Entrepreneurial Skills and Students’ Interest in Home Economics in Uyo Educational Zone of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

The study sought to investigate the influence of selected entrepreneurial skills (technical, handiwork and teamwork) on students’ interest in Home Economics in Uyo Educational Zone of Akwa Ibom State. Three objectives and three hypotheses were formulated to give direction to the study. The study was conducted in Uyo Educational Zone. A survey research design was adopted for the study. The population for the study consisted of 1,958 Junior Secondary School II students in public schools in the study area offering Home Economics. A sample size of 200 respondents (10% of the population) was used for the study. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire tagged Entrepreneurial Skills and Students’ Interest in Home Economics Questionnaire (ESSIHEQ). The questionnaire had two sections and 25 and was face validated by three experts. A reliability coefficient of 0.75 justified the instrument fit to be used in the study. Data obtained was analysed using t-test statistical analysis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that there was significant difference in technical, handiwork and team work skills and students’ interest in Home Economics in Uyo Educational zone of Akwa Ibom State. Thus all the null hypotheses were rejected and the alternate ones were accepted. Based on the findings, the researchers recommend amongst others, the training programmes should be organized for Home Economics teachers by the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEP) to equip them with the necessary entrepreneurial skills that can promote students’ interest in the subject.