This study examined key issues affecting the effective management of carpentry and joinery workshops for improving the quality of graduates of technical colleges in Nigeria. Drawing upon data collected through a structured questionnaire administered to 27 technical colleges teachers and 13 craft trainers, plus a focus group, this study adopts a mixed methods approach. The survey was conducted in technical colleges in Enugu and Ebonyi States of eastern Nigeria; hence, this study cuts across single geographical boundaries. The patterns of responses among respondents suggested that poor student academic performance result from lack of equipment, funding, and support for technical colleges by the government, whereas effective management of workshops promoted learning and student discipline. The study addressed issues for how workshop success can be promoted.

Employability skills are a set of skills that when developed make graduates more likely to gain employment in their chosen careers. Despite the diversity views in the literature about what employability skills are, there appears to be general agreement that employability skills are important. However, there are concerns about whether Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates in developing countries are developing these skills and the onus falls upon TVET teachers to ensure they do so. In this qualitative study, 35 TVET teachers from 19 developing countries were interviewed to learn how TVET teachers foster employability skills of learners. Data collected were transcribed, coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings show that the well-published notion that TVET teachers in many developing countries do not make efforts to impart employability skills to their students could be brought into question. Results of this study show that TVET teachers use various techniques to foster employability skills in their TVET learners. Continuous professional development of TVET teachers to ensure quality graduate outcomes is recommended.

PurposeThis study explores how the implementation of problem-based learning (PBL) in technical and vocational education training (TVET) systems of Nigerian higher education (HE) can enhance quality graduate outcomes. The study also explores the issues and challenges of PBL implementation in the TVET system of Nigerian HE.Design/methodology/approachThis study follows the assumptions of qualitative research. The authors interviewed 55 participants and had a focus group with 7 TVET postgraduate students. The 55 interviewees were drawn from TVET teachers (n = 33; 24 males and 9 females), Directors at National Board for Technical Education (n = 4; 3 males and 1 female), Directors of National Directorate of Employment (n = 5; 3 males and 2 females), Directors at the Federal Ministry of Education (n = 3 males), and industry executives (n = 10; 7 males and 3 females). Data were collected through a semistructured interview approach, transcribed and coded using NVivo 12 plus and analyzed through thematic analysis.FindingsThe results show that PBL in the Nigerian TVET system has positive implications for quality TVET graduate outcomes in that it can enable integrating theory and practice, motivate learning, improve students' self-efficacy, allow students to construct learning on their own, enhance graduate competencies and graduate employability. It also revealed six perceived possible major challenges to effective implementation of PBL in the Nigerian TVET system, which includes inadequacy of teaching and learning facilities; corruption in Nigerian education sector; recruitment of unqualified incompetent TVET teachers; difficulties in identifying real-life problems, among others. Participants offered benchmarks and actions and standards for improving the identified challenges, which formed a framework for coping with issues, challenges, and barriers to effective implementation of PBL in the TVET system of Nigerian HE (Table 1).Originality/valueThe results of this study are original and serve as an advocacy for Nigerian HE authorities to explore how PBL can be implemented in the TVET system to improve graduate outcomes. The study serves as a starting point for more research in the domain of improving the quality of TVET programs in Nigerian HE. Industry leaders and policymakers in Nigeria and other developing countries could use the findings from this study to increase HE and industry participation and partnership for quality of TVET program.

No abstract

No abstract