ABSTRACT
The views of undergraduates in the Social Studies Unit of Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, toward entrepreneurship instruction were examined in this study. The study was guided by four research questions. The study employed a survey research design. The participants in this study were 151 (one hundred and fifty-one) students from Ebonyi State University’s Department of Arts and Social Science Education’s Social Studies Unit. Because the population was large enough to be surveyed, there was no need for sampling. Environmental factors, such as favorable government policy, rules and regulations, influence students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education in Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, according to the analysis of the data collected for the study. The following recommendations were given based on the findings:
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Education has long been regarded as a viable weapon for preserving culture and achieving personal and national emancipation in all societies, whether developed, developing, or undeveloped. Every society has a purpose in mind, and the needs of a community or nation define the style of education it adopts at some point. In this light, Okoli (2011) asserted that every community, whether civilized or primitive, discovers ways to meet its needs and pass on its culture to the next generation. Okoli (2011) went on to say that each community develops its own education that is required at any given period. Any nation’s fundamental purpose is to empower its inhabitants economically. Then, education must be adapted to the individual. Education has long been regarded as a viable weapon for preserving culture and achieving personal and national emancipation in all societies, whether developed, developing, or undeveloped. Every society has a purpose in mind, and the needs of a community or nation define the style of education it adopts at some point. In this light, Okoli (2011) asserted that every community, whether civilized or primitive, discovers ways to meet its needs and pass on its culture to the next generation. Okoli (2011) went on to say that each community develops its own education that is required at any given period. Any nation’s fundamental purpose is to empower its inhabitants economically. Then, education must be adapted to the individual. Entrepreneurship, according to Shane (2003), is “the act of being an entrepreneur.” According to Shane, an entrepreneur is an individual who uses ingenuity, finance, and business acumen to convert innovations into economic commodities. One example of entrepreneurship is the development of a new company or the revitalization of an existing company in response to a perceived opportunity. In addition, Isaacs, Visser, Friedrich, and Brijal (2007) described entrepreneurship education as an instructor’s intentional intervention in a learner’s life in order to transmit entrepreneurial values and abilities that will enable the learner to succeed in the business environment. Entrepreneurship education, according to Alberti, Sciascia, and Poli (2004), is the systematic and formal transmission of entrepreneurial competencies.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
The number of undergraduate students graduating from Nigeria’s public and private higher education institutions is steadily increasing, and this trend is expected to continue according to the country’s higher education institutions’ goal. With the opening of new institutions and the growth of the admission capacity of the country’s older universities, this number is also growing. The supply of educated human resources will eventually exceed demand in both public and commercial companies. Without a doubt, this will result in a student unemployment crisis unless they really explore self-employment as a career alternative. As a result, for students, entrepreneurship is a tempting career option.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The study’s main goal was to examine undergraduates in Ebonyi State University’s Abakaliki’s Social Studies Unit’s opinions toward entrepreneurship instruction. The study’s objectives were to:
1. Determine how self-efficacy affects Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship instruction.
2. Determine how students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education are influenced by their school environment at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki.
3. Investigate how students’ demographic variables affect their attitudes toward entrepreneurship instruction at Ebonyi State University in Abakaliki.
4. Determine how the entrepreneurship curriculum is taught at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, and how it affects students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
To guide the investigation, the following research questions were formulated:
1. How does self-efficacy influence Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education?
2. In Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, how will the school environment influence students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education?
3. How do demographic factors of students at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, influence their attitudes toward entrepreneurship education?
4. In Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, how will the teaching of entrepreneurship curriculum effect students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education?
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This research has the potential to help with at least one of the following areas. First and foremost, this research will aid the university in better understanding its students’ motivations for self-employment and taking steps to create an entrepreneurial environment that encourages students to become self-employed/entrepreneurs, as universities are expected to incubate entrepreneurs rather than produce those who are looking for work in government or non-government organizations. As a result, the university must contribute to the achievement of the country’s Millennium Development Goals (MDG).
The study will also aid university freshmen by providing information on the importance of self-employment and entrepreneurship.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The goal of this study is to determine how potential university graduates feel about entrepreneurship education. Furthermore, the study aims to investigate how the environment influences students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education, how students’ self-efficacy influences their attitudes toward entrepreneurship education, how demographic characteristics of students influence students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education, and how the university’s entrepreneurship curriculum influences students’ attitudes toward entrepreneurship education.
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