Confirmatory factor analysis of oral communication's learning outcomes for integrating generic employability skills into mechanical engineering curriculum in Nigerian polytechnics

Abstract

Employers are currently seeking for employees with added value on top of the relevant technical content knowledge and skills (Generic employability skills).However, recent studies have shown that most employers in Nigeria are not satisfied with the affective skills (Generic Employability Skills) possessed by the Polytechnic graduates especially in terms of language communication skills, social and interpersonal skills, and critical thinking and problem solving skills among others. The Polytechnic’s Mechanical Engineering curriculum for National Diploma Certificate is criticized for not reflecting generic employability skills development with learning outcome of Oral Communication Skill. It is therefore needful to identify the learning outcomes that should be considered while integrating generic employability skills into the curriculum in Nigerian Polytechnics. The design of the study was quantitative research which made use of questionnaire for data collection. The sample of the study consisted of randomly selected 536 respondents comprising of 234 polytechnic lecturers and 302 industrial workers. One research question was raised and analyzed with descriptive statistics and Confirmatory factor Analysis (CFA) using SPSS version 20 and AMOS 18 for data analysis. The results of the studys howed that the learning outcomes of oral communication to be considered towards integrating employability skills into mechanical engineering curriculum in Nigerian Polytechnics met the modification indicescriteria (CFI=1.000, IFI=1.001and TLI=1.002). TheChi-square=1.769 with the df=2. Hence, the ratio of the Chi-square and the df (less than3) =.885. The RMSEA(< or =.080) =.000. The items retainedinclude the Ability to speak clearly using correct grammar, Ability to present ideas confidently and effectively, Ability to listen attentively and ask questions and Ability to give a clear direction. The Cronbach Alpha obtained was 0.74.