ASSESSEMENT OF THE IMPACT OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN BRASS LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BAYELSA STATE

Abstract

The study assessed the impact of vocational education on secondary school students in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. Three research questions and corresponding null hypotheses were raised to guide the study respectively. The population of the study comprised of all vocational education teachers and students in Brass LGA. A sample of 24 vocational education teachers and 550 students drawn from the population was used for the study. The instrument for data collection was an “Impact of Vocational Education Questionnaire” developed by the researcher and validated by experts in Measurement and Evaluation and Vocational Education. The reliability coefficient was obtained using Cronbach Alpha formula which yielded a value of 0.8. Research Questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while the hypotheses were tested using t-test statistic. The findings revealed that the extent to which vocational education influenced career choice, students’ involvement and the level of unemployment amongst secondary school students in Brass LGA of Bayelsa State was low. Also, it was established that there is no significant difference between the mean responses of teachers and students on the extent to which vocational education influenced career choice, students’ involvement and the level of unemployment amongst secondary school students. It was recommended amongst others that stakeholders should encourage students to develop a positive attitude towards vocational subjects and guidance and counseling sections should come up with activities that will improve students’ awareness and involvement in vocational subjects.