Choosing Performing Arts Pedagogy Courses: Pre-Service Generalist Teachers Motivation (Published)
Performing Arts pedagogy courses have not been the choice of pre-service generalist teachers in Wesley College of Education in the city of Kumasi, Ghana between 2010/2011 and 2016/2017 academic years. At the beginning of the 2017/2018 academic year, six students selected the course as their elective for study. This study explores the motivation behind these pre-service teachers selecting the Performing Arts pedagogy courses for study. Prior engagement in the performing arts, expectation of ability to teach, and achieving good examination results emerged as the main themes from the analysis of qualitative semi-structured interview data. Findings suggest that there is a relationship between prior experiences in the performing arts and motivation to continue engagements in the arts. Further research with pre-service teachers to identify their needs, interests, abilities and background experiences in the performing arts will help teacher educators to train students to be effective practitioners in their future classrooms.
Keywords: Colleges Of Education, Ghana, Motivation, Pedagogy, Performing Arts, Pre-service Generalist Teachers
Guidance Needs of Teacher Trainees in Selected Colleges of Education in the Volta Region, Ghana (Published)
Knowing students’ guidance needs helps counsellors to discharge their guidance duties more effectively. This paper investigated the guidance needs of teacher trainees in Colleges of Education in the Volta region of Ghana. The study employed the concurrent triangulatory mixed methods research design in which both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from a total of 401 second year teacher trainees (256 males and 145 females) and three (3) counsellors. Two out of the three counsellors were males. Data were collected using a 27-item questionnaire, a semi-structured interview and focused group interviews. The quantitative data were analysed using chi-square statistics while the qualitative data were analysed thematically. The results showed that the guidance needs of teacher trainees in Colleges of Education in the Volta region are academic (study habit, how to further their studies, time management and test anxiety); financial (how to fund their education and how to handle or use money); social (intimate or boy/girlfriend relationship, interpersonal relationship); personal (knowing oneself, problem solving, self-control); and placement (the selection of elective courses, postings, and joining other professions). It was recommended that college counsellors to undertake regular needs assessment of trainees and design guidance programmes based on such needs.
Keywords: Assessment, Colleges Of Education, Guidance Needs, Need, Teacher Trainees
Skills Training Needed by Business Education Students for Successful Entrepreneurship: Implications for Colleges of Education in Nigeria. (Published)
Scholars have identified entrepreneurship education as the missing link between poverty and national development. Consequently, developing a functional Entrepreneurship curriculum for tertiary institutions is needed. This paper dealt with the various skills needed by business education students for successful entrepreneurship. Three research questions and three null hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance guided the study. The Population of the study consisted of 6002 students of Business Education , 600 of the total population were used for study. The study made use of survey design. A structured questionnaire designed on 4 point rating scale containing 44 items on skills training needed for successful entrepreneurship grouped into three clusters was used for gathering data for the study. Data were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while t-test was used to test the three null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. It was found that information and communication technology (ICT) skill, Risk management skill training and innovative skill training are needed for successful entrepreneurship. It was recommended that the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) should from time to time review the course content /syllabus, adequate funds and special grants be provided by government to colleges of education especially in south-west states to enable them procure and maintain needed teaching and learning materials.
Keywords: Business Education, Colleges Of Education, Entrepreneurship, Skills