Introduction internalizes and the acquisition of the appropriate skills for the subject [1, 2].
1. Introduction internalizes and the acquisition of the appropriate skills for the subject [1, 2].
Education is needed to increase the access of boys Students make important decisions that are strongly and girls to development. Interest for career and linked to their attitudes towards such activities. occupation values, abilities and many more differ According to Ajah, attitude is a way of thinking or of according to individuals, which can be attributable to feeling of a person which makes him or her to behave life’s career choice, success or failures. The attitude of or act in a particular way [3]. Experts on learning
a student towards a subject or course of study theory postulate that there is a strong correlation influences the amount of content materials he/she between students’ learning outcome and attitude.
Intensive research efforts on finding out the Corresponding author: Nathaniel Chika Ezebuiro, research
officer, research fields: agricultural extension and rural attitudes of students towards agriculture is very development. E-mail: [email protected].
Perception of Agricultural Science /Home Economics as a Career among Senior
Secondary School Students in Abia State, Nigeria
necessary considering the role it plays in nation various subjects, agricultural science inclusive. building, particularly in the development of the
1.1 The National Policy on Education in Relation to agricultural sector. The knowledge of the various
Agriculture Includes
agricultural disciplines by students are required for the growth and development of agricultural sub-sector;
Stimulate and sustain children’s interest in crop; livestock, fishery, agro forestry, processing and
agriculture.
utilization and so forth. It is believed that having the Enable students acquire basic skills in positive attitudes augmented by interest towards the
agriculture.
disciplines becomes paramount and necessary to Develop in students basic skills in agriculture. influence students’ enrolment and continuing as
Enable students integrate knowledge with skill in agriculturalist.
agriculture.
In the past, poor students enrolment into Expose student to opportunities in the field of agricultural professions have been blamed on poor
agriculture.
emolument to agricultural personnel and lack of Prepare student for occupation in agriculture. motivational incentives in accordance with the nature
These objectives are laudable but the academic of the profession among others, thus resulting to the
environments have a lot of influence—physical, profession’s unattractiveness to young minds [4]. It is
intellectual and social on students. axiomatic that Nigerian students are not exposed to
In the developed world such as USA, Denmark, the best practices of how to enhance agricultural
Germany, and Netherlands among others, the development. In many schools, teachers do not even
involvement of youths in agricultural production have access to current text books including through agricultural Programmes, especially the agricultural science. Bloom revealed that current
Young Farmers Club had contributed significantly to science text books including agricultural science text
their agricultural development [7]. The global rapidly books are not adequate in our secondary school.
changing climatic condition is a great threat to According to him, this renders teachers unable to
agriculture in Nigeria. At the same time, many of our guide the students properly [5].
farmers who grow bulk of food produced in the Recent studies show that the economic, education
country are now old, making it difficult to increase and income status of teachers are closely related to
food production, threatening food security and their academic and professional performances at
heightening the risk of famine. If the situation is not school. Socio-economic problems which affect addressed, food security in the country would reach a professional competence of teachers include poverty,
crisis point. There is confirmed gap between domestic disease, occupational experiences, interest and food supply and food demand in Nigeria. Ogundari remuneration of teachers. Also, academic and Ojo in their work observed that the rate of growth performances of students may be traced in terms of
of Nigerian food production has been very low; food preparation and quality of teachers, the adequacy of
production grows at the rate of 2.5% per annum in the curriculum, school facilities and supplies, climate,
recent years while food demand has been growing at location, students themselves, their inclination and
the rate of more than 3.5% per annum due to high rate backgrounds, willingness and so forth [6]. In these
of population growth of 2.83% [8]. schools, though they have similar authority, their set
The apparent disparity between the rate of food standards, rules and regulations go a long way to
production and demand for food in Nigeria has led to influence the student’s academic performance in
(1) a food demand supply gap, thus leading to a
Perception of Agricultural Science /Home Economics as a Career among Senior
Secondary School Students in Abia State, Nigeria
widening gap between domestic food supply and the country which wants to embark on any meaningful total food requirement, (2) an increased food agricultural and rural development projects. importation, and (3) high rate of increase in food
Youths have the task to taking the mantle of prices due to a growing food supply deficit despite
leadership in all spheres of life including agriculture food importation. The main solution to the problem is
and other economic activities after exit of the present getting young people involved in agriculture despite
generation from active life. They have to meet the the fact that many people portray agriculture as a life
challenge not by rioting, terrorism, youth restiveness, or penury [9]. The youths see agricultural practice as
kidnapping, hooliganism, indulging in cultism and so inferior, unfulfilling and very hard [10]. This calls for
forth, but by hard work, by building on the basic urgent need to change the negative view of agriculture
foundations of society and by cooperation. Through and encourage them to embrace the vocation.
their numbers and energy, young people could wield Technologies are viable only when they are used by
considerable power and make enormous contribution end-users. No matter how well a technology is
to nation building. With better education, training and packaged, if farmers will not have them for use, their
greater opportunities for productive employment, they development would have been in vain. According to
could contribute significantly to building national Burton [11] technology can be classified into two
food security. When properly trained, they could major categories.
become the hope and pride of the nation. (1) Material Technology: this is where knowledge
The trend of abandoning the practice of agriculture is embodied into a technological product such as tools,
to the hands of the aged would not do the nation any equipment, improved seeds and so forth. The linkage
good. The rate at which the productive youths migrate of these technologies to farmers generally involves the
from the rural setting to the urban areas is at the rate production, distribution and sale of seeds, implements,
of 3.5% per annum, food production increase rate is at agrochemicals and other inputs.
2.5% [14]. For this trend to be checkmated, the youths (2) Knowledge-based Technology: this includes the
must be put in confidence and be involved in technical knowledge, management, skills and other
agriculture.
processes that farmers need to successfully grow a The development and future of agriculture like crop or produce animal, fish and other products. This
other sectors of life depends on the youths who are the type of technology is usually taught through link between the future as well as a reservoir of labour vocational training programmes for rural young
in all productive activities. In most rural areas, this people or linked through publicly funded extension
sector is often overlooked and disregarded rather than system for adult farmers.
tapping the potentials in them. Incorporating youths in The term “Youth” according to World Health
agricultural production will facilitate capacity building Organization refers to 15-25 years age group. Perhaps
and empowering them to a favorable attitude and age is not a suitable measure of “Youth”. However,
future career in agriculture. Folade [15] pointed out what is common rather than age is that youths are
that preparing and mobilizing youths is potentially people who are largely dependent on their parents for
sustainable in the realization of rural and agricultural their livelihood [12]. UNO defined youths as people
development as well as poverty alleviation in Nigeria. within the age of 15-24 years. Josue [13] described the
Africa cannot solve its economic problem without it youths as a group still under-going training or looking
rising and educating more than 300 million young for first employment. The youths have been identified
people (youths) most of whom are in the rural as constituting the major resources base for any
communities. The youths constitute the crucial future
Perception of Agricultural Science /Home Economics as a Career among Senior
Secondary School Students in Abia State, Nigeria
labour force and along their parents, they actively Training and re-training of agricultural participate in land clearing, cultivation, planting,
science/home economics teachers. weeding, harvesting, storage, processing, utilization
Practical training and demonstration for the and marketing. The youths have apathy for agriculture
students.
because they see it as inferior, unfulfilling and very Formation of the students into Young Farmers hard based on the challenges that their participation in
Club.
agricultural activities are saddled with lack of access Organize excursion for the students and to land, lack of recognition for agriculture, agricultural science teachers. inconsistent policy implementation and non
Adopting a participatory approach involving the involvement of youths in developmental planning
research team, students and agricultural science [16-18].
teachers in the school, four root and tuber crops-based However, to ameliorate the problem of food
technologies were demonstrated at the school farm of insecurity, hunger, poverty, desertification among
about 0.5 ha and preparation which involved slashing, others which pose serious threats to development,
ploughing, harrowing and ridging was carried out with the desired result to attract more youths into
the services of the Institute’s tractor. Structured agricultural profession for the sector’s growth is yet to
questionnaire was used to elicit information from the hold substance. The situation tends to suggest that
109 Agricultural Science/Home Economics student of lack of improvement in students’ enrolment into
the final year class of the school (SS3). Some of the agricultural disciplines produces low manpower and
variables examined included reasons for choice of this affects the implementation of agricultural agriculture as a career, influence of AROC on choice programmes.
of agriculture as a career, students’ attitudes towards The study therefore assessed the influence of
agriculture in general, among others. students’ attitudes, enrolment and choice of