THE LIMITATIONS ON THE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN PRIVATE SECONDARY SCHOOLS

THE LIMITATIONS ON THE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN PRIVATE SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Vocational and technical education programs have been recognized globally as a component of education that leads to the acquisition of practical skills for addressing unemployment and poverty in any country. As a result, there is no need to reiterate that education is the most effective tool for the development of any civilized community (Madumere 2022).

Formal education in Nigeria began in 1842, with the arrival of Christian missionaries. Their first major goal was to convert Africans to Christianity, which is God’s worship through Jesus Christ.

The goal of education in Nigeria in the 1960s was to meet the country’s workforce demands through a regular education system with curriculum that matched the three categories of secondary school available at the time – grammar, technical, and vocational.

as well as commercial (Madumere 2022).

According to Fafunwa (2022), an overemphasis on literary education has been detrimental to Nigeria. To meet her technical demands, the 6­-3­-3­-4 educational system included pre­vocational courses at the junior secondary school level to expose students with a proclivity for vocational training to that field.

Prior to this time, the inadequacy of education in providing proper vocational and technical education had been frequently criticized. According to Ogbazi (2022), despite global industrialization, Nigeria lacks a sufficient number of young men and women with the skills, abilities, and services required to compete favorably on the global market. Ochiagha (2022) emphasized the importance of such an increase in the economy’s reservoir of knowledge and skills.

This will lead to economic growth. Similarly, a lack of skills and knowledge stifles economic growth. Baba (2022) observed that for many years, Nigeria relied on foreign governments to provide vocational labor to supplement her labor shortage. Because of the deficiencies in literary education, many people have advocated for the introduction of vocational and technical education.

Formal education in Nigeria began in its entirety during the Colonial period. It progressed from the three Rs (reading, writing, and arithmetic) to the London General Certificate of Education, Ordinary level Syllabus (the so-called O-level) being used to govern instruction in Secondary Schools (Fafunwa, 2022). Because these secondary grammar schools were not designed to handle vocational technical education,

Topics, trade centers, and colleges were constructed. The London City and Guild Intermediate Certificate is presented here. Candidates who passed the trade test received either the Federal Craft Certificate or the Ministry of Labor Trade Test Certificate. The Federal Craft and Trade Test Programs were established by the Federal Government of Nigeria primarily to improve the knowledge and skills of craftsmen and technicians.

Given that the majority of our youths attend secondary grammar schools (trade colleges are scarce), there was a realization following Nigeria’s political independence that the type of education our colonial masters left us required a critical re-examination of its value: of content, objectives, relevance, methods, administration, evaluation, and so on. According to Ezeobata (2022), every topic in Nigerian education was covered during this time period.

It is necessary to “show its utility” in order to keep a spot on the School Curriculum. This may have prompted the National Educational Research Council (NERC) to hold a curriculum conference in Lagos in 1969, which Okeke (2022) describes as a “summation of people’s frustration with the lack of clarity regarding the goals of education.” The national Policy on Education of 1977, as amended in 1981, was based on the recommendations of this conference for a new set of goals and directions for a comprehensive curriculum redesign.

Against the backdrop of national ambitions, a new educational system known as the ‘6-3-3-4’ system of instruction emerged. Among other improvements, the system provided pre-vocational and vocational courses at the Junior and Senior Secondary Schools.

respectively. For the first time in Nigerian education history, vocational and technical education topics were to be provided alongside the more academic courses previously conducted by the Secondary Grammar Schools under the old Colonial-based system of education.

The National Curriculum for Agriculture, Introductory Technology, Home Economics, Business Studies (Junior Secondary School level), Agricultural Science, Clothing and Textile, Home Management, Food and Nutrition, Typewriting and Shorthand, Principles of Accounts, Commerce, Woodwork, Technical Drawing, Basic Electronics, and Auto-mechanics were developed for this purpose in Nigerian secondary schools. Private and public schools began basing their work on these curricula as one of the innovations that should distinguish the products of the new system from those of the old system.

1982 – in response to the government’s directive that post-primary schools become more comprehensive, as proposed in the 1981 National Policy on Education (Ogbazi 2022).

There is little disagreement about the use of these programs in secondary schools, as long as flaws or specific weaknesses of the ‘process’ (if any) are identified and addressed. Concerns have been raised that the majority of research findings on the adopted curriculum favor public schools, with little or no consideration given to private secondary schools.

1.2 THE PROBLEM’S STATEMENT

Similarly, no country can improve the quality of its economy without first increasing its workforce through the acquisition of skills and knowledge gained through vocational and technical education.

There must be in order for Nigeria to thrive technologically.

Successful implementation of vocational education programs in both public and private secondary schools. The government should not delegate the entire project to private entities that run the school for a profit. They have few options because this does not increase their earnings. 2022) (Ogbazi).

Despite the importance of vocational education to both individual and societal development, Nigeria places little emphasis on the successful implementation of vocational education programs. Low student enrollment in vocational education courses has long been a source of concern for well-meaning individuals, institutions, and businesses in Nigeria, as well as the country itself. This study was carried out to determine if there are any reasons for the ineffectiveness.

implementing vocational education programs in private secondary schools (Ogbazi 2022).

1.3 THE STUDY’S OBJECTIVES

The overarching goal of this study is to investigate the constraints to the effective implementation of vocational education in private secondary schools. Other goals of this research include:

i. Determine whether vocational education is available in private secondary schools.

ii. Determine the scope of vocational education in private secondary schools.

iii. To investigate the constraints encountered in implementing vocational education in private secondary schools.

iv. To propose solutions to the challenges encountered in implementing vocational education in private secondary schools.

1.4 QUESTIONS FOR RESEARCH

The following research questions will guide this study:

i. Has vocational education been implemented in

What about private secondary schools?

ii. How much vocational education is provided in private secondary schools?

iii. What constraints have you encountered in implementing vocational education in private secondary schools?

iv. What are the solutions to the challenges in implementing vocational education in private secondary schools?

1.5 THE STUDY’S IMPORTANCE

This research will be useful because it will help to understand the effectiveness of vocational education implementation in the Nigerian economy.

It will lay out strategies for achieving the desired level of vocational education in Nigeria.

It will assist in refocusing attention on the need to enhance the quality of vocational and technical schools and institutions in Nigeria.

It would aid the government in identifying the regions where private schools in Lagos

lack the resources to pursue vocational/technical education adequately.

Create opportunities for the business sector to invest in the vocational program.

1.6 STUDY OBJECTIVES

The limitations of effective vocational education implementation in private secondary schools are the focus of this study. This study focuses specifically on determining whether vocational education has been implemented in private secondary schools, determining the scope of vocational education in private secondary schools, examining the limitations encountered in the implementation of vocational education in private secondary schools, and proposing solutions to the limitations encountered in the implementation of vocational education in private secondary schools.

This study’s respondents will be teachers and students from selected private secondary schools in Asaba, Delta State.

1.7 RESTRICTIONS OF THE STUDY

The researcher encountered some constraints while conducting this study, including time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the respondents’ attitudes. However, the researcher was able to manage these just to ensure the study’s success.

Furthermore, the case study method used in the study presented some difficulties to the investigator, such as the possibility of biases and poor judgment of issues. To overcome the challenges, the investigator relied on general procedural principles such as justice, fairness, objectivity in observation and recording, and evidence weighing.

1.8 TERM DEFINITION

Vocational education: Vocational education is education that prepares people to work as technicians or in skilled crafts or trades.