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PARENTS’ EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT AND OCCUPATIONAL STATUS AS CORRELATES OF CAREER PREFERENCE AMONG SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

In this era of unemployment, choosing the right career by young adolescents will pave way for employment opportunities for him or her in future. career preference of the young adolescent has become an area of interest because educational planners have become aware of the dangers and frustrations suffered by some adolescents who find themselves in wrong career selection (Alika & Egbochukwu, 2008). According to Agboola (2013), career selection is one of many important choices students will make in determining future plans. This decision might affect them throughout their lives. The essence of who the student is, will revolve around what he or she wants to do with his/her life-long work.

        At adolescence stage people make their career related decisions which could have impact and consequences on the individuals vocational future, psychological well-being and even health. The skills needed to make appropriate career decisions are very central to the psychological adjustment of the adolescent. While some adolescents do this with ease, others may have difficulties in making appropriate choices. (Scott, Repucci, and Woodlard, 1995).

        Career is a chosen pursuit, a life of work or success in a profession occupied by a person throughout his/her lifetime. In other words, career is the totality of work one does in his life time. (Ipaye, 2000). Career plays a very fundamental and significant role in the life of the individual not only because it determines the pattern of income but also affects the individual’s personality and concepts in life. A Career is the sequence of occupation in which one engages in. Some persons may retain or remain in the same occupation through their life span while others may have a series of life occupations. (Egbochuku, 2008).  A career could also be defined as the sum total of life experience including paid or unpaid work, community, volunteer and family activities. Kinanee (2004). Therefore, career can be seen as a product of career preference. Career preference may be defined as the aspect or types of work that people show more interest in and will most likely improves in its, that is work people like doing or like to do; for example, some might prefer to be self-employed rather than work in an office. Egbochuku (2008) believes that the career a person prefers is an expression of the individual’s personality. In the sense that, the choice of career one prefers determines to a large extent, how time will be spent, who will be chosen as friends, what attitudes and values will be adopted, where one will reside and what pattern of family living will be adopted.

        In Nigeria, many youths go into unsuitable careers due to ignorance, inexperience, peer pressure, parents and teachers influence and they may also prefer the prestige attached to certain jobs without considering mental abilities and personality traits. Salami, (2000). Consequently, many of them are unsuited for their careers as they usually find themselves in a job where they could not satisfy their needs. When this occurs, they are likely to become frustrated and constitute nuisance to themselves and the society. Such individuals are not likely to contribute meaningfully to the society and ultimately become liability to the nation.

        Alika and Osa-Edoh (2009) identified parental attitude, parental income, peer pressure as factors influencing career choice. Student’s careers have equally been studied with different frameworks. Many of them have focused on parents education, occupation or home background (like family income, language or the home activities of the family and work methods). Adeyemo, (2001). Studied variables such as attitude, self-efficacy, self-esteem, self-concept or parents support such as motivation of wards, parental attitudes towards education, the aspiration of parents amidst these factors presumed to have relationship with career preference. Therefore, it becomes necessary to determine which of the factors that could relate with students career preference and of interest to the researcher is parental educational attainment and occupational status.

        Parental educational attainment could be a factor that can influence students career preference. Educational attainment of parents refers to the qualification of an individual, that is, level of education acquired by an individual for example, non-formal education, primary or secondary school certificate, Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) and National Diploma (ND), Higher National Diploma (HND) Bachelor of Science (B.Sc), Master of Science (M.Sc), Masters in Education (M.Ed) and P.hD with a higher level of education parents are more likely to function as a teacher in the home, and provide a balance emotional stability as well as stimulating environment. This implies that the educational background of parents could influence how they structure their home environment and their interaction with their children in promoting their career preference. (Davis, 2005). The study of Alika and Audu (2011) revealed that among the factors that affect career decision making and career development, level of parents education is also significant. In other words, adolescent from a well-educated and higher income family is expected to attain more education and aspire to higher status occupation. This was supported by Musgrave (2000), he opined that a child that comes from an educated home would like to go into career of his/her family and by this, work actively in his/her studies relating to parents occupational status.

Parent’s occupational status is the social and professional position of parent’s occupation in relation to others. In other words, it is the position or status of one’s occupation when compared to other available occupation like the unskilled occupation. Many adolescents enter into different occupation, which they neither have aptitude nor capacity for. This might be due to the fact that their parents want them to either inherit their vocation for maintaining their status or live the life they would have loved to live (Egbochuku, 2008).

        The study of Rothman, (2004) shows that the most important factors associated with career preference of children appear to be occupational status which determines their socio-economic status. Similarly, Otto (2000) said that ninety-three percent of secondary school students in his study reported holding similar occupations and values to their parents. This is significant because it dispels the myth that children and adolescents tend to defy their parents’ values and expectations. Instead, it may be more accurate to say that children are quick to adopt their parent’s occupations and values, perhaps without ever exploring their own. This may be due to children’s natural desire to connect with their parents (Poulter, 2006). As a result, they are likely to leave out their career preferences and aspirations while adopting their parental values and occupation especially if the society rates such occupations higher than the others and are treated preferentially by others based on prestige and their unique salary packages. This is the reason why many youths according to Watts and Law (2012) choose career like law, engineering, medicine, banking because most society has rated these group of careers high. This study therefore, seeks to examine parent’s educational attainment and occupational status as they relate to the adolescents career preference in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State.   

Statement of the Problem

        Career decisions tend to pose problem for students in the contemporary society, since it determines the kind of profession that they intend to pursue in life. That is why it is not uncommon for students to get into careers that are not quite suitable to their abilities. Parental educational background on the other hand, tends to be one of the most influential factor in students career preference. More often than not, parents owing to level of education or personal idea tend to put pressure on their wards into taking up family occupations and other careers such as prestigious jobs e.g. Medicine, Engineering, Law and so on, even when they do not possess requisite abilities. Miller, (2000). The tendency may also be there for the children to identify with their parents by taking up their occupations. Moreover, in the traditional African society, there was tendency towards encouraging youths to enter the profession owned by family in order to jealously guide the skill owned by their parents. Kinanee, (2004). As a result of these pressure from parents, the students may end up being dissatisfied, frustrated and unable to be effective on the said job that parents had chosen for them. But, an individual who has chosen career that he/she prefers may derive satisfaction and fulfillment in life and therefore contribute meaningfully towards national development.

        In addition to these, a wrong choice is a bane to planning in terms of furthering education or technical training, which one is expected to undergo before actually entering the occupation. It may lead to job insecurity; faulty planning, can mar ones happiness for life and could cause occupational maladjustment. This may also directly or indirectly lead to emotional maladjustment. Secondary school students are likely to encounter conflicts with their parents and crises in their choice of career, if they are not properly guided before choosing their career. Lack of appropriate career information made available to the adolescent and career guidance by parents, teachers and counselors might lead to frustration and unhappy individuals. Therefore, there is need to empirically investigate if parents educational attainment and occupational status have any relationship with career preference of senior secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area.   

Research Questions

        To guide this study, three (3) research questions were raised.

Is there any relationship between parents educational attainment and career preference of senior secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. Is there any relationship between parent’s occupational status and career preference of senior secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State? Is there a relationship between sex and career preference of senior secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State.     

Hypotheses

There will be no significant relationship between parent’s educational attainment and career preference of secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. There will be no significant difference between parents occupational status and career preference of secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. There will be no significant relationship between sex of senior secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State.

Purpose of the Study

        The major purpose of this study is to determine how parents educational attainment and occupation relate to students career preference in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. Specifically, this study seeks to find out if:

there will be relationship between parents educational attainment and career preference of secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. there will be a relationship between parents occupational status and career preference of secondary school students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. there will be relationship between sex and career preference of students in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. 

Significance of the Study

The Nigerian education system is progressively becoming more and more complex. Studies have shown, that Nigerian youths and school leavers are vocationally maladjusted. This seems to suggest faulty vocational education system as school leavers are faced with the problem of inability to relate education to employment opportunities in the world of work. This problem is as a result of inadequate career information and decision making.    

Based on this, the research work contains the researcher contributions that would be of help and useful to education planners, authorities, parents, school teachers/educators, guidance counselors and students in senior schools towards helping students to improve on their career choice decision.

It is expected that the result of this study will help the principals and teachers to embark on vocational guidance and counselling programme in other to prepare her students for entry into the world of work, transition from school to work or into t he wider society.

It is also hoped that this study will help the parents to always guide their children towards choosing career congruent to their intellectual abilities. It will also give students the opportunities of seeing their loopholes and knowing how to make amendments in a career decision.  

Scope and Delimitation of the Study

        The content scope of this study will cover investigation regarding how parents’ educational attainment and occupational status correlates students career preference. The study will be delimited to selected Senior Secondary School II in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State.

Operational Definition of Terms

Career: An occupation or profession, especially one requiring special training, followed as one’s life work.

Career Preference: Career preference is the career field which one prefers or it is a job an individual shows more interest in.

Educational attainment of parents: That refers to the qualification of the parent of an individuals.

 Occupational Status: this refers the position of the parent in terms of occupation such as civil servant and so on.

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