TEACHERS PERCEPTION ON THE AVAILABLE RESOURCES USED FOR THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF BUSINESS STUDIES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
ABSTRACT
The study attempted to find out the available resources in teaching and learning of Business Studies in Secondary Schools in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State. The purpose of the study is specifically to examine the extent of availability, functionality and utilization of available resources in Ikom Local Government. The populations used for the study in public Secondary schools in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State are 9000. Based on the sampling size compose, sampling size of 60 teachers from ten selected schools were used. A total of 60 respondents where used. Three research questions where formulated to guide the study. For the analysis of the data analyzed, the following finding made were that available resources needed for teaching and learning of business studies at the secondary school are grossly inadequate in secondary schools in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State. The few available ones are obsolete and not functional and not utilized. Based on the findings of this study, it was recommended that the government:- federal, State and Local Government should make available basic resources for teaching and learning of business studies in secondary school where business are offered so as to make the acquisition of business skill more permanent on the learners.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
In order to have change in the learner, good teaching must take place and to bring about good teaching, teachers should be able to convey their teaching in the simplest, most convincing and practical way to the learner using available resources.The use of resource material is recommended by many authors for effective teaching and learning at any stage of the child’s development and level of education. It is only unfortunate that in spite of the importance of resource material in teaching and learning process, they are not effectively used in our schools.
These available resources are the instructional materials used in teaching and learning to make teaching easy and practical for the learners to understand the subject.
Textbook, computer, According to Umoh-Mac and Nkume (1998) are regarded as instructional materials. They enhance real and meaningful teaching and learning. Appropriate instructional materials are imperative for implementing good quality education programes. Unless adequate and quality facilities are available, quality of the programme will be reduced and learning-will be deterred.
Material for teaching business subject range from the common textbooks to more sophisticated machines, chalkboards, real objects or their representatives which the teacher use to communicate effectively with the students. These materials make learning more permanent and develop continuity of thought among the learner. Teaching materials and aids for the acquisition of required skill for business Education should be on regular supply to school where Business Education subject are taught.
According to Umoh-Mac Nkume (1998) many researches on the availability of instructional material carried out in Nigeria, in schools offering Business Studies program revealed the presence of inadequate teaching facilities in the schools.
They further explained that even the few available ones are not being maintained. There are poor storage facilities and so they become non-functional.
According to Obi and Akume (2001) warned that any school that desire to offer modern Business Education programme must include in its programme, a thorough training in the use of these appliances.
Also to give such training the school must be equipped with appliances with which it intends to give instructions. To take the point further, they stated that for the teaching process to effectively take place generally, both human and materials resources need to be provided adequately.
No matter how good the teaching staff are, they may not be able to function effectively and efficiently without appropriate teaching materials, equipment and adequate infrastructural, like workshop, conducive classrooms and laboratories, especially when it is over loaded with lesson and practical courses. A well-planned programmed, they say, will fail if at implementation stage the necessary instruments are not supplied. The world at large is going technological and if Nigeria schools must keep abreast with the global technological advancement then the training must be borne in mind and they are adequate supply, proper maintenance and judicious usage of the materials.
The question to ask is who provides these resources materials to schools?
Eze (1991) in his contribution opines that instructional materials produced commercially play a key role in functional education in our schools that when these are understood, our next alternative is in improvisation, provide the improvised equally delivers the goods.
Fortunately, some sources of improvisation are available here around us by nature. Human re-arrangement of nature only requires our initiative and creative to tap them fully towards the attainment and mastery of some skills. Nigeria must realize that finding pragmatic solution to the problems is by setting the growth and development, Business Education in the country should not be left to few persons but rather it should be seen as a collective, philanthropists, corporate bodies, government agencies, churches and other religious organization etc. must join hands and regard the task of solving these problem as one that must be done. When this is solved, Business Education will be accorded its pride of place in the nation’s education system as salvation of modern civilization. In view of these, this study was intended to find out the extent to which instructional materials for teaching Business Education courses are available, functional and utilized in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Statement of problem
Inspire of the federal government emphasis on self-reliance through acquired skill, some schools still suffers some defects such as inadequate supply or provision of resource materials, poor maintenance and poor storage of existing ones.
According to Oren (1998) observed that, being a skill-oriented subject, Business Studies requires the use of machine and other equipment for effective teaching to take place. It is therefore, it is therefore expected that the federal government through the ministries of education, federal, state and local government to see to the provision of these necessary resources for teaching and learning of Business Studies.
According to Oyedele (1995) citied in Atakps (2001) Nigeria children and youths are being educated more in accordance with yesterday’s world rather than in preparation for tomorrow’s living. This is in agreement with what Umoh-Mac and Nkume said about the obsolete equipment found in Nigeria schools.
Emphasizing the Need for the Provision of Instructional Materials in Schools,
According to Obi and Akume (2001) opine that, Business Studies subject being a skilled area of study cannot be learnt by the student sitting and folding their arms and nodding their heads. To give this training, the schools must be equipped with the necessary materials on which it intends to give. Unfortunately it appears that most schools that offer Business Studies subject are not adequately equipped for the instructions. They do not have the materials such as: chalkboard, computer, well ventilated class room e.t.c. Consequently of Business Studies are not properly equipped with the required skills necessary for their employment.
These materials are not just textbooks, but it include machine, chalkboard and real objects instructional aides on the other hands are those that teacher prepare mainly to help him/her pass on the message easier and more effectively. These include cardboard drawings, real objects brought into the class for learners to physically see and touch (visual aids).
With the foregoing, the aim or purpose of study is to evaluate the availability, functionality and utilization of resource materials use for teaching and learning Business Studies in Ikom Local Government Areaof Cross River State
The Purpose of the study
The main purpose of the study was to determine the availability, functionality and utilization of available resources used for teaching and learning of Business Studies in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Specifically, the purpose of the study will be to:
1. Determine the available resources necessary for teaching and learning of Business Studies in Secondary Schools in Ikom Local Government Area.
2. Ascertain the extent to which the available resources are functional.
3. To determine the extent of utilization of the available resources by Business Studies Teachers.
Significance of the Study
The finding of this study will be beneficial to students, teachers, researchers, and curriculum planners and curriculum implementer.
The students will also benefit from the finding when recommendation made. They are being implemented because the students will learn better with instructional materials. They will then be equipped with the desired skills that will make them to be employable after graduation. It will also benefit the curriculum planner, because they will see the need to put more emphasis on utilization and improvisation of resource materials.
Finally, since the study encourages the use of resource materials for more practical teaching and learning process, the graduate of Business Studies like other areas will be people who are well prepared for their job performance and this will ease the employer’s problem of on-job training of workers thus enhancing production.
Scope of the Study
Research of this type would have been deemed fit to cover the Ikom, the whole state, a region of the country. The researcher as a result of:
1. Financial constraints constituted the major limitation with which the researcher was faced during the course of study.
2. Lack of sufficient materials (textbooks) for the research concerning the subjects matter that is, the topic is one of the limitation of the study.
3. Duration (time factor) is another limitation; the period use for this study was not enough for thorough and comprehensive investigation to be done on this topic.
The researcher has decided to limit the research to some selected schools in Ikom Local Government Area.
Research Question
The following research questions were formulated for the study.
1. What are the available resources necessary for teaching and learning of Business Studies in the secondary school in Ikom Local Government Area of Cross River State?
2. How functional are the available resource used for teaching and learning of Business Studies in the Secondary school in Ikom Local government Area of Cross River State?
3. What is the extent of utilization of the available resources for teaching and learning Business Studies in the school in Ikom Local government Area of Cross River State
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