The Relationship between Technical Subjects and Type of Self-employment Engaged in by Secondary School Graduates in Kenya

Abstract

Provision of technical subjects in secondary schools, in part, is aimed at assisting the graduates who miss out on higher education to easily transit to the world of work and more so in self-employment. This study thus sought to determine whether there is a relationship between the technical subjects and the type of self-employment engaged in by secondary school graduates (SSG's) in Kenya. The study used an exploratory-descriptive survey research design. Chi-square test was therefore used to determine the relationship on a sample of 393 SSG's of 2009–2011 in self-employment in Mombasa and Bungoma counties. Probability proportional to size (PPS) sampling technique was used to determine the sample size per county, subject and gender. We established that there is a significant difference between the technical subjects studied by the SSG's and the type of businesses they are engaged in. We recommend that technical subjects be made compulsory in schools and each student should be encouraged to produce at least one marketable product or service, and such product should be put up for exhibition organized by the ministry of education in each district. This will further create motivation for entrepreneurship skill acquisition among the SSG's.