ROLE OF TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN PROMOTING ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

The  impact  of  globalization  on  the  education  system  is  overwhelming as  it has  greatly  affected  not  only  the  curriculum  of  but  also  the  instructional process  including  the  entire  system . This  study  examines   how  to  optimize the   teaching  of  entrepreneurship  education  in  tertiary institutions  in  Nigeria within  the  context  of  the  globalised  competitiveness.  The  youths  of  today must  brace  up  for  the  challenges  of  adult  life . in order  to  function  effectively and  productively  in  a working  place,  the  acquisition  of  certain  basic  skills and capacities  is  needed . This  study  emphasizes  the  need  for  strengthening  of entrepreneurship  teaching  so  that  the  society  can  benefit  from  it  Entrepreneurship  training  is  necessary  in  order  to  develop expertise  as  an entrepreneur,  identify  business  opportunities  and  exploit . Some  researchers recommended  that  entrepreneurship  education   is  expected  to  start  from  the secondary  school or  before , to  enable  the  young ones  understand  the economics  of  life,  survival,  contribution  to  socio-economic   development  of their  immediate  environment   and  beyond .   According to section 8 (58) FRN (2004), tertiary education is the education given after secondary education either in universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, monotechnics including those institutions offering correspondence courses. One of the goals of such education is to acquire both physical and intellectual skills which will enable individuals to be self –reliant and useful members of the society.

Article 64(c) of the same section indicates that universities education shall contribute to making all students to acquire both physical and intellectual skills which will enable individuals to be self-reliant and useful members of the society. Our world is fast changing, interdependent and certainly amongst the most interesting in human history (Enu 2010). It is indeed an era of greater challenges. These challenges bring possibilities for those responsible for educating subsequent generations. On the strength of this, Greig, pike and Sely (1991) asked the following questions:

How would schools go about in the task of preparing young people for more informed and effective participation in world society?

How can teachers best help develop global understanding in the face of this existing yet daunting prospect of adult life in the 21 century? What kind of skills, capacities and  insights students need to make use of, cope with and handle an accelerating rate of change in this growing world?.

A synthesis of the above questions constitutes a rich content scope of entrepreneurship Education. In a report of the Global Education Initiative (2009) on educating the next wave of entrepreneurs and unlocking Entrepreneurial capabilities to meet the challenges of the 21st century, an aspect of the report states thus.

Preparing today’s students for success and eventual leadership in the new global market place is the most important responsibility in education today. Entrepreneurship education is an important tool to achieving these objectives and should be universally available to provide and fulfill their potentials.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      BACKGROUND OF STUDY

The concept of entrepreneurship as an organised knowledge came into being about a hundred years ago (MURTHY 1989). Entrepreneurship has been emphasized in many countries as a way of boosting economic growth and job opportunities. As entrepreneurship is becoming popular around the world, its education should be customised according to each country’s cultural context. Entrepreneurship has long been considered a significant factor for socio-economic growth and development due to the fact that it provides job opportunities, offers varieties of consumer goods and services and generally increases national prosperity and competitiveness in the country. In recent years, a wave of interest in entrepreneurship has touched almost every country in the world because of increasing global competition based on agility, creativity and innovation. The increased interest in entrepreneurship can also be attributed to the changing structure of the western economy, the trend to downsize large companies, changing business patterns, and developing market economies in eastern Europe and china. 

Entrepreneurship is now widely accepted as a field of study as it now provides students with motivation, knowledge and skills, which are essential in launching a successful company. However the extent of entrepreneurship education and training in each country is different depending on its unique cultural context and it has been noted that the prevailing culture within an economy or country can impact the level or rate of acceptance of entrepreneurship. Therefore while other entrepreneurship programmes across different countries may have a common focus in terms of new business and creations and also the development of a business plan; there may be differences in emphasis depending upon the particular need of the participants, the country or the resources available.