FACTORS AFFECTING FEMALE STUDENT ENROLLMENT IN SCIENCE ORIENTED COURSES IN NIGERIA HIGHER INSTITUTIONS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Female studies are becoming more diverse all throughout the world. Female students appear to favor certain courses over others, according to the pattern. Female students participate in postgraduate courses for a variety of reasons, including a desire for higher income or better work, decision-making empowerment, and other social and cultural factors. This pattern is also prevalent in technical education institutions (Wattles, 2009). Finding feudalism and transforming it into a family affair was normal practice in the ancient days in the United States of America, Europe, and Africa, where the son of a blacksmith was meant to become a blacksmith and a feudal was born a leader. Industrialization and post-industrialization have made it feasible for the average individual to become wealthier if they have the necessary skills and knowledge (Wattles, 2009). To keep up with changing socioeconomic conditions, one must not only do proper career planning but also conduct extensive job study before making a professional decision (Wattles, 2009). According to research conducted in the United States, attitudes have a significant role in determining what students learn and their motivation to study. Lingren (1980) backed up this position by emphasizing the significance of students having positive attitudes in order for learning experiences to be successful. The term "attitude" has been defined in a variety of ways. In their early investigations in the United States and Europe, Ajzen (1975) defined an attitude as "one's overall emotion of favor or otherwise toward particular stimulus items." Thorndike gave a similar definition (1977). This judgment or sentiment is directed against an individual, a group, an item, an institution, or a proposition, they added. However, attention should be exercised in assessing pupils' attitudes, as anxieties instilled in students might last for the remainder of their education (Philips, 1980). Tobias (1978) went on to say that "negative attitudes may effectively impede intelligence and curiosity, preventing us from understanding what is well within our capacity to grasp." When comparing the two sexes in African secondary schools, Fakuede (1973) discovered that the majority of students in Nigerian secondary schools despise mathematics. Other research in East Africa, particularly in Uganda and Nigeria, have found that females had more unfavorable sentiments (Iben, 1991). As students advance through school, the gap between male and female attitudes widens (Lewy, 1982) As theories of attitude modification have proven, attitudes may be modified, according to Umar (1989) of Kano State Polytechnic in Nigeria. Individuals' changing attitudes and consequent behavior has been studied mostly in sectors other than education, particularly in Nigeria. Values and attitudes are results of the social contacts that a youngster is likely to have with his parents, teachers, and neighbors. Positive reinforcements are necessary for successful interactions, which in turn lead to ego-involvement among the participants. The majority of secondary school students lack reliable information on employment opportunities to aid them in making good career decisions. According to Kerka (2000), personality, interests, self-concept, cultural identity, globalization, socialization, role model, social support, and accessible resources such as information and financial resources all impact course enrollment. According to Bandura (2001), various factors impact each individual participating in the process, including the milieu in which they live, their personal aptitudes, social interactions, and educational achievement. Hewitt (2010) claims that factors impacting profession choice might be internal, extrinsic, or both. Hewitt continues, "Most individuals are influenced by jobs that their parents favor, some pursue careers that their educational choices have opened up for them, others opt to follow their passion regardless of how much or little it will pay them, and others pick high-paying careers." A variety of factors, including ethnic origin, year in school, degree of accomplishment, choice of science subjects, attitudes, and disparities in work qualities, have been found to impact students' perceptions of their suitability for specific careers (Bond, 2003). Perrone (2001) discovered that role model supportiveness and quality of connection contributed to students' job decision in a study on role model effect on career decisiveness of college students. According to the same study, the majority of students chose female role models. Although limited in breadth, research on the impact of spirituality and religion in career development has revealed that such factors are related to desired career development outcomes such as job selections. Faith plays an important part in the employment decision-making process for many persons who have a spiritual or religious commitment. (According to Duffy, 2009). A number of African studies have produced data demonstrating the significant underrepresentation of women in science disciplines and jobs (FAWE, 1997). It was acknowledged at a conference organized by the Federation of African Women Educationists (FAWE) that in many African countries, girls are still restricted to studying "soft option" subjects, limiting their access to scientific and technical disciplines in higher education institutions (Ramani, 2004). Although gender disparities in student enrolment exist at all levels of higher education, they are especially wide at higher degree levels, especially in sciences, with special reference to mathematics and technical disciplines, according to a workshop organized by Nigeriatta University and the World Bank on gender main-streaming in public universities in Nigeria. Women academicians are also concentrated in what are perceived to be traditional female social science and education disciplines, according to reports (Ramani, 2004). Stebleton (2007) found that students in Ethiopia had an external locus of control and feel that many external factors impact their career choices in a study on topic enrolling. Political and economic issues, prior job experience, and the impact of significant persons in a person's life are examples of external factors. External influences, according to Lavallee (2008), help to shape an individual's career aspirations. According to Scholar Connection Research Institute Journals' publication Emerging Trends in Educational Research and Policy Studies (JETERAPS) (2011). Adolescents' own aspirations are influenced by their parents' aspirations or expectations, according to one consistent finding in research. Parental support and encouragement have been demonstrated to have a significant impact on profession choice. To satisfy their parents, children may pick what their parents want (Taylor, 2004). According to Oyamo (2008), research in Nigeria reveal that rural students seek parental assistance more frequently than urban students, and that parents, rather than instructors, have a significant impact in students' career choices. Parents, friends, and counselors all have an influence on a person's career choice, but there are differences from one population to the next. Every year, form four secondary school students in Nigeria make their career choices before sitting for their final Nigeria Certificate of Secondary Examination, the result of which determines who is admitted to university, as grades obtained from the Nigeria Certificate of Secondary Education determine admission to various careers ( Dike, 1984). Students are frequently given a list of job options from which to choose before they make their subject choices. Because most students lack sufficient information about various vocations, their decisions are based on their perceptions of the perfect job and the courses they study in secondary school (Weissbroad, 1980). Career masters or counselors, as they are commonly referred as, and instructors who are meant to encourage students in their career decision are the sole students of support within the school (Oyewole, 1982). The goal of this research is to look at the factors that influence female student enrollment in science-related courses in Nigerian higher education institutions. The field of study will be chosen since, according to statistics from diploma teacher training institutions, the majority of first-year students enrolled in humanities rather than sciences (MOEST, 2011).

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Female student participation in science-oriented courses at Technical Training Institutes (TTI) has long been low, necessitating research into how female students choose science subjects. The Science Department, out of all of TTI's major departments, has one of the lowest, if not the lowest, female student admissions each year. As a result, the number of female students pursuing science-oriented courses or business-related courses is affected, with the latter having a low patronage. Isnes (2004) corroborated this under-representation of students in science-oriented courses in a study of a number of research students on students' topic choice and attitudes toward sciences. Despite a government (SET) subsidy for female students studying science, engineering, and technology courses at technical training institutions, just 204 female students were admitted to the county's three technical schools in 2011, compared to 978 male students in 2011. (County Education Office 2012). In comparison to other counties, such as Uasi-Gishu County with 460 female students, Kakamega County with 432 female students, Tranzioa County with 358 female students, Vihiga County with 325 female students, and Busia County with 268 female students, the county has a low enrolment of female students in TTIs (County technical education office 2013). As a result, unless something is done to entice and teach female students to enroll in science-oriented courses (without compromising standards or quality), other professions that require persons with a science background may suffer (Angell, 2011). Because every nation's progress is driven by improvement in science and technology education, and science courses are a major pillar around which such advancement tries, the drop in the number of female students choosing sciences might have severe ramifications for the country. The respondents in prior Angell (2006) research were young students whose course and subject selections might be substantially impacted by their parents since they were still under their parents' care and supervision. However, the majority of the respondents (students) in this study are rather mature and, in most cases, self-sufficient individuals who are not necessarily impacted by their parents and relatives in their topic choices (Guttersrud, 2004). Despite the advent of the Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) government bursary program to finance female students studying science, engineering, and technology courses at technical institutions in Nigeria, statistics still reveal a low enrolment of females in science oriented courses. As a result, there is a need to determine the factors affecting female students' interest in science-oriented courses in the contemporary setting, necessitating the necessity for this study. In light of this, the researcher set out to discover the factors that influence female student enrollment in science-related courses in Nigerian universities.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The study's goal was to determine the factors that impact female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses in technical training institutions in County.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research question prompted the study:

i. To what degree are outgoing expectations affecting female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county?

ii. To what degree do female students' perspectives impact female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at County technical training institutions?

iii. How do socioeconomic factors influence female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county?

iv. How does the availability of instructional materials effect female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county?

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study's findings are expected to be extremely useful to academics, as they will contribute to the development of further literature in the field of factors that impact female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses in technical training institutions in Nigeria. The outcomes of the study would aid the Nigerian government in designing and executing policies that encourage students to enroll in appropriate and well-informed subjects. The findings are also believed to assist universities in being more receptive to students' academic choices.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study focuses on investigating degree of outgoing expectations affecting female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county, the degree at which female students' perspectives impact female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at County technical training institutions, if socioeconomic factors influence female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county, and how the availability of instructional materials effect female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutions in the county.

1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The following limitations were found in the study on variables impacting female students' enrollment in science-oriented courses at technical training institutes in County. The respondents were hesitant to provide information, believing it would be used for commercial purposes, but they were promised of anonymity. Finally, getting some respondents to reply to the questions was difficult, but the researcher persevered and made multiple trips to collect them. The conclusions of this study may not be applicable outside of the study's participating institutions.

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Attitudes: Female students' overall feelings towards science, whether positive or negative. Courses.

County is a geographical area inside a legislative territorial territory.

Enrollment in TTIs: female students' topic preferences.

Gender: Female students enrolled in technical colleges.

Teaching and learning items, such as libraries and laboratories, are examples of instructional materials.

Expectations for the end result: Future status/rewards derived from course material. Colleges that provide technical education; technical training institutes

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