Nationally hosted tax intervention: Exploring South African students' perceptions of its usefulness to develop pervasive skills

Abstract

The article explores the usefulness of a nationally hosted tax intervention presented to tax students from various South African universities to develop pervasive skills. In response to the call from professional bodies and employers to develop pervasive skills, the design of the intervention was aimed at affording students the opportunity in which they can apply and be exposed to the pervasive skills development. The article is unique in that it determines, based on the perceptions of a wide coverage of South African tax students, the usefulness of a one-of-a-kind tax-related intervention. Quantitative data was gathered through an action research process using questionnaires to evaluate the usefulness of the tax intervention in exposing students to pervasive skills and in encouraging them to apply it. Overall, the intervention was perceived as an effective teaching tool and tax students recommended it as a positive contributor in developing their pervasive skills as part of higher education and training.