practices. This paper integrates fragmented literature into a unified framework, offering practical guidance to redesign ESG accounting education for future professionals and support SDG 4 (Quality Education).
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