Department of Adult Education and Human Resource Studies
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Item Towards Social Justice Consciousness in Ghana’s Higher Education: Revisiting the Thoughts of Nkrumah and Nyerere(Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Education, 2021) Amuzu, D.This article revisits the thoughts of Kwame Nkrumah and Julius Nyerere on decolonizing higher education in Africa. Their critique of colonial higher education centers on the notion that it was designed to promote the economic aspirations of the colonial metropolis, making it socially unjust, culturally irrelevant, and developmentally inapt. For redemption, African universities should align with the aspirations of their societies and promote African cultural consciousness. Their value-laden thoughts are classified into themes, discussed, and consequently recommended as ideas for policy considerations because they are yet to firmly influence Ghana’s higher education policy framework despite their relevance. The themes are: liberating the African mind; nurturing African character; owning the African narrative; and the essence of knowledge.Item African Women, Technology and ICTs(The Palgrave Handbook of African Women's Studies, 2019) Frimpong Kwapong, O.A.T.Technology has much to offer women in their public and private lives. In view of this, the Strategic Development Goal (SDG) 5b seeks to utilize enabling technology, particularly information and communications technology, to empower women. Through a desk review, this chapter looked at the position of African women in the development, deployment, and utilization of technology in the broad sense with a special focus on information and communication technology. Factors that inhibit women’s full utilization of technology and some policy directives have also been enumerated in the chapter. Various interventions in the area of women and technologies have yielded results. African women are not only users of technology but also breaking through as developers in the technology space. Despite infrastructural and socio-economic challenges, women in Africa are capable of harnessing the full potential of technology to improve their lives. They should therefore be perceived as such and be supported accordingly.Item Determinants Of Open Educational Resources Adoption Among Faculty Of Higher Educational Institutions In Ghana(University of Ghana, 2019-07) Torto, B.A.ABSTRACT Open Educational Resources are (OERs) are teaching and learning materials which are in the public domain or made freely available by means of open licenses for learners, teachers and researchers. In today’s technological age, OERs have come to play a major role in higher educational institutions. There are a number of OER initiatives in higher educational institutions in Ghana. However, there is no study to determine the status of OER adoption and use by faculty in Ghana. The problem being investigated by this study is: What factors influence faculty to adopt and use OERs in higher educational institutions in Ghana? The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) theory and two constructs from the Diffusion of Innovation (DoI) model were adopted for the study. The study used the mixed methods approach, specifically, the sequential explanatory design. Two hundred and thirty-nine faculty participated in the study. Two forms of data collection were used: questionnaire distribution and interviews. The stratified random method was adopted for the quantitative study and the purposive sampling techniques for the qualitative aspect. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, correlations, factor analysis and multiple regression to test the proposed model while themes and sub themes were used to analyse the qualitative data. Faculty had a high level of technological competencies (M=3.75, SD = 1.185) on how to browse the internet, use word, download and upload materials. Faculty also had a high level of OER awareness (M= 3.86 SD=0.904) and found OERs useful in their teaching and research activities. The relationship between Performance Expectancy and Behavioural Intention was moderately positive and significant (r = 0.53 p = < 0.05). Faculty members indicated that OERs were compatible with their belief in sharing educational materials to profit everyone. However, faculty will experiment with OERs before deciding to use them (M=3.59 SD = 1.135). There was no correlation between Trialability and Actual Use. The relationship between Behavioural Intention and Actual Use was moderately positive and statistically significant (r = 0.44; p = < 0.05). The key barriers were technical issues, particularly low internet speed and bandwidth, and frequent power outages. There were no major significant differences in terms of age, sex and rank regarding adoption factors. The study concluded that faculty had a good knowledge of computer applications and OER searches. Despite the technical barriers, faculty members were prepared to use OERs in their teaching because of their usefulness and ease of use. Effort Expectancy was highly positive and significant in relation to faculty’s intention to use OERs. Performance Expectancy, Social Influence and Facilitating Conditions were moderately positive and significant. Trialability did predict Behavioural Intention but not Actual use. It is recommended that training programmes be completed to arm faculty with the necessary tools for OER deployment. Also, training must incorporate adult teaching and learning methodologies. Management should take the necessary steps to formulate policies that would promote the creation and use of OERs in their institutions. There is the need for a policy framework to provide OER services.Item Adult Patronage and Use of Selected Museums In Ghana(University of Ghana., 1991-01) Maisie, J.P.Interest in museums has been greatly stimulated in the past decade by widespread concern for cultural identity. It is the aim of this study to find out adult patronage and how they use the museum for learning purposes. The following Chapters make no claim to being an exhaustive study of museums but they do attempt to give to the general public some conception of the extent to which museums are used by the public and the importance of museum's educational programme. The work as presented is organised in Sections as follows; Chapter One deals with the general introduction to the study, Chapter Two dilates on the background and the setting of the study, Chapter Three is on the literature review, Chapter Four is on methodology and the presentation of analysis and finally Chapter Five deals with the summary and conclusion. The research method used for the study is the survey research but the cross-sectional form of the survey research was used. The cross-sectional type was used to find out the views of respondents on the programmes the museums organize and the use of museums for learning purposes. The study traces the history of the museum in the Greek city-states. how it was used and how it came to be established in Ghana. The study established that adults are only prepared to visit the museum when they can See an advantage to be gain from the newly acquired knowledge. Also, the study found out that adults will visit the museum if only the learning conditions there are suitable for adult learning and that the adult visitors' interest in museum exhibits is to a large extent a function of their interest in the subject matter prior to coming to the museum. The study also realised that visual education assumes great importance in museums and supplies a valuable means of disseminating ideas which would otherwise stand little chance of making an impact on the public consciousness. Similarly, the study revealed that the Volta Regional museum, Ho, lacks a lot of useful learning facilities compared to the National Museum in Accra. It was also found that adult patronage and use of the museum for learning purposes is not very encouraging. Indeed, most people are not aware of the programmes run by the museum. However the greatest obstacle facing Museum Education Personnel in undertaking their duty of educating the public on the role and the functions of the museum is finance since museum is a subvented institution. In spite of these financial constraints. the study revealed the museum play an important educational role since it is a custodian of cultural heritage, they are used for research and other learning purposes and efforts are made towards outreach programmes. To help the museums attract a lot more of the visitors for the use of the museums for learning purposes. some relevant suggestions have been given in the conclusion of the study.Item Factors Influencing Women Learner-Participation In Adult Functional Literacy Programme Run By NFED In Accra(University of Ghana, 1999-12) Saah, A.A.The promotion of Adult Functional Literacy programmes per se, neither creates the necessary motivation for learning, nor enhances the partici~ation of adult learners in the programme. The task is to create the enabling environment for harnessing and enhancing learner-related factors that influence the learners' participation. The Agency' 5 deli very of programmes is necessary, however the learnerfactors are equally important, and so should not be neglected in the process of Adult Functional Literacy. The research set out to investigate the factors, which enhance women learners' participation in the ongoing Mass Literacy and Social Change Programme (MASSLIP) of the NonFormal Education Division (NFED) in Nima-Maamobi, Accra. The Study used survey method to collect data from one hundred and sixteen learners from six adult functional literacy classes in the Nima-Maamobi area of the East Ayawaso sub-district of Accra. Below are findings of the study. 1. Effective communication of literacy programme goal and objectives to learners improved theirperception of functional literacy benefits hence their participation. 2. Community-based and personalized literacy programme sustained the programme and the interest of both the learner and the Agency. 3. The less useful learners in the programmes found studies the greater their pre-disposition to abandon the programme all together. 4. Factors that influenced women learners of adult functional literacy programmes were mainly internal and external. And the third factor was interaction between the two. The most influential of the factors was more biased toward the internal factors. It is recommended that functional literacy be made more learner friendly, utilizing such internal factors as to enhance their participation.Item The District Assemblies and Self-Help Development In The Gomoa District Of The Central Region(University of Ghana, 2003-05) Adu-Nyarko, A.The objective of the study was to look at self-help development in relation to the role that has been played by the District Assembly in that direction. Seven research questions and three hypotheses were studied. Descriptive statistics and the Chi-Square (X2) statistic were used to analyse the data. The study took into consideration the independent and dependent variables of interest in this study. The study found out that one way of empowering the people to engage in self-help development was access to information. The majority of the respondents (91.4%) got information from the Assembly through the Assembly Members. It was also realised that the Assembly Members had helped their people in several ways towards achieving self-help development. Some however, indicated that they lobbied at the Assembly before they got development projects to their electoral areas from the District Assembly. The District Assembly has helped the various communities with infrastructural facilities but the help favoured the urban areas more than the rural communities. In addition, while some communities have realised the need to participate in self-help development, others did not participate because of non-transparency and misconceptions about community development activities. They thought that community development was the responsibility of the government. The hypothesis that non-participation in community based development projects by the people of the communities has contributed to increasing level of poverty among the people in the district was supported by the findings of the study. In allocating resources, respondents were of the view that the District Assembly has to make the people get the necessary requirements for their self-help projects. The study also found out that holistic approach to policy implementation and poor timing have affected development activities. Thus, financial assistance to the people was either delayed or that the ·conditions attached to such assistance were not favourable to the recipients. Above all these, the people suffered from ineffective mobilisation of resources. Patronage has crippled communities that received help from individuals making the people dependent on the goodwill of the patrons. The hypothesis. that low level of commitment on the part, of the leaders has contributed to the slow pace of development activities in the district was not supported. Respondents revealed that though the local leaders were committed towards development, they had at the same time distanced themselves from the communities and the people. The loca institutions for development had not collaborated effectively to rekindle self-help activities. This was due to the fact that the Area Councils and Unit Committees were virtually non-existing. The hypothesis that lack of collaboration and coordination between the Gomoa District Assembly and the Area/Unit Committees has contributed to the inability' of the district to mobilise resources in the district for development was supported by the findings of the study.Item The Effects of Offshore Oil and Gas Operations on the Socioeconomic Life of Ghanaians: A Case of the People of Ellembelle District in the Western Region of Ghana(2017-07) Eduku, J.The oil and gas discovery and production in Ghana has given the country a new status which has invigorated the scholarly debate on the effects of oil and gas discovery on the socio-economic development of the citizenry. The discovery, and its subsequent production, at Ghana’s Jubilee fields was met with high expectations by the Ghanaian citizenry, especially those within the catchment areas, as far as enjoying quality job opportunities, socio-economic development in infrastructure, improvement in education and health was concerned. Ghana became part of the oil and gas discovery and production nations when she discovered commercially large quantities of oil around the Cape Three Points Area. While the discovery and production of the oil and gas is envisaged to have positive effects on the socio-economic life of the citizenry, its negative effects should not be underestimated. This study aimed at critically examining the effects of the oil and gas discovery and production on the socio-economic lives of the people within the Ellembelle District in the Western Region of Ghana. The study also aimed at identifying the role of the government, oil firms and other stakeholders in solving the negative effects of the oil and gas operations on the people within the catchment area. To digest these issues comprehensively, the study used the Resource Curse Theory, which describes the relationship between oil discovery and economic growth and the impact of oil and gas on national development (Auty, 1993). The Social Action Theory was also used to explain the reaction of human beings in a social context and how their actions and inactions affect their lives (Weber, 1991). In addition, the researcher used the qualitative research approach, employed focus group discussions and in-depth interviews to collect data for the study. Afterwards, descriptive- narrative method was used to analyze responses recorded on audiotapes from the field. The researcher used the descriptive case study under the qualitative method to explain the effects of the offshore oil and gas operations on the socio-economic development of the people within the catchment area. The study concluded that the offshore oil and gas discovered and produced in Ghana has double-edged effects. The study also revealed that while a segment of the communities in the catchment area is benefiting from the oil and gas exploration in various degrees through corporate social responsibility and capital investment, others such as farmers, fishermen and traders have lost their most important capital without adequate compensation. The study revealed that pollution, migration, high cost of living and the breakdown of cultural values were the negative social effects of the oil and gas operations in the Ellembelle District. On the other hand, positive social effects such as infrastructural developments, provision of social amenities and tourist attraction that brings revenue to the local communities were revealed. The study again revealed mainly negative economic effects of the oil and gas operations in the Ellembelle District such as high unemployment rate, the breakdown of local businesses and land litigation. The researcher, therefore, recommended that in order to solve or reduce the issue of unemployment that emanates from loss of lands, the Ellembelle District Assembly in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, traditional authorities and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) must initiate several alternative livelihood programmes from which the affected inhabitants can survive on, as this would help salvage the issue of unemployment in the Project Affected Communities (PACs).Item HIV and AIDS Related Stigma and Discrimination among Nurses in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of Ghana(University Of Ghana, 2018-07) Affedzie, E.O.This study addressed the problem of stigma and discrimination (SAD) exhibited by nurses against patients living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA). The study was conducted among nurses in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) in the Western Region of Ghana. It measured the prevalence of HIV and AIDS related stigma and discrimination (HARSAD) among the nurses, assessed their knowledge of HARSAD and examined the influence of their knowledge and personal characteristics on their perpetration of HARSAD. The study was quantitative descriptive cross-sectional survey. The study sample consisted of 286 nurses selected by convenience sampling from five hospitals selected by purposive sampling. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data using the paper and pen/pencil approach. Data collected included the nurses’ demographic and professional characteristics, work experiences with PLWHA, HIV testing history and willingness. HARSAD knowledge was tested with ten closed ended questions with Yes/No/Unknown response options. HARSAD tendencies were assessed with the modified Healthcare Provider HIV/AIDS Stigma Scale (MHPASS) consisting of 15-items of which 5 items each assessed for prejudice, stereotypes and discrimination respectively on a 6-Point Likert Scale. Data was analyzed with the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 23. The results showed HARSAD prevalence of 24.11% among the nurses. Prejudice was highest at 30.53% followed by stereotypes at 28.58% and discrimination at 13.24%. Significant predictors of HARSAD included age, years of nursing practice and experience of working in HIV/AIDS units. HARSAD knowledge among the nurses was generally moderate but had no significant influence on their perpetration of HARSAD. 91.6% of the nurses had done HIV test before and 58.74% were willing to test. Testing history had no significant influence while testing willingness had significant negative influence on HARSAD. Conclusion based on the findings was that 24.11% of the nurses exhibited SAD tendencies against PLWHA. The extent of HARSAD exhibited was influenced by their age, years of nursing practice and experience of work in HIV/AIDS units but not by their knowledge of HARSAD nor previous HIV testing experience. Discrimination tendencies however influenced HIV testing willingness. Recommendations emphasized the need for HARSAD reduction interventions to focus more on younger nurses and HARSAD knowledge to be complemented with behaviour change communication in order to effect change of behavior of nurses towards PLWHA.Item Exploring the Implementation Challenges of Community Information Centre (CIC) Programme in the GA East Municipality of the Greater Accra Region of Ghana(University of Ghana, 2018-04) Ibrahim, M.The advancement in information and communication technologies (ICTs) over the last three decades or so has created opportunities in all sectors of human society to solve the human development problem. One of the practical ways of exploring ICTs to accelerate development in remote and underserved communities is through the introduction of the concepts of Community Information Centres (CICs). CICs have contributed to accelerated development in the developed world, however investment into CICs in Africa specifically Ghana has not yielded the expected outcome. The study therefore explored and described the challenges confronting the implementation of Community Information Centre (CIC) programme in Ga East Municipality in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Four objectives served as a guide in this study namely: 1. To examine the nature of CIC programme and their functions in Ga East Municipality 2. To explain the source that inform the construction of the ICTs at the CIC in Ga East Municipality 3. To study the process used in the delivery and implementation of the CIC programme in Ga East Municipality 4. To examine the key challenges affecting the successful implementation of CIC programmes in Ga East Municipality. The study adopted a qualitative approach relying on the interpretative phenomenological design specifically, realistic phenomenological approach to capture the views and lived experiences of participants in the study. A total of ten participants were engaged in this study; the participants were put into two separate focused group discussions in which they discussed about their understanding of their lived experiences on the topic of the study. The study used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The IPA approach was used to make sense of the phenomenon under investigation, and explored the meanings participants‟ idiographic experiences held for them. The interpretative phenomenological analytical approach made it possible for the thematic analysis of the data. Four major findings emerged from the theme in line with the objectives set for the study namely: Firstly, the study revealed that users and centre coordinators of the CIC in Ga East Municipality were likely to approach the use of the facilities differently because both held varied perceptions about the nature of programme offered at the centre. Secondly, the fact that the centre over-relied on foreign technology without modifications to suit the ICT needs of the beneficiaries may have affected an all-inclusive participation of the beneficiaries of the CIC programme in Ga East Municipality. Thirdly the centre programme also lacked local content which affected the participation of majority of the local stakeholders in Ga East. Finally, many beneficiaries of the centre lacked access to the programme of the centre. The study therefore concluded based on these findings that the centre may have not been functioning properly as a result of the following challenges: lack of accessibility of the programme to the beneficiaries of the centre, inappropriate technology and programme of the centre and the lack of participation of local stakeholders in the implementation of the programme of the centre. Based on these findings the following recommendations were made including: conducting an assessment of ICT needs of the communities in Ga East, adapting the technologies procured for the centre and design suitable programmes to help address ICT needs of beneficiaries. The study also recommended to the management of the Ga East CIC to extend its collaboration efforts to private companies and civil society organizations providing these services and partner with them in the area of capacity building, logistics and operation.Item Non-Formal Education and District Assembly Women’s Participation in Local Governance in Northern Sector of Ghana(University of Ghana, 218-02) Namoog, M.Y.Since the United Nations Declaration of the Decade for Women in 1975 following the global outcry of poor and low participation of women in decision making and in politics in the 1980s, the Government of Ghana with its institutions and international donor agencies and organisations started increasing their focus on empowering women by providing Non-Formal Education (NFE) programmes. This was to raise the women’s consciousness and to build their capacities and skills. The value assumption was that, if women understood their conditions, knew their rights and learnt new skills, they would be empowered to actively participate in decision making and public governance in Ghana. It was against this background that the study was designed to find out the extent to which these NFE programmes have contributed to the participation of the 2010 cohort of Assembly women in local governance in Northern sector of Ghana. To achieve this, the study employed the cross-sectional survey design and with the aid of questionnaire the primary data was gathered from all the 276 assembly women respondents of the Upper East, Upper West and BrongAhafo regions) selected out of the four regions of the Northern sector of Ghana using the simple random sampling technique. The reliability of the data collection instrument using Cronbach Alpha Coefficient was 0.79. With the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), the data was analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The major findings of the study were that, the NFE programmes irrespective of the form by which the women acquired the skills and knowledge was positively and significantly related and associated with the women’s participation in local governance as Assembly members. The influence of the abilities they acquired from the NFE programmes on the their participation was also significantly enhanced by the women’s self-interest to participate in the Assembly, Social recognition of the humanitarian, meritorious and professional services of the women and their families and their social, economic and political standing in the respective communities as well as the women’s geo-social setting’s positive perception of their social image - being married, elderly and or well educated formally. The study outcome also showed a significant positive relationship between the influence of the NFE programmes and the women’s abilities to campaign effectively and mobilise funds for their assembly elections activities. This notwithstanding, the influence of the abilities acquired from the NFE programmes by the women on their participation in the Assembly’s business was hampered by negative influence of partisan politics, male dominance in the assembly, poor and irregular attendance and lack of individual competences in English and in some technical issues of the Assembly. The recommendations offered for adult education institutions and the Assemblies include the need to organise programmes alongside the women empowerment ones to conscientise the custodians of the oppressing socio-cultural and religious beliefs and practices to enhance the influence of NFE interventions on women’s participation in local level governance as well as the Assemblies instituting NFE departments tasked to regularly educate, train and update the women on the changing dynamics and technical issues of the Assembly business to enhance their competences and active participation.