A SURVEY OF CAREER CHOICE DETERMINANTS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN IKERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF EKITI STATE
ABSTRACT
The study investigates a survey of career choice determinants among secondary school students in Ikere Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Three research questions and hypotheses were used in the study. Questionnaire was used to get response from the respondents. The study employed descriptive statistic by the use of frequency statistical table. Simple percentage was used to analyze the data collected. Findings of the study revealed that both teachers and parents encounter problems in promoting and encouraging student about career choice. The study concluded that student’s career choice is influenced by numerous factors such as parent’s qualification, parent’s aspiration and discipline. The study recommended that parents should help their children in choosing career by putting them in good schools, teachers should enhance good discipline for the students to help them to choose a good career in future, students should also ensure that they choose good friends, government should post counsellor to school to counsel them to be able to make good career choice.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of study
Education in its general sense is a form of learning in which the knowledge, skills, and habits of a group of people are transferred from one generation to the next through teaching, training and research. Any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts may be considered educational. Education from all perspective is viewed or aimed at preparing one for life and since it is supposed to prepare one for a better living, one must be certain on what he/she can achieve through it and from what discipline he/she can attain it. Education must draw some of its principles from psychology (Madu, 2011). This entails having good grasp of all theories that influence the teaching-learning process. Also, the quality of education that a teacher provides to students is highly dependent upon what teachers do in the classroom. Thus, preparing the students of today to become successful individuals of tomorrow. Teachers need to ensure that their teaching is effective. Understanding of student attitude is very important in supporting their achievement and interest toward a particular discipline.
In our society today, students face a complex and rapidly changing society. It has been reported that regardless of great effort put forth by families, government agencies and non-government agencies, many young people encounter difficulties in the transition from the world of school to that of work (Atchoarena cited in Pilot and Regis, 2012). Investigating and better understanding the myriad factors that contribute to career choice is a topic of recurring interest in our schools today. To guide students in their career decision making, socio-demographic factors play a central role in this lifelong process (Pilot and Regis, 2012).
Career choice has become a complex science with the advent of information technology, the emergency of post industrial revolution and job competition. And as such, education is universally recognised to be the answer to socio-economic problems of the world. Nation and individuals look up to education to provide a clue or possibly, a cure for poverty, ignorance, joblessness, hunger, bad governance, poor communication system and inadequate shelter among other things. Every nation of the world aspires towards quality life and social status. Most student who are in secondary schools do not have adequate information about occupational opportunities to help them make appropriate career choice. Hence it is important to figure out the factors or determinant of career choice among secondary school students. Thus, with the advent of information technology, the emergence of post industrial revolutions and job competition, the choice of career has become a complex science. (Okafor, 2012). These have given rise in interest to scholars on the factors influencing career choice not just among student alone, but among adults. The essence of who the students are, will revolve around what they want to do with their lifelong work. No matter ones age, the choice of career or desire is an important question for everybody. A lot of students in secondary schools believe that their future is a glorious adventure in which they are bound to succeed. (Salami and Salami, 2013). Many of them have the idea that they would be able to work in the public or private establishments as soon as they complete their secondary education. Students in secondary schools like many other young adult are always worried about what they will do with their lives, the kind of adults are always worried about what they will do with their lives, the kind of adult they will become. They are concerned about early entry into the occupational world and finding productive and rewarding place in and out of, fast changing societies where employment is unlikely to be available on a scale sufficient to absorb more than a small fraction of the young people when they do arrive at the labour market. How the young people of today meet the problem for tomorrow will depend upon the amount of success they make in planning for that tomorrow.
Ngesi (2013) stated that conflict is a part of all nature and systems including the parents and the adolescents in relation to their choice of career. Career choice conflict between parents and students from the researcher’s view point occurs when there is a disagreement between parents and their child over the career the child should pursue. This is experienced when the freedom to make a choice of a career by young people is not always allowed by their parents. It also arises when a parent pressures a child toward a particular career just for the purpose of ensuring that the child pursues his/her career intentions.
Today one has not only to make due career planning but also exhaustive career research before making a career choice so as to adjust with the evolving socio-economic conditions (Wattles, 2014). Kerka (2015), said career choice is influenced by multiple factors which include personality, interest, self concept, cultural identity, globalization, socialization, role model, social support and available resource such as information and finances. Hewitt (2016), suggested that most people are influenced by career that their parent favour, others follow the career that their educational choice have opened for them, some choice to follow their passion regardless of how much or little it will make them; while others choose the career that gives high income.
Statement of the problem
Nigeria is rapidly developing her technological education, which has made the society more complex than it was in the past. The number of occupations has increased greatly and also there are many careers within one’s occupation. For instance, farming which was a simple occupation some years ago is now a very complex occupation within many careers to choose from. The implication of this is specialization. This is why the family, peer group, school environment and even the larger society influence the decision any student might make in choosing a life career. This constitutes a problem as students often make wrong choice.
But presently there is scanty research on the influence of environment factors such as gender, home background and student learning outcome on choice of career among secondary school students.
Igwe (2003) in his unpublished social personal and vocations of Nigerian Students stated that one of the factors that influence the career choice students is psychological in nature. These factors include intellectual ability self-concept interest and counselling services. A student who lacks intellectual ability cannot achieve academic excellence hence poor career choice. If parent should know the cause of this problem early they will be able to clue them the researches have only identified the factors but have not determined the extend they influence students choices of career.
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