CHAPTER ONE

1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Educational from the beginning has been a strong instrument of change towards our economic, social, political and technology development.

In he past years, Nigeria has realized that she can attain self reliance through technological advancement and so has placed serious emphasis on technology education (Eze 1996) technical or vocational education is one of he form of education that is in existence before the introduction of western education in Nigeria. Oshuala (1995:145) stated that technical education is an education designed at upper secondary and lower tertiary levels to prepare middle level personnel and at university level to prepare engineers and technologists for higher management positions. The advanced Learner’s Dictionary as cited in Okorie (1981:29) referred to technical education as “the phase of education which seeks to help the students acquire special mechanical or manipulative skills required in industrial arts or applied science”. A more detailed definition of technical education was provided by the committee on research and publications of the American Vocational Association which stated that vocational education is “education designed to develop skills, abilities, understanding attitudes, work habits and appreciations encompassing knowledge and information needed by workers to enter and make progress in employment on a useful and productive basis”. They are various skills taught as part of informal education, these are farming, weaving, sculpturing, blacksmithing and so on.

When the missionaries introduced western education, they aimed at teaching Christian ethics, reading, writing, arithmetic and later it was expanded and they introduced, farming, block laying and carpentry as part of western education but these skills were not seriously regarded by pupils and parents as an integral part of western education and the practice virtually died out before the turn of the present century.

The introduction of this course in Government Technical College Enugu State marks the beginning of organized technical and vocational education in Nigeria. It also marked the beginning of mechanical engineering craft practice. To be sincere, the importance of mechanical engineering craft practice cannot be over emphasized because effective technological education serves as a powerful instrument for national development.

The national policy on education (1971) defines technical education as aspect of education which leads to the acquisition of practical and applied skill as well as basic scientific knowledge. Engineering technology is important for the support it gives directly or indirectly to man for her existence ad economical development for comfort. Technology contributes very remarkably to the government revenue and foreign exchange earning. These is however no doubt that the technology is a basic foundation for our welfare sound economic development and technological advancement.