ASSESSMENT OF PRODUCTIVE SKILL COMPETENCY LEVELS BASED ON GENDER AMONG SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL CHEMISTRY STUDENTS FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP (EDUCATION PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Entrepreneurship has become a topic of interest in the world today. Globally, there is a growing emphasis on encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation as a means of fostering economic growth. The development of entrepreneurial skills and knowledge is a priority for governments that want to encourage a creative and enterprising society (Roslyn; Atchison & Brooks, 2008). Entrepreneurship has been identified as a mechanism by which private and public establishments generate social returns in terms of economic growth and job creation (Acs, 2004; Audretsch, 2006). Entrepreneurship is a process of vision, change and creation. It requires application of energy and passion to the creation and implementation of new ideas and creative solutions.
The essential ingredients of entrepreneurship include the willingness to take calculated risk – in terms of time, equity, or career, the ability to formulate an effective venture team, the creative skills to marshal needed resources, fundamental skills of building solid business plans and finally, the vision to recognize opportunities where others see chaos, contradictions and confusion (Kurato & Hodgetts, 2004). Frequently the notion of entrepreneurship is associated with predominant characteristics such as creativity and imagination, self determination, and the ability to make judgmental decisions while coordinating resources (Henderson & Robertson, 1999).
Entrepreneurship has emerged over the last two decades as arguably the most potent economic force the world has ever experienced, with that expansion has come a similar increase in the field of entrepreneurship education. The recent growth and development in the curricular and programmes devoted to entrepreneurship and new-venture creation have been remarkable. In Nigeria, the need for entrepreneurship generation among the citizenry has led to the frequent change of the curricula and system of education in view of making the populace self-reliant. The United States of America has achieved its highest economic performance during the last 10 years by fostering and promoting entrepreneurial activity (Minniti & Bygrave, 2004). In Indonesia, entrepreneurship development is a current important issue related to the economic development (Tulus, 2007).
