ENTREPRENEUR
COMPETENCY REQUIRED BY BUSINESS EDUCATION STUDENT IN ESTABLISHING SMALE SCALE
VENTURES IN AKWA IBOM STATE
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Entrepreneurship is now seen as an important
component within contemporary economic development of a nation. Its critical
role to the economy of nations is now widely acknowledged within the
literature. Experts in the field were of the opinion that entrepreneurship is
regarded as a catalyst for economic growth, employment and wealth creation,
Henry, et al (2003). Furthermore, the European Commission (2003) shared the
same view and in addition suggests that entrepreneurship is a major driver of
innovation, competitiveness and economic strength of a modern nation. They
further emphasize the important role which business education has in the
development of entrepreneurial mindsets and talents especially in enhancing
entrepreneur competency.
Business education is a widely given high scores on
the agenda of many governments. Such governments depend on the development of
entrepreneurship through business education as the major source for their
economic prosperity, growth and development. It is a kind of new concept which
signifies not only quality education but also pay attention to the development
of an individual practical ability and competency of students. It is also
described as a new method of teaching that promotes students innovative spirit,
skills and attitudes which consequently make them after graduation to suitable
career and become professional business creator, European Commission, (2003)
concluded.
This growth in business education in enhancing
entrepreneur competency is reflected internationally. For example the European
Commission (2008a) observes that almost half of Europe’s students at tertiary
institutions have full access to business education to enhance their innovative
competencies in establishing small venture after graduation. In a related
development, Khan and Almoharby, (2007) highlight the rapid development of the
course in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. The European Commission
(2004a), for example, posits that entrepreneurship is one of the key components
to be included in current educational systems in order to prepare people for
successful participation in society. In fact, the contribution of business
education in promoting entrepreneurship to the world economy is well
recognized.
Certainly business education is considered as a
complex subject to study in the context of teaching and learning because it depends
on the individuals self regulated actions and characteristics that may not be
easy to influence. It is against this background that, there is still ongoing
debate whether we can teach students to become competent entrepreneur (Fiet, 2004).
However, there is now a consensus, in the literature at least, that business
education can be taught and the debate has now shifted to what should be taught
and how it should be taught (Ismail, 2011).
It is now generally agreed that most of researches
conducted on business education have focused on course contents, pedagogical
and audience characteristics. In this respect, the effectiveness of business
education can also be measured in terms of teachers‟ entrepreneurial
competencies. The development of business education however, is not as institutionalized
as the development of education for the traditional management courses.
Educators who hold master’s and
doctorate degrees in entrepreneurship are very rare all over the world. In
addition, the uniqueness of the students‟ needs
and the course requirements entails specific and special teaching skills to
match the two. One of the perceived tools to address and match these basic
education needs is to first conduct an analysis of entrepreneurial
competencies, Gatchalian, (2010).
A research conducted in Malaysia indicates that
teaching approaches appear to be inappropriate and educators do not appear to
have relevant skills, knowledge or training. There are so many shortcomings and
challenges which the entrepreneurship educators are facing (Ismail, 2010). The
aim of the study is to examine the entrepreneur competencies required by
business education students in establishing small scale ventures in Akwa Ibom
state.
.
1.2 STATEMENT
OF THE PROBLEM
For many developing countries, development of
entrepreneurial competencies has been a powerful engine of economic growth and
wealth creation, and is crucial for improving the quality, number and variety
of employment opportunities for the poor. It has several multiplier effects on
the economy, spurs innovation, and fosters investment in people, which is a
better source of competitive advantage than other natural resources, which can
be depleted. Entrepreneurial competencies in business education students will
enable them to create new enterprises, new commercial activities, and new
economic sectors. They generate jobs for others; they produce goods and
services for society; they introduce new technologies and improve or lower cost
outputs; and they earn foreign exchange through export expansion or
substitution of imports.
According to (Abdullahi, 2008) for countries to
accelerate their economic growth and development, it is necessary for them to
build up critical mass of first generation entrepreneurs because development is
now being linked more and more to entrepreneurs. It stands as a vehicle to
improve the quality of life for individuals, families and to sustain a healthy
economy and environment. This can lead to economic development and the
advancement private enterprises.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The
following are the objectives of this study:
1. To
examine the entrepreneur competencies required by business education students
in establishing small scale ventures.
2. To
identify the factor limiting the development of entrepreneurial competencies in
business education.
3. To
determine the factor hindering the establishment of small scale ventures in
Akwa Ibom State.
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. What
are the entrepreneurial competencies required by business education students in
establishing small scale ventures?
2. What
are the factors limiting the development of entrepreneurial competencies in
business education?
3. What
are the factors hindering the establishment of small scale ventures in Akwa
Ibom State?
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The
following are the significance of this study:
1. Findings
from this study will educate the general public on the ability of business
education in equipping students with entrepreneurial competencies with a view
of drawing the interest of many youths towards studying business education to
be future entrepreneurs.
2. This
research will be a contribution to the body of literature in the area of the
effect of personality trait on student’s academic performance, thereby
constituting the empirical literature for future research in the subject area.
1.7 SCOPE/LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
This
study will cover the curriculum of business education with a view of
ascertaining if it is capable of developing entrepreneurial competency in
students.
LIMITATION OF STUDY
Financial constraint– Insufficient fund tends to impede the
efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature
or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire
and interview).
Time constraint– The researcher will
simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently
will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.
REFERENCES
European Commission, (2003a)
Green paper Entrepreneurship in Europe (Internal) Available from
http://ec.europa.eu/invest-inresearch/pdf/download.
European Commission (2003b)
Creating entrepreneurial Europe-The activities of European Union for small
Union for small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
http//www.ukie.gov.pl/HLP/files.nsf
European Commission. 2004. Making
Progress in Promoting Entrepreneurial Attitudes and Skills through Primary and
Secondary Education. Final report of the expert group“ Education for
Entrepreneurship”. Enterprise Directorate General of the European Commission.
Brussels, Belgium.
European Commission, (2008a)
Entrepreneurship in higher education, especially within non-business studies,
European Commission, Brussels.
Fiet J O, et al., (20004)
Systematic Search by repeat entrepreneurs. In J (Butler Research in
Entrepreneurship & Management). Greenwhich , CT: Information Age
Publication.
Ismail, M,Z (2010). Developing
Entrepreneurship Education: Empirical Findings from Malaysian Polytechnic.
(Doctoral Dissertation, the University of Hull United Kingdom.
Gatchalia, M.LB. (2010) The
International Journal of Research and Review. Volume5, Time Taylor
International
Henry. C., Hill. F and Lettch. C.
(2003) “Entrepreneurship Education and Training,”Ashgate Publishing Limited,
England.