Guidance Programmes for Enhancing Students Employability Skills in Public Senior Secondary Schools in Rivers State

Abstract

This study examined guidance programmes for enhancing Students Employability Skills in Public Senior
Secondary Schools in Rivers State. Two objectives, two research questions and two null hypotheses guided the
study. Descriptive survey design was adopted, with a population comprising all the seventy-one (71) career
counsellors in all the public secondary schools in Obio/Akpor and Port Harcourt local government areas of Rivers
State. A self-constructed questionnaires titled: “Guidance Programmes for Enhancing Students Employability
Skills Questionnaire (GPESESQ)”, was used for data collection. Mean and standard deviation were used in
answering the research questions, while t-test statistic was used in testing the hypotheses at 0.05 level of
significance. Findings revealed that educational and vocational guidance enhance students acquisition of
employability skills in public senior secondary schools in Rivers State. Based on the findings it was recommended
that guidance counsellors should organize seminars, mentorship programmes, and interactive workshops with
professionals to expose students to real-world expectations and workplace competencies, and Schools should
establish vocational units or partner with local industries, technical centres, and NGOs to provide students with
hands-on training in practical skills relevant to the labour market.