PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS

1
CARRIER DECISIONS OF SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND THEIR
CHOICE OF ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES: A CASE STUDY OF KADJEBI – ASATO
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
PUBLICATION BY:
AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE
EMAIL: justypapa@gmail.com
Tel: 0248937349 / 0500502282
AND
BLESS ACHEAMPONG
Tel: 0240730443

2
ABSTRACT
Career decision and programme selection in the senior high school continues to be problematic
for parents, students and other stakeholders due to the challenges it presents. The purpose of this
study was to find out how the career decisions of senior high school students affect their choice
of academic programmes. The descriptive survey design was employed for this study. The
researcher used both questionnaire and interviews as the main instruments for data collection.
The target population for the study was all the first students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school.
These students would have completed the process of selecting a programme and will be asked to
reflect on the process. In all, 80 students were used for the study. Simple random sampling
strategy under the probability sampling technique was employed to select respondents for the
study. Tables and percentages were used for the analysis of the response. Findings showed that
the career decisions of senior high school students strongly affect their choice of academic
programmes. It also emerged from the study that students consider their own interest, intellectual
abilities, parents’ advice, friends/peers career choice, individual value, societal perception,
teachers’ advice, occupation of parents among others when making career decisions. It also came
out that students can best be assisted to make realistic choices in their career decisions through
career guidance being given a slot on the school time table, field trips to companies to expose
students to the world of work, organization of career conferences, formation of career guidance
clubs in schools and the provision of school based guidance counselors. Based on the findings, it
was recommended that the Ghana education service should ensure that each educational unit has
a guidance and counseling centre to offer guidance services to students, parents and teachers
relating to careers and other social issues. These centers will also serve as a place where students
can go to gather more information on matters relating to career and other personal issues.

3
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 Background to the Study
Education, according to human right activists, is a right not a privilege. This means that every
child of school going age in the present era needs to be given the opportunity to access
education, particularly formal education. Education therefore refers to the procedures and
practices that leads to an improvement in the quality of individual, enhanced performance and
improved social conditions as a whole. According to Omane-Akuamoah et-el (2004), education
helps to develop and encourage desirable traits in the individual which are socially approved and
also nurtures the individual’s intellectual abilities.
Globally, the major task of education as a social enterprise is to produce individuals who can
contribute effectively to achieve the goals of their communities and the nation as a whole.
However, to achieve these goals, the total development of the individual’s cognitive, affective
and psychomotor domain is absolutely paramount and therefore demands a well-resourced
educational and vocational guidance service to help students cope with academic, social,
personal or emotional demands and to make successful transitions through life.
In today’s wake of science and technology, the world has become a global village. Distance
between nations has lost its significance; there is explosion of knowledge which has become
closer to access than ever. These calls for redesigning of human and material resources to meet

4
the challenges that comes with this situation. It is this that informed the birth of Ghana’s
Educational Reforms. In the Ghanaian traditional educational set up, parents took their children
through the values and norms of society and also taught them occupations which became their
career. The children were taught farming, hunting, black smiting among others to enable them fit
well in to society. With the inception of western education, the idea of training the young to
acquire employable skills was not discarded. Successive governments over the years till now,
have laid serious emphasis through educational reforms on the need to have programmes in
schools that will train the youth to occupy their positions in society. For instance, the White
Paper Reports (2010) of the Education Reform Review Committee emphasizes the need to make
Guidance and Counseling an essential component of school education. For this purpose, every
school is supposed to have a school-based guidance officer. Like Arbuckle (1998) says, the
counselor is considered to be neither a ‘teacher’ nor an ‘educator’. According to him, he/she is
supposed to be known as a school Guidance Counselor whose work in the school is to have the
student as the ultimate focus in an attempt to make the whole educational enterprise beneficial to
the student. This view is supported by Gibson and Mitchell (1990), when they said “Guidance
and counseling help students to assess their potentials and make proper career decisions and
development in life”.
Career decision making generally becomes important during adolescence, when individuals
typically begin to explore their abilities, values, interests, and opportunities in preparation for
career exploration (Gati & Saka, 2001).Hiebert (1993) states, “choosing a career is perhaps
second only to choice of mate in terms of the pervasiveness of the impact on one’s life”.
According to Namale (2012), every student at the threshold of life has to find a satisfactory
answer to an important question ‘what shall I do in life?’ It is upon a satisfactory answer to this

5
question that the success and future happiness of the student depends. This implies that the
selection of a wrong career leads to unhappiness, discontent and ultimate failure, since the career
that a person follows is not merely a means of earning a livelihood but also a means of life.
However, in other to answer the question ‘what shall I do in life?’ The individual has to consider
and answer for himself/herself yet another question ‘what am I best fitted for?’ Studies have
proven that many individuals go through life without making a success of it because they do not
pursue the career they are best suited to follow, and hence do not find their true place in life. As a
result, they struggle in life without achieving much. It is for this reason that the individual
student at the high school level’s first task is to find the right course that matches a desired career
to pursue.
Consequently, in helping to select a career for the student, parents are often attracted by the
loftiness or lucrativeness of the profession, irrespective of the fact whether the student is fitted
for the career or not. They think that ‘success is entirely confined to the high peaks, forgetting
that the lovely violet which modestly fulfill its mission by shedding its fragrance all around it, is
as worthy of praise as the mighty oak under whose shadow it blooms and dies’. Nothing can be
harmful to a person than an ambition which over-reaches itself. A person with a career in which
he is a misfit goes through life devoid of physical vitality or intellectual vivacity needed for a full
life (Namale 2012). While selecting a career, students should not be taken in merely by its
extraneous consideration or its standing and lucre or the ambitions of the parents but its
suitability to their own inclinations and aptitudes. But the task of finding the true inclinations and
aptitudes of students and selecting the appropriate career is not easy. Hence the need for
education supplemented with effective educational and vocational guidance. It is highly
undisputable that one of the important functions of education is to guide the child while still in

6
school for a right career choice which would accord well with the student’s abilities, aptitudes,
interests, personality, qualities, and present circumstances (Super 1980).
Every year senior high school bound graduating junior high school students are faced with the
problem of selecting a programme for study. Most researchers argue that the selection process
typically involves considering many factors such as the career interests of students (Salifu,
2000), prospects of employment and job security (Asaolu 2001), Intellectual ability (Bruce and
Shelly 1976), and Interest (Olayinka 1993). However, identifying whether the career decisions of
SHS student affect their choice of academic programme is the goal of this study.
1.1 Statement of the Problem
Most students from Junior High School in Ghana find it difficult in making a realistic subject
combination to enable them be abreast with time on the kind of career programme they wish to
pursue in future. Such situations occur when they are about finishing junior high school to climb
the career ladder to get into the career world of work. The decision as to what career path to
pursue and the programme that matches the desired career are two critical decisions that students
make at this time in their lives (Johnson & Chapman, 1979).Programmes such as General Arts,
Science, Visual Art, Home Economics, Technical and Vocational and Business oriented courses
are available for selection (Ackummey et al 2001). These courses prepare the students to enable
them adopted changing job opportunities and occupational skills as it forms the basis for their
final advancement in to Polytechnics, Universities and other higher institutions of study.
However, these students may only have a vague notion of future educational needs and benefits
and therefore must be adequately informed and guided to make appropriate choices.

7
According to Super (1990), career decision becomes significant during late adolescence and
early adulthood. During this time, senior high school students enter a time in their lives when
seeking career information and becoming aware of their vocational interests is a major
developmental task. As observed by Taveiraet al (1998), ‘the process of career decision making
can be a particularly stressful time in an adolescents’ life’. In reaction to this stress, adolescents
may attempt to place the responsibility for making a career decision onto others and may even
delay or avoid making a choice, which could ultimately lead to a less than optimal decision (Gati
&Saka 2001). As suggested by Larson and Majors (1998), the affective distress associated with
career decision making among adolescents may be adaptive because it increases their motivation
to seek help, thus decreasing the chances for uninformed decisions.
The choices of programmes by Junior High School graduates are normally influenced by many
factors. Most students in the Kadjebi district make choices of programmes and careers with
influence by their peers and not taking in to consideration their individual interest, strengths and
weaknesses. Others are advised to pursue courses and occupations of their parents and even
worse, parents select programmes for their wards without taking in to consideration the
performance levels of their wards talk less of their interests, capabilities and career decisions.
A critical analysis of this situation calls for an in-depth investigation in to these phenomena to
ascertain how students in make their career decisions and its impact on the choice of academic
programmes.

8
1.2 Purpose of the Study
The main purpose of this study is to investigate how senior high senior school students make
their career decisions and how these decisions affects the choice of academic programmes in the
Kadjebi District of the Volta Region. The study will give particular attention to the first year
students of Kadjebi - Asato Senior High School (KASEC). These students would have completed
the process of selecting a programme and will be asked to reflect on the process.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The study will be guided by three research objectives.
1. To examine how students of KASEC make their career decisions.
2. To investigate how the career decisions, affect the choice of academic
programmes of students of KASEC in Kadjebi District.
3. To explore better ways of helping students to make better choices in their career
decisions in KASEC.
1.4 Research Questions
From the study’s objectives, three research questions are to be verified.
1. How do students of KASEC in Kadjebi District make career decisions?
2. How do the career decisions of students of KASEC affect the choice of academic
programmes?
3. In what ways can students of KASEC in the Kadjebi District be helped to make
better choices in their career decisions?

9
1.5 Significance of the Study
In terms of academic interest, the study has potential to contribute to what is already known
about the process of choosing a career and a programme of study. Characteristics of decisions
made by students to pursue a particular programme are not well understood (Puffet, 1983). The
study may increase knowledge about factors that are considered influential.
Senior High schools counselors involved with students making this decision may gain greater
insight into the process as a result of this study. An awareness and understanding of the choice
making process and those factors that students consider influential is critical to personnel
working with students during this decision making process and should assist counselors in
helping students make appropriate choices.
Best of all, this research will serve as a useful tool for students and other researchers who will be
researching in to issues relating to career decisions making among Senior High School Students
and the choice of academic programmes. It will serve as a secondary data for further research.
1.6 Limitation of the research
The sample size for the study was relatively small and therefore the findings cannot be
generalized to other schools in the area.

10
The researcher collected data from only the students. He acknowledged that their teachers will
have provided useful information to understand the phenomenon under study.
Data was collected during vacation class, which made the entire work very stressful since the
researcher have to make follow-up to homes of some respondents to retrieve administered
questionnaires.
1.7 Scope of the Study
The focus of this study is on assessing the career decisions of SHS students and their choice of
academic programmes. The researcher is interested in finding how students make their career
decisions and how these decisions affect their choice of academic programmes. The location for
the study is the Kadjebi – Asato Senior High School (KASEC), which is situated within the
Kadjebi District of the Volta Region. The study is delimited to the first year students of the
school. The study is retrospective. Participants were asked to reflect and recall situations and
decisions that occurred in the past. The first year students would have completed the process of
selecting a programme and were asked to reflect on the process.
1.8 Definition of Key Terms
Senior High School: as part of the new educational reforms programme on structured and
content, senior high school come after junior high school and it takes three years as a preparation
to enter the tertiary.

11
Students: they are learners or people who study from the junior high school level to the senior
high level.
Educational Guidance: it is the assistance given to students to understand his/her potentialities,
have a clear cut idea of the different educational opportunities and their requirements, so as to
make wise choices with regards to school, colleges and courses.
Vocational Guidance: it is a process that is intended to help student cope with problems relating
to occupational choices, plans and adjustments.
Career: it is the job or profession for which one is trained and which one intends to follow for
the whole of one’s life.
Career decision: making a choice or decision leading to the type of work one will do in her life-
time.
Career development: the process of developing skills, aptitudes, and the knowledge of the
world of work.
1.9 Organization of the study
In line with the purpose of this study, the research comprises five chapters. The first chapter sets
the background of the study offering up what is to be studied, the statement of the problem of
which the research is being undertaken, the purpose of the study, objectives of the study and
research questions. It also includes the significance of the study, the delimitation of the study and
operational definition of terms. Chapter two, however, looks at the review of related literature. In
this chapter, the study is to look at what others have written in relation to the topic. Chapter three

12
presents the methodology of the study. This chapter describes the research design, the site and
subject characteristics, the population, sampling, sample size and sampling technique. The other
aspect of chapter three are the instrument for data collection, pre-testing of instrument, access,
data collection procedure, data analysis, limitation of the study and ethical consideration.
Chapter four deals with the presentation, analysis and discussion of results of the data. Finally,
chapter five addresses the summary, findings, conclusions, recommendations and suggestions for
further studies.

13
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction
This chapter outlines and discusses the theoretical framework of this research. The theoretical
framework is built and organized in line with the under listed themes which are derived from the
research questions:
1. The ways students make their career decisions
2. The effects of students career decisions on the choice of academic programmes
3. Ways of helping students to make better choices in their career decisions.
2.1 The ways students make their career decisions
The discussion presented in this section pertains to research question one (1) which seeks to
investigate the ways that students make their career decisions. The discussion is informed by the
theory that career decisions of senior high school students have a direct bearing on their choice
of academic programmes. The research question may thus be re-stated as: “how do students of
KASEC in the Kadjebi district make their career decisions?” Career may be defined as the
progress and actions taken by a person throughout a lifetime, specially related to that person‘s
occupations. A career is often composed of the jobs held, titles earned and work accomplished
over a long period of time, rather than just referring to one‘s position. It can also be described as
a person‘s progress or general course of action through a phase of life, as in some profession or
undertaking. Microsoft Encarta defines career as somebody‘s progress in a chosen profession or
during that person‘s working life, or the general path of progress taken by somebody. Choosing a
career is an extremely important decision that impacts an individual‘s entire future. The Career

14
decision making process begins with career exploration. Career exploration is defined as the
extent to which possible careers are researched and considered. Navin (2009) has suggested that
exploring career options before committing to a career increases future career success and
satisfaction. Thus, variables that influence career exploration in adolescents should be identified
and acknowledged. However, Sociologists stress on the forces in society as the major
determinants of vocational choice. Some sociologists consider the birth right of the individual as
a most significant factor in career choice since it establishes the family, race, nationality, social
class, residential district, and to a large extent the educational and cultural opportunities for the
person. Others argue that the range of occupations that an individual will consider in choosing a
career is determined largely by the status expectations of the social class to which he belong
(Friesen, 1981). Similarly, parents strongly influence their children in the choice of a career. In
some cases, as stated by Friesen (1981), children inherit their father‘s occupations. In other
cases, the children choose an occupation within the range acceptable to parental values,
expectations and social class. In addition, educational opportunities clearly influence vocational
choice. For example, students who drop out of high school restrict their occupational choices to
manual work or in many cases to insecure white collar jobs, or the semi-skilled and unskilled
service or clerical occupations.
Psychologists, in comparison to the sociologists, are interested in the inner world of the
individual and the role personality plays in vocational choice. According to Friesen (1981) the
psychologist believes that the career a person chooses is an expression of the personality of the
individual. Thus personality theory is particularly important in vocational counseling. However,
several theories of personality such as psychoanalytic, Trait, self and developmental theories are
briefly discussed as follows:
a. Trait theory:
Trait theory, as Friesen stated attempts to understand the person in relationship to his personal
characteristics or traits which are considered to be behavior manifestations of the individual. A
person can be described as articulate, bright, dull, loving, sensitive, open, closed, extroverted,

15
introverted, neurotic or psychotic. According to Friesen, the assumption of trait theory is that
people differ in their personal characteristics and jobs differ in their requirements. Counseling is
then an attempt to match traits with jobs. The counselor administers tests to clients and on the
basis of the results of these tests and other information such as interview data, references and
past performance, a matching process is undertaken. This method according to Friesen, which is
also used in the educational admission process, and in the high school, university and
employment service where matching the individual qualities with educational opportunities and
jobs is often taken for granted and practiced indiscriminately.
b. Structural theory:
Structural theorists are personality theorists who view human personality as a structured whole
with distinctive attributes. These attributes are organized in a unique manner and are
characteristic of the individual. Friesen (1981) reviewed some structural theories which are
identified as follows:
i. Psychoanalytic Theorist
These theorists view vocational choice as an expression of the personality of the individual.
Such concepts as identification, the development of defense mechanisms, sublimation and
unconscious drives can be used to explain vocational choice.

16
ii. Self-Concept theorists,
Friesen assume that vocational choice is an attempt by the person to implement his self-concept.
The self is defined as a differentiated part of the total phenomenal field or it is the awareness one
has of one‘s being. It is argued by self-theorists that in the job as well as in life generally, the
person attempts to express his sense of who he is. He attempts to live out in his job his values,
hopes, dreams and aspirations. The degree to which he can express who he is, according to
Friesen, is related to the degree of job satisfaction a person obtains from his job. If the job is
congruent with his conception of which he is as a person, the individual will have a high job
satisfaction. On the other hand, if the job involves activities which are inconsistent with his sense
of self, the person will have low job satisfaction.
iii. Need theorists
They propose that personal needs, whether at the conscious or unconscious level, are the major
determinants of vocation choice. The need hierarchy theory of Maslow is of particular interest to
vocational counselors. Developmental theorists Friesen (1981) believe that vocational choice is
not only an expression of the total personality, but also that it occurs over a developmental
sequence. Vocational choice is not a single event but should be viewed longitudinally.
Accordingly, Friesen quoting some theorists such as Super, proposed four life stages, namely
growth, exploration, establishment and decline. The exploration phase which characteristically
occurs during high school and college is a period where the person explores various vocational
alternatives and finally decides on a life‘s work.
These theories as stated has a direct link with the objectives of this study since senior high school
bound graduating junior high school students have to assess themselves psychologically and

17
sociologically in terms of their abilities, skills, interest and plans before exploring various
vocational alternatives in order to finally decide on the appropriate programmes that suits their
chosen careers. These are however critical issues of interest this study seeks to explore among
students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school to investigate how these theories can influence how
student make their career decisions. Also, there are other underlying factors which influence
adolescents‘ career choice and which have in the last half century become of growing interest to
educators, counselors, ministers, and social scientists. Key among these influential factors are
parents, peers, career interests of students, prospects of employment and job security and
Intellectual ability (Hughey 2001). The following are some of the factors considered as
influential on how students make their career decisions:
2.1.1 Parental influences
Parents want their children to be successful in life. They hope to one day see them in satisfying
careers with the promise of growth. The thought of seeing their children in dead-end jobs may be
saddening. Parents wonder if there is anything they can do to help ensure that their children are
successful.
Immediately after completing Junior High School, students are both overwhelmed and excited
with the thought of striking out on their own and starting to work towards their own career
aspirations. These newly graduated students are the ones making the decisions for their futures
now, and with fresh ideas, they are thrust into this whole new world of choosing a programme to
pursue at the Senior High School level which will eventually determine their career pathways.
Most students have limited thoughts as to how to make these decisions, so they rely on their
parents for answers. The decision of which programme to pursue or which career path to follow

18
encompasses its own set of reasons, but what is it that makes these students so sure of the
particular career path that they choose? Some believe career decisions are influenced by factors
that include the level of educational achievements, one’s ambition, talent, and a great family
influence (Miller, Wells, Springer, and Cowger, 2003). However, there is no argument that your
upbringing has a significant impact on the person you become; therefore, it is entirely plausible
to make the assumption that parents would have some level of influence over a child’s secondary
education and career choices.
Studies from Knowles (1998); Marjoribanks (1997); Mau and Bikos (2000); Smith (1991);
Wilson and Wilson (1992) have found that college students and young adults cite parents as an
important influence on their choice of career. Yet parents may not be unaware of the influence
they have on the career development and vocational choice of their children. The adolescents or
the young adults are in most cases at the mercy of their parents. In most times, it is a period of
identity crisis. Their meats are cut, laces tied, and make sure that they have wiped or cleaned up
after using the toilet and yet they are ask one of the most important questions they will ever have
to answer: ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’ Cradled between finger-painting and
thinking of a career path to pursue, adolescence is a critical period during which individuals
discover who they are and how they might like to earn a living. The career choice process of
young people can be compared to rocks in a polisher. ―All kinds of people grind away at
them…but, parents are the big rocks in the tumbler as agued by Otto (1989). Parents serve as
major influences in the lives of their children.
In a research by Tziner, Loberman, Dekel and Sharoni (2012), they found that the better the
parent-child relationship is, and the more supported the child felt, the more willing the child was

19
to take career choice advice from the parent. If this positive parenting impacts children’s career
choices, what is the outcome of parents influencing their children into their same profession?
Generally, when children or students are treated as if their opinions matter, they are more
receptive to their parent’s ideas and that potentially opens the doors to looking into the same
professions as their parents. This would indicate that even positive influences might not
determine if a child will pursue the profession of his or her parents.
On the other end of the spectrum, some children are less motivated when under pressures from
parents. Dietrich and Kracke (2009) reported “if adolescents perceive their parents as putting
through their own wishes for the child’s future career rather than collaborating with the child in
preparing for a career this may be interpreted as disinterest in the child’s plans. Those who are
negatively influenced by their parents are less likely to choose the same career field of their
parents, which is partially a critical issue of interest to this study.
Shellenbarger (2006) supported relieving the pressures on students to follow suit in parents’
footsteps when he commented “…the best lesson we can tell our kids is that it’s fine to switch
careers”. Similarly, Mark Franklin, a career counselor comments ― parents say what is a good
career and what is a bad career. ―By the time parents figure out what the world is about, they
think about job security, financial security, and prestige - particularly prestige, says Franklin
(2003).
Parents in particular, play a significant role in the occupational aspirations and career goal
development of their children (Taylor, Harris, and Taylor 2004). Without parental approval or
support, students and young adults are often reluctant to pursue, or even explore diverse career

20
possibilities. Although parents acknowledge their role and attempt to support the career
development of their children, parental messages contain an underlying message of ‘don‘t make
the same mistakes that I did’. These interactions may influence adolescents and young adults to
select specific academic programmes or pursue particular occupations. However, the level of
parental involvement in a child’s life, whether positive or negative, can impact how the child
chooses his or her future careers.
Dietrich and Kracke (2009) conducted a study primarily to determine the value of mechanisms to
test parent involvement in career development of 359 German citizens aged 15 to 18 years old.
Participants were surveyed on their parent’s involvement in their secondary education options.
Conclusions showed that the majority of the students were supported by their parents in their
respective career choices. It was inferred that reasons for students experiencing a lack of
encouragement or too much interference could be due to, or lead to, too much pressure being
placed on the student. While what parents have to say is important and has been previously
determined to be very influential and helpful, too much of any one thing might give a student
cause to disengage from the career-seeking options altogether.
A study by Kniveton (2004) revealed that, a child’s birth order affects which parent has the most
influence on their career decisions. Through a series of questionnaires and interviews for his
study, 384 teenagers said that out of all other people, their mother and father were the most
influential when selecting a career path. Concerning birth order, it was observed that the eldest
children took advice from their fathers more often while the youngest took advice from their
mothers. At the same time, more girls took advice from mothers, and boys from fathers. Overall,
the study found that parents were shown to hold a significant influence over their children’s

21
career decisions. The influence of parents has been one of the strongest and the most persistent
factor that determines the child’s attitude towards studying a particular academic programme and
hence the choice of career. Studies have indicated in that, in Ghana some parent influence the
choice of career of their children by forcing them to pursue careers in medicine, law,
engineering, etc., without considering their personal interests and abilities. On the other hand,
parents want their children to take after them so as to protect their family name. Summarizing
from the above exposition, students in the Kadjebi district cannot be exempted from these
parental influences. This study therefore seeks to unearth how parental influences affect how
students make their career decisions among the students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school.
2.1.2 Peer Group Influences
The peer group is the first social group outside the home in which the child attempts to gain
acceptance and recognition. Among peers, children learn to form relationships on their own and
have the chance to discuss interest that adults may not share with children, such as clothing and
popular music, drugs and even sex. However, Harris (1977) suggests that an individual’s peer
group significantly influences their intellectual and personal development. Several longitudinal
studies support the conjectures that peer groups significantly affect scholastic achievement, but
relatively few studies have examined the effect peer groups have on test of cognitive ability.
Peer groups are important aspect of socialization process and their influence and pressure has
received wide acknowledgement in shaping and molding the course of an individual’s life. Peer
group are important for individual socialization as well as behavioral modification since
members are of the same-age group and its formation is dependent on multiple factors including

22
situation, an accident, or association (Brym, 2001). The development of a child is initially the
outcome of family; however, peer overtakes the socialization process with the selection and
adoption of lifestyle, appearance, social activities and academics (Sebald, 1992). Similarly, peer
groups are pivotal and dramatic in shaping individual’s perceptions, attitudes and ideas to
understand the outside world as well as decisions in future lives and also serves as major
supporting pillar in times of distress and comforts (Miller, 1992). Peer groups are helpful in
examining and scrutinizing feelings, beliefs and ideas in an acceptable manner (Corsaro, 1992).
Peer group helps the child to win his or her independence easily from domination and set before
the child a goal which is more easily attainable than the expectation of adults. This in itself
provides motivation for learning and is mainly responsible for the fact that all the members in the
groups are of similar characteristics and regard their membership of the peer group as important.
When the family is not supportive for instance, if the parent’s work extra jobs and are largely
unavailable, their children may turn to their peers for emotional support. This also occur when
the conflict between parents and children during adolescence or at any stage during a child’s
development becomes so great that the child feels punched away and seeks company elsewhere.
Most children and adolescents in this position however, do not discriminate about the kind of
group they join (Smith and Pellegrini, 2001)
Research and scholarly works on the issue of peer group influences suggest that peer groups look
beyond the confines of the home to explore and find avenues that make their direction and self-
expression more evident (Adler &Adler, 1998). Besides, at the level of decision making among
youth, studies reported that most of the decisions are dependent on ability, education, teacher
advice, and level of counseling with peers and even cultural and family background of friends

23
(Palos &Drobot, 2010). Recently, potential friends and peers are potential sources of positive
relations towards education, job search and even joining a social or political organization
(Zimmerman, 2003). Relationally, as noted by Gaviria and Raphael (2001) that negative peer
influences are overt in the form of delinquency, drug use, alcohol consumption, smoking,
sexuality and school dropout. Further, it has been argued by Thomas and Webber (2001) that the
influences are dependent on male and female, their dwellings, livelihood, classes, subjects and
career pathways. Peer influence is more observable in friendship and mutual relations and among
same-sex (Webber &Walton, 2006). Similarly, Navin (2009) sees dating as another variable that
may have an effect on career exploration of an adolescent. Career exploration is defined as the
extent to which possible careers are researched and considered. Researcher, Navin (2009) has
suggested that exploring career options before committing to a career increases future career
success and satisfaction. However, the amount of time a young adult spends dating in the college
years may affect his or her career exploration. Dating refers to spending time in a relationship
that an individual considers to be intimate and committed. However, while high parental
attachment seems to increase amount of career exploration, quantity of time spent dating may
decrease amount of career exploration.
Peer pressure is a factor that has been discovered to influence adolescents’ career choice in most
parts of Africa. In a study carried out in a polytechnic in Zimbabwe by Matope and Makotose
(2007) it appeared that peer pressure, generally, did not significantly influence female students
towards choosing engineering as a career. However they cited Giddens (1993) who argues that
peer group socialization tends to play a major part in reinforcing and further shaping gender
identity throughout a child‘s school career. It may therefore not be ruled out that peer pressure is

24
a factor influencing female students’ career choice because the researchers were not unanimous
on its influence.
This research takes a position that, peer and friends play a significant role in changing the
behavior of individual’s personality development and decision making regarding career options,
adaptation as well as positive and negative behavior in future life. Peer and friends have
considerable impetus towards career decisions and academic choices. However, if we look to the
role of parents in the socialization process and personality development, they usually play the
initial leading roles in the value transmission but peer and friends seem to have the greatest role
in adaptation of lifestyle, appearances, decision making and even educational choices. Moreover,
several studies have concluded that both parents and peers dominate in academic choices and
career decision making process. Although many researchers have demonstrated how other
factors such as community, prestige and occupational values influence students vocational
choices, several findings, among others present enough evidence of the enormous effects of
parental and peer group influences (overtly or covertly) on the career choice of adolescents.
Consequently, most students in the Kadjebi district make choices of programmes and career
combinations with influence from their peers without considering their individual strengths and
weaknesses. This study will therefore bring to bear how peer influence affects how students
make their career decisions using in the Kadjebi-Asato senior high school.

25
2.1.3 Interests and intellectual ability
Shertzer and Stone (2003) discovered that the element of ability and interest are the basic factors
influencing students in their choice of subjects in the SHS. According to them, lack of interest
can always lead to low efficiency. Developing interest in a programme enhances high
performance. A good choice of programme will help one achieve the necessary goals in one’s
chosen career path. Mitchell (2003) noted that the problem of unrealistic career choice among
students is as a result of the present state of the country. For instance, there are inadequate
professional or qualified teachers in our secondary schools to offer career guidance to students to
enable them to make realistic choices. Nwagu (2003) in his study discovered that must students
drop out of school due to wrong choices of programme, lack of interest, unrealistic career goals
and financial constraints.
According to Blau et al (2001), occupational choice is a developmental process that extends over
many years. There is therefore no single time at which young people decide upon one out of all
possible careers but, there are cross roads at which their lives take decisive turns which narrow
the range of further alternatives and this influence the ultimate choice of occupation. In other
words, one’s chosen career ought to suit his or her interest and abilities to void being trapped and
frustrated at work. Career choice therefore, implies answering questions like; what do I want?
How do I go about getting what I want? However, the first step in career choice therefore, is
being able to recognize what one wants. This is often determined by the individual’s values and
interests. The next step is reaching out for what the individual’s personal desire is and this is
seldom realized without conscious efforts.

26
Okeke (200) also believe in the notion that school subjects relevantly chosen when making a
career choice and rationally balanced and studied with definite aims by students at the
appropriate moments could form a major factor for funding individual solutions. He concluded
that a well chosen academic programmes shape the future choices of career. Students should be
adequately guided to choose programmes which match their abilities and interest so that will
allow them achieve the prime objectives of education can be achieved. Abin (2001 studied “the
pattern of academic aspiration of Nigerian adolescents and found out that many adolescents
choose different professions without proper consideration of their individual abilities and
interests. This agrees with the findings of Olayinka (1999), who found out that many students in
Africa are enticed to choose careers proper self assessments but simply because it has a high
financial benefits or large measure of prestige attached to it. Self assessment and evaluation is a
key component of career planning. Students must be keenly aware of their skills, interests, work
values and personality preferences to identify careers for which they are well-suited. Considering
the above exposition, it is clear that students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school do not make
their career decisions in isolation. Several factors which are psychological (interest and
intellectual abilities) and sociological (parents and peers) in nature influence these students in the
career decision making process. However, this partially addresses the research question “how do
students of KASEC make their career decisions?” which will be well tested in this study among
the students Kadjebi-Asato senior high school to give a more justifiable conclusion to this
phenomenon.

27
2.2 The effect of students’ career decisions on their choice of academic programmes
The theoretical discussions that are made under this theme relates to research question two of
this study which states; “how do the career decisions of students of KASEC in the Kadjebi
district affect their choice of programmes?”There is a growing body of evidence that in the
senior high school, the courses students choose can be important determinants of their future
career directions. This is why a number of researchers have proposed that in order to make good
decisions, students need an assessment of their interests as well as their abilities and achievement
levels in relation to their environment so as to find the right fit. One of such researchers is a
constructivist theorist, Fosnot (1996).In the opinion of Fosnot (1996), constructivism represents a
paradigm shift from education based on behaviorism to education based on cognitive theory.
Constructivists assume that learners construct their knowledge on the basis of interaction with
their environment. This theory is defined in terms of the individual organizing, structuring, and
restructuring of their experiences. In other words, the constructivist sees learning as creating
knowledge by acting on information gained from experience. They believe that young learner
have some understanding of what the world of work is like as well as its demands. This
understanding helps them to interpret the information they receive while new information may
also modify their understanding in an active process that continues throughout the individual’s
life in the presence effective decisions and realistic choices. Thus the constructivist theory has
significant impact on students’ choice of academic programmes for higher learning since these
programmes greatly influence their future career paths. It must be noted that the constructivists
view education as a process of helping or training an individual to understand himself or herself
and his or her environment in order to make realistic choices. However understanding the
environment involves not only academic knowledge about the environment but also a functional

28
awareness of social, educational and occupational opportunities in the environment as well as the
relative standing of the individual in relation to such opportunities. Drawing for the above view,
it may be argued that education provided in junior high schools in Ghana needs to create the
enabling environment for the preparation of student at this level for their entry in to the senior
high school. This is because the information and guidance they receive at this level greatly
influence their mind set for subjects to be learnt and consequently their choice of future careers.
Considering the observed theory, it cannot be disputed that Ghana’s educational system create an
enabling environment that help students to plan and make realistic choices. This implies that
student of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school will make reasonable career and programme
combinations that reflects their interests and abilities when guided to understand the social,
educational and occupational opportunities in their environment in order to know their relative
standing in relation to such opportunities and plan accordingly. This however calls for an in-
depth understanding of the country’s educational systems.
2.2.1 Ghana’s educational system and its influence on students career choice
The basic level of education in Ghana consists of;
a. Two years of kindergarten education
b. Six years of primary education
c. Three years of junior high school education
According to the Educational Act (Act 778) of 2008, a child who attains the school- going age (4
years) has to enter the kindergarten and receive a course of instruction as laid down by the
Ministry of Education through the Ghana Education Service. From kindergarten, the child will

29
proceed to the primary through the junior high school before entering the senior level, that is, the
senior high school.
It is worthy to note that at this level, the curriculum aim at providing learners with general
knowledge in literacy and numeracy, social skills and develop their interest in creative skills
(MOE, 2010). Thus, Mankoe (2001) states that the curriculum at the basic level embraces broad
areas of learning experiences including aesthetic and creative, human and social, linguistic and
literacy. It includes the teaching and learning of mathematics, moral, physical, scientific,
spiritual, cultural and technological concepts. Added to these are the learning of knowledge,
skills, attitudes and development of personality capable of becoming functional and productive
citizens.
Both the New Educational Reform (1987) and the Review Reforms Committee of 2007 in Ghana
requires final year students in junior high school to select programmes offered in senior high
schools, depending upon their passes (performances) at the Basic Education Certificate
Examination (B.E.C.E). Selection of students for admission is based on passes in what is termed
as core subjects – English, Mathematics, integrated Science and social studies, in addition to
other optional subjects selected from languages like French and Ghanaian Language or culture,
Basic Design and Technology (BDT) which comprises Technical Skills, Home Economics and
Visual Arts, Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Religious and Moral Education
(R.M.E). In order words, selection of students for admission is based on the best six passes
including the core subjects’ area which determines the aggregate of a student at the B.E.C.E. The
selection subsequently determines the students programme option in the senior high school and
of course his or her future career.

30
The Ghana Education Service in 1996 pointed out that in the senior high school, students need to
be guided to select subjects that have been approved for each programme of study. These
programmes, according to the GES include; General Arts, Visual Arts, Science, Business, Home
Economics and Technical. In all these programmes students are expected to do the four (4) core
Subjects in addition to elective subjects related to their programme option.
The various programmes in the senior high school and their elective subjects as released by GES
(1996) are as follows:
a. General Arts
Under the General Arts programme students are expected to study any three (3) or four (4)
subjects such as; General knowledge in Arts, Literature in English, Christian or Islamic or
Traditional Religious Studies, Ghanaian Language, Economics, Elective Mathematics, History,
Music, French, Government or Geography.
b. Vocational Programme (Home Economics)
This programme has subject areas that include selection from Management in Living, Food and
Nutrition or Clothing; one or two options selected from Economics, French, Textiles and General
knowledge in Arts.

31
c. Visual Arts
Students who opt for Visual Arts are required to study General Knowledge in Arts and a choice
from Textiles, Ceramics, Sculpture, Basketry, Jewellary, Leather works and selection of either
Picture Making or Graphic Designing. Students may in addition to the aforementioned areas
select any one (1) among literature in English, Economics, French or Music.
d. Business Programmes
This programme comprises two options; Accounting and Secretarial options
Subjects areas under the accounting option that demand students to study are Accounting,
Introduction to Business Management and any one (1) or two (2) of the under listed; Economics,
Typewriting or Computing, Business, Mathematics or principles of costing, Elective
Mathematics, Music or French. Secretarial options involve the study typewriting or Computing,
Introduction to Business Management including office practice and any one (1) or two (2) of
Accounting, Economics, Business Mathematics or Principles of Costing, Elective Mathematics,
Literature in English, Music or French.
e. Technical Programme
Under this programme, students are required to study Technical Drawing, any one (1) or two (2)
of Physics, Elective Mathematics and French in addition to a selection of Auto Mechanics,
Electronics, Applied Electricity, Building Construction, Wood Work or Metal Works.

32
f. Science Programmes
This programme comprises two options; General Science and Agricultural Science options
The General Science options consist of subjects like Physical Science, Biological Science,
Chemistry and Elective Mathematics. Agricultural Science comprises of options like General
Knowledge in Agriculture, Biology, Physics, Chemistry and Elective Mathematics.
Generally, these programmes have a structuring effect on student’s career pathways since the
programmes have subject areas that help to acquaint students with the vocational implications of
every programme option. The programmes also enable students to assess themselves in terms of
their interest, intellectual abilities and career aspirations in order to make a reasonable career and
programme combinations since the programmes students study in the senior high school
determines their career destinations. This is the reason why Dankwa (1981) stressed on the
assumption that the programmes from which students are to select or opt for go further to
determine to a large extent courses they can pursue in the university or other higher institution of
learning and where one’s career destination will be. In this view, students in the Kadjebi district
are of no exceptions when it comes to these assumptions, which will be duly investigated among
students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school to seek a more justifiable truth to the assumption
that ‘students’ career decisions affect their choice of academic programmes’.
More often than not as Ackummey (2003) states, students are loss as to which course their
secondary programmes will enable them to pursue and where such a course will lead them to in
terms of career opportunities. It was in this direction that the Ministry of Education, Youth and

33
Sports (2004) in the white paper on the report of the Education Reform Committee stated that at
the Junior High School, students need to be assisted to follow a programme of assessment and
guidance and counseling to enable them select courses based in their interests, aptitudes and
ability, whether in the area of general, technical, vocational, business, or agricultural streams.
This indicates that Ghana’s educational system have designed programmes that give students the
necessary guidance to thoroughly assess and understand their potentialities, have a clear cut idea
of the different educational opportunities and requirements and to make realistic choice of
appropriate school programmes since these programmes structure the career paths of students.
2.3 Ways of helping students to make better choices in their career decisions
This theme seeks to explore the effective strategies that can be adopted to help students make
better choices in their career decisions. However these discussions are linked to research
question three which states; “in what ways can students of KASEC in the Kadjebi district be
helped to make better choices in their career decisions?” Education helps to develop the
potentialities of individuals through orientation and direction. In the process of directing the
individual, education broadly performs three primary functions. These are developmental,
differentiating and integrating functions (Cobbs, 2001). According to Cobbs, the development of
unique qualities of each individual is a function of education. Such unique qualities include the
development of skills of the individual in the arts and sciences, social adjustment, physical,
philosophical as well as skills in vocational endeavors. Through education, individuals have the
opportunities to improve their special interest, abilities, and talents and develop as integrated
personalities. Guidance supports this developmental function through the use of such services as
appraisal, consultation, information, referral, evaluation and follow-up to enhance the

34
developmental process of the individual students. The differentiating function emphasizes the
concept of individual differences. Differences in individual students’ abilities, interest and
aspirations crystallize into markedly different patterns as the students mature. This calls for the
designing of learning experiences that maximize these differences in students. In this regard,
education offers different abilities interest and talents and needs of students. Educations thus
assist students to have knowledge of their environment and themselves and to understand their
experiences. This will enable students to make systematic and objective enquiry in to the self.
Education thus helps students through guidance to clarify their life goals and make wise
decisions as individuals with different personalities or qualities.
On the integrating function of education, Cobbs (2001) points out that education produces people
who can properly fit in to society. Students are thus educated on the development of common
core shared beliefs, attitudes, values and knowledge. Guidance offers its services by working
towards the emotional, social and psychological stabilities of individual through counseling
activities. This makes the individual student become better aware of their environment, respect
the dignity, and work in the interest of people around them. It also makes the individual student
able to adjust properly and integrate into the society, co-operate with the society and co-exist
successfully with people around them.
The education of the child of is said to be a co-operative activity. It is a team work which
requires the contribution of many persons or functionaries from the home, community and
school. Education like guidance and counseling is a function of every member of the school, the
home and community (Oledale, 1987). In the same way when it comes to the selection of

35
programmes for study, when students from the junior high school level are entering the senior
high school level, personnel in the persons of parents, head teachers, teachers and a guidance
officer need to collaborate to help the student make a right choice since this choice will
eventually determine the student’s career pathway. Kelly (2006) suggested the following
strategies as ways of assisting adolescents in making better choices in their career decisions:
2.3.1 Educational guidance programmes
According to Peku (1991), many countries now use guidance and counseling in their schools to
help their children. This is because guidance and counseling assist children to learn well. They
help them to overcome all problems which make learning difficult or prevent them from settling
down in schools. If one closely examines the problems of young pupils in schools and colleges,
one would exactly realize the need of educational guidance. Educational guidance is related to
every aspect of school or college, the curriculum, the methods of instruction, other curricular
activities and discipline. Educational guidance is the assistance given to the individual to
understand his/her potentialities, have a clear cut idea of the different educational opportunities
and their requirement, to make wise choices with regards to school, colleges, the course,
curricular and extracurricular. At the elementary stage, guidance programme must help the child
to make good beginning, to plan intelligently, to get the best out of their education and prepare
them for secondary schools. Educational guidance need to be used in diagnosing difficulties in
identifying the special needs of children. At the secondary stage, educational guidance should
help the students to understand themselves better, to understand different aspect of the school, to
select appropriate courses and to get information about different educational opportunities. The

36
students should be helped to be acquainted with vocational implications of various school
subjects.
2.3.2 Vocational/career guidance programmes
According to Eshun (2000) students’ need help in finding suitable and gainful employment. Due
to advancements in science and technology and consequent changes in industry, various
occupations have emerged. There are now thousands of specialized jobs and occupations. As a
result, there is a great need for vocational guidance. Vocational guidance is a process of assisting
the individual to choose an occupation, prepare for the occupation and enter the occupation and
progress in the chosen occupation. It is concerned primarily with helping individuals make
decisions and choices involved in planning a future and building a career. The aims and
objectives of vocational guidance are to assist the student to discover his/her own abilities and
skills to fit them in to general requirements of the occupation under consideration, helping the
individual to develop an attitude towards work that will dignify whatever type of occupation he
or her may wish to enter, assisting the individual to think critically about various types of
occupation and to learn techniques for analyzing information about vocations. At the elementary
stage, although no formal guidance programmes are needed, the orientation to vocations can be
initiated at this stage. At this stage, some qualities and skills which have greater vocational
significance are to be developed. At the secondary stage, vocational guidance should help the
students to know themselves, to know the world of work, to develop employment readiness and
decision making rules. At the higher education stages it should be more formal in nature. The
objectives of guidance at this stage are to help the students to get information about different
career, training facilities and apprenticeship.

37
2.3.3 Parental support /guidance
Parents serves as a major influence in their children’s career development and career decision-
making. Parents want their children to find happiness and success in life and one factor which
influences happiness and success is career choice. Research has also indicates that when students
feel supported and loved by their parents, they have more confidence in their own ability to
research careers and to choose a career that would be interesting and exciting. This is important
because studies show that adolescents, who feel competent regarding career decision-making,
tend to make more satisfying career choices later in life (Keller, 2004). Parents influence the
level of education or training that their children achieve; the knowledge they have about work
and different occupations; the beliefs and attitudes they have to working; and motivation they
have to succeed. Most of this is learned unconsciously since children and teenagers absorb their
parent’s attitudes and expectations of them as they grow up. Keller (2004) proposed the under
listed as ways by which parents can assist their wards in making good career decisions;
a. Encouraging their wards to get as much education as possible.
b. Helping their wards to discover their innate talents and skills.
c. Developing their knowledge of the world of work.
d. Teaching them decision-making skills.
e. Valuing gender equity and cultural diversity.
f. Assisting them to becoming aware of career resources or educational and training
opportunities.

38
Bandura (1977) has proposed a theory to help bring an understanding to how parents can
successfully support their adolescents’ educational and vocational development. According to
Bandura, adolescents tend to pursue those activities for which they are most efficacious (i.e.,
self-confident). For example, adolescents who are efficacious about their abilities to successfully
pursue their educational development and broaden their vocational options are more likely to
engage in tasks related to those pursuits. Self-efficacy, Bandura stated, is a learned behavior that
is predicted by adolescent’s responses to four sources of experiential learning. These are:
a. Personal performance accomplishments,
b. Vicarious learning (modeling by significant others),
c. The emotional support of others, and
d. Others verbal encouragement.
The development of adolescents’ self-efficacy leads to their choice of academic and career-
related pursuits, their persistence toward successfully accomplishing these pursuits, and their
successful performance of these pursuits (Bandura, 1999; Bandura, Barbaranelli, Caprata, &
Pastorelli, 2001). Agreeing with Bandura, Turner and Lapan (2002) argue that for young
adolescents, parents are the most salient providers of self-efficacy information.
Middleton and Loughhead (1993) talk of how parents can be an important and positive influence
in decisions affecting a young person’s vocational development. Though they also warn that
over-involvement in the decision-making process can undermine parental effects as a positive
source of influence. Excessive parental control regarding adolescent’s occupational decision-

39
making results in negative outcomes (Nucci, 1996). Parents should be cautioned against
imposing their own goals on their children or seeing their child’s accomplishment as a reflection
of themselves. So while parents should show genuine interest and support for their adolescents’
career plans, they must allow adolescents to discover who they are on their own. Some teenagers
fear the disapproval of their parents if they pursue a career in art, drama, music as opposed to
practical high-earning occupation such as law and medicine. If parents make it clear that they
have no specific expectations for their child’s career, he or she will feel free to explore a greater
variety of professions, choosing one based on their own preferences rather than those of their
parents. A study by Bregman and Killen (1999) has documented that adolescents valued parental
guidance in the area of career choice and vocational development. It is important for parents to
give students support and encouragement to explore the many options available to find the best
career fit.
2.3.4 Head teacher’s support/guidance
Head teachers of schools should recognize the importance and the need for a comprehensive
teaching and learning in the school. Also, he needs to ensure a well planned and executed
guidance and counseling programme in the school. Mankoe (2001) insisted that the head teacher
who is an authority figure must initiate administrative actions to support guidance programmes
in the school. Tolbert (1980) explains that it is the responsibility of the head teacher to encourage
teachers to help students understand themselves, their strengths and weaknesses and encouraging
teachers to be more sensitive to student’s needs, worries, problems and even helping students in
solving certain personal problems. The head teacher co-ordinates to ensure that the students

40
make right choices and options when registering for the Basic Education Certificate Examination
(B.E.C.E) where they make choices for entry into senior high schools.
2.3.5 Teacher support/guidance
The teacher also plays an important role in students’ career decision making and programme
selection. Morre (1998) in his view observes that the school curriculum has central objectives of
producing a total individual by developing the cognitive, affective and psychomotor aspects of
the personality. The teacher is the key professional in the school instructional setting and his or
her support and participation in the development and selection process is crucial. The
information provided through records kept by the teacher plays a meaningful role as far as JHS
students’ selection of subjects to SHS is concerned. With regards programme choice and
selection of schools at the secondary level, the teacher plays a vital role. Through the continuous
assessment the teacher is able to confer with individual students about their progress or
determine the suitability of the students for a particular programme. The teacher in his teaching
exposes the students to the world of work and this helps the student to have a mind set on a
specific profession.
2.3.6 Provision of school based guidance and counseling coordinators
Oladele (1987) sees guidance, both as a concept and a service which focuses upon the youth and
their future. Guidance targets the individual students and helps them in making decisions to meet
educational goals. The fact then stands that guidance operate with education to make a student
become a useful individual in society. Hence Farrant (1964) asserts that the main purpose of
education is to make the child fit to live and be lived with. Guidance together with education

41
make sure that teachers, parents and students understand the various phases of the individual’s
developments and their impact on growth, adjustment and decision making process.
In the face of our present new educational system therefore the essence of guidance in the school
and programme selection for students in JHS to SHS cannot be underestimated. Apart from
helping in the total development of students in the area of academic, vocational, physical, social,
emotional and psychological, students need to be guided to make right choices and decisions.
This applies to helping students to make proper choices of courses of study that leads to proper
choice of career.
In Ghana today, the complex demand of society in the individual, the competitive nature of life,
the increasing educational opportunities and expansions and diversification of courses due to
educational reforms, the changing needs of the individual and the country’s expectation of
schools to provide the needed manpower to meet the country’s demands towards becoming a
middle income status makes it imperative for proper guidance of the youth in schools. Oboniye
(2009), a Nigerian researcher, conducted a study on job aspiration of the youths and educational
provision, using173 youths comprising of 96 boys and 77 girls within the ages of sixteen (16)
and eighteen (18) years in secondary school in Enugu state and out with the observation that
most of the student choose jobs without relating them to their interests and capabilities to cope
with the nature or demands of the job. He therefore concluded that this because of the lack of
proper guidance and counseling units in schools. Guidance and counseling units should be
provided in schools to guide the youth in their job aspirations and in their selection of relevant
academic programmes rather than leaving them to rely on their parents, peers and friends for

42
information. It is obvious that wrong choice of academic programmes leads to having misfit in
jobs and deprives the nation of her real manpower needs.
This requires the need for placement service in the selection of academic programmes.
Placement as used here implies a selective assignment of a person to a position or place to help
students be in position for which his or her plans, interest, skills, aptitudes, and abilities as well
as physical activities are suited (Warr and Perry, 1999). Placement as a guidance service makes
students aware of the opportunities that are available. This awareness helps students to take
advantage of the opportunities by having themselves well placed within the opportunities so that
can function effectively and efficiently (Pecku, 1991). Placement at our JHS, therefore, generally
help the student get appropriate programmes and schools or training that are in line with their
abilities, skills, interest and plans.
The question now therefore is whether students are effectively guided, supported and properly
placed to take advantage of available opportunities and make realistic career choices or are left to
make unrealistic choices based on the encouragement and undue pressures from peers and
parents, prestige and occupation values without considering their own plans, interests, skills,
aptitudes and abilities. These are key issues of interest this study seeks to explore among students
of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school to identify the key support mechanisms and how they can be
used to assist students in making realistic programmes and career choices in the educational
enterprise.

43
2.4 Summary
From the available literature, it is evidently clear that the issue of career decisions and its
influence on the choice of academic programmes is real, but the problem with it is the
availability of reliable data spelling out the magnitude of the problem associated with this
phenomenon. It is therefore clear from the literature reviewed that students do not make their
career decisions in isolation. They are influenced by both sociological and psychological factors
such as parents, peers, prestige, interest and intellectual abilities. Generally, the programmes
students study in senior high school determines their future career pathways. However, these
students can be assisted to make better programme and career combinations when given proper
educational and vocational guidance by parents, head teachers, teachers, guidance coordinators
and other functionaries in the educational enterprise.

44
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction
This chapter focuses primarily on the techniques used and the methodology employed in
collecting data for the study. It gives a description of how data was collected. It discusses the
design, the site and subject characteristics, the population, sample and sampling procedure, data
collection techniques, access negotiation, data collection procedure, limitation of the research,
ethical consideration and instruments used in analyzing data.
3.1 Research Design
The research design was descriptive survey. A descriptive survey is a procedure in which data is
collected on an ongoing process. It is used to collect data on opinion, attitudes and reasons for
certain behaviors. Descriptive survey is a method of research whereby the phenomena under
study are looked into at a particular moment and described precisely. It is a formal procedure of
obtaining what is more or less insulated from the sample (Amoani, 2005). The researcher
employed the descriptive survey method because the study was to find out the career decisions of
senior high school students and the choice of academic programmes among students of Kadjebi-
Asato Senior High School.

45
3.2 Site and Subject Characteristics
The focus of this study was on the career decisions of senior high school students and how these
decisions affect their choice of academic programmes. The researcher is interested to find out
whether the programmes senior high school students choose to study is based on the careers they
want to pursue in life. The location for the study is Kadjebi – Asato Senior High School
(KASEC) which is situated within the Kadjebi District of the Volta Region of Ghana. The school
is situated between two major towns within the district, Kadjebi and Asato, hence the name
Kadjebi – Asato Senior High School. KASEC is a “mixed” day and boarding school with a
student population of about six hundred and fifty (650) and a staff population of about fifty-five
(55) with forty (40) teaching staffs and fifteen (15) non-teaching staffs. The school undertakes
courses like: General Science, General Arts, Visual Arts, Business Studies, Agricultural Science
and Home Economics. However, most students who come to KASEC opt to offer general arts
than any other programme and this needs to be seriously investigated into.
3.3 Population
Population refers to the total number of human inhabitants of a specified area, such as a city,
country, or continent, at a given time. Population study as academic discipline is known as
demography. The targeted population for the study was all the first year students in the Kadjebi –
Asato Senior High School (KASEC) in Kadjebi District. These students would have completed
the process of selecting a programme and will be asked to reflect on the process. Students are the
main target for the study since the researcher could conveniently reach them.

46
The table below shows the population of the various students and the overall total population of
200.
Students and Their Enrolment
Programme Boys Girls Total
General Arts 20 20 40
Business 25 10 35
General Science 20 10 30
Agricultural Science 25 10 35
Home Economics 8 22 30
Visual Arts 25 5 30
Total 123 77 200
From the above table, the total number of students who formed the targeted population was two
hundred (200).
3.4 Sample Size and Sampling Technique
Kusi (2012) explains that “it is imperative for you to determine an aspect of the population to be
involved in your study”. A study may entail a large population unlike others with small
population. In such situation, a portion of the entire population may be selected for study and this
is what is termed as sample. Two hundred (200) students of Kadjebi-Asato Senior High School
in the Kadjebi District were the targeted population, but eighty (80) respondents were chosen.

47
Simple random sampling strategy was employed under the probability sampling technique,
especially, table of random numbers which enable the researcher hand-pick the exact sample size
he could conveniently work with. The probability sampling technique gives equal opportunity to
all members within the population the chance of being selected or otherwise.
The sample size was eighty (80) senior high school students. This number was selected for
manageability and for time factor in carrying out the research. Ten (10) students were
interviewed.
Creswell (2005) argued that selecting a large number of interviewees for a qualitative research in
particular will result in a superficial perspective. Consequently, the overall ability of a researcher
to provide an in-depth picture diminishes with the addition of each new individual or site (Kusi
2012).
3.5 Instrumentation
The main instruments used in the collection of data for this study were structured questionnaires
and semi-structured interviews designed by the researcher. These instruments were employed
because the questions in the schedule were pre-determined standardized items meant to collect
numerical data that would be subjected to statistical analysis. According to Sekyere (1998),
questionnaire is a set of written questions answered by a large number of people that is used to
provide information. It is an efficient tool for data collection in educational research because of
its effectiveness in securing information from people. Structured questionnaire was used for the

48
study because it was found to be appropriate for the research work and it was an effective
instrument to elicit the needed information from respondents. The questions in the schedule were
close-ended and answers outlined, giving respondents the opportunity to respond to simple
dichotomous questions. Likert scale items such as those that require responses like ‘strongly
agree’, ‘agree’, ‘not sure’, ‘disagree’, or ‘strongly disagree’ were used for the purpose of data
collection.
A detailed questionnaire was designed for data collection. The instrument was designed based on
the research questions of the study. The questionnaire sought the background information of the
respondents such as programme of study, age, sex and occupation of parents. It also sought to
know how senior high school students make their career decisions and how these decisions affect
their choice of academic programmes.
In qualitative research, structured questionnaire can be used to gather an initial data to
supplement data collected through methods such as semi-structured interviews and observations.
3.6 Pre – testing of instrument
Validity and Reliability in research is the degree of stability exhibited when measurement is
repeated under identical conditions. Research validity refers to whether the researcher actually
measured what was supposed to measure and not something else. Reliability means that
responses to the questionnaire were consistent (Steiner & Norman, 1989). To ensure validity of
the instruments, the questionnaire was submitted to my supervisor to scrutinize to ensure its

49
validity. The researcher also gave the questionnaire to colleagues for peer review. The colleagues
and supervisor added some questions and certain aspects of the questionnaire were rephrased for
clarity. This helped clarify portions where participants did not understand. Thus, both face and
content validity were established. With the face validity, items in the questionnaire were
structured to measure what it is supposed to measure. With the content validity, the questionnaire
covered the areas under study.
To ensure reliability of the instrument, the questionnaire was pre-tested on twenty randomly
selected respondents from Kadjebi E.P. Central Junior High School who were not part of the
present study. The responses in the pilot helped to modify certain aspects of the questionnaire
before they were administered in the main study and it also convinced the researcher that there
was the need for an interview to elicit certain responses that could not be catered for by the
questionnaire.
3.7 Negotiation of Access
In order to access information on the topic under study, the researcher sent an introductory letter
from the university to the school where the study would be conducted seeking an authoritative
permission from the school head to conduct the research.

50
3.8 Data Collection Procedure
The researcher visited the school and briefed the respondents on the purpose of the study and its
educational implications. They were allowed some time to raise questions about the areas they
could not understand. After the discussion, the questionnaires were distributed to them. The
students answered the questionnaire the same day which ensured objectivity. On the whole, the
researcher spent three days for the collection of data. All respondents responded to the
questionnaire.
3.9 Data Analysis
The data analysis is to be based on giving answers to the questions posed in chapter one which
also form the sub-items of the literature review. After collecting the questionnaire, it was first
edited (Kusi, 2012). The edited questionnaires were organized. The work was organized under
biographical data, how students make their career decisions, how their career decisions affect
programme choices and the strategies for helping students to make better choices in their career
decisions. It was then coded. The data was analyzed statistically using descriptive statistical data
analysis approach and the main tools used were tables, frequencies and simple percentages
realized from the data collected. These statistical instruments were used because they allow data
to be organized for further analysis. It also allows large amount of raw data to be sorted and
reorganized in a neat format.

51
3.11 Ethical Consideration
The study was not to invade one’s privacy. To deal with ethical issues associated with this study,
the rights to self-determination, anonymity and confidentiality and informed consent were
observed (Kusi, 2012). Written permission to conduct the study was sought from the department
of education and psychology, University of Education, Winneba. The respondents were informed
of their rights to voluntarily participate or decline. They were informed about the purpose of the
study and were assured of not reporting any aspect of the information they have provided in a
way that will identify them. They were assured that there were no potential risks involved in the
process.

52
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF DATA
4.0 Introduction
This chapter presents the research findings, analysis and discussion of the results of the study
according to the objectives. Simple tables, frequencies and percentages were used for analyzing
the data. The main focus of the study was to examine how senior high school students in Kadjebi
District make their career decisions and how these career decisions affect their choice of
academic programmes. This was done through the use of structured questionnaire and semi-
structured interview in the data collection process. The total questionnaires administered and
retrieved were eighty (80), a credible and handsome return. Although returns of the administered
questionnaires were described as credible and handsome, it does not mean that the researcher got
everything on a silver platter. Follow-ups were made to homes of some respondents to retrieve
administered questionnaires since data was collected during vacation classes. In analyzing the
results of the data collected through the study, the researcher has divided this chapter into the
following sub-divisions:
i. Biographical data
ii. How students make their career decisions
iii. How students’ career decisions affect their choice of academic programmes
iv. Ways of helping students to make better choices in their career decisions.

53
4.1 Presentation of Questionnaire Findings
In all, eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to students. All the questionnaires
administered were retrieved. This ensured objectivity. However, ten (10) students were also
interviewed using interviewer’s schedule and the responses recorded. The tables below gives
information about the target group for the study and the responses completed in percentages.
4.1.1 Biographic Data
One item of the questionnaire gathered data on the respondents’ gender which is presented in the
table below.
Table 1: Gender distribution of respondents
Source: Field Data (2016)
Sex (F) (%)
Male 46 57.5
Female 34 42.5
Total 80 100

54
Table 1 presents the gender of participants who responded to the questionnaire items. From the
table, 80 students were given questionnaire. All students responded to the questionnaire. Out of
the 80 students, 46 (57.5%) were male while 34(42.5%) were females. The implication of this is
that; the male respondents dominated relatively in the survey.
Table 2: Age distribution of respondent students
Age Range (F) (%)
15-18 28 35.0
19-21 35 43.8
22 and above 17 21.2
Total 80 100
Table 2 above presents the ages of students who responded to the questionnaire items. The
distribution revealed that the school has a young population having a total of 35 students
representing (43.8%) of respondents between the ages of 19-21 years, followed by 28 students
representing (35.0%) of respondents between the ages of 15-18 years. However, 17 students
representing (21.2%) of the total population of respondents were within the ages of 22 years and
above. This indicate clearly from the table that majority of the first year students in the Kadjebi-
Asato Senior High School were adolescents and are capable of making decisions concerning
themselves.

55
Table 3: Occupational Status of Students Parents/Guardians
Occupation Father Mother Guardian (F) (%)
Civil servant 8
Self-employed 28
6 4
17 12
18 22.5
57 71.25
Unemployed 2 - - 2 2.5
Pensioner 3 - - 3 3.75
Total 41 23 16 80 100
Table 3 above shows the occupational status of respondent’s parents/guardians. It pointed out
that out the total respondents of 80, fifty-seven (57) of respondents’ parents/guardians were self-
employed, which represented (71.25%) of the total respondents, 18(22.5%) of respondents’
parents/guardians were civil servants and 3(3.75%) of the respondents’ parents/guardians were
pensioners. From the table, only 2 of the respondents out of the 80 respondent’s representing
(2.5%) have their parents/guardians to be unemployed. This implies that, parents/guardians of
respondents are capable of sponsoring their wards education up to a higher level since they are
gainfully employed.

56
Table 4: Programme Offered by Students
Programme (F) (%)
General Arts
Agriculture Science
General Science
Business
Home Economics
Visual Arts
24
19
10
9
11
7
30.0
23.75
12.5
11.25
13.7
8.8
Total 80 100
Table 4 presents the programmes offered by the respondents who responded to the questionnaire.
It pointed out that out of the total respondents of 80, twenty-four (24) of the respondents
representing (30.0%) of students study General arts, followed by Agricultural Science with 19
students representing (23.75%) of the total respondents, 11 students representing (13.7%) offer
Home Economics, 10 students representing (12.5%) offer General Science, 9 students
representing (11.25%) offer Business and 7 students representing (8.8%) of respondents offer
Visual Arts. This clearly indicates that majority of the students offer general arts than other
courses.

57
4.1.2 Analysis of Items
The analyses of the items are based on the three research questions which are as follows:
i. How do students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school make their career decisions?
ii. How do the career decisions of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school students affect their
choice of academic programmes?
iii. How can Kadjebi-Asato senior high school students be assisted to make better choices in
their career decisions?

58
4.1.3 Research Question One (1)
The first research question sought to find out how students of Kadjebi-Asato senior high school
make their career decisions. The responses were presented in the table as follows:
Table 5: How senior high school students make career decisions
Activity
Strongly
Agree Agree Not sure Disagree
Strongly
Disagree F %
1.Consider
Intellectual
ability
6(7.5%) 4(5.0%) - - - 10 12.5
2.Consider
Own
interest
8(10.0%) 6(7.5%) - - - 14 17.5
3.Consider
Individual
value
- - - 2(2.5%) 2(2.5%) 7 8.75
4. Parents’
advice
7(8.75%) 4(5.0%) - - - 11 13.7
5. Consider
friends’ career
interest
10(12.5%) 2(2.5%) - - - 12 15.0
6. Societal -
perception
- - 2(2.5%) 6(7.5%) - 8 10.0
7. Consider
parents
occupation
10(12.5%) 4(5.0%) - - - 14 17.5
8. Teachers’
advice
- - - 2(2.5%) 2(2.5%) 4 5.0
TOTAL 38 23 02 10 07 80 100

59
Table 6 reveals how senior high school students make their career decisions. There are 8 items
which provided responses on how students make their career decisions. From the responses
given, there is an indication that career decisions making is very critical during adolescence. This
is why Hiebert (1993) claims that “choosing a career is perhaps second only to choice of mate in
terms of the pervasiveness of the impact on one’s life”.
From the table, 10 students representing (12.5%) of the total respondents strongly agree and
agree to the statement that they consider their own intellectual ability when making their career
decisions. Also, 14 students representing (17.5%) strongly agree and agree that they consider
their own personal interest when making their career decisions. 7 students representing (8.75%)
of respondents strongly disagree that their individual values had anything to do with their career
decisions making. The above interpretations supported Olayinka (2000) who observed that
students must be keenly aware of their interest and abilities to identify careers for which they are
well suited.
Responding to the statement that parental advice influence the career decisions of students, 11
students representing (13.75%) respondents strongly agree and agree that their parents’ advised
them when they were making their career decisions. On the hand, 12 students representing
(15.0%) respondents strongly agree and agree that their friends/peers’ career interest has some
influence on their career decision making. Also, 2 students representing (2.5%) respondents
neither agree nor disagree that they consider societal perception when making their career
decisions, while 6 students representing (7.5%) respondents disagree that they consider societal
perception in their career decision making. This interpretation is in consonance with the findings
of Navin (2009) when he states that “if we consider the role of parents in the socialization

60
process and personality development they usually play the initial leading roles in the value
transmission but peer and friends seem to have the greatest role in adaptation of lifestyle,
decision making and even educational choices.
The researcher wanted to establish further whether parents occupational background have any
influence on the career decisions of students. As seen in the table, 14 students representing
(17.5%) of the total number of respondents strongly agree and agree that they considered their
parents occupational background when making their career decisions. On the issue of teachers’
advice in the career decision making of senior high school students, 6 students representing
(7.5%) of respondents strongly disagree and disagree that their teachers had any influenced in
their career decisions.
However, Looking at the findings on how senior high school students make their career
decisions, three key factors that emerged from the data was student’s interest, friends’ career
choice and parent’s occupational background. In the light of this, the study has reflected on the
following narrations. It is important that once or twice a year; the school set a day aside for
students to interact with people of various careers. Career days and conferences may be followed
by excursions to industries or places of interest related to careers. As noted by Burns (2006),
children throughout the ages have shown remarkable similar needs. They seek security and
affection. They need to satisfy a yearning for achievements and recognition by parents, teachers
and peers. They need to know individual strength and weaknesses in their personal, social and
academic lives. They also need the chance to assess such traits themselves or have them assessed
by others.

61
Table 6: Factors that impede career decision making among students
Factors Strongly
Agree
Agree Not Sure Disagree Strongly
Disagree
F %
1. Lack of
career
guidance
service
8(10.0%) 8(10.0%) - - - 16 20.0
2.Inadequate
career
information
10(12.5%) 5(6.0%) - - - 15 18.5
3. Influence of
friends/peers
4(5.0%) 4(5.0%) - - - 8 10.0
4. Parental
Influence
10(12.5%) 4(5.0%) - - - 14 17.5
5. Influence of
teachers
- - - 2(2.5%) 4(5.0%) 6 7.5
6. Parents
Occupation
2(2.5%) 7(8.75%) - - - 9 11.25
7. Lack of
professional
guidance
coordinator
6(7.5%) 6(7.5%) - - - 12 15.0
TOTAL 36 30 4 6 4 80 100

62
On the issue of the factors that impedes the career decision making among senior high school
students, it is worthy to note that 16 students representing (20.0%) of respondents strongly agree
and agree that lack of career guidance service in schools impeded their career decision making
process, 15 students representing (18.5%) of respondents also strongly agree and agree that
inadequate career information impeded their career decision making in the senior high school,
while 8 students representing (10.0%) of respondents strongly agree and agree to the assertion
that peers/friends influences impeded their career decision making process.
A significant proportion of respondents also justify that parental influence also impeded their
career decision making. To this, 14 students representing (17.5%) of the respondents strongly
agree and agree that parental influence impeded their career decision making, 9 students
representing (11.25%) of respondents agree that parents occupation impedes students career
decision making.
Further, 12 students representing (15.0%) of respondents strongly agree and agree that lack of
profession guidance coordinators in schools impeded their career decision making, while 6
students representing (7.5%) of respondents strongly disagree that influence of teachers have
any negative impact on their career decisions.
From the results, it could be inferred that lack of career guidance services, inadequate career
information and parental influence are the key factors that impede students career decision
making. On the issue of lack of career guidance services, it was evidenced that most schools
have no professional guidance coordinators to undertake guidance programmes in the school.
However, this research revelation is in line with Shertzer and Stone (2003) assertion that among
the problems of guidance and counseling in schools are lack of professionally trained personnel.

63
It has also been documented by Onumah (1992) that the ineffectiveness of the guidance and
counseling programmes in our schools is due to lack of qualified or trained guidance and
counseling personnel.
4.1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION TWO (2)
The second research question focuses on how the career decisions of Kadjebi-Asato senior high
school students affect their choice of academic programmes. The responses were presented in the
table below:
Table 7: How the career decisions of senior high school students affect their choice of academic
programmes?
STATEMENT
Strongly
Agree
Agree Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Not
Sure (F) %
The career decisions of
SHS students strongly
affect their choice of
academic programmes
10(12.5%) 10(12.5%) - - - 20 25.0
You career path is
determined by the
programme you study at
SHS
2(2.5%) 4(5.0%) - - - 6 7.5
The career decisions of
SHS students are
positively related to the
programmes they study
5(6.25%) 5(6.25%) - - - 10 12.5
The programme you
study at SHS has
nothing to do with your
future career
10(12.5%) 2(2.5%) - - - 12 15.0
Poor career decisions
leads to inappropriate
subject combination
8(10.0%) 6(7.5%) - - - 14 17.5
Career decisions of SHS 10(12.5%) 8(10.0%) - - - 18 22.5

64
students strongly
influence the choice of
programmes
TOTAL 38 26 2 9 5 80 100
Table 8 revealed that out of 80 respondents, 20 (25.0%) students strongly agree and agree to the
statement that career decisions of senior high school students strongly affect their choice of
academic programmes. This was followed by the assumption that career decisions of senior high
school students strongly influence the choice of academic programmes with a response from
18(22.5%) respondents strongly agreeing and agreeing to this assertion.
Also, 14 students representing (17.5%) of respondents strongly agree and agree that poor career
decisions leads to inappropriate subject combination. Again, on the assertion that career
decisions of senior high school students are positively related to the programmes they study, 12
students representing (15.0%) of respondents strongly agree and agree to the assertion. However,
whilst 10 students representing (12.5%) of respondents neither agree nor disagree to the assertion
that the career decisions of senior high school students are positively related to the programmes
they study, 6 students representing (7.5%) of respondents who were in the least strongly disagree
and disagree to the assertion that the students’ career path is determined by the programmes they
study at the senior high school.
Concluding from the outcomes presented overhead, it came out that senior high school students
make choices of academic programmes based on their career aspirations. However, this
interpretation confirms the assertions of Fosnot (1996) when he states that “young learners have

PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS

PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS

Similar to PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS (14)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

PUBLICATION BY AMPOFO AGYEI JUSTICE AND ACHEAMPONG BLESS