Mohammed A Auta

In Nigerian, the National Universities Commission (NUC) is responsible for the maintenance of quality and standards of all academic programmes in the universities. The NUC performs this task through the issuance of Benchmark for Academic Standards (BMAS) to the institutions and conducts periodic accreditation exercises for an on-the-spot assessment of facilities available to run such programmes. This notwithstanding, Nigerian universities enjoy a degree of autonomy with regards to the curriculum content and the degree title for their respective programmes. This freedom is not peculiar to Nigeria, but in the other countries with such academic freedom there is a clearly defined criterion on how degrees should be titled from the regulators. In Nigeria, these variations in titles and content pose some challenges in the areas of programme offering and ambiguity in names of similar discipline, non-uniformity in skills acquired among others. On the other hand these variations have the merit of multidisciplinary exposure which enhances university academic autonomy. It is therefore recommended among others that; NUC should establish a criterion for degree Titles/Nomenclature and ensure that it is strictly followed by the universities; All programmes incorporating both, Teaching Practice(TP) and Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme(SIWES) exercises as part of the requirements for graduation should be made to last for five years so as to avoid the current seeming shortfalls being experienced in those programmes; The curriculum content of all programmes in Nigerian universities should put into consideration the societal milieu in addition to complying with the Benchmark for Academic Standards(BMAS).

PurposeFollowing the tenets of experiential learning theory (ELT) and social cognitive theory (SCT), this study aims to investigate the influence of higher technology education students' placement experiences (work-related learning by teaching practice [WLTP] and by industry attachment [WLIA]) on learning self-efficacy (LSE) and perceived employability skills (PES) (namely, perceived future network [PFN], perceived expected experiences [PEE]), perceived future personal characteristics (PFPC), perceived future labour market knowledge (PFLMK) and perceived future skills (PFS).Design/methodology/approachUsing two-wave surveys (T1 & T2), data were collected from technical education students (N = 257) in Nigerian universities. At T1, LSE and PES were measured, while WLTP, WLIA, LSE and PES were measured at T2. The repeated measure t-test, and structural equation modelling were applied for statistical analyses.FindingsThe authors found a significant increase in the students' LSE and PES from T1 to T2. Direct associations between WLTP, WLIA, LSE and PES were partly supported. Similarly, WLTP and WLIA have indirect relationships with PES via LSE. However, the result of the indirect effect is partly supported for WLTP and PES relations; but fully supported for WLIA and PES relations.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this study is not an experimental design to absolutely justify causality, it has provided valuable empirical evidence that added to the extant literature on higher education students' work-related learning, learning ability and employability skills.Originality/valueTo the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to explore the simultaneous influence of two aspects of students' work placement (WLTP and WLAI) on LSE and employability as well as the changes that occur after the placement.

The study analyzed the psychometric properties of business studies achievement test for senior secondary schools in Nigeria. One research question guided the study. The study adopted an instrumentation design. The area of the study was Anambra State. The population of the study consists of all 23,077 students and 586 business studies teachers in two hundred and sixty-one senior secondary schools in Anambra State. Taro Yamane formula was used to determine the sample size of the study, which is 630 made up of 393 students in SS1 and 238 business studies teachers in Anambra State. A multi-stage sampling procedure involving two stages was adopted for this study. Proportionate stratified and purposive sampling techniques were employed at the first and second stages respectively. Items were subjected to item analysis to determine the difficulty and discriminatory indices. The study revealed that 125 items were found to be appropriate for inclusion in the business studies achievement test, these test's items met the criteria for item difficulty index and item discrimination. Based on the findings of the study it was recommended that teachers of business studies like commerce, accounting, and office practice among others should employ the created business studies Achievement Test. The BSAT items should be used as a model when creating other accomplishment exams for senior secondary schools in business studies.

In Nigerian, the National Universities Commission (NUC) is responsible for the maintenance of quality and standards of all academic programmes in the universities. The NUC performs this task through the issuance of Benchmark for Academic Standards (BMAS) to the institutions and conducts periodic accreditation exercises for an on-the-spot assessment of facilities available to run such programmes. This notwithstanding, Nigerian universities enjoy a degree of autonomy with regards to the curriculum content and the degree title for their respective programmes. This freedom is not peculiar to Nigeria, but in the other countries with such academic freedom there is a clearly defined criterion on how degrees should be titled from the regulators. In Nigeria, these variations in titles and content pose some challenges in the areas of programme offering and ambiguity in names of similar discipline, non-uniformity in skills acquired among others. On the other hand these variations have the merit of multidisciplinary exposure which enhances university academic autonomy. It is therefore recommended among others that; NUC should establish a criterion for degree Titles/Nomenclature and ensure that it is strictly followed by the universities; All programmes incorporating both, Teaching Practice(TP) and Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme(SIWES) exercises as part of the requirements for graduation should be made to last for five years so as to avoid the current seeming shortfalls being experienced in those programmes; The curriculum content of all programmes in Nigerian universities should put into consideration the societal milieu in addition to complying with the Benchmark for Academic Standards(BMAS).

The study validated strategies for effective vocational school public relations. Six purposes and six research questions guided the study. The design for this study was a descriptive survey. The area of the study was Taraba state and the population of the study comprises of eight Technical college principals and 24 Vice-Principals thereby making a population size of 32. No sampling was used. The instrument used for data collection was a structured questionnaire developed by the researcher. The instrument was validated by three experts one from the department of technology education, Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, one technical college principal, and one public relations practitioner. Cronbach Alpha was used to determine the reliability, and a reliability coefficient of 0.79 was obtained. The 32 copies of the instrument administered were properly filled and returned. Mean and Standard deviation were used to analyze the research questions. Findings from the study indica...

Technology Education has been defined in several ways by different scholars to suit the purpose they desire to accomplish. Some scholars defined it from the perspective in which its various school-subject components are taught, while others defined it from the way it is practiced in the field. However, the Nigerian National Policy on Education defines Technology Education as those aspects of educational processes involving the study of technologies and related sciences and the acquisition of practical skills, attitudes, understanding, and knowledge relating to occupations in various sectors of the economic and social life (Federal Republic of Nigeria [FRN], 2013). Immaculate (2005) sees Technology Education as experiences meant to be impacted on an individual systematically in order to get him/her adequately equipped for employment in a recognized occupation. Technology Education programmes therefore, are those programmes designed to enable individuals acquires requisite employment ...

The purpose of the study was to identify the vocational training needs of unemployed graduates in Taraba state. Two research questions guided the study. The study adopted descriptive survey research design. The area of the study was Taraba state in North-eastern Nigeria, and the population of the study comprises of all unemployed graduates with a minimum qualification of Higher National Diploma (HND) in the state. Stratified random sampling was used to arrive at a sample size to 150. The instrument used for data collection was a structured questionnaire. The instrument was validated by three experts in vocational education who are lecturers in institutions of higher learning. 150 copies of the instrument were administered of which 148 copies were properly filled and returned. Frequency count, Simple percentage and Ranking were used to analyze the research questions. Findings from the study among others indicated that most of the unemployed graduates (72%) are male while the rest (28...

This study was conducted to identify strategies for evaluation of students’ proficiency in practical skills in NCE (technical) Building Technology Education. Questionnaire was the instrument used in collecting data from respondent. The population for the study comprises of all Technical Teachers in the School of Technical Education, Federal College of Education (Technical), Potiskum. There was no sampling employed for this study due to small size of the population. The data obtained were analyzed through the use of means and standard deviation. The study findings revealed that non-availability of practical materials, in adequate training facilities, and the limited time allocated to practical activities are some of the problems often encountered in the evaluation of students’ proficiency in practical skills. It also shows that pre-determination of objectives, preparation of checklist, assessing students’ safety considerations, and assessing students independence in handling practica...

It appears that the goal of the N-Power Build training program which sought to revitalize the apprenticeship training system in Nigeria cannot be fully achieved without a feedback mechanism on the level of skills acquired by the trainees. This study, therefore, was set to self-validate the skills acquired by N-Power Build trainees. Five research questions guided the study. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The area of the study was Taraba state and the population of the study is 501 N-Power build trainees. There was no sampling. The instrument used for data collection was a structured questionnaire developed by the researchers. The instrument was validated by three experts in the fields of Technology & Vocational Education. The instrument was trial-tested on 10 N-Power Build beneficiaries in Adamawa state. Cronbach’s alpha was used to analyze the data to establish the reliability of the instrument, and a reliability coefficient of 0.83 was obtained. Three hundr...

The research was a tracer study on work place performance of University Technology Vocational Education (TVET) Student–Teachers. Four research questions guided the study. The study adopted survey design, and the population was 45 involving Principals, Vice principals, Deans of Studies and Heads of the Department of technical subjects in 9 secondary schools in Anambra State where Technology and Vocational Education Student – Teachers of Nnamdi Azikiwe University were posted for Teaching Practice during the 2018/2019 academic session. No sampling was done in the study because the population was small. The instrument for data collection was 40 items questionnaire developed by the researcher on a 5 point response scale. Descriptive statistics of mean and Standard Deviation were employed in data analysis. The findings revealed that University TVET Student-Teachers performed to a High Extent in lesson planning, lesson presentation, classroom management and evaluation of learning outcomes....

The purpose of the study was to determine the effect of the use of documentary videos in teaching setting-out in Nigerian secondary schools. One research question and one hypothesis guided the study. The study adopted Quasi-experimental research design. The population for the study was 16 ST 1 students from Government Technical Training School, Jalingo offering Building Construction subject. There was no sampling. The instrument for data collection was Setting-out Test (ST) developed by the researcher. The instrument was validated by three experts. Test re-test was used to establish the reliability of the instrument and a reliability coefficient of 0.83 and 0.87 was obtained for the traditional and documentary video teaching methods respectively. The ST 1 students were arranged in intact groups, A and B; treatment was given to the two groups. Group a students were taught using the traditional method while Group B students were taught using the documentary video. A Pre-Test and Post-...