ISSN ; Volume 2, Issue 8, pp ; October, Journal of Agriculture and Biodiversity Research 2013 Online Research Journals

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1 ISSN ; Volume 2, Issue 8, pp ; October, Journal of Agriculture and Biodiversity Research 2013 Online Research Journals Full Length Research Paper Available Online at Challenges of the Application of Information and Communication Technology in Teaching Difficult Content Areas in Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education in Enugu State, Nigeria *C. U. Ugwuoke 1, Dr. B. I. Onah 2, and J. I. Offor 3 1 Department of Vocational Teacher Education (Agricultural Education), University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 2 Depatment of Vocational Teacher Education (Computer Education), University of Nigeria, Nsukka and 3 Department of Agricultural Science, Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri Received 31 August, 2013 Accepted 12 October, 2013 The study was designed to identify the challenges of the Information and Communication Technology in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education such as in Colleges of Education in Enugu State, Nigeria. Three research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study. A structured questionnaire made up of thirty seven (37) items was used to elicit response from thirty nine (39) respondents comprising twelve (12) Computer Science Lecturers, five (5) Computer Education Lecturers, twelve (12) Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and ten (10) Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical), Enugu. The instrument was validated by three experts and the reliability was established using Cronbach alpha which yielded a coefficient of The data collected were analysed using Mean to answer research questions and t-test statistic to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of probability and appropriate degrees of freedom. The findings of the study revealed the information and communication technology packages that can be applied by Agricultural Education Lecturers, problems and solutions to the application of information and communication technology in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that every Agricultural Education Lecturer of Colleges of Education should be Computer literate in order to utilize the benefits of Information and Communication Technology to make their lectures simple. Key words: Agricultural education, colleges of education, information and communication technology, lecturers, application, difficult contents. INTRODUCTION Information has always played a very important role in human life. In the mid-20 th century, the role of information increased immeasurably as a result of social progress and the vigorous developments in science and technology. Communication can be described as the *Corresponding Author's Address: cajethan.ugwuoke@unn.edu.ng; Tel.: process of transmitting and receiving ideas, information and messages. In keeping with the complex nature and multiple applications, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) may be viewed in different ways. ICT can be seen as the utilization of computer and other digital facilities in collecting, storing, processing, outputting and transferring data from one source to the other. Igbonoba [1] stated that ICT is the use of skill in combining information and communication process and

2 Ugwuoke et al. 161 devices to obtain, analysis, store, recall and transmit accurate information from one place to another. ICT according to Akunyili [2] is the ability to use electronic means to capture, process, communicate and store information. A Future Way for In-service Teacher Across Europe (FISTE) [3] described ICT as a full range of computer hardware, computer software and telecommunication facilities effective in the process of gathering, storing, retrieving, processing, analysing and transmitting information. In the context of this study, Information and Communication Technology is the application of computer and other electronic facilities in inputting, processing, outputting and transferring information from one source to another as well as in the teaching and learning of subject contents. ICT covers internet services provision, telecommunication equipment and services, media and broadcasting, libraries and documentation services, network-based information services, among others. Sharma [4] identified some of the ICT products available to education to include teleconferencing, , audio conferencing, television lessons, radio broadcast, interactive voice response system, interactive radio counselling, audiocassettes and CD ROMs. Davis and Tearle [5] reported that ICT has the potentials to innovate, accelerate, enrich and deepen skills, motivate and engage students, relates school experience to work practices, create economic viability for tomorrow s workers as well as strengthening teaching and learning. ICTs such as Videos, televisions and multimedia computer software that combine text, sound and colourful moving images can be used to provide challenging and authentic contents that will engage the students in the learning process. Interactive radio makes use of sound effects, song, dramatization, comic skits and other performance conventions to compel the agricultural education students to listen and become more involved in the lessons being delivered. Agricultural Education equips students with competencies involves in the production of crops and livestock as well as the pedagogical skills involved in the teaching of agriculture. Agricultural Education in the view of Egbule [6] is the type of education that is employed in training learners in the improved agricultural production processes as well as in the techniques for the teaching of agriculture. Agricultural Education is taught in Colleges of Education to provide students with the skills, values, attitudes and related knowledge in production, processing and marketing of agricultural and related products as well as teaching of Agriculture Science to pupils and student in basic schools. College of Education according to Ugwuoke [7] is a tertiary institution that prepares teachers for a minimum of three years to make them qualify to teach their respective subjects including Agriculture in basic schools. Students in Colleges of Education face some challenges in understanding some difficult contents in This was in line with Ikeoji [8] who noted that newly employed Agricultural Science Teachers in Delta State have been discovered to experience some difficulties in teaching some content areas in Agriculture. Some Scientific contents according to Glynn [9] are consistently described as challenging to learn and difficult to teach. In Colleges of Education, some students perceived some content areas as difficult to understand. Some of the difficult content areas in Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education include; soil order and families, soil tests to determine cation exchange capacity (CEC), NPK, chemical weathering of rocks, description of internal combustion engine, castration in farm animal, symptoms, prevention and control measures of plant and livestock diseases, plant nutrients, sources, functions and deficiencies, among others. Ikeoji [8] stated that some of these perceived difficult content areas may be skipped by some teachers of Agriculture during teaching and may as well be difficult to be understood by Agricultural Education students. Fredrikson et al. [10] reported that different computer programmes and web pages are used to animate some contents which will make them more concrete and easier to understand. Macromedia flash and Cinema 4D are good computer packages that are used in developing animation in some complex content areas. This will help to simplify the complex content into different stages for easier understanding. Microsoft power point can be used in the presentation of agricultural contents in Colleges of Education. Selwyn [11] noted that the burgeoning use of virtual learning environment such as WebCT, Blackboard and Moodle have seen the concept of higher institution campus moving away from bricks and mortar to a click and mortar model. Computer technologies have therefore become an icon of early 21 st century higher education provision. Computer Education Lecturers are the teachers trained to implement the curriculum of Computer Education. These lecturers not only utilize various digital facilities in presenting instructions to the students, but as well teach to the students on how to apply the facilities and packages in everyday life. They are the experts in the field of Computer, and therefore in the right position to know the Computer hardware and software that can be used in delivering instructions in difficult content areas. Similarly, Computer Science Lecturers are trained in the technical competencies of Computer and ICT operations. Though, they are employed to teach Computer Science in schools, they lack the methodology involved in imparting the knowledge to students. They are in the position to apply ICT for day to day activities. However, Agricultural Education lecturers of Colleges of Education lack the competencies in applying ICT for the implementation of Agricultural Education programme. Onah and Okoro [12] stated that teachers of Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education in Enugu State had no skill in using ICT tools to teach students due to the fact that they lack the desired training. Selwyn [11] noted

3 162 J Agric Biodivers Res that despite huge efforts to position computer technology as a central tenet of higher education, the fact remains that many lecturers make only limited formal academic use of ICT during their teaching. The actual formal use of ICT remains inconsistent and highly variable from course to course and from institution to institution [13]. Keller [14] reported that the blame for this disparity has been most frequently attributed to deficit in skills, motivation and know-how on the part of lecturers and educational institutions. It is in light of these controversies that the researchers wished to study the challenges of the application of ICT in teaching difficult content areas in Purpose of the Study The major purpose of the study was to identify the challenges of the application of Information and Communication Technology in teaching difficult content areas in Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education. Specifically, the study sought to identify: 1. ICT packages that can be applied by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in 2. The problems faced by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in 3. The solution to the problems of the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Research Hypotheses The following hypotheses guided the study: HO 1 : There is no significant difference in the Mean responses of Computer Science Lecturers and Computer Education Lecturers on ICT packages that can be applied by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education. HO 2 : There is no significant difference in the Mean responses of Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical) on the problems faced by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education HO 3 : There is no ignificant difference in the Mean responses of Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical) on the solutions to the problems of the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in METHODOLOGY The study adopted a descriptive survey research design to elicit information from Computer Science Lecturers, Computer Education Lecturers and Agricultural Education Lecturers. Descriptive research design in the view of Nworgu [15] is the study which aims at collecting data on, and describing in a systematic manner the characteristics, features or facts about a given population. The design was deemed appropriate since data was collected to describe the challenges of ICT on (population). The study was conducted in Government Colleges of Education in Enugu State, Nigeria. They consisted of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and State College of Education (Technical), Enugu. Enugu State is in the South Eastern part of Nigeria and has seventeen (17) Local Government Areas. Population for the study was thirty nine (39) Lecturers which was made up of twelve (12) Computer Science Lecturers of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, five (5) Computer Education Lecturers of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, twelve (12) Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and ten (10) Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical), Enugu. The choice of the population was based on the fact that they were in a very good position to give authentic information on effects of ICT on the Lecturers of Colleges of Education. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. This was developed by the researchers from extensive review of literature and based on the research objectives. The instrument was face validated by three experts from the Department of Technology and Vocational Education, Enugu State University of Science and Technology. To determine the reliability of the instrument, it was pilot-tested on twenty respondents from University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State that were not part of the study. Then, Cronbach alpha statistical tool was used to determine the internal consistency and it yielded a coefficient of The questionnaires were administered by the researchers and the entire instruments were retrieved and analysed. Mean was used to analyse the research questions. Nominal values were assigned to different scaling items of the questionnaire and corresponding Mean scores were interpreted using real limit of numbers based on grand Means. Any item that had a Mean score of 3.50 and above was regarded as Strongly Agree, as Agree, as Disagree and as Strongly Disagree. However, t-test statistic was used for testing the null hypotheses at probability of 0.05 level of significance and appropriate degrees of freedom. The

4 Ugwuoke et al. 163 null hypothesis was upheld for any item whose t- calculated was less than t-table at 0.05 level of significance and rejected when the t-calculated was greater than t-table at 0.05 level of significance and appropriate degrees of freedom. RESULT ICT packages for Teaching Difficult Contents in The data presented in Table 1 indicated that items 9, 11 and 12 had their Means above This signifies that electronic blackboard, WebCT and internet resources are strongly agreed by Computer Science Lecturers and Computer Education Lecturers as ICT packages that can be applied by the Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in Table 1 also revealed that items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10 had their grand Means ranging from 2.90 to This also shows that Microsoft power point, Corel draw, Macromedia flash, Macromedia fireworks, Cinema 4D, electronic starboard, interactive white board, electronic mail and Moodle are agreed by the respondents as the ICT packages that can be applied by the Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education. Similarly, Table 1 revealed that all the items had their calculated t-values ranging from to 0.43 which are less than the t-critical of 2.13 at 0.05 level of significance and 15 degrees of freedom. This also implies that there was no significant difference in the Mean responses of Computer Science Lectures and Computer Education Lecturers on the ICT packages that can be applied by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in Agricultural Education. Problems of the Application of ICT in Teaching Difficult Contents in Agricultural Education Table 2 showed that items 2, 8, 9 and 13 had their grand Means above 3.50 which indicated that the respondents strongly agreed that poor infrastructure, inferiority complex in some lecturers, poor school environment and lack of ICT laboratory are the problems faced by the on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Table 2 also revealed that items 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11 and 12 had their grand Means ranging from 3.09 to This also shows that the respondents agree that high cost of computer hardware and software, inadequate knowledge of ICT, poor electricity supply, poor motivation, resistant to change, lack of confidence, non-supply of computers, insufficient band width and inadequate ICT equipment are the problems faced by the Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Table 2 showed that all the items had their calculated t-values less than the t-table of 2.09 at 0.05 level of significance and 20 degrees of freedom. This also implied that there was no significant difference in the Mean responses of Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical), Enugu on the problems faced by the on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Solutions to the Problems of Application of ICT in Teaching Difficult Contents in Agricultural Education The data in Table 3 showed that items 2, 3 and 12 had their grand Means greater than 3.50 which implies that organising workshop, ICT facilities subsidy and enrolling for ICT training are strongly agreed by the Agricultural Education Lecturers of Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu and Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical) as the solutions to the problems of application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in The Table also indicated that items 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 had their grand Means ranging from 3.22 to This as well implies that retraining of lecturers, ICT facilities loan, regular power supply, regular network services, more fund for ICT facilities, equipped ICT laboratory, regular ICT seminar, attending short courses and learning the use of ICT from colleagues are accepted by the respondents as the solutions to the problems of application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in Similarly, the Table showed that all the items had their calculated t-values less that t-table of 2.09 at 0.05 level of significance and 20 degrees of freedom. This implies that there was no significant difference in the Mean responses of the respondents on the solutions to the problems of application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in DISCUSSION ICT Packages for Teaching Difficult Contents in Agricultural Education The findings of the study showed that the respondents agreed that all the items are the ICT packages that can be applied by Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education in teaching difficult contents in These include: Microsoft power point, Corel draw, macromedia flash, macromedia fireworks, Cinema 4D, electronic mail, interactive

5 164 J Agric Biodivers Res Table 1. Mean scores and t-test analysis of the respondents on the ICT packages. S/N Items Computer Science Lecturers Computer Education Lecturers G Decision 1 SD 1 2 SD 2 t-cal Remarks 1 Microsoft power point 3.37 A NS 2 Corel draw 3.31 A NS 3 Macromedia flash for animation 3.41 A NS 4 Macromedia fireworks for 2.94 A NS designing graphics 5 Cinema 4D 3.09 A NS 6 Electronic star board 3.14 A NS 7 Interactive white board 2.90 A NS 8 Electronic mail 3.27 A NS 9 Electronic black board 3.55 SA NS 10 Moodle 3.49 A NS 11 WebCT 3.59 SA NS 12 Internet resources 3.55 SA NS Note: t-table = 2.13; NI = 12; N2 = 5. G=Grand Mean; 1=Mean 1; SD1=Standard Deviation 1; 2=Mean 2; SD2=Standard Deviation 2; A=Agree; SA=Strongly Agree; NS=Not Significant; t-cal=t-calculated; N1=Number of first respondents (Computer Science Lecturers); N2=Number of the second respondents (Computer Education Lecturers). Table 2. Mean scores and t-test analysis application of ICT in the teaching of difficult contents in S/N Items Agric Education Lecturers of Eha-Amufu Agric Education Lecturers of State Col of Edu G Dec 1 SD 1 2 SD 2 t-cal Rem 1 High cost of Computer hardware and 3.46 A NS software 2 Poor infrastructures in schools 3.54 SA Inadequate knowledge of ICT by 3.18 A some lecturers 4 Poor electricity supply 3.19 A Poor motivation of lecturers 3.09 A Resistant to change by some 3.14 A lecturers 7 Lack of confidence by some lecturers 3.45 A Inferiority complex in some lecturers 3.64 SA Poor school environment 3.59 SA Non supply of computer by some 3.40 A educational institutions 11 Insufficient band width connections 3.28 A in some institutions 12 Inadequate modern ICT equipment in 3.41 A some institutions 13 Lack of ICT laboratory in some institutions 3.54 SA Note: t-table=2.09; N1=12; N2=10. G=Grand Mean; 1=Mean 1; SD1=Standard Deviation 1; 2=Mean 2; SD2=Standard Deviation 2; A=Agree; SA=Strongly Agree; NS=Not Significant; t-cal=t-calculated; N1=Number of first respondents (Agricultural Education Lecturers of Eha-Amufu); N2=Number of the second respondents (Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical).

6 Ugwuoke et al. 165 Table 3. Mean scores and t-test analysis of the respondents on the solutions to the problems of application of ICT. S/N Items Agric Education Lecturers of Eha-Amufu Agric Education Lecturers of State College of Education G Dec 1 SD 1 2 SD 2 t-cal Rem 1 In-service training of lecturers on 3.49 A NS the use of ICT 2 Organising workshop for lecturers 3.73 SA NS on ICT 3 ICT facilities subsidy from the 3.64 SA NS government 4 ICT facilities loan at a low interest 3.41 A NS rate 5 Regular power supply 3.22 A NS 6 Regular network services for 3.28 A NS internet 7 More fund for ICT facilities in the 3.24 A NS schools 8 Equipped ICT laboratory in schools 3.23 A NS 9 Regular ICT seminar for lecturers 3.27 A NS 10 Attending short courses on ICT 3.41 A NS 11 Learning the use of ICT from 3.45 A NS colleagues 12 Enrolling for ICT training in ICT training centres 3.54 SA NS Note: t-table=2.09; N1=12; N2=10. G=Grand Mean; 1=Mean 1; SD1=Standard Deviation 1; 2=Mean 2; SD2=Standard Deviation 2; A=Agree; SA=Strongly Agree; NS=Not Significant; t-cal=t-calculated; N1=Number of first respondents (Agricultural Education Lecturers of Eha-Amufu); N2=Number of the second respondents (Agricultural Education Lecturers of Enugu State College of Education (Technical). whiteboard, electronic blackboard, Moodle, and webct. The findings were in consonance with Selwyn [11] who noted that the burgeoning use of virtual learning environments such as WebCT, Blackboard and Moodle has seen the concept of University campus moving away from a brick and mortar to a click and mortar model. Ohakwe [16] noted that effective teaching and learning can be done electronically using power point presentation. According to the author, power point enables a teacher not only to create powerful presentation, but to include formatted text, graphics, pictures, sound and animation to make difficult contents in Agricultural Education simple and easy to understand. Problems on the Application of ICT in Teaching Difficult Contents in Agricultural Education The findings of this study indicated that the respondents agreed in all the items as the problems faced by on the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in The findings were in line with Ebirim [17] who noted that the constant power outage, high cost of generating set, high cost of internet connectivity and low ICT skills are the major problems of ICT in teaching and learning in Colleges of Education. Teacher development is another major challenge to the use of ICT in teaching since for most teachers, Information and Communication Technology are both exhilarating in their possibilities and daunting in the uncertainty created by the speed of advancement in technology [18]. The challenges of the application of ICT in the teaching of difficult contents in Agricultural Education according to the author included lack of confidence, lack of competence and resistance to change. Solutions to the Problems of Application of ICT in Teaching Difficult Contents in Agricultural Education The findings of this study showed that the respondents accepted all the items as the solutions to the problems of the application of ICT in teaching difficult contents in These items include; retraining of lecturers, organising workshop, ICT facilities subsidy, ICT facilities loan, regular power supply, regular network services, more fund for ICT facilities, equipped ICT laboratories, regular ICT seminar, attending short courses, learning the use of ICT from colleagues and enrolling for ICT training in ICT training centres. These

7 166 J Agric Biodivers Res findings were in line with Onah and Okoro [12] who noted that ICT enhancement programme should be developed for the lecturers of Colleges of Education in order to acquire the ICT skills and competencies for the teaching of difficult contents in According to Ede and Olaitan [19] provision should be made for inservice training and retraining of lecturers, funding and providing ICT facilities for effective use of ICT in the teaching and learning of Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education. Conclusion Information and Communication Technology is modern and present innovative teaching strategies that motivate students. The use of animation to simplify difficult and complex contents helps to make teaching and learning interesting. Agricultural Education Lecturers of Colleges of Education should avail themselves the opportunity of using Information and Communication Technology to teach complex contents as it makes lectures attractive. ICT builds lecturers to participate in global challenges. Recommendations Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that: 1. Every Agricultural Education Lecturer of Colleges of Education should be computer literate in order to utilize the benefits of Information and Communication Technology to make their lectures simple and understandable. 2. Tertiary Education Trust Fund (tetfund) should fund the establishment of Computer laboratories in Colleges of Education. 3. The school authorities of Colleges of Education should provide reliable network in their institutions for the maximum application of ICT in teaching and learning. REFERENCES [1] Igbonoba MO. The impact of Information and Communication Technology on secretarial education. Bus Edu Book Read, 2005; 1(5): Owerri: Totan publishers ltd, [7] Ugwuoke CU. Appraisal of students industrial work experience scheme (SIWES) on graduates performance in Agricultural Education in Colleges of Education in Enugu State, Nigeria. Unpublished M.Ed Thesis, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 2013 [8] Ikeoji CN. Difficult content Areas in teaching Agriculture as perceived by newly employed Agricultural Science teachers in Delta State: Implications for quality assurance. Nig Vocational Associat J, 2009; 13(1): [9] Glynn SM. Learning from science text: Role of an elaborate analogy. College Park, MD: National Reading Research Centre, [10] Fredrikson U, Gajek E, Jedeskog G. Ways to use ICT in schools to optimize the impact of teaching and learning. Acta Didactica Napensia, 2009; 2(4): [11] Selwyn N. The use of computer technology in University teaching and learning: A critical perspective. J Comp Assisted Learn, 2007; 23: Retrieved from [12] Onah BI, Okoro F. Strategies for enhancing the accessibility and use of Information and Communication Technology in Colleges of Education in Enugu State. Nign Vocational Associat J, 2010; 14(2): [13] Breen R, Lindsay R, Jenkins A, Smith P. The role of Information and Communication Technologies in a University learning environment. Stud Higher Edu, 2001; 26: [14] Keller C. Virtual learning environment. Learn Media Technol, 2005; 30: [15] Nworgu BG. Educational research: Basic issues and methodology. Nsukka: University Trust Publishers, [16] Ohakwe SN. ICT power point presentation sun-skill required by Business Education to reform the delivery system. Bus Edu J, 2008; 6(2): [17] Ebirim U. Integration of e-learning in distance education for the enhancement of distance education programme. Nig Vocational Associat J, 2010; 15(1): [18] Ohanu IF. Challenges and prospects of using Information and Communication Technology in teaching and learning of Electrical/Electronics in Technical Colleges in Anambra State. Int J Edu Res, 2012; 11(1): [19] Ede EO, Olaitan OO. The utilization of Information and Communication Technology in the teaching of metal work for quality assurance of Technical College graduates in South-Western States of Nigeria. Nig Vocational Associat J, 2010; 14(2): [2] Akunyili AU. Information and Communication Technology: Revolution, Communication and Technology. Int J Edu Develop, 2000; 2(3): 1-4. [3] A Future Way for in-service teacher training across Europe (FISTE). Pedagogical use of ICT in teaching and learning, 2005; of ICT.pfd [4] Sharma R. Barriers in using technology for education in developing countries. Comp Edu, 2003; 41(1): [5] Davis NE, Tearle P. A core curriculum for telematics in teacher training. 1999; [6] Egbule PE. Fundamentals and practice of