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The Perception of Students Towards Entrepreneurship
The Perception of Students Towards Entrepreneurship
Abstarct
The teaching of entrepreneurship in polytechnics can give students the basic skills,
knowledge and attitude to start their own businesses after graduation. This study investigates
the Nigerian students perception and their inclinations towards entrepreneurship courses in
the Nigerian polytechnics. The main focus of the paper is to analyse and evaluate the
relationship between entrepreneurship education and Nigerian polytechnics students
perception towards the entrepreneurship education courses. The introduction of
entrepreneurship education as compulsory course in the Nigerian polytechnics is seen as a
strong measure to address the problem of polytechnics graduate unemployment and
encourage new start-up. A descriptive study was conducted in three Nigerian polytechnics. A
total of 700 questionnaires were administered and 370 were returned. The questionnaires
were designed to analyse students perception and inclinations. Based on the data collected
and analysed, it was discovered that two variables were found to have significant relationship
with entrepreneurship education. However, it was also gathered from the study that there are
various challenges facing entrepreneurship like inadequate funding, very few trained
entrepreneurship lecturers and lack of enabling environment as some of the reasons for low
entrepreneurial activities in our institutions. The paper concludes by making
recommendations on how to improve entrepreneurship education courses in order to achieve
the desired objectives of the programs.
Keywords: Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship education, student, skills, knowledge, attitude.
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Introduction
Literature Review
Entrepreneurship
Throughout the theoretical history of entrepreneurship, scholars and researchers from
multiple disciplines such as anthropology, Economics, Management and sociology
(Reynolds, 1991) have grappled with a diverse set of interpretations and definitions to
conceptualize this abstract idea. A further search of the literature also reveals that researchers
have been inconsistent in their definition of entrepreneurship. There are a minimum of a
hundred definitions to explain the concept of entrepreneur and entrepreneurship. Their
meanings depend on when they were devised and on the society in which the various
researchers developed them (Di-Masi, 1999).
In the last century, many writers as cited in Burnet, (2000) have identified
entrepreneurship with the function of uncertainty and risk bearing and others with the
coordination of productive resources, the introduction of innovation and the provision of
technical know-how. The early 18th century French economist Richard C. (1755) introduced
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the term entrepreneurship. In his writings, he formally defines the entrepreneur as the agent
who buys means of production at certain prices in order to combine them into a new product.
He further defines entrepreneurship as self-employment of any sort where the entrepreneur is
the bearer of uncertainty and risk. Shortly thereafter, the French economist Jean B. S, (1824)
also defined the entrepreneur as someone who shifts economic resources out of an area of
lower to an area of higher productivity and greater yield Adegbite et al, (2007).
Shane (2003) described entrepreneurship as the act of being an entrepreneur. The
word entrepreneur which is a French word means one who undertakes innovations, finance
and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations in economic goods. He continued
that the result of entrepreneurship may be a new organization or a part of revitalizing mature
organization in response to a perceived opportunity. The most obvious form of
entrepreneurship to him is that of starting a new business. However, in recent years the term
has been extended to cover such areas as socio-cultural, political, and educational forms of
entrepreneurial activity. As a result when large companies venture into entrepreneurial
activities within the organization, it is described as intrapreneurship or corporate spin-
off.
In todays world, anybody, industry or business leader with innovative and creative
business abilities is described as an entrepreneur or someone who engages in
entrepreneurship (Okala, 2008). While the entrepreneur is the person venturing into the
business of organizing and managing, entrepreneurship is the service rendered by the
entrepreneur (Akanwa and Agu, 2005).
Entrepreneurship Education
Entrepreneurship education is a recent trend in new course development as against the
traditional courses that have gained formal recognition in higher-level institutions.
Entrepreneurship courses are now finding their ways into formal education as subjects or full
degree courses in the tertiary level. Unlike traditional business courses, which have
developed and evolved over many decades in universities all over the world in conjunction
with active practicing business operations, formal entrepreneurship teaching in the tertiary
level is a relatively young course Gatchalian, M.L, (2010). She was also of the view that
Entrepreneurship education is, by nature, highly experiential and interactive. Course
requirements are mostly output and result oriented, prototype development, hands-on training
and other practical applications that require mentoring and close monitoring of students
progress at each developmental stage.
Entrepreneurship Education seeks to provide student with the knowledge, skills and
motivation to encourage entrepreneurial studies in a variety of setting. The entrepreneurship
education is the type of education designed to change the orientation and attitude of the
recipients, and in the process will equip him with the skills and knowledge to enable him start
and manage a business enterprise. This type of education aims at developing the requisite
entrepreneurial skills, attitudes competences and dispositions that will predispose the
individual to be a driving force in managing a business (Agu, 2006).
The Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education (2008)states that entrepreneurship
education is not just about teaching someone to run a business, it is also about encouraging
creative thinking and promoting a strong sense of self-worth and empowerment. Through
entrepreneurship education, students learn how to create business, but they also learn a lot
more. The core knowledge created via entrepreneurship education includes the ability to
recognize opportunities in ones life, also the ability to pursue opportunities, by generating
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new ideas and found the needed recourses. It is the ability to create and operate a new firm,
and the ability to think in a creative and critical manner.
Garavan and OCinneide (1994) suggest a range of commonly cited objectives of
entrepreneurship education, which include the acquiring knowledge relevant to
entrepreneurship, skills in the use of techniques, in the analysis of business situations and in
the synthesis of action plans. It also identifies and stimulates entrepreneurial drive, talent and
skills, undoing the risk-adverse bias of many analytical techniques. The developing empathy
and support for the unique aspects of entrepreneurship, devising attitudes towards change,
encouraging new start-ups and entrepreneurial ventures; and stimulating the affective
socialisation element. They conclude that the multiplicity of objectives constitutes a
significant problem for programme design. Garavan & OCinneide (1994) opined that for
entrepreneurship education to be effective, it must contain both factual knowledge and
practical applications. This implies that some courses should aim at imparting theoretical
knowledge while others should aim at building practical skills.
As evident from various literatures, emphasis on entrepreneurship education began to
gain significance from early 1990s, led by institutions in European, Asian and African
countries. It suggested that entrepreneurial support systems be enhanced by university and
polytechnic based entrepreneurial education programs. Since then, education in
entrepreneurship has been expended to include the development of an entrepreneurial culture,
promote enterprise, create new ventures and foster entrepreneurial mindsets through
education and learning. This new paradigm has enabled the next generations to see things
from a different perspective. Rather than hunt for opportunities in the job markets, they create
a mindset to develop entrepreneurship capabilities and self-made wealth, (Fauziah, 2012).
Entrepreneurial Skills
Skill is thought of as a quality of performance which does not depend solely upon a persons
fundamental, innate capacities but must be developed through training, practice and
experience. Although skill depends essentially on learning, it also includes the concepts of
efficiency and economy in performance. Modern concepts of skill stress the flexibility with
which a skilled operator reaches a given end on different occasions according to precise
circumstances. However, it must be reiterated that even though basic human capacities are
not sufficient to produce skills, they form the necessary basis of their development. Skills
represent particular ways of using capacities in relation to environmental demands, with
human being and external situation together forming a functional system Adegbite et
al,(2007).
Gibb (1998) refers to entrepreneurial core skills as those capacities that constitute the
basic necessary and sufficient conditions for the pursuitof effective entrepreneurial behaviour
individually, organisationally and societal in an increasinglyturbulent and global
environment. Drawing from the literature on the characteristics on entrepreneurship, Gibb
(1998) argues that entrepreneurial skills that should be taught, include intuitive decision
making, creative problem solving, managing interdependency on a know-who basis, ability to
conclude deals, strategic thinking, project management, time management, persuasion,
selling, negotiation and motivating people by setting an example. These skills are based on
several underlying qualities, such as self-confidence, self awareness, a high level of
autonomy, an internal locus of control, a high level of empathy with stakeholders, especially
customers, a hard working disposition, a high achievement orientation, a high propensity to
take (moderate) risks and flexibility.
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Entrepreneurial Knowledge
According to kirzner, (1979) entrepreneurial knowledge is defined as a rarefied abstract type
of knowledge - the knowledge of where to obtain information (or other resources) and how to
deploy it. Acquired knowledge generates routines and decisional procedures. This shows
how enterprising individuals continuously develop their entrepreneurial knowledge
throughout their professional lives.
When learning is understood as a learners conscious knowledge formation process
which takes place in a certain cultural and social context, knowledge is considered to be an
object, which has certain characteristics enabling it to be used when internal cognitive models
are being built. These models are born as a consequence of learning. They distinguish two
different modes of producing knowledge. They make a distinction between academic
scientific knowledge and the knowledge born in situations originating from the need to solve
practical and application problems. The concepts of expert knowledge, know-how, tacit
knowledge and intuition are important in contexts relating to application. Professionalism
requires making tacit knowledge explicit and developing it further in a triadic interaction
process between students, teachers and working life, Kirby, (2002).
Entrepreneurial Attitude
In entrepreneurship context, attitude has been defined as the extent to which one
perceives entrepreneurial behaviour and its consequences as valuable, beneficial and
favourable (Azen,2002). Robinson, et al., (1991) identified four dimensions for
entrepreneurial attitude including need for achievement, personal control over behaviour,
innovation, and self-esteem. Need for achievement reflects the perceived results and
outcomes of new venture creation (Hansemark,1998). Personal control over entrepreneurship
behaviour is individuals perceived control and influence on venture creation outcomes.
Innovation is thinking of new ideas, products and methods and developing them to be
effective in practice. Finally, self-esteem indicates individuals perceived confidence in their
entrepreneurial competence. Each of the entrepreneurial attitude aspects is measured in three
dimensions including affection (feeling and emotion), cognition (thought and belief), and
conation (action and behaviour). It is the combination of all these dimensions that constructs
individuals general attitude toward entrepreneurial behaviour. Teachers should possess an
entrepreneurial attitude to improve students' entrepreneurial motivation and competencies
(Peltonen, 2008). Yet, research on entrepreneurial attitude has been mostly focused on
measuring students attitudes toward entrepreneurship (Harris and Gibson, 2008) and there is
little information about entrepreneurial attitudes of teachers.
Attitudes are habitual ways of reacting to situations. The term attitude is generally
reserved for an opinion which represents a persons overall inclination towards an object,
idea or institution. Attitudes can be positive, negative or neutral and also dormant & more
generalized. The attitude of the teacher toward teaching is an important variable. The primary
attribute of a good teacher is the ability to create a warm, friendly atmosphere in the
classroom. Teaching should be geared to the needs of the child. The teacher must have a
positive attitude toward teaching. He must have sympathetic attitudes toward children. The
teacher must try to locate the causes of antisocial behaviour and help the children to improve
their personality (Chouhan, 1984).
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Problem Statement
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education. However, despite its growth and importance, there is a lack of relevant studies in
this context. Moreover, there is a lack of tools which could enhance the development of
entrepreneurial skills and knowledge among the polytechnics students. The study will be
conducted to serve as a basis for the future development of entrepreneurship programmes in
our polytechnics.
Methodology
The study employed a descriptive study method in order to evaluate the effectiveness of
entrepreneurship education in some selected polytechnics in Nigeria. Three polytechnics
were selected based on random stratified sampling techniques. A total of 700 questionnaires
were administered to 3 institutions and 370 were successfully returned and 70 were declared
invalid. The questionnaire consisted of 36 items based on a five point Likert-Scale using
Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree. Both nominal and interval scales were used to measure
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the variables. The questionnaire has three parts namely the demographic section, the
perceived roles of polytechnics in promoting entrepreneurship programme section, and
students inclination towards entrepreneurship courses section.
The validity of the questionnaire was also verified based on some experts opinion
and its reliability was confirmed by Cronbachs Alpha. The group Cronbachs Alpha is
0.84.
This paper has discussed and evaluated the Entrepreneurship Education offered at the
polytechnic level in Nigeria. It also ventured into getting the perceptions of undergraduate
students on their involvement in entrepreneurship programmes in their respective
schools.Based on the findings of this study, the majority of the respondents are male (244)
which represents 81.3% and only 55 or 18.3% of the students are female. In addition, about
75% 0f the respondents are between the ages of 18 to25 years old.
Table 1 below shows that five departments were selected and special focus was given
to final year students of the selected polytechnics. The total number of the students in the five
departments is 1062. The public administration has the highest number of registered students.
The perception of the final year students towards entrepreneurship programmes and their
willingness to take entrepreneurship as an attractive career option are taken into
consideration. The choice of the final year students was due to the fact that the entire
respondents were exposed to at least two entrepreneurship courses. The departments were
selected based on Random Stratified Sampling.
Table 1
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Table 4 summarises the students views on entrepreneurship courses in the three selected
polytechnics. The findings shows that 134 (45.6%) of the students strongly disagreed that
entrepreneurship courses contents should have more practical time. About 46.6% of the
students disagreed. They were of the view that entrepreneurship should contain more
theoretical courses. However, only 2% of the students were of the view that the
entrepreneurial courses should contain more practical courses.
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Table 6 clearly shows the summaries of the useful suggestions made by the respondents on
how to move entrepreneurship programmes forward in our polytechnics. The greater bulk of
the students suggested there should be adequate funding for entrepreneurship programmes as
a possible measure that can improve students interest and zeal in schools entrepreneurial
activities. Practical lessons and field trips are also among some of the important
recommendation made by the students. The polytechnic management should endeavour to
provide such services. About 32 students suggested better training for both staff and students.
Conclusion
Entrepreneurship brings economic growth, innovations and creates new jobs. Hence in recent
years, the interest toward entrepreneurship has been increased as an important alternative to
professional occupation, especially for the graduates of tertiary education, (Ismail, 2009). The
entrepreneurship programmes in this study are not well implemented and students do not
received adequate attention from the polytechnics leadership. Those areas that received very
low ratings from the respondents need to improve. The study revealed that the polytechnics
students in the three polytechnics have very little awareness about the importance of
entrepreneurship as an attractive career option. Their inclinations towards entrepreneurship
courses are not encouraging. Entrepreneurship courses are compulsory to all public
polytechnics in Nigeria. Despite this attempt by the stake holders to make entrepreneurship
courses attractive to students, their interest still remain very low with a very large number of
the respondents willing to accept jobs from the government. Fauziah, (2012) attributed the
reasons for low students inclination towards entrepreneurship courses to the fact that they do
not have a matching skills. Most of the students do not possessed the necessary skills to start
their own businesses. The students are too theoretical rather than practical.
However, despite several government policies towards promoting entrepreneurship in
Nigeria, the study further revealed that the polytechnics are not doing enough to raise student
interest towards entrepreneurship. The polytechnics are not proving enough funds,
infrastructures, and training for both students and lecturers of entrepreneurship.
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Recommendations
o The Polytechnics top management must play their constitutional role by providing
adequate funding and an enabling environment through the provision of social and
economic infrastructures capable of promoting entrepreneurial programmes.
o In designing any future curriculum for entrepreneurship courses, greater attention
must be paid to the labour market prospect. Efforts must be intensified to produce
relevant graduates with relevant skills and knowledge.
o There is also the need to device new modern teaching techniques in order to improve
students competencies for example through problem based learning, industrial
attachment and training for entrepreneurship students.
o It also become imperative to correct the current teaching methodologies and the most
relevant learning process must be intensified to ensure the success of entrepreneurship
programmes as possible solution to graduates unemployment.
o Finally, efforts must be made to ensure that all entrepreneurship lecturers are properly
trained and well-motivated because the entire success of the programme will depend
on their inputs.
o The polytechnics management as a matter of priority must fully understand the
entrepreneurship programme objectives and give full support to ensure they are
attained.
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