Determination of competency framework for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) educators in Nigerian tertiary institutions

Lack of competent TVET Educators in Nigerian institutions has led to several problems such as low quality graduates and unemployment. Competency is a vital element for assessing the quality of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) Educators. Therefore, this research investigated the TVET Educators ’ perceptions on competency needs in Nigerian tertiary institutions based on Malaysian Human Resource Development Practitioners (MHRDP) competency model for workplace learning and performance (WLP). Apart from that, this study also aimed at investigating the perception differences on competency elements among difference TVET tertiary institutions in order to enhance their quality. The study was fully quantitative and 218 questionnaires were systematically distributed to the TVET educators from five tertiary institutions based on the stratified sampling technique. A total of 205 questionnaires were returned. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods such as mean, EFA and ANOVA were used to analyse the data. The research found that Nigerian TVET educators perceived all the competency elements (25 constituents) as important; 19 out 25 constituents of competency framework were significantly related to Nigerian tertiary institutions. The research findings also revealed that there was no statistically significant differences among the TVET educators perception on competency elements across different types of TVET tertiary institutions. The developed competency framework for Nigerian TVET tertiary institutions contributes originally to the body of knowledge. The research recommends that government and other relevant authorities should emphasize on the implementation of the framework to tertiary institutions in Nigeria. A similar research should be undertaken to extend the result to reflect other Non-TVET educators in Nigeria

Development of Competency Framework for Nigerian TVET Teachers in Tertiary TVET Institutions

Competency framework is a tool that determines the needed competencies for individuals in order to curtail the challenges that are existing currently and to uphold sustainable development. From the educational perspective, the competencies of TVET teachers are important as they might affect the teachers’ implementation of tasks, career development and graduates’ quality. Therefore, this research attempted to develop a competency framework for TVET teachers in Nigerian TVET tertiary institutions based on the Malaysian Human Resource Practitioners Development (MHRDP) Competency Model. The study adopted a survey design and 427 TVET teachers were identified as targeted sample. A set of questionnaire was developed based on the MHRDP Competency Model (α=0.61). A total of 218 questionnaires were distributed to five TVET tertiary institutions using stratified sampling technique and 205 questionnaires were successfully returned. Exploratory Factor Analysis was used to analyse the data. The findings revealed that 19 elements of competency were significantly relevant to Nigerian TVET teachers who work at tertiary institutions. The proposed competency framework is beneficial to be used as a guideline for the Nigerian TVET institutions and policy makers to plan the competency training and retraining courses for TVET teachers and staff development

Reference values of somatometric and sonographic renal parameters of apparently healthy Hausa children in Kano metropolis, Nigeria

Accurate measurement of organ size is important in children to estimate adequate growth. Among various growth parameters, kidney size is an important parameter used for the clinical evaluation of renal growth and renal abnormalities. The study is aimed at evaluating the renal volume using ultrasound scan in normal Hausa primary school children in Kano aged 2 to 13 years. The study design was prospective cross sectional conducted among healthy Hausa children, aged 2 to 13 in Kano metropolis from October 2017 to October 2019. Approval to carry out the study was obtained from the State Universal Basic Education, Kano, Ministry of Health, Kano. Informed oral and written consent were obtained from the child’s parents or caregiver. A simple random sampling was employed in the study and a total of 457 subjects were recruited. The instrument used was MindrayDigiprince DP4900 ultrasound machines with 3.5 – 5.0MHz curvilinear transducer. Renal ultrasound scan was performed on all the selected subjects. SPSS version 22.0 was used for the data analysis. The mean heights, weights and BMI of the subjects were 1.21±0.11m, 20.46±4.92kg and 13.93kg/m2. The mean renal length, thickness, width and renal volume were 7.69±0.71cm, 3.31 ± 0.42cm, 4.80 ± 0.49cm and 64.79±16.13cm3 respectively. This study provides data for normal sonographic renal volume and length in Kano metropolis, a Hausa dominated Nigerian population

Determination of morphological features and molecular interactions of Nigerian bentonitic clays using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)

This research focused on identifying the morphological features and molecular  interactions of the Nigerian Bentonitic clays using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) characterisation technique. The SEM microstructure images indicated that the bentonite samples are generally moderately dispersive to dispersive with some large flocs which were apparently separate and dispersed from one another rather than located on the totality of the image. This property is more pronounced on the sodium (Na) activated and the treated samples than in the raw samples, which could be due to quartz removal and Na activation on the raw Bentonitic samples. Dispersive sample surfaces consist of loose flakes with no definitive mass structures observed on the treated samples due to added poly anionic cellulose (PAC) to the samplesKey words: SEM, microstructure, images, bentonite, flocs and PA

ISLAMIC BANKING RODUCTS AWARENESS AMONG ISLAMIC BANKS’ CUSTOMERS IN NORTHEN NIGERIA

This paper analysed the level of customers’ awareness about unique Islamic banking products in Nigeria. The data used for the study was obtained through the distribution of well-structured questionnaires among the Islamic banking customers in which out of 400 sampled respondents, 370 questionnaires were properly filled and returned (that is, a 92.5% response rate) for further analysis. Also, to ensure proper data triangulation in this research, a semi-structured interview was conducted among the Jaiz Bank officials. Using descriptive statistics, the result indicated more than 50% of the customers were not aware of such unique products, though the level of this awareness differs from one product to another as some customers have had practical experience with some of these products like in case of murabahah and ijara. Therefore, the study recommends that, improving information dissemination about Islamic banking products will go a long way in enhancing the consumers’ perception and adoption of this unique system of banking, which will eventually make more individuals to be financially included due to the spiritual, economic and ethical considerations of Islamic financial system

Proposed Competency Model for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Lecturers Teaching in Technical Colleges, Bauchi State in Perspective

Countless issues have been taking place in tertiary institutions including technical colleges of Bauchi State, which give rise to the need for continuous learning and updating competencies of lecturers teaching in technical colleges of all ages. The purpose of this paper is to propose the competency model of TVET lecturers by investigating the competency needs in technical colleges of Bauchi State. Primary data were collected using questionnaires to reveal the perceptions of thirty TVET lecturers based on their competency needs in three categories of technical colleges in Bauchi State. The result shows that the TVET lecturers perceived all the twenty-five competencies as important and the findings also show the accepted Cronbach’s Alpha. The paper concerns on only TVET lecturers perceptions on competency needs in their respective colleges. The paper provides an important pilot analysis on proposed competency model of TVET lecturers to enable further analysis in the area to be carried out

Proposed competency model for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) lecturers teaching in technical colleges, Bauchi State in perspective

Countless issues have been taking place in tertiary institutions including technical colleges of Bauchi State, which give rise to the need for continuous learning and updating competencies of lecturers teaching in technical colleges of all ages. The purpose of this paper is to propose the competency model of TVET lecturers by investigating the competency needs in technical colleges of Bauchi State. Primary data were collected using questionnaires to reveal the perceptions of thirty TVET lecturers based on their competency needs in three categories of technical colleges in Bauchi State. The result shows that the TVET lecturers perceived all the twenty-five competencies as important and the findings also show the accepted Cronbach’s Alpha. The paper concerns on only TVET lecturers perceptions on competency needs in their respective colleges. The paper provides an important pilot analysis on proposed competency model of TVET lecturers to enable further analysis in the area to be carried out

Proposed competency framework for Malaysian Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Teachers

Many issues have been taking place in the academia including Malaysian TVET institutions, which give rise to the need for continuous learning and updating competencies of TVET teachers across all ages. The purpose of this paper is to propose the competency Framework of TVET teachers by investigating the competency needs in Malaysian institutions. Primary data were collected using questionnaires to reveal the perceptions of thirty TVET teachers based on their competency needs. The result shows that the TVET teachers perceived all the twenty five competencies as important and the findings also shows the accepted Cronbach’s Alpha. The paper concerns on only TVET teachers perceptions on competency needs in their institutions. The paper provides an important pilot analysis on proposed competency framework of TVET teachers to enable further analysis in the area to be carried out