Partnership between TVET Training Institutions and Industry: A Survey of Industrial Experience of Academic Staff of Accra Polytechnic

Tertiary education in general and polytechnic education in particular has undergone a great deal of transformation during the last 50 years. As part of a sustained and continuous process of optimizing the quality of skill training required in the country, the Government of Ghana is in the process of converting the Polytechnics in the country into Technical Universities at the beginning of 2016 academic year. Industrial experience of academic staff is one of the key requirements given by a Technical committee set up by the government in the proposed bill. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the industrial experience of staff of Ghanaian Polytechnics with Accra Polytechnic as a case study. Using descriptive statistical tools, an analysis was conducted on the industrial experience of all the 189 full time academic staff of the institution. Key findings in the study are that, about 51 percent of the teaching staff have some form of industrial experience relevant to their areas of specialization and the average years of industrial experience for staff in the school of engineering is the highest. The study recommended amongst others, the need for a national governmental policy to incorporate staff industrial internship into faculty development scheme to help foster partnership between TVET training institutions and industry. Keywords:   Industrial experience, TVET, Technical University, Partnershi

Computing Statistical Precision of Efficiency and Productivity Change Indices: A Bootstrap Application to Ghanaian Polytechnics

This study employs a bivariate smoothing bootstrap technique to obtain a statistical inference for Technical Efficiency and Malmquist Indices and their components of Polytechnics in Ghana over the period 2009-2014. The main contribution of this paper is to provide an Efficiency Analysis using a non-parametric approach with a robust estimator. This methodology is empirically being applied in the analysis of Polytechnic Education in Ghana because it affords us the opportunity to compute the statistical significance of changes in Polytechnics’ Technical Efficiency and Productivity Indices and their respective components. Results showed that averagely, Technical Efficiency fluctuated over the period; however, Polytechnic Education experienced a significant technological regress, with few Polytechnics achieving increases in productivity led by improvements in efficiency. Policy implications are derived

THE QUANTITY THEORY OF MONEY AND ITS LONG-RUN IMPLICATIONS: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM NIGERIA

The Quantity Theory of Money (QTM) is one of the popular classical macroeconomic models that explain the relationship between the quantity of money in an economy and the level of prices of goods and services. This study investigates this relationship for Nigeria economy over the period of 1960 to 2009. To check the stationarity properties, we employed Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) and Phillips-Perron (PP) test and found all the concerned variables are stationary only in the first differenced form. Using Johansen cointegration method, the empirical findings indicate that there exists long run cointegrating relationship among the concerned variables. Then applying the Granger causality test, we found a unidirectional causal relationship running from money supply to inflation which provides evidence in support for monetarist.s view. In addition, this study does not provide evidence in supporting the well known fisher effect for Nigeria. Causality does not strictly run from inflation to interest rates as suggested by the Fisher hypothesis, instead a reversed causality between the variables is found. We finally used Wald test to verify the restrictions imposed on money aggregates and output, and we concluded and confirmed the proposition of quantity theory of money that inflation is a monetary phenomenon

Factor Analysis of Competency Based Trained Graduates of Polytechnic/Technical Universities in Ghana

Higher Education, particularly Polytechnic education which sits at the apex of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) has undergone a great deal of transformation over the last several years. Polytechnic education was incorporated into the educational system with the primary objective of providing employable skills needed to propel growth in the various sectors of the economy. Therefore, Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) plays a significant role for the socioeconomic development of any country to meet the challenges of skilled labour in the global market and the ever widening digital divide coupled with the development of a knowledge-based economy. Competency Based Training (CBT) which entails the practical aspect of technical and vocational training relates theoretical knowledge to actual practice. For more than a decade, this has been part of the curricula of polytechnic education in Ghana as an alternative method of delivery to equip students with hands-on experience and competencies required in the job market (Salifu et al, 2010). CBT provides an improved form of delivery centered on the integration of acquired knowledge, professional and practical skills and attitude, coupled with a market-driven focus on the student (Afeti et al, 2003). Having churned out graduates through the CBT approach, it is imperative to assess the readiness of these graduates for the job market. It is against this background that the study was conducted to do a ‘Need Analysis’ of these graduates. A total of 55 graduates in two polytechnics were used for the study. The study sought to examine the relative influence of factors influencing career choices of these graduates having been trained through the competency based mode of Teaching and delivery. Factor analysis of ratings of importance of a number of job creation characteristics were used. These results were used to build scales of importance and preference, which were then tested with other variables in a predictive model in which the dependent variable was the decision to be self-employed or to be engaged for employment by third parties upon completion of their respective programmes. The following were found to influence decisions; work-related concerns, gender, age, financial support, family background and internship placements. The results also showed that most of the graduates exhibited that sense of inadequacy towards becoming entrepreneurs or starting their own businesses

GENDER INEQUALITY IN TVET INSTITUTIONS – BRIDGING THE GAP: THE CASE OF ACCRA POLYTECHNIC

In many countries, gender differentiation within education has become a key principle which shapes the selection, distribution and evaluation of educational knowledge for young men and women. Issues of gender have been topical and dominate most education related discussions in recent times. Access to Technical and Vocational education in Ghana has increased in the past decade. Within these TVET institutions, the challenge has been gender disparities, with focus on female involvement both as trainers and trainees. For Technical Education, males dominate and in Vocational Education, females outnumber their male counterparts. The Polytechnics are no exception as some of its programmes are aligned in this way. Improving access to higher quality tertiary education and skills training is central to enhancing Ghana’s productivity, spurring social inclusion and reducing inequality. Even though females today have an increased opportunity to enroll in Technology education programs, the vast majority still choose not to. They perceive Technology education as a male domain to which they do not belong. There is the need to address this lack of participation by understanding the differences between males and females choice of study. This paper is concerned with the under-representation of women in Engineering education as well as men in Vocational education and the underlying reasons. A stratified random sample of staff and students selected from the Science and Engineering faculties of Accra Polytechnic was used in this study. Data on enrollment and graduation were also used for further analysis. This study recommends that competency based training must be adopted in the Technical and Vocational fields of study in our TVET institutions. Keywords: Gender, TVET, Polytechnic, Stratified

Application of Forecasting Methods on Prices of Local and Imported Rice in Ghana

The field of forecasting is concerned with approaches to determining what the future holds. It is also concerned with the proper presentation and use of forecasts. Fluctuations in the prices of commodities are a phenomenon that is of statistical significance. In modern mathematical and social sciences it is important that the field of forecasting is developed and designed as a tool to help decision making and planning.  This project discusses how we can use simple objective methods of forecasting on price data to forecast to a relatively high degree of accuracy, the prices of commodities. The study highlighted on the adequacy of the quadratic method of curve fitting for forecasting the prices of local rice based on a 5-year data set. It shows that, though most models can predict the prices reasonably, by considering the R2 values and the Root Mean Squared residual values, the quadratic models are better than the other models such as linear, lognormal, logistics and the simple exponential. The project also depicts very similar trend characteristics between prices of imported and local rice in Ghana. It discusses how the use of forecasting methods on prices of commodities  need to be developed to empower people because their use implies that, we can modify variables now to alter (or be prepared for) the future. Successful application of forecasting methods on prices of commodities especially a stable food like rice can improve the income of farmers and bring efficiency into the commodity market. Keywords: Forecasting, Price, Response, Predictor, Regression. RMS, Residuals.Application of Forecasting Methods on Prices of Local and Imported Rice in Ghan