Assessment of the New Trade/Entrepreneurship Education in Senior Secondary Schools: Evidence from Rural and Urban Areas of Oyo State, Nigeria

The paper examines the recent entrepreneurship education in senior secondary schools in Oyo State, Nigeria. This is to ascertain the level of compliance with the curriculum’s contents, teachers’ competence and the extent to which it has empowered students for self-employment. The study builds on primary data collected in 2014 from the respondents. The samples were made up of 17 schools, 37 teachers and 317 students from rural areas, while there were 44 schools, 114 teachers and 913 students from the urban areas. These were drawn across the three senatorial districts of the state. The study utilized both quantitative and qualitative techniques in data collection and analysis with questionnaires and observation as main instruments of collection. Data were collected on schools’, teachers’ and students’ characteristics and were analyzed through the use of descriptive statistics. The analysis reveals that only about 10% (11.8 rural and 9.1 urban) of sampled schools commenced the programme in 2011, while more than 70% selected between only one and two trade subjects for their students. The average age of teachers in the rural communities was 38 years while it stood at 39 years for their urban counterparts. While 76% of the teachers in the rural areas are degree holders, only 68% of those in the urban centres possess the minimum teaching requirement in secondary schools. Rural students were exposed to 10, while urban students were exposed to 11 out of the 34 entrepreneurial subjects. Students had learnt significant self-employable entrepreneurial skills in two subjects out of 10 in rural areas and six out of 11 selected subjects in urban areas. The study recommends adequate circulation of the curriculum, provision of equipment and relevant facilities, training and re-training of teachers and adequate funding among others.