DIGITAL SKILLS GAP AMONG BUSINESS EDUCATION GRADUATES OF TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN ANAMBRA STATE: IMPLICATION FOR PROGRAMME RE-ADJUSTMENT

Chikerenma Adanma Akudolu, Euphemia Nkiruka Onyeneke

Abstract


 

The study investigated digital skills gap among business education graduates of tertiary institutions in Anambra State: Implication for programme re-adjustment. The study adopted three research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study. Two hundred and sixty six employers formed the population of this study. There was no sampling since the population was manageable. A structured questionnaire which was validated by three experts in the field of business education and measurement and evaluation unit was used for data collection. The reliability of the instrument was established using pilot study and analysis carried out using Cronbach alpha statistics which yielded correlation coefficients of .84, .79 and .87 respectively for clusters B1 to B3 and overall reliability coefficient of 0.83. Mean was used to answer the research questions, standard deviation was used to ascertain the homogeneity of respondents’ mean ratings, and t-test used to test the hypotheses. Findings showed that business education graduates possess digital foundation skills to a moderate extent while they possess digital communication skills and cloud computing skills to a low extent. Findings also revealed that years of working experience was not a significant factor influencing the opinions of employers regarding the extent the three digital skills covered are possessed by business education graduates. Based on the findings, the researchers recommended that business education graduates should embark on digital skills acquisition programmes to up-date themselves to remain relevant in the digital economy. This will help them to perform effectively in modern offices.

 

Key Words: Digital Skills, Digital Skills Gap, Business education graduates


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