ABSTRACT
This
research work was carried out to investigate the effect of inadequate computers
in secretarial training in Isoko North Local Government Council and Delta State
Polytechnic, Ozoro.
In fact, the
availability of computers has a great positive effect on secretarial
training. Lack of it usually affects
them vehemently.
In line with
this, three research questions were constructed and structured questionnaire
administered, which were analyzed.
It was discovered
that inadequate computers exist in the Department and only five computers are
presently in use in the selected school together with manual typewriters and
few electric typewriters. Even the few
computers supplied were yet to be installed thereby making the students to
graduate without computer skill.
Low
performance of student secretaries was associated to inadequate computers and
would be better if provided with the needed equipment as they desire more
practical training to theoretically oriented training.
Lack of
funds was also noted as responsible for the lack of equipment and as such,
government assistance as well as external assistance and management assistance
are needed for the procurement of more computers. Students’ payment of equipment levy would
also be seen as a way of solving the problem.
TABLE OC CONTENTS
Title
page i
Approval
Page ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract v
Table of
contents vii
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study 1
1.2 Statement of Problem 5
1.3 Purpose of the Study 7
1.4. Significance of the Study 8
1.5 Research Questions 9
1.6 Limitations 10
1.7 Delimitation 11
1.8 Definition of Terms 11
CHAPTER TWO
2.1 Literature Review 16
2.2 The
effect of non availability of adequate
Computers on students’
performance 25
2.3 The
Relationship between the department of
Secretarial Studies,
tertiary institutions and
The government in ensuring
adequate provision
Of equipment in training
of students. 29
2.4 Summary
of related literature 30
CHAPTER THREE
Research Methodology
3.1 Design of the Study 33
3.2 Population of the Study 33
3.3 Instrument for Data collection 34
3.4 Method of data collection 34
3.5 Method of data analysis 35
CHAPTER FOUR
4.1 Analysis of Data 36
CHAPTER FIVE
Summary
of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendations
5.1 Summary of Findings 42
5.2 Conclusion 46
5.3 Recommendations 47
5.4 Areas of Further Research 48
Bibliography 49
Appendix
– Questionnaire 51
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The
importance and sensitive position of a secretary in an organization can never
be over-emphasized. In fact, the
availability of computers has a great positive effect on secretarial
training. Lack of it usually affects
them vehemently.
They play
major roles in both private and government establishments. Most of these secretaries are trained in the
tertiary institutions of learning in Nigeria, especially in
polytechnics.
The
history of the polytechnics in training secretaries has assumed greater roles
in recent time.
Considering
the special nature of secretarial courses, peculiar equipment such as computers
and word processors are normally used in secretarial training. Lack of exposure to these special equipment
makes a graduate of secretarial studies uncomfortable and unprepared to face
squarely the challenges of the job and office automation as a result of
technological advancement. A secretary
has to grow with the technology in order not to be displaced from her job.
These
modern machines, for examples, computer word processor, accounting machines,
dictating machines, duplicating machines, etc are supposed to be taught in
detail, in secretarial department of Delta State Polytechnic, Ozoro to enable
the secretarial student be fit in the modern offices.
Invariably,
these equipment are much desired to give proper orientation to the secretarial
students in the acquisition of their manipulation skill that will go along side
to help them perform their duties in any office, no matter the type of
equipment in use there. Availability of
these equipment is one of the criteria normally considered by the National
Board of Technical Education (NBTE) for the accreditation of tertiary
institution to run courses in secretarial administration and the department can
be discredited if it fails to provide these required equipment needed for
effective training of secretaries.
Now, the
fact is, most of the tertiary institutions today are consequently left with
incredible poor financial base to the extent that they found it difficult to
meet the cost of providing the required instructional equipment for their
students. The undoubtedly result is that
students of this department will graduate with little or no knowledge for
operational skill of these equipment, thereby presenting poor image and
embarrassment to self and institution from where he/she graduated.
In line
with this, Nolen (1964) observed that schools lack adequate equipment when he
said:
In spite
of new or improved office appliance which have appeared in the market in recent
years, many schools lack office equipment.
Adequate
and proper maintenance of equipment is a necessity for an effective training
for instance, it is possible to teach a student to operate a key punch
machine. It will be better to allow
students operate the machines rather than merely studying about them from
textbook. Therefore, shortage of fund
should not stop school from providing equipment needed, as project could be
sponsored to raise funds or taking students to business home, familiarizes them
with appliances.
In view
of this, no availability of adequate equipment hinders secretarial services and
production of experienced secretaries as the manipulative skill required would
be lacking due to inadequate training of the secretarial students on the actual
equipment.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
There is the notion that with the
incessant technological advancement in our business environment, the functions
of secretaries are prone to changes too.
Technological advancement could have an adverse or positive effect on
the secretaries.
Secretarial services and occupational
requirements are changing because of inventions in secretarial equipment. Employers now require ability to operate some
office equipment as or pre-requisite for employment. The lack of specific skills in manipulation
of office equipment by secretarial graduates creates employment difficulty to
them.
Inadequacy in the provision of enough
and modern equipment in Secretarial Department in Delta State Polytechnic,
Ozoro and Isoko North Local Government Council, constitute a great problem and
hindrance in the training, as students would not be opportune to manipulate the
required equipment necessary for their programme thereby making them not
conversant with the equipment. And at the
office, it leads to low production due to lack of modern machines. Secretarial services also hampered as a
result of lack of knowledge of manipulation of equipment by the students of
this course (secretarial studies or administration) on graduation.
This project work will however, attempts
to examine the inherent effect of inadequate modern equipment on the
performance of students on their academic, opportunity for securing a job and
level of productivity in office.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The reasons for embarking on this
project is to investigate the problem of inadequate computers in the
performance of students of secretarial studies in Delta State Polytechnic,
Ozoro and Isoko North Local Government Council, it’s effects on students and
workers performance and the possible solution of solving them.
The study would further identify the
impact of technological advancement of the secretarial performance to
practitioners of the profession, secretarial students and prospective students
of secretarial administration.
In the course of this study certain
variables which were believed to constitute the problem of inadequate equipment
were identified and analyzed as follow:
a.
To identify whether the secretarial
department is lacking the necessary equipment that enhance secretarial
functions.
b.
To examine if the non availability of
adequate equipment affects students and workers performance.
c.
To determine the effort made between the
department, institution and government in ensuring adequate provision of
equipment in the training of students.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This research work, just like every
other worthwhile study is significant to the extent that it will enable the
tertiary institutions in Delta
State to examine whether
what it has in secretarial department is able to satisfy the needs of the
organizations, where students are expected to work on graduation.
From this study, the department and
school authority will know about some of the technological advancement
equipment commonly used in offices and make effort to purchase them where they
are not available. It will also
strengthen the link existing between the employers of labour and the school for
effective implementation of secretarial services.
Finally, it will be of significance, as
students secretaries would be conversant with the most relevant and modern
equipment, if adequately provided.
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The main objective of providing adequate
computers and modern equipment in tertiary institutions is to train competent
secretaries who will perfectly fit in their job and be able to face the
challenges of advance technology in terms of modern equipment commonly used in
most offices today.
Therefore, the research will focus on
the extent to which inadequate equipment in secretarial department affect the
performance of students secretaries.
As a result, the following questions
would be addressed:
a.
Is the secretarial department lacking the
necessary machines that enhance secretarial functions?
b.
Does non availability of the adequate
machines affect students performance?
c.
What is the relationship between the
department, tertiary institution and the government in ensuring adequate
provision of computers/modern machines in training of students?
1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
This research work will be limited to
Delta State Polytechnic, Ozoro and Isoko North Local Government Council, Ozoro,
owing to some militating factors encountered by the researcher such as:
Time Constraints: The time in which this study would be
completed for submission is quite short and as such, time is not in the favour
of the researchers.
Finance: Due to the prevailing economic situation in Nigeria, the
researcher face some financial problems in carrying out the research work.
1.7 DELIMITATION
The scope of this project is based on
the tertiary institutions in Delta
State, particularly in
the following places:
i.
Delta State Polytechnic, Ozoro
ii.
Isoko North Local Government Council
1.8 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
For the purpose of this research, the
following are some of the frequently occurring words defined in the sense in
which the researcher intend the reader to understand their usage in this
research work:
Office: Office is a nerve centre of every
organization. It is a place where
clerical work is carried out. It could
be a position filled by somebody.
However, Neuner and Keeling defined office as “the focal point for
correlating the services and profit making activities of a business
enterprise”.
Office Equipment: These are equipment which are used in
business office to facilitate operation and procedures. Briefly, these include all the labour saving
devices used in an office which go by various names such as office appliance, office
machines, etc.
Secretarial Training: This is a programme designed by a school to
acquaint the students with both practical and theoretical aspects of their
studies in the offices where they are expected to work after graduation.
Computer: A computer is any device that can receive,
store a set of instructions and then act upon those instructions in a
predetermined and predictable fashion.
This definition implies that both the instructions and the data upon which
the instruction act can be changed, a device whose instructions cannot be
changed is not a computer. When the
output is used to make decision, it is called information. It’s main functions are storage and reproduction
of text.
Word Processor: This is a configuration of machines or
equipment made up of software and hardware.
The main functions of word processor are storage of information and
retrieval of such information.
Subsequently, it helps in the edition of
documents or texts. It has an in-built
dictionary of varying sizes which will highlight any error in a word included
in the dictionary. It has the ability to
print out more copies of documents at the same time.
Dictating Machines: These are a recording machines, which vary in
nature. They could be battery or
electrically operated. The secretary is
expected to be familiar with their mechanisms.
Some of them are portable cassettes for travelers, desk-tape or central
system dictating machines and some have remote control and auto transmission
facilities.
Duplicating Machine: this is a machine that is used to make copies
of written, printed or drawing materials.
Duplicating machines is associated with making copies from the masters,
which may be, paper or metals. It is
therefore necessary for all secretaries or secretarial staff to know how to
produce copies from the masters paper or sheet by operating the machines.
There are different processes of
duplicating, some of which are spirit process, offset litho process, and
stencil process.