ASSESSMENT OF BUSINESS EDUCATION UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE CURRICULUM FOR DECENT WORK EMPOWERMENT IN NIGERIA
Abstract
In the face of several maladjustments in the Nigerian labour market characterized by unemployment, forced labour, unsafe working environments, human trafficking, among others, the functionality of the educational curriculum needs to be ascertained to solve these problems. This study examined the extent business education undergraduate curriculum has empowered university students for decent work in South-West, Nigeria. The study answered three research questions and tested one hypothesis. Adopting descriptive survey design, 2,346 penultimate and final-year business education university undergraduates and 44 business education lecturers formed the population. Using Taro Yamane sample size statistical model, 727 undergraduates and 25 business education lecturers emerged as sample size. Questionnaire and focus group discussion schedule were the research instruments used for the study. An average index of 0.85 was determined for internal consistency of the research instruments using Cronbach Alpha correlation coefficient. Data were analysed using mean, standard deviation, and independent sampled t-test as appropriate at 0.05 level of significance. The findings showed that business education undergraduate curriculum contents and innovative instructional strategies used by lecturers were inadequate to fully empower students for decent work in South-West, Nigeria. It was recommended that the NUC BMAS business education undergraduate curriculum should be reviewed while students and lecturers should be constantly involved in collaborative innovative instructional activities with the industries for adequate empowerment for decent work for all in Nigeria.
Keywords: Business Education Curriculum, Decent Work, Empowerment, Instructional
Strategies, Sustainable Development Goals.
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