TAXIS: a gamified spreadsheet for employment income tax learning

Income tax on employment is often regarded as one of the most challenging topics in Taxation 1 for accounting students. This difficulty arises from the complex classification of income components and the multitude of tax rules and regulations. Students frequently struggle with the application of Section 13(1) of the Income Tax Act 1967, especially when distinguishing between various forms of employment income, such as allowances, perquisites, and benefits-in-kind. This confusion often leads to incorrect tax classifications and poor academic performance.. To address these challenges, there is a pressing need for an innovative, technology-driven pedagogical approach that simplifies taxation concepts and enhances students' understanding through interactive learning strategies. This study introduces TAXIS, a gamified spreadsheet-based learning tool designed for first-year accounting students enrolled in TAX441 (Taxation 1). TAXIS features two interconnected worksheets that facilitate guided and problem-based learning. In the first worksheet, students classify and calculate employment income while identifying relevant tax sections. The second worksheet automatically reflects correct responses in the Employment Income Statement, allowing students to visualize the final outcome of their answers. Automated validation features provide immediate feedback, marking students' inputs as "TRUE" or "FALSE" based on the accuracy of their calculations and the correct identification of tax sections. This real-time feedback supports self-directed learning by enabling students to identify and correct mistakes as they occur. The novelty of TAXIS lies in transforming a conventional spreadsheet into an interactive learning environment that supports real-time tax computation and classification. This approach enhances student engagement, improves conceptual understanding, and increases accuracy in tax classification. Moreover, TAXIS demonstrates strong scalability, as it can be easily adapted to other taxation topics and accounting courses using commonly available spreadsheet software.