STATISTICAL ANALYSIS ON THE RATE OF STUDENT WITHDRAWAL IN POLYTHECNIC
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Education is a tool for national development. It is also a tool for developing a person’s hidden talents. It is the only way to eradicate illiteracy in any society. The importance of education to individual and national development cannot be overstated. It is a fantastic investment that any country can make in order to accelerate the development of its technological, economic, and human resources. According to Isife and Ogakwe (2012), education is a powerful tool or weapon that can be used to eradicate ignorance, poverty, and diseases while also producing individuals who can function effectively in society. According to Onwuka (2012), education is the tool used to liberate people from incapacity and exclusion. When a person is released from incapacity and
When a person experiences exclusion or illiteracy, their behavior usually changes. This shift affects a person’s attitude and his entire life (Apebende, 2013).
The Federal Polytechnic Statute enacted Decree No. 33 of 1979, as amended by Decree No. 5 of 1993, to provide a legal basis for the establishment of Federal Polytechnics in Nigeria in order to achieve a paradigm shift in the country’s educational system. The primary goal of establishing Polytechnics in Nigeria is to produce the middle-level manpower required for the country’s industrial and technological development.
Without sound and qualitative technical education, no nation can achieve meaningful national development.
No wonder Prof. Uba Nwuba, former Rector of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, asserted that the bedrock of technical education is Polytechnic education is central to Nigeria’s emancipation. Polytechnics provide students with highly technical, scientific, and research-oriented education. It is disheartening to see today that these citadels of learning, which were once the focus of all eyes in the world’s developed economies, have been relegated to the background in Nigeria. Due to a lack of adequate funding by successive administrations, nearly all of the State-owned Polytechnics are only a little above the secondary school level in terms of infrastructure. Most Nigerian Polytechnics are synonymous with structural decay caused by neglect and misplaced priorities on the part of both the government and society.
1.2 BACKGROUND OF STUDY
Dropout among polytechnic students refers to students who leave school before graduating due to a variety of factors. Hornby (2000) defined drop out as a process in which a student leaves school before completing his studies. He went on to define dropping out of school as a situation in which a person rejects the ideas and behaviors that the rest of society accepts. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), dropouts are those who are unable to complete a particular level of schooling. Similarly, a school dropout is a student who leaves school at any point during the educational process. The study intends to look into the statistical analysis of the percentage of polytechnic students who drop out.
1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The primary goal of establishing Polytechnics in Nigeria is to produce the middle-level manpower required for the country’s industrial and technological development.
Without sound and qualitative technical education, no nation can achieve meaningful national development.
No wonder Prof. Uba Nwuba, former Rector of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, asserted that Polytechnic education is the bedrock of technical emancipation in Nigeria. Polytechnics provide students with highly technical, scientific, and research-oriented education. It is disheartening to see today that these citadels of learning, which were once the focus of all eyes in developed economies around the world, have been pushed to the margins in Nigeria due to student dropouts. The research problem is to provide a solution. Statistical analysis of the rate of student withdrawal in Nigerian polytechnics
1.4 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
1 To ascertain the nature of student withdrawal, its causes, effects, and solutions in polytechnics.
2 To conduct a statistical analysis of the student withdrawal rate in polytechnics.
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1 What is the nature of student withdrawal, as well as its causes, effects, and treatment?
2 What is the statistical analysis of the polytechnic student withdrawal rate?
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The study will provide a framework for the formulation and implementation of policies aimed at reducing the rate of student withdrawal in polytechnics.
1.7 STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS
1 Ho Polytechnic education is of poor quality.
Hi Polytechnic education is of high quality.
2 Ho In polytechnic, the rate of student withdrawal is low.
Hi In polytechnic, the rate of student withdrawal is high.
3 Ho The reasons for student withdrawal from polytechnic are few.
Hi The reasons for student withdrawal from polytechnic are numerous.
1.8 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The study focuses on the evaluation of a statistical analysis of the rate of student withdrawal in polytechnic institutions.
1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS
DEFINITION OF SOCIAL CAPITAL
Coleman (1988) defines social capital as a collection of concepts. Each of the concepts included produces a desirable outcome in a relationship between different people. The desired outcome is important to everyone in the relationship. Coleman refers to this value as social capital, an intangible resource.
DEFINED DROPOUT
The term “event dropout” refers to a student who has simply dropped out of high school before graduating. The term “status dropout” refers to a person of school age who was not enrolled in school at the time of the survey. Cohort dropout refers to a person who did not complete high school or obtain a high school equivalency diploma. 9 dropouts
or failed to attend school for 20 consecutive unexplained days
During the base year, the individual should have graduated.
The term “status dropout rate” refers to the proportion of people who have dropped out of school. The event dropout rate is the percentage of students who drop out of school in any given year. Cohort dropout rates demonstrate the disparity in dropout rates for specific groups of students. Because of the ambiguity of the definitions, states frequently report different types of dropout percentages, resulting in unreliable conclusions when comparing state dropout rates.