TVET Curricula and the World of Work:A study on the Employability of Manufacturing Technology Graduates from Colleges of Adama, Asela, Ambo and Bishoftu. (Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia).
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Date
2018-01
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system plays important role in providing highly skilled workforce to fulfill the needs of industries. Today TVET is expected to equip graduates not just with technical skills but also with employability skills, which are increasingly important in preparing them for employment and work advancement. To this end, an empirical research is necessary to identify effective TVET system that can successfully equip students with technical and employability skills that would enable them to fulfill the current work demands and professional expectations. The main objective of this research is to investigate the employability skills of manufacturing technology graduates and explores the factors that influence the transition of students to the world of work. This study used mixed research methods to collect and analyze data. The first part of this study used quantitative method. survey questionnaires was employed and both manufacturing technology graduates (N=300) and employers (N=60) responded to the questionnaires with regard to the employability of graduates. The second part of the study employed a qualitative method. Specifically, interviews of twelve teachers selected from the sample TVET institutions provided a data source for developing a deeper understanding about the employability of graduates. The integration of results from the quantitative and qualitative methods provided in-depth answers for the research questions. The findings revealed that various factors have been identified as the challenges for attaining quality TVET program in Oromia region. Some of these factors are; lack of required facilities, poor funding of TVET program, low capacity of some teachers, lack of adequate practical training, weak relationship between TVET institutions and industries. In addition, the study indicates personal characteristics, parent’s attributes and geographic location/ residence of the graduates (as proxies by location of training centers)influence the likelihood of getting jobs within a given period of time following graduation for TVET graduates in Oromia. Furthermore, the majority of the employers respondents agreed that manufacturing technology graduates have problems with the aspect of employability skills. This includes problem solving skills, adaptability skills, ICT skills (mean=2.53),reasoning skills (2.88),and written communication skills (mean=2.83).This finding reveals that graduates may have deficiencies in those skills that requires improvement. Finally, necessary recommendations have been given for enhancing employability skills of TVET graduates.
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TVET Curricula and the World of Work