WILLINGNESS TO CHOOSE AGRICULTURE AS CAREER AMONGST SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN IBADAN NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF OYO STATE

Abstract

Students' performances in agricultural science in senior secondary school certificate examination (SSSCE) have been on decline in recent years.  This study ascertained the willingness to choose agriculture as career amongst secondary school students in Ibadan North local government area of Oyo State, with the hope of improving students’ academic performances in senior secondary school certificate examination as well as improving the nation agricultural development. Multistage sampling technique was used to select 149 students from two secondary schools. A   well-structured questionnaire was used to collect data. The sampled students were of different age groups, majority (52.1%) were within the age range   of 11 and 15years, 50.3% were females, while 56.3% of the parental occupation was trader. Student's attitude towards studying agriculture was (72.5%) unfavourable. The inability of agricultural science teachers to communicate effectively, a lack of teaching aids, poor parental encouragement, and the use of crude implements were the most frequently ranked challenges to choosing agriculture as a career. About 59.1% of the students were neutral, while 20.1 percent were unwilling to choose agriculture as a career. Majority of the students were unwilling to choose agriculture as career. Attitude of the students affect students’ choice of professional careers. Therefore, these variables must be put into consideration when considering programme that will motivate students in learning and choosing agriculture as a career.