Appraisal of Quality Assurance Practices as Determinants of Institutional Performance among Colleges of Education in Cross River State, Nigeria

Appraisal of Quality Assurance Practices as Determinants of Institutional Performance among Colleges of Education in Cross River State, Nigeria

¹Beshel Celestine; ²Adung, Chrysanthus Bekeh; ³Egbe, Joseph Enyong & ⁴Beshel, Yibala Celestine

¹Department of Educational Foundations, University of Cross River State, Calabar

²Department of Educational Management, University of Cross River State, Calabar

³Department of Educational Foundations, Federal College of Education Obudu

⁴Department of Library and Information Science, University of Cross River State, Calabar

DOI: https://doi.org/10.51584/IJRIAS.2024.909020

Received: 05 September 2024; Accepted: 14 September 2024; Published: 04 October 2024

ABSTRACT

The study appraised quality assurance practices as determinants of lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State, Nigeria. Four research questions were posed and converted to null hypotheses that guided the study. The research design adopted for the study was a correlational research design. The population comprise 485 lecturers from which a representative sample of 242 was proportionately drawn from college of education (COE) Akamkpa and federal college of education (FCE), Obudu. Researcher developed questionnaires titled “Quality Assurance Practices Questionnaire (QAPQ)” and Lecturers’ Role Performance Questionnaire (LRPQ)’ were used for data collection. Data collected were pilot tested using Cronbach’s reliability and the coefficients obtained range from .75, 82, .85, and .89. The hypotheses were tested with simple and multiple regression analysis and the findings showed thus: staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities significantly predict lecturers’ role performance individually and there is a significant collective prediction of lecturers’ role performance on staff training, students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities. The study recommends that regular training such as workshop, seminar and conferences should be organized for lecturers. Also, that provision should be made for availability of teaching-learning facilities and lastly, colleges should adhere to students’ admission policy.

Keywords: Assurance, Determinants, Institutional, Practices, Performance, Quality

INTRODUCTION

The knowledge economy drives a country’s progress, and investing in education is crucial for achieving this. Nigeria has created tertiary institutions to contribute to national development through high-level manpower training, developing values for individual and societal survival, and increasing intellectual capacity. The Nigerian Colleges of Education (COEs) were established in the post-colonial period to address the shortage of qualified teachers in primary schools. COEs are tertiary educational institutions that provide professional training and curricula for teachers to perform efficiently. Their objectives include creating motivated, diligent, and effective classroom teachers, encouraging inquiry and creativity, helping teachers fit into society, strengthening their commitment to national goals, and providing appropriate intellectual and professional backgrounds (FRN, 2014).

Importantly, the general aims and objectives of the College of Education are in consonance with the realization of national development. The graduates must, therefore be resourceful, creative, knowledgeable and able to perform the following:

1. To demonstrate prospective teachers with proper leadership qualities.
2. To exhibit the knowledge, skills and attitudes which will enable them to contribute to the growth and development of their communities in particular, and their nation in general.
3. To be able to exhibit sound mastery of their subject areas and the ability to impart such knowledge to their students.
4. To professionally show mastery of problem solving skills.
5. To be highly motivated, conscientious and efficient classroom teachers for all levels of our Educational System.
6. To be able to fit into the social life of the community and society at large and enhance their commitment to national objectives.
7. To internalize the intellectual and professional background, adequate for their alignment and to make them adaptable to any changing situation, not only in the life of their country but also in the world in general.
8. To demonstrate the spirit of inquiry, creativity and entrepreneurship in teachers.
9. To enhance commitment to the teaching profession.
10. To apply the skills in the use of new technologies (FRN, 2014).

In line with the objectives, Nwagwu (2019) correctly states that the general goal of teacher education in Nigeria is “the production, in sufficient quantity, of high quality professionals who have good academic knowledge of their subject disciplines as well as other personal qualities that are worthy of emulation by their students.” The National Policy on Education, which further emphasized the value of excellent teachers in the educational process, stated on Page 38 that: “Teacher education will continue to be given a major emphasis in all our educational planning because no education system can rise above the quality of its teachers.” In addition, Duze (2019) also added that no matter how well schools are equipped with up-to-date hardware and  software,  our  teachers  remain  far and  always  the  most  valuable element of our education system,  no amount of technological wizardry can change  the  performance   of  our children without the enthusiastic support of skilled  professional teachers.

In Nigeria today, there is a general outcry that Nigeria’s educational standards are declining at all levels and that this situation has to be fixed. People, academics, and experts have noted the deteriorating performance of college graduates in the educational system in comparison to previous results, particularly in terms of reading, writing, and practical abilities which negate the attainment of the goals of the College of Education in Nigeria (Duze, 2015; Nduka, 2016). Also recalling the fact that the Nigerian educational system has evolved from the colonial 6-5-2-3 to the former 6-3- 3-4 and current 9-3-4 framework. People are starting to call for the old 6-5-2-3 structure, which was in place from colonial times to the middle of the 1970s, because they claim it produced the “well-baked” Nigerian scholars of yesteryear, whose contribution to national development is eroding rather than being strengthened by today’s educational output. This is true even though the 9-3-4 structure has not yet taken off in most States of the Federation (Duze, 2015; Nduka, 2016).

Some of the reasons adduced for this state of affairs include the declining competence and commitment of teachers, inadequate provision of facilities, non-maintenance of available facilities, outdated and largely irrelevant curricula coupled with poor implementation,  parents’ nonchalance to children’s school-work  and activities, lack of interest and seriousness on the part of students which led to all forms of examination malpractice, the pursuance of the cankerworm of the “get-rich-quick” syndrome of the Nigerian youths of today, and the lost glories of traditional education which inculcates in individuals hard-work, diligence, integrity, and high productivity (Uwana, 2016). The question that comes to mind is what is the competent level of lecturers that prepare these half-baked college graduates?

Oyeleke et al. (2013) noted that the recruitment policy of some colleges of education in Nigeria negatively affects the quality of teaching staff. One cardinal principle of the College of Education is freedom to recruit faculty members. In recent times, this autonomy has been subjected to gross abuse. Cases where politicians send names of newly recruited staff to colleges abounds. The office of the Federal Character Commission in Abuja is completely politicized and politicians send in names of family members who are not qualify for employment and approval are given for immediate employment into Colleges of Education as teaching staff without any form of interview to ascertain their quality. Even when institutions recruits, favouritism played out. The negative trend hinder qualitative learning. The propensities that the recruited teachers are of the desire quality necessary for attainment of the educational objectives raise some doubts.

Most worrisome is the negligence of the government to improve upon teacher welfare which is an obvious truth that is known to everybody. Academic staff remuneration has been a matter of concern. Recently in Nigeria there is mass exodus of academic staff abroad in search of better opportunities because the staff remuneration in colleges of education cannot sustain a family for a month going by the rising cost of living in the country. Alonta (2023) noted that lack of conducive environment and corresponding low remuneration for teachers in Nigeria has continue to generate serious concern with education stakeholders saying that it is one of the contributing factors to the falling standard of education in Nigeria. There is no denying of the fact that teachers at various levels and cadre of the Nigerian education system, need good welfare packages that will spur them to high performance in the discharge of their duties. Academic staff poor remuneration in colleges of education has brought about a decline in the esteem of teachers nationwide, with quite a number of them engaging in different sharp malpractices to abate the situation while others engage in private businesses of all sorts just to make ends meet. The implication of this is that teachers use their official hours to engage in their private businesses, and this is to the detriment of their students and the institutions (Alonta, 2023).

Regrettably, the institutions continue to produce graduates year after year who are a shameful demonstration of half-baked as evident in the assertions of Uchendu (2015) who observed that many Nigerian youths who graduate from tertiary institutions lack employable skills, are unemployed, and are unable to start their own business ventures, according to research. As a result, they turn to armed robbery, prostitution, political thuggery, vandalism of oil pipelines, kidnapping, and other social ills that are visible in society. This issue might not be unrelated to the inefficiency of the educational institutions tasked with strengthening the nation’s educational foundation by preparing qualified teachers (Bolaji, 2022). More alarming is the fact that reports from basic competency examinations carried out by several state governments in Nigeria indicated that the country’s educational institutions are not operating as effectively as they should. In Borno State, only 5,439 of the 17,229 teachers who took the test or 31.6%, were qualified to teach (Bolaji, 2022).

In addition, Ahmed (2017) affirmed that only 11, 220 of the 33,000 instructors who took the test in Kaduna State were qualified educators while 21,780 were not. This leaves us with the possibility that if the test is replicated in different States, the result can be the same. If the teachers who are responsible for laying the nation’s educational cornerstone are of poor quality, one can only picture the dismal level of Nigeria’s foundational education. This circumstance tends to support the claim that the nation’s institutes of education have fallen short of their objectives.

The question raise now is that in view of these problems, what is the institutions doing to ameliorate the situation? On the part of government, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) has stepped in to provide focused and transformative intervention in Public Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria through funding and effective project management. But then the internal dynamics of management of academic institutions, the assurance that they should undertake in order to bring out the quality graduates or meet the goals for the establishment of the institutions is what the researcher is concern about. Ekpoh et al. (2020) identified this situation to be troubling because it shows that there are still not enough trained instructors in a nation with 152 institutes of education. It is on this premise that the researcher seeks to examine the extent to which quality assurance practice influence lecturers’ role performance of Colleges of Education in Cross River State, Nigeria.

Statement of the problem

Colleges of education in Cross River State, Nigeria, strive to maintain high academic standards through staff training, infrastructure maintenance, adherence to admission policies, and instruction supervision. However, issues like dilapidated infrastructure, poor student placement, and irregular supervision of lecturers’ activities negatively impact the quality of students produced. Public outcries have led to poor graduates and students struggling to showcase their learning. This study aims to investigate the impact of quality assurance practices on lecturers’ role performance in these institutions.

Purpose of the study: The purpose of this study is to examine quality assurance practices and lecturers’ role performance of colleges of education in Cross River State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study aimed to:

1. Determine the extent to which staff training predict lecturers’ role performance
2. Determine how students’ admission policy predict lecturers’ role performance
3. Determine the extent to which teaching-learning facilities predict lecturers’ role performance
4. Determine the extent to which staff training, students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities collectively predict lecturers’ role performance

Research questions: How do staff training, students’ admission policy, and provision of teaching-learning facilities collectively predict lecturers’ role performance?

Statement of hypotheses: There is no significant individual and collective prediction of staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy, and provision of teaching-learning facilities on lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State, Nigeria.

METHODS

The research design adopted for the study was a correlational research design. The population of this study consist of all academic staff of colleges of Education in Cross River State. Records obtained from the office of the Registrar College of Education (COE), Akamkpa and Federal College of Education (FCE), Obudu (2023) indicated that the institutions involved have a total number of 485 academic staff. College of Education Akamkpa has 184 academic staff, while Federal College of Education, Obudu has 301 academic staff. Proportionate sampling technique was employed in selecting 242 respondents representing (50%) of the population to participate in the study. A researcher developed questionnaires titled “Quality Assurance Practices Questionnaire (QAPQ)” and Lecturers’ Role Performance Questionnaire (LRPQ)’. The instruments were pilot tested using Cronbach Alpha (α) statistics and the coefficient obtained range from .75 to .85, .89 respectively which are indicative of strong positive reliability indices. The data collected were tested with simple and multiple regression and the findings showed thus:

RESULTS

H0₁: staff training does not significantly predict lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State. In order to carry out the statistical analysis, simple linear regression analysis was executed with staff training as predictor variable and lecturers’ role performance as criterion variable. The result obtained from the test statistical analysis are summarized and presented in Table 1.

Table 1: Regression analysis of lecturers’ role performance on staff training

The statistical computation as revealed in Table 2 shows that an R-value of .284 was obtained, resulting in an R-squared value of .081. This means that the variation in staff training accounted for about 81% of the total variation in role performance of lecturers thus, the p-value (.000^b) associated with the computed F-value (38.178) is less than .05. As a result, the null hypotheses was rejected. This means that, staff training does significantly predict lecturers’ role performance.

To test the significance of the combination of both the regression constant (20.051) and the regression coefficient (.358) making significant contribution in the predict model that is, prediction of role performance of lecturers (t=21.011& 6.179 p=.000 <.05), thus, the absence of staff training means, the decrease in the role performance of lecturers. The mathematical relationship (predict model) is depicted by the following equation y=20.051+ .358x where y= staff training and x is role performance of lecturers in Colleges of Education in Cross River State.

H0₂: students’ admission policy does not significantly predict lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of education in Cross River State. To test this hypothesis, simple linear regression analysis was executed with staff training as predictor variable and lecturers’ role performance as criterion variable. The result obtained from the test statistical analysis are summarized and presented in Table 2.

Table 2: Regression analysis of lecturers’ role performance on adherence to students’ admission policy

The statistical computation as revealed in Table 8 shows that an R-value of .911^a was obtained, resulting in an R-squared value of .829. This means that the variation in adherence to students’ admission policy accounted for about 82.9% of the total variation in role performance of lecturers thus, the p-value (.000^b) associated with the computed F-value (2118.130) is less than .05. As a result, the null hypotheses was rejected. This means that, adherence to students’ admission policy does significantly predict role performance of lecturers.

To test the significance of the combination of both the regression constant (7.678) and the regression coefficient (1.153) making significant contribution in the predict model that is, prediction of role performance of lecturers (t=19.093& 46.023p=.000 <.05). The mathematical relationship (predict model) is depicted by the following equation y=7.678+ 1.153x where y= adherence to students’ admission policy and x is role performance of lecturers in Colleges of Education in Cross River State.

H0₃: Provision of teaching-learning facilities does not significantly predict lecturers’ role performance. To test this hypothesis, simple linear regression analysis was executed with staff training as predictor variable and lecturers’ role performance as criterion variable. The result obtained from the test statistical analysis are summarized and presented in Table 3.

Table 3: Regression analysis of lecturers’ role performance on provision of teaching-learning facilities

The statistical computation as revealed in Table 9 shows that an R-value of .342^a was obtained, resulting in an R-squared value of .117. This means that the variation in provision of teaching-learning facilities accounted for about 11.7% of the total variation in role performance of lecturers thus, the p-value (.000^b) associated with the computed F-value (57.736) is less than .05. As a result, the null hypotheses was rejected. This means that, provision of teaching-learning facilities does significantly predict job performance of teachers.

To test the significance of the combination of both the regression constant (17.549) and the regression coefficient (.512) making significant contribution in the predict model that is, prediction of role performance of lecturers (t=15.873& 7.598, p=.000 <.05), thus, the absence of the provision of teaching-learning facilities the decrease in the role performance of lecturers. The mathematical relationship (predict model) is depicted by the following equation y=17.549+ .512x where y= provision of teaching-learning facilities and x is role performance of lecturers in Colleges of Education in Cross River State.

H0₄: There is no significant, collective prediction of staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities on lecturers’ role performance. To test this hypothesis multiple regression analysis was executed. The result obtained from the test statistical analysis are summarized and presented in Table 4.

Table 4: Regression analysis of lecturers’ role performance on staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities

*p<.05

Table 4 reveled that an R-value of .970 was obtained, resulting in an R-squared value of .940. This means that the variation in staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities, collectively accounted for about 94.00% of the total variation lecturers’ role performance.  Thus, the p-value (.000) associated with the computed F-value (1709.846) is less than .05. As a result, the null hypotheses was rejected. This means that, staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities does collectively and significantly predict lecturers’ job performance.

To test the significance of the combination of both the regression constant (2.186) and the regression coefficient staff training (.977), adherence to students’ admission policy (.030) and provision of teaching-learning facilities (.520), making significant contribution in the predict model that is, prediction of lecturers’ role performance (t= 5.682, 58.736 1.613, and 27.405 p=.000 ≤ p  ≥ .107), thus, the absence of staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities can predict lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State.

DISCUSSION OF RESULTS

Staff training and lecturers’ role performance

It was established through the results of data analysis that staff training does significantly predict lecturers’ role performance. The results are in line with the findings of Fejoh and Faniran (2016) who investigated the impact of in-service training and staff development on workers’ job performance and optimal productivity in public secondary schools in Osun State, Nigeria. The findings showed that in-service training and staff development had insignificant combined effects but significant relative effects on workers’ optimal job productivity. In the same vein, the results align with Musa (2016) who investigated the impact of staff development programmes on the performance of teachers in secondary schools in Yola Metropolis, Adamawa State. The finding of the study revealed that teachers’ performance was positively impacted through regular in-service training, workshops, and seminars and mentoring. Also, the findings agree with Shahroz, Tariq and Muhammad (2022) who evaluated the effectiveness of in-service teaching training on the job performance of teachers. The findings revealed that there was a positive and moderate effect of in-service teaching training on teachers’ job performance in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. And Abazie (2020) who examined the correlation of in-service training and teachers’ job performance in public secondary schools in Enugu State, Nigeria. The major findings of the study showed that teachers mean rating on their participation in in-service training programmes was above average, teacher mean rating of their job performance was above average, and there were strong positive and significant relationships between teacher professional in-service training, teacher workshop training, teacher orientation and conference attendance and job performance in public secondary schools in Enugu State, Nigeria.

Adherence to students’ admission policy and lecturers’ role performance

The study revealed that adherence to students’ admission policy significantly does predict lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State. When an institution maintains standard and adhere strictly to admission criteria, the number of students admitted into any programme of study will outweigh the staff strength and the available facilities to accommodate the students. The results agree with the findings of Abbas; Garba and Abubakar (2023) who investigated admission policies, students’ academic performance and retention in Colleges of Education in North-west Zone Nigeria. Also, the study is in line with Orike (2019) who investigated the Impact of Admission Policy on Academic Performance of Undergraduate students as perceived by academic staff, senior administrative staff and final year students in South-South Zone, Nigeria. The result showed that the respondents generally agree that admission policies of university education have high impact on academic performance of undergraduate students of Colleges of Education in South-South Zone, Nigeria.

Provision of teaching-learning facilities and lecturers’ role performance

The results of data analysis showed that provision of teaching-learning facilities significantly predict lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State. The results are in conformity with the findings of Gbesoevi (2021) who examined the relationship between educational facilities and quality teaching in universities in Lagos State, Nigeria. The test of the first hypothesis showed a significant relationship between educational facilities availability and quality teaching in universities in Lagos State, Nigeria (r= -.096, p <.05), while the second hypothesis shows a significant relationship between educational facilities utilization and quality teaching in universities in Lagos State, Nigeria (r= 0.062, p <.05).

CONCLUSION

Based on the findings, the conclusion is drawn that quality assurance practices such as staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities are among the various determinants of lecturers’ role performance in Colleges of Education in Cross River State. The absence of staff training, adherence to students’ admission policy and provision of teaching-learning facilities depict poor role performance among lecturers of the institution.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations have been made.

1. Lecturers’ should be encouraged to advance their career and also regular training such as workshop attendance, conferences and symposium should be organized to keep lecturers abreast of the innovation and changes in teaching
2. Management of colleges of education should regulate the number of students admit per time to avoid over population and promote effectiveness in the role performance of lecturers.
3. Necessary teaching-learning facilities that will enhance role performance of lecturers in Colleges of Education should be adequately provided for to promote effective teaching and learning.

REFERENCES

1. Abbas, A.H; Garba, A. M & Abubakar, Y. (2023). Relationship between admission policies, students’ academic performance and retention in Colleges of Education in North-West Zone, Nigeria. African Journal of Humanities & Contemporary Education Research, 12(1): 195-209
2. Abazie, G. A. (2020). In-service training as correlates of teachers’ job performance in public secondary schools in Enugu State, Nigeria. European Journal of Education Studies, 7(11):390-412
3. Ahmed, I. A. (2017). Kaduna teachers’ competency test: The untold story, the cable. Retrieved 21 June, 2024 from https://www.thecable.ng/kaduna-teachers’-competency-test-untold-story.
4. Bolaji, A. (2022). Questions about Nigeria’s faltering colleges of education. University World News African Edition. Retrieved 21 June, 2024 from https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=2022068134027413
5. Edet, A. O. Ekpoh, U. I; & Ukpong, N. N. (2020). Security challenges in universities: implications for safe school environment. Journal of Educational and Social Research, 6(2), 231-240. Retrieved 21 June, 2024 from Doi: https://doi.org/10.36941/jesr-2020-0113.
6. Ekpoh, U. I., Edet, A. O. & Nkama, V. I. (2013). Staff development programmes and secondary school teachers’ job performance in Uyo metropolis, Nigeria. Journal of education and practice, 4(12), 217-222.
7. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2014) National policy on education. Lagos, NERDC press.
8. Fejoh, J., & Faniran, V. L. (2016). Impact of in-service training and staff development on workers’ job performance and optimal productivity in public secondary schools in Osun State, Nigeria. Journal of Education and Practice, 7(33), 183-189.
9. Duze, C.O. (2019). The production theory in education. The Nigerian Academic Forum: A Multi-Disciplinary Journal 8 (2): 11-16.
10. Duze, C.O. (2016). Mis-match between educational output and the economy: The case of the LDCs. Nigerian Journal of Research in Contemporary Issues 5 (3): 1-9.
11. Israel, P. C. & Israel, H. C. (2014). Admission guidelines in colleges of education in South-East, Nigeria: An analysis of implementation. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. 5(17), 1-8.
12. Nwagwu, C.C. (2019). Women in Nigeria’s teaching profession! The challenges ahead. The Vocational Aspect of Education, 33, 87-95.
13. Nwana, O.C. (2016). Standards in Nigerian education. Keynote address at the 8th congress of the Nigeria Academy of Education.
14. Ogum, D.N. (2007). On the declining literacy among trainee teachers in Nigeria. African Journal of Education and Developmental Studies 4 (1): 143-149.
15. Orike, E.E. (2019). Impact of Admission Policy on Academic Performance of Undergraduate Students as Perceived by Academic Staff, Senior Administrative Staff and Final Year Students in the Study Area. International Journal of Innovative Development and Policy Studies 7(4):55-65.
16. Shahroz G; Tariq, M. K; & Muhammad, N. J. (2022). Effectiveness of in-service teaching training on job performance of teachers: An Empirical Study. URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.31703/gesr. 2022(VII-I).31