MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS AND VOCATIONAL PREFERENCES OF SECONDARY SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS IN ONITSHA EDUCATIONAL ZONE OF ANAMBRA STATE

ABSTRACT

This study sought to examine the motivational factors and vocational preference of secondary school adolescents. Four research questions and two null hypotheses were generated to guide the study. The design of the study was a descriptive survey design. The sample consisted of 349 Senior Secondary School (SSS) III students in the secondary school in Onitsha Education Zone of Anambra State. The instrument used for the study was vocational interest and motivational factor questionnaire (VIMFQ). Means, standard deviation, chi-square test were used to analyze the data. Major findings of the study showed that there was a significant difference between male and female students who showed preferences to various vocational areas; there was a significant difference between urban and rural students who showed preferences to various vocational areas; the male and female students are motivated by external influences to a low extent, rewards/benefits, self expression values and people oriented motivated them in their choice of a vocation to a great extent, the urban students are motivated by external influence to a low extent while rural students are influenced to a great extent; rewards/benefits, self-expression values and people oriented values motivated both urban and rural students to a great extent. Based on these findings, conclusions were drawn and the educational implications were extensively discussed.  Among the recommendations made were that more professional guidance counsellors should be posted to schools to perform functions like providing students with vocational information, helping students to identify their interest, capabilities and abilities in relation to their vocational choices. counsellors should guide the students in selection of school subjects which are related to their area of aspiration than allowing non-professionals to remain in that Post. Teachers should emphasis during their lesson, the career implications of subjects so that students will see how individual subjects relate to existing careers thus increasing their knowledge of occupations.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

In a developing country like Nigeria which is at the verge of changing from a traditionally agricultural country to an industrial one, the choice of a vocation is a complex task. The longer years of apprenticeship to the family trade such as weaving, carving and fishing are being replaced by years of formal education in primary and secondary school with resultant effect that the children may not take up their parents’ trade.

Vocation is an activity, trade or occupation and others constituting a life style expressed in time, energy and activity (Oladele, 2002). It simply refers to a type work or way of life that an individual believes he or she is specially suited for. Vocation can be said to reflect one’s calling to a particular business or profession. It is an occupation to which an individual’s life is committed to and has inherent liking and feeling for the work (Eze, 2010). For the purpose of this study vocation is a profession, occupation, employment by which one earns his living especially one for which he has a period of training in an institution or through apprenticeship.

Occupation was classified into different categories. Classification of occupation is very important to every nation especially a developing nation like Nigeria (Omeje, 2007). He added that people need to have the knowledge and information on national manpower resources, requirements, analysis, trends in employment and unemployment. The occupational category according to Ochiagha (1995) include the following areas, professional occupations (medicine, law, clergy, teaching, counselling, psychology, pharmacy, nursing, engineering), managerial occupation (heads of state, state governors, federal ministers, directors, managers, proprietors) business occupations (accounting, insurance, salesmanship, banking marketing) clerical occupations (cashiers, typists, book keepers, tax collectors, receptionists) agricultural occupations (farmers, farm managers, agricultural extension officers, palm wine tapers and palm harvesters) technological occupations (agriculture and food technicians, engineering and science technicians, air plane technicians) skilled/semiskilled occupations (photography, plumbing works, printing, hair dressing/barking, computer operator).  Apprenticeship occupations (welders, electricians, cabinet makers, vulcanizers, fashion designers, goldsmiths) service occupations (waiters/waitresses, cooks in hotels, security men, firemen, army, naval force, police force, air force) unskilled labourers (farm labourers, cleaners. The choice of a vocation therefore is one of the most important decisions one makes in life.

The issue of vocational preference has attracted the interest of many individuals and government. Vocational preference or choice is a developmental process and spans almost through person’s life time (Ohiwerei and Nwosu, 2009). The choice determines satisfaction one expects to get from his work and the opportunities he has for promotion and advancement. Individual social status, income, life style, choice of friends, mental and physical health is influenced by the type of work he or she does. In other words a person’s vocational choice or preference plays an important role in his entire life. It has been observed by (Kemjika, 1995) that most student have insufficient information about different jobs, courses of study and other activities. They are thus unable to judge whether their choices are reasonable. Without detailed and adequate information about occupations, students many jump blindly into jobs to become frustrated and unhappy later in life and perhaps at such times when a retreat would no longer be easy or possible (Omeje, 2007).

There are so many sources from which individuals could get vocational information. They could be sourced from staff or ministries, government organization at various level of government, journals, bulletins, through radio, television and other media source. The locations of the school in urban or rural areas have influence on vocational preferences of individuals. Schools in the rural areas has limited source of information. The level of exposure of students in the urban area is higher and more in number than that of students in the rural area, therefore, the experience they gather in their different areas or societies will influence their vocational interest especially after secondary education (Kemjika, 1995).

The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN, 2004:18) documented in her National Policy on Education that secondary education is the education children receive after primary school and before the tertiary stage. The broad goals of secondary education shall be to prepare the individual for

• Useful living within the society and
• Higher education

In Nigeria and beyond, boys and girls choose their vocation when they are in secondary school. This is mostly in the adolescence stage of their development. The adolescence period is characterized by both physiological and psychological changes in the body. It begins when an individual attains sexual maturity and stops when independence from adult authority is legally assured.

Adolescence is a period of life during which the growing individual makes a transition from childhood to adulthood (Izundu, 1991). The length of this period varies with differing culture. In Nigeria, this stage could be taken to cover ten (10) to nineteen (19) years of age. Adolescence is the period in which individuals identify with some significant others in his environment. Adolescents have a number of desires like the desire of economic independence, selecting and preparation for an occupation and developing intellectual skills and concepts necessary for good living (Shertzer and Stone, 1981). The attainment of physical maturity by the adolescent and his increasing self-consciousness are likely to result in his given more thought to his future roles and status in the community. He is therefore likely at this stage to exhibit greater awareness of his desires and aspiration for the future most especially in area of vocational preference.

Choosing a vocation is not an immediate event but is arrived at through a series of development process of interest (Sokan, 1996). Interest plays a very prominent role in vocational preference and competencies. Definitely, we select a job because we are motivated by the interest we have in such a job. Motivation according to (Okonkwo, 1998) is defined as a psycho-physiological or internal process, initiated by some need, which leads to an activity to satisfy that need. Motivation sustains one’s interest and rest in the pursuance of set goals. It stimulates students to pursue desired career. Okonkwo further stated that there are two categories of motivation intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motives are those that arise from with the individual. Action elicited by ulterior purpose. Extrinsic motive arise from source outside the individual. Action elicited by obvious external factor. Motivational factors include both intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influence the vocational preference of the secondary school adolescents.

There are many motivational factors that influence vocational preference of secondary school adolescents, among them are intellectual abilities, attitudes, family, schooling, personality, sex differences, interest (Nwamuo, 2001). Furthermore, Kemjika (1995) observed that in Nigeria a large proportion of students make unrealistic vocational preferences and appear to fail in their jobs fields after school, since knowledge of their individual characteristics like interest, aptitude, intellectual ability and values were not considered before vocational choice was made.

Motivational factors affecting vocational preference was classified into four broad categories by Bakare in Kemjika (1995). Bakare in his “motivation” for occupation preference scale (MOPS), classified motivations or factors and choice into four broad categories namely, external influence, extrinsic reward-oriented values, self expression values and people oriented values. According to him, external influence refers to the source of motivation which are external to the individual such as that of significant persons, mass media, socio-economic background, school, cultural background, whereas, extrinsic reward-oriented values deals with reasons associated with economic or material benefits (Prestige and working conditions) also, self-expression values consist of reasons connected with individuals desire to express one’s special skills or aptitudes and creative potentialities. People oriented values deals with reasons associated with the opportunities which they preferred occupation offers for social, interpersonal relations and interactions. He further stated that what could motivate students vocational preference are, what would satisfy basic psychological needs, what an individual hopes to derive from the vocation and what he holds very dear.

The consequences of wrong vocational choice were summarized as adverse effect on physical health, bad life-style, job insecurity and vocational maladjustment (Gesinde, 1986). These views provide suitable guidelines for this study which intends to find out the vocational preferences of the secondary school adolescents and what motivates them to make these choices.

Statement of the Problem

The current mass unemployment in Nigeria is threatening the career preference of school leavers. Secondary school students are expected to choose their careers in the senior secondary school. More often than not they rush to their parents for guidance as to which subject and career to choose. In some other cases, they resort to careers that they heard of even when they do not have the potentials for such careers. This seems to be the case in secondary schools in Onitsha Education Zone. In these schools, it is not clear what motivates the students in their preferred vocations. This is the problem which this study seeks to investigate.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of the study is to investigate the vocational preferences of secondary school adolescents and the motivating factors behind their interests. Specifically, the study seeks to:

1. Identify the proportion of the male and female students who show preference for various vocational areas.
2. Identify the proportion of the students in the urban and rural areas who show preferences for various vocational areas.
3. Identify motivational factors that influence vocational preference of the male and female students
4. Identify motivational factors that influence vocational preference of the students in the urban and rural areas.

Significance of the Study

The findings of the study will be useful to students, teachers, parents, government and guidance counselors.

Theoretically, vocational theorists like Ginzburg, Axelrade and Herma (1951) and Super (1953) believed that occupational choices take place at different points in an individual’s life and is a continuous process which starts at childhood and ends in early adulthood. These periods are characterized with series of compromise which the individual makes between his wishes and potentials. They posit that one’s vocational choice is influenced by factors such as environmental pressures, educational attainments, emotional responses and value attachments to vocations. The theorist, demands an individual to make a rational choice of occupation by choosing an occupation which fits with his image and abilities. Therefore, since students are influenced by the motivational factors in their choice of a vocation the findings of the study when implemented will significantly help them to make a wise vocational choice.

This study will specifically be of importance to students in making adequate choice of a life career. The knowledge of motivational factors that influence their vocational preference provides awareness about fringe benefits, advancement/improvement opportunities which the adolescents required for effective and realistic career decision.

Findings of this study will help the teachers create class projects that require students to research a selected occupation and apply the course content to that particular occupation. This will enable the teachers to sort and place students according to their subject inclinations and occupational class. This will provide better orientation, facilitate learning and growth, and enhance career decision than multiple interest groups.

Moreover, the findings of this study will be of immense benefit to parents. It will help to guide and counsel parents on matters relating to the choice of vocation for their children and wards.

Making a good choice of vocation is a major concern of the government since the aim of education is to help the individual develop his intellectual, occupational and vocational competencies. The finding of this study will help the government during the planning of secondary school curriculum to consider the needs of the students and the socio-economic needs of the society.

The findings of the study will help the guidance counsellor in the process of imparting suitable vocational guidance. The knowledge of motivational factors that influence vocational preference of secondary school adolescents will help the counselor to provide students with vocational information and thus help students to obtain information about themselves, their particular abilities, aptitudes and interest and identify vocations for which they are best suited.

Scope of the Study

This study was delimited to the vocational preferences of secondary school adolescents and the factors that motivated their interest. There are motivational factors which can influence students vocational interest. Such factors include external factors, (family, socio-economic background, school, urban and rural influence. Religious orientation, cultural background), rewards/benefits derivable from the job (Prestige and working conditions) self expression/people oriented values (gender, interest, intellectual ability, personality, aptitudes, values, self concept). The study will use only the following vocational areas professional, managerial, agricultural, technological, business, clerical, skilled and semiskilled, apprenticeship, service and unskilled labourers. There are six education zones in Anambra state but this study will be limited to Onitsha education zone

Research Questions 

The following research questions were answered to meet the objectives of the study.

• What proportion of male and female students showed preference for various vocational areas?
• What proportion of the students in urban and rural areas showed preference for various vocational areas?
• To what extent are male and female students influenced by motivational factors in their choice of a vocation?
• To what extent are urban and rural students influenced by motivational factors in their choice of a vocational?

Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 levels of significance.

1. There is no significant difference between male and female students who showed preference for each of the various vocational areas.
2. There is no significant difference between students in urban and rural areas who showed preference for various vocational areas.

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