Assessing the status of entrepreneurship education courses in higher learning institutions

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the status of entrepreneurship courses offered in education schools. It provides recommendations for how to address the existing challenges by developing entrepreneurship initiatives in education schools. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was circulated to the management of all education schools in Tanzania, respective entrepreneurship educators and graduates from these schools. Random sampling was used to select teachers who had graduated from education schools. Findings – The findings show that all education schools have an entrepreneurship module in the development studies course, which is mandatory for all students in first year. From 2008 to date, six education schools (31.6 per cent) have introduced stand-alone courses at undergraduate level reflecting entrepreneurship in their title and 68.4 per cent are planning to introduce entrepreneurship courses both at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Although entrepreneurship educators demonstrate subject specialty, they use traditional teaching and assessment techniques. The lack of books on entrepreneurship and the large number of students were cited as the main challenges affecting their role as subject facilitators. Research limitations/implications – The study was limited to education schools in higher education institutions. Similar studies in non-business disciplines need to be conducted to establish how entrepreneurship is developed among graduates of higher education institutions. Practical implications – The study recommends that the management of all education schools should be made aware of the need to provide courses in entrepreneurship, to integrate experiential learning and innovative techniques in the teaching and assessment processes and to involve students in extra-curriculum activities. Originality/value – This is the first study to be conducted in Tanzanian higher education institutions that focuses on the teaching of entrepreneurship to education school students.