The role of curricula in the development of job skills, job expectations and employment chances from the viewpoints of agricultural students and graduates

Abstract

This descriptive (correlational) research was conducted for studying the effects of students and graduates’ perceptions to the curriculum of their courses in agriculture field, on their job skills development and their chance for holding a job. 274 present and former students of agriculture field of study in Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, were selected by stratified random sampling method. Data were collected by Moghadam questionnaire (2013), and analyzed. Surface validity of questionnaire was confirmed and the reliability coefficient (.89) is acceptable. The results showed that over 82 percent of participants were unemployed. Perceptions of schooling and job expectances of participants, predicted over than 46 percent of job skills variances. Positive perceptions to the curricula has significantly positive effect on expectances of their present and future jobs. The correlation between present and former students’ perceptions of theoretical and practical subjects with their perceptions of job skills development, is significantly positive and improvement of students’ perceptions to their courses, improve their hope to holding a job. Relationship between theoretical and practical subjects can improve students’ perceptions of curriculum and their university, and as a result, the required skills for holding a job are developed.Index terms: job skills, curriculum, holding a job, job expectances, agriculture.