evaluation of the counselling and appraisal services in Colleges of Education in the Volta region of Ghana

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the counselling and appraisal services in the Colleges of Education in the Volta Region of Ghana. The research design used for the study was the survey approach. Four hundred research participants made up of 317 students, 80 tutors and three counsellors were selected from three Colleges of Education in the Volta Region through stratified and purposive sampling procedures. Stratified sampling technique was used to select the students and tutors while the counsellors were selected purposively. Data were collected with questionnaire and analysed using frequencies and percentages. The results revealed that teacher trainees were not benefiting fully from both the counselling and appraisal services. Some of the recommendations made were that counsellors should intensify guidance activities in the colleges so as to make guidance services, especially the counselling and appraisal services more attractive and accessible to students. In addition, college authorities should play a supervisory role to ensure that counsellors organise guidance activities in the key service areas on periodic bases, just like other co-curricular activities such as sports.

Perceptions of Effectiveness of Academic Advising: Case of Ghanaian University Students

“…Some evaluative and assessment studies have been conducted over the years in the field of guidance and counselling which is a closely related professional service to academic advising. They include research by Sedofia and Ocansey (2013) and Mensah (2007). Sedofia and Ocansey's work concentrated on colleges of education in Volta Region of Ghana.…”

Using phenomenography to unearth factors influencing the delivery of guidance services

“…Though the findings from these quantitative studies are important, they lack depth. Research has established that students in the CoEs have a need for guidance in academic factors (study habits, how to further their studies, time management and test anxiety); financial aspects (how to fund their education and how to handle or use money); social factors (intimate or boy/girlfriend relationships, interpersonal relationships); personal issues (knowing oneself, problem solving, self‐control); and placement aspects (the selection of elective courses, postings, and joining other professions) (Sedofia et al, 2018). The profile of students who are assisted in counselling indicates that the mean age range of the trainees is 20–24 years, and different age groups have different guidance needs; female teacher trainees have significantly greater guidance needs than their male counterparts; teacher trainees who were married or in a relationship reported a greater need for guidance than their colleagues who were single, and trainees in different colleges expressed different guidance needs (Sedofia & Kumassah, 2020).…”