Skills Needed by Agricultural Education Students for Sustainable Vegetable Production in Enugu State (Published)

The main purpose of the study was to determine the skills needed by agricultural education students for sustainable vegetable production in Enugu State. The study was guided by five research questions and five null hypotheses. A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population for the study was 96 comprising of 33 extension agents and 63 registered vegetable farmers in Enugu State. The instrument used for data collection was a 42 item structural questionnaire grouped into five sections. The instrument was validated by three experts and reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach Alpha Statistics which yielded 0.79. Out of 96 copies of the questionnaire distributed 89 were properly filled and returned representing 92.71% return rate. Mean, standard deviation and t-test statistics were the statistical tools used. From the result of data analysed, the study identified the pre-planting skills, planting, post planting skills, harvesting skills and marketing skills required by agricultural education students for sustainable vegetable production in Enugu State. The findings of the study showed that there is no significant difference between mean responses of extension agents and vegetable farmers on the identified skills. Based on the findings, recommendations were made which include that the lecturers of agricultural education programme should ensure that the identified are skills used in teaching the students in crop production course of study and the government should ensure that the skills required for vegetable production are incorporated in the quality training and retraining of the students.

 

Keywords: Skills, agricultural education and sustainable vegetable production, vegetable

Effect of Public-Private Partnerships on Revamping Technical Vocational Education and Training in Kenya: A Case of Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) and Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Partnership (Published)

Lack of financial and managerial capacity impedes many governments’ ability to meet obligations in regard to the national educational systems. In order to make meaningful improvements in education, governments may have to consider alternative methods such as public – private partnerships so as to meet their commitments to education. Establishing PPP with the private sector especially corporations who possess valuable financial and material resources and expertise can assist governments to expand and improve the quality of education services leading to achievement of education for all (EFA) goals. This paper aims at establishing the effect of Public-Private Partnerships on revamping Technical Vocational Education and Training in Kenya focusing on a case of KAM and GIZ Partnership. The study sought to establish how employment opportunities through KAM and GIZ Partnerships have revamped Technical Vocational Education and Training in Kenya and to assess the financial assistance from KAM and GIZ Partnerships on revamping TVET in Kenya. The paper was centered on Classical Liberal Theory. The study targeted a population of 882 students and staff of TVETs in Nairobi County. The paper used stratified random sampling to select a sample of 268 respondents who received the questionnaires. Self-administered questionnaires and interview guides were used for collection of primary data. The questionnaires were administered using the drop and pick later method in order to allow the respondents have enough time for responding adequately to the questions. SPSS Version 25.0 was used for data analysis. The paper used descriptive statistics since it enabled the researcher describe meaningfully the score or measurement distribution by using a few indices. Conceptual content analysis was used in the analysis of the qualitative data from the open-ended questions. The study concluded that Public-Private Partnerships positively and significantly revamps TVET in Kenya. The Kenya government should develop a public-private partnership policy framework especially in education to guide corporate/business organizations involvement.

 

Keywords: Education, Skills, Technical, Training, Vocational, private partnerships, public

Enhancing Entrepreneurial Education Skills in Electrical Installation for Sustainable Economic Development (Published)

The Paper discussed the enhancement of entrepreneurial education skills in Electrical installation for sustainable economic development. School leavers from various institutions face skill opportunities of securing employment including those that studied electrical installation maintenance work. Entrepreneurial education was discussed as a suiting solution that would enable the graduates learn skills that would make them survive by establishing electrical installation related enterprises for sustainable economic development. Some factors that would promote entrepreneurship education include adequate provision of fund to establish entrepreneurial education system, revitalization of electricity supplies and expansion of educational facilities for entrepreneurial development. Entrepreneurial competences identified for sustainable economic development among Electrical Installation graduates include managerial, accounting, marketing and competitive skills. The paper also identified concrete reasons for entrepreneurial education to include provision of necessary skills, ability of students to transit from school to work among others. When entrepreneurial education is enhanced, sustainable economic development will be realized.

 

Keywords: Economic Development, Education, Electrical Installation, Skills, entrepreneurial education

The Gap between Employers and Unemployed, Challenges for Employability in Guanacaste Province of Costa Rica (Published)

The purpose of this research is to analyze the challenges for employability in Guanacaste through the discussion of variables that influence job offers and the conditions of job seekers, with a focus on the relevance of employment for economic development of the country and the relationship of higher education with obtaining employment. The methodology includes a descriptive research, with a quantitative approach, which studies guanacastecans in unemployment, applying a survey to a sample of 76 university students. The results show that people feel prepared and with the necessary competences for employment, but perceive little support from local governments, institutions and even the universities to open employment opportunities. The experience barrier is relevant, looked by employers; among the competences that increase the possibilities of employment are the soft skills, English language management, as well as the updating in technological tools. Considering conclusions, communication between universities, local governments and other institutions should improve with business sectors, to generate a clear picture and increase employment options. Together with efforts such as more job fairs and intermediation offices, the unemployed will have a link to find employment and employers can have a clear profile of the people who seek a job. In short, the challenges are diverse and requires efforts from various parties, from the unemployed who must develop adequate skills, to employers who value human talent in Guanacaste.

Keywords: Economic Development, Education, Employability, Skills, Unemployment

An Appraisal of the Development and Functioning Of Vocational Education and Training in Nigeria (Published)

Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes in Nigeria is yet to be understood by the members of the society and that accounts for their negative attitude of relegating it to the background despite its potentials and undeniable evidence of its’ products and services. The programmes are in different categories and levels but are characterized by the practical components which cut across all the different levels. The historical research method was adopted for the study using primary and secondary data. The study reveals that technical vocational education and training programmes have been in vogue from the pre-colonial era to date. It was the main training programmes available before the advent of colonialism and introduction of western education in Nigeria. TVET programmes in Nigeria is not meeting the needs of the society and the paper advanced what should be done to bridge the need gap as the way forward. 

Keywords: Industries, Skills, TVET, trainees, trainers

Competency-Based Curriculum: A Framework for Bridging the Gap in Teaching, Assessment and the World of Work (Published)

In this era of creative and flexible learning, most vocational education and training (VET) in developing countries still adopt a passive approach to learning where students’ success in examination is based on their ability to reproduce a credible portion of their notes from memory. Although the curricula and teaching methods have remained largely unchanged in developing countries over the years, employers are increasingly demanding technical competencies, analytical thinking, communication and entrepreneurial skills. Essentially, the study seeks to find out how curriculum development processes of CBT provides framework for aligning teaching and learning processes to equip trainees with requisite skills and competencies to perform in the world of work. The study examines relevant literature and policy papers from several databases together with key stakeholder consultations to obtain insights into CBT curriculum development processes, underlying assumptions, philosophies, linkages with Bloom taxonomy of educational objectives, assessment practices and outcomes and their eventual effects on the achievement of relevant skills and competencies required to perform professional tasks. The study shows that although mastery of a job-specific task is important, it does not ensure a competent employee particularly in the context of rapid pace of technological change and high labour mobility. Moreover, when outcomes of learning are tied to descriptions of work, or specific workplace activity, it emphasises tradition and limits transfer of skills and labour mobility, leaving graduates largely for routine and restricted tasks which may not guarantee employability (Nuffield Review, 2008). Prospective employees need to acquire a broader range of soft skills, professional competencies and attitudes to continually adapt and transfer skills and knowledge in different contexts.  It is imperative for industry to engage in innovative forms of collaboration to achieve industry–demand driven form of training and smooth transition of students from school to work. Feedback from assessment must focus on task-oriented information and corrective advice to build students’ self-esteem to self-regulate their learning towards the achievement of learning goals.

Keywords: Assessment, Competency-Based, Curriculum, Skills, Workplace

Competency-Based Curriculum: A Framework for Bridging the Gap in Teaching, Assessment and the World of Work (Published)

In this era of creative and flexible learning, most vocational education and training (VET) in developing countries still adopt a passive approach to learning where students’ success in examination is based on their ability to reproduce a credible portion of their notes from memory. Although the curricula and teaching methods have remained largely unchanged in developing countries over the years, employers are increasingly demanding technical competencies, analytical thinking, communication and entrepreneurial skills. Essentially, the study seeks to find out how curriculum development processes of CBT provides framework for aligning teaching and learning processes to equip trainees with requisite skills and competencies to perform in the world of work. The study examines relevant literature and policy papers from several databases together with key stakeholder consultations to obtain insights into CBT curriculum development processes, underlying assumptions, philosophies, linkages with Bloom taxonomy of educational objectives, assessment practices and outcomes and their eventual effects on the achievement of relevant skills and competencies required to perform professional tasks. The study shows that although mastery of a job-specific task is important, it does not ensure a competent employee particularly in the context of rapid pace of technological change and high labour mobility. Moreover, when outcomes of learning are tied to descriptions of work, or specific workplace activity, it emphasises tradition and limits transfer of skills and labour mobility, leaving graduates largely for routine and restricted tasks which may not guarantee employability (Nuffield Review, 2008). Prospective employees need to acquire a broader range of soft skills, professional competencies and attitudes to continually adapt and transfer skills and knowledge in different contexts.  It is imperative for industry to engage in innovative forms of collaboration to achieve industry–demand driven form of training and smooth transition of students from school to work. Feedback from assessment must focus on task-oriented information and corrective advice to build students’ self-esteem to self-regulate their learning towards the achievement of learning goals.

Keywords: Assessment, Competency-Based, Curriculum, Skills, Workplace

Skills Improvement Needs of Lecturers in the Utilization of selected Weather Instruments for Instructional Delivery in Tertiary Institutions in North-East Nigeria (Published)

The purpose of the study was to determine the skill improvement needs of lecturers in the utilization of weather instruments for effective teaching of students of agriculture in tertiary institutions in North-East, Nigeria. A survey research design was adopted for the study. Four research questions guided the study. The study was carried out in North-East, Nigeria. The population of the study was 219 respondents comprising of 17 Lecturers of Agricultural Education, 9 Lecturers of Soil Science, 8 Lecturers of Geography in Universities and 185 Lecturers of Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education. The entire population constituted the sample for the study. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire named “Utilization of Weather Instruments Questionnaire” (UWIQ). Five experts validated the instrument and was trial-tested. A Cronbach Alpha reliability coefficient of 0.83 was obtained indicating that instrument was reliable to elicit information for the work. Two hundred and nineteen copies of the questionnaire were administered to the respondents by six trained research assistants in the six States of North-East, Nigeria. The entire questionnaire was retrieved. The data collected were analyzed using weighted mean and improvement need index (INI) to answer the 4 research questions. It was found that all the 64 skill improvement needs identified in the utilization of weather instruments were needed by Lecturers of Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education. The result revealed that Lecturers of Agricultural Education need skill improvement on the following items: 19 skills on utilizing Stevenson Screen, 16 skills on utilizing Thermo-hygrograph, 20 skills on utilizing Maximum and Minimum Thermometers and 10 skills on utilizing Sunshine Recorder. Based on these findings, it was recommended that: Lecturers of Agricultural Education should seek for ways of improving their skills in utilizing weather instruments; Administrators of Colleges of Education should support and approve study leave for Lecturers of Agricultural Education to attend workshops, seminars and conferences on utilization of weather instruments; Skill acquisition organizations should package the finding of the study into capacity building programmes for re-training both Lecturers of Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education and teachers of Agriculture Science in Secondary Schools in North-East, Nigeria.

Keywords: Improvement, Skills, Tertiary Institutions, Utilization, Weather Instruments

SKILLS FOR EXCELLENCE AND EMPLOYABILITY IN THE MODERN WORLD (Published)

The world owing to ICT has taken a different dimension; activities are highly sophisticated and need sophisticated skills and skilled men to handle them. Men who are unskilled and depend on archaic and old fashion way of doing things and carrying out activities are obsolete, out of job or placed at the lower cadre of their profession, an age where mechanization and high level technology is the order of the day. The jetty speed, at which the world moves, requires jetty effort and should be criteria for choice of profession and desired skill to acquire and the level at which it is acquired. The paper therefore put it this way that all skills are skills, but some skills attract more employability than others as a result of the level of excellence attained in them. It’s on this note that the paper on “Skills for Excellence and Employability in the Modern World” will look into the following areas: Characteristics of Excellence, Concept of Employability vis-a-viz the Modern World, Concept of Skills for Excellence vis-a-vix Employed/Employability, Skills for Excellence in the Modern World, conclusion and recommendation.

Keywords: Employability, Excellence, Modern World, Skills