Abstract:
The study was carried out to determine the competency improvement needs of electrical/electronic lecturers of polytechnics in North Western Nigeria. The study adopted survey research design. The population for the study was 55 electrical/electronic lecturers in five state polytechnics and 67 electrical/electronic lecturers in four federal polytechnics in North Western States of Nigeria. The entire population was used for the study because of its manageable size. A structured questionnaire was developed and used for data collection. The questionnaire was face validated by three lecturers, from Department of Vocational Teacher Education, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Five research questions and null hypotheses were developed and formulated respectively to guide the study. Cronbach alpha method was used to determine the internal consistency of the instrument with a reliability coefficient of 0.82. Data collected were analyzed using the mean and improvement needed index to answer the research questions while t test statistic was used for testing the null hypotheses. It was found that electrical/electronic lecturers in polytechnics need improvement in twelve competencies of subject matter, eleven competencies in using teaching methods and techniques, twenty five competencies in using instructional materials and media, six competencies laboratory and classroom management and seven competencies in using evaluation techniques. There was no significant difference between the mean responses of lecturers in state and federal polytechnics on the competency improvement needs in subject matter, using teaching methods and techniques, instructional materials and media, laboratory and classroom management and in using evaluation techniques. It was recommended that workshop and seminars should be organized for lecturers of electrical/electronic technology in order to build their capacity in contents, use of teaching methods and techniques, use of instructional materials and media, laboratory and classroom management and use of evaluation techniques.
