AN ASSESSMENT OF ICT COMPETENCIES POSSESSED BY POLYTECHNIC OFFICE TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT LECTURERS

AN ASSESSMENT OF ICT COMPETENCIES POSSESSED BY POLYTECHNIC OFFICE TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT LECTURERS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   Background to the Study

Education is a dynamic instrument of change. Thus any fundamental change in the social, political, economic and intellectual outlook of any society has to be preceded by an educational revolution. From educational perspective, economic and social developments are increasingly driven by the advances and application of knowledge. Education in general, which polytechnic office technology and management programme is part, are fundamental to the construction of a knowledge economy and society in all nations.

The Nigerian education system has for some time now, been a source of concern to Nigerians and non-Nigerians alike. The high level of concern centres around the curriculum content and the inefficacy of the teaching mode being employed in their implementation. The transmission of knowledge, be it of facts, skills, attitudes, mindsets and behaviour is a function of the relevance of the curriculum content and the relevance of the method of teaching to the spelt-out objectives of education. Thus, the potentials of office technology and management programme in the polytechnic to achieve the goal of equipping students with relevant skills and competencies is vitiated by a number of significant variables which are curriculum and the mode(s) of its implementation, otherwise referred to as teaching or lecturing.

Polytechnic education both at federal and state levels prepares people through teaching and learning in order to acquire knowledge and skills for job performance in all works of life, (Isineyi, 2004). Polytechnics in Nigeria are therefore called upon to produce graduates who are adequately empowered to grapple with the daily demands of middle level manpower of the public and private enterprises.

Information and communication technology, especially application softwares (programs) such as word processing, spreadsheets, database management system, etc. have grown tremendously and have permeated all areas of life. Information communication technology may play a key role in effective responses by office technology and management programme to the challenges posed by changing global, local, and technology related forces. However, this requires the assessment and addressing of the ICT competencies possessed by office technology and management lecturers to integrate the information and communication technology with the office technology and management programme.

Assessment according to Oborah and Eze (2009) is the process of organizing test data into interpretable form on a number of factors with data obtained using a wide variety of instruments such as tests, questionnaire and observation. Achimugu, Oluwatolani and Ademiran (2010) stated that competency assessment identify the competency levels of workers based on the requirements specified ICT competencies of office technology and management lecturers could therefore be assessed based on ICT requirements as specified on NBTE curriculum for office technology and management programme. Lecturers especially those in office technology and management cannot understand reasons why most lecturers should limit ICT use in class. For them, use of ICT such as internet, plays a major role in enhancing their understanding and academic work. Effective and competent lecturers on the other hand can use ICT selectively and appropriately to enliven teaching process, to motivate students and to achieve positive attitudes to learning. As observed by Nwosu and Isu (2001), the use of ICT has also affected every aspect of business, transforming not only the way that business is conducted but also creating new challenges skills and competencies. As a result, Nigeria is undergoing various technological changes and office technology and management programme is not left out in contributing her quota to meet these changes. Office technology and management programme is a training programme that encourages the beneficiary to acquire skills that fit her/him to the world of work. It is the intellectual preparation of people for earning a living in a contemporary industrial and business environment. Thus, office technology and management is an education programme for the acquisition and development of skills and competencies, attitudes and attributes which are necessary for efficiency of the economic system.

Academic men and women with the knowledge of the field specialization and the moral character to function as OTM lecturers are recruited to teach and work in other to produce graduate for the country’s economy, especially in the ICT office. Nwosu (2000) identified method of recruitment to include internal and external recruitment.

Internal recruitment occurs when management looks to fill the vacancy from within its existing workforce and external recruitment is when the management looks for any suitable applicant outside the institution. Recruiting externally involves using such means as job centres, advertisement, recruitment agency, personal recommendation, etc. Internal recruitment is basically done through the use of