Norasmah Othman

Readiness towards entrepreneurship education: Students and Malaysian universities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to observe the readiness of students and the internal environment of Malaysian public universities in the implementation of entrepreneurship education.Design/methodology/approach – The authors employed a quantitative approach and the main instrument used to gauge the entrepreneurship readiness among students in Malaysia public universities was the questionnaire. The data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software to obtain descriptive statistics that describe the profile of entrepreneurship readiness, both among the students themselves and in the internal environment of the universities, as the students perceive it.Findings – According to the findings, students in Malaysian public universities demonstrate strong readiness, in terms of entrepreneurial willingness and capabilities. Within the internal environment of public universities, however, readiness for entrepreneurship education remains, from the students’ perspective, imperfect,...

Entrepreneurship education programs in Malaysian polytechnics

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate students’ views on the on-the-campus entrepreneurship programs in Malaysian polytechnics. Participation in the entrepreneurship programs is able to stimulate an interest in entrepreneurship, and improve the knowledge, skills, and entrepreneurial experience of its students. Design/methodology/approach – This study adopted a survey method designed in the form of an objective-oriented program evaluation. Questionnaires were used to identify the students’ level of assessments of the instructional dimensions. This study explored the differences in evaluation based on gender, specializations, and courses attended. Findings – The results showed moderately high level of evaluation. The analysis of gender differences shows that gender did not affect students’ views on the instructional dimension. However, students’ specialization and courses attended are associated with significant differences in the level of evaluation. Research limitations/implications – This re...

Social entrepreneurship among participants in the students in free enterprise program

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify social entrepreneurship dimensions that emphasize the specific personal characteristics of social entrepreneurs (SPCSE) and social entrepreneurship organization (SEO) among students in higher education institutions who are active participants of the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) program in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative approaches and instruments were used to analyze the profile of social entrepreneurship in this cross-sectional survey study, which involved 394 active SIFE students in Malaysia in 2011. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data and describe the SIFE students SPCSE and SEO. Findings – The social entrepreneurship of the SIFE students was high, with a dominant SEO. However, the dimensions of SPCSE need to be applied effectively to the students involved, whose social entrepreneurship was merely moderate. There was a strong positive relationship between SPCSE and SEO of SIFE stud...

Entrepreneurship Education in UKM: Essential Skills for First-Year Students

Most universities have developed entrepreneurial learning known as academic entrepreneurship (AE) by introducing entrepreneur-related courses for cross-discipline students. In order to increase student’s opportunities in developing business skills, Institute of Higher Education (IPT) in Malaysia encourages entrepreneurial program in higher academic institutions. The government supports the effort to reach the vision of Malaysia’s Economic Transformation Program (ETP) by 2020 in enhancing entrepreneurship abilities. Moreover, academic entrepreneurship has rooted in many global universities whereby the entrepreneurship subjects are introduced across the board regardless of faculties in order to provide basic entrepreneurial knowledge using adaptable learning pattern. The faculty entrepreneurship concept is applied in the teaching and learning process at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) by providing entrepreneurial courses for first-year students from all faculties. The course comprises Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship and Innovation and was initiated 5 years ago involving 12 faculties in UKM. These papers introduce basic elements of entrepreneurship and related skills to students in different disciplines. Its main objective is to promote and generate business interests and ideas among students by providing fundamental knowledge of entrepreneurship so that a career in entrepreneurship is deemed as a feasible career option. Changing mind sets of students to be a job creator rather than a job seeker is today’s challenge that can be overcome by dissemination of invaluable business tools and materials which is the core aspect of this course. Concepts and theories of entrepreneurship including team building, teaming and leadership, strategy and management aptitudes, marketing and market research, financial and legal principles, manufacturing or production processes, and oral presentation skills will be taught. The link between various components of a business will be demonstrated and identified through business simulation games performed by students themselves. Series of periodic seminars and recorded videos displaying experiences of local successful entrepreneurs are presented to inspire students to embrace values and challenges of an entrepreneur. A business pitching and business concept poster competitions are held to assess students’ understanding and reflection of the course content translated into these forms of “hands-on” activities.

The Development of an Entrepreneurship Index for Low-Income Households

Abstract The Entrepreneurship Index (EI) serves as a measurement tool that effectively determines if one possesses the prospect of becoming a successful entrepreneur by assessing several essential aspects, such as entrepreneurial orientation, personality, leadership, motivation and knowledge, pertaining to functional skills. Hence, the cross-sectional design was adopted in this study and quantitative data were gathered from some randomly selected 800 Asnafs (those eligible for zakat—donation for the poor) listed under the Kelantan Islamic Religious and Customs Council. The outcomes of this study that classify the aspects of EI are grouped into three categories: low, medium, and high EI. As a result, the variances between high class and both medium and low classes have been double and triple, respectively. Furthermore, participants from Bachok, on an average, obtained higher scores on EI, in comparison to those from other districts. These findings can be turned into an essential measurement tool to indicate both entrepreneurial potentials and readiness among those from rural low-income households, which can be employed by relevant bodies in their attempt to aid those with entrepreneurial prospects and higher possibilities of attaining success in the business arena.

Implementation Of Outcome- Based Education (OBE) In Accounting Programme In Higher Education

The aim of this paper is to examine the success and challenges of Outcomebased education (OBE) implementation in Accounting Degree Programmes offered by Higher Education (HE). This paper is intended for the practitioners of Higher Education including administrators, academics and those involved in curriculum implementation. The paper begins with the needs for curriculum changes in Higher Education, the rationale of choosing OBE, followed by the discussions on the issues of OBE implementation in. Definitions, evolutions and grouping of outcomes under OBE is analysed for better understandings of the underlying concepts and intentions of OBE. The implementation level of OBE is examined based on the four principles model of OBE; design down, clarity of focus, extended opportunity and high expectation. Survey of literature on OBE implementation is critically reviewed especially on related areas such as employers’ feedbacks on graduates, students’ achievement in learning outcomes and challenges in curriculum implementation. The literature survey provides information on the strength and weaknesses and critical areas for improvement of OBE implementation. Reports International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 2017, Vol. 7, No. 6 ISSN: 2222-699

The Government’s Role in the Importance of Entrepreneurship Education Amongst University Students in Malaysia

The growth of entrepreneurship in Malaysia and the number of enterprises being created in the last decade are evidence of sheer amount and variety of supporting mechanisms and policies established by the government. These include funding, physical infrastructure, trade advisory and support, and entrepreneurship education to ensure that challenges in the national and global markets can be faced and abated with equipped knowledge and support. To nurture and sustain entrepreneurial education and related initiatives, the Malaysian Government has pushed forward the transformation of teaching and learning focusing on entrepreneurial skills in the National Higher Education Action Plan 2007–2010. Thus, the most significant endeavor is the emergence of a formal entrepreneurial education at the local higher education institutions (HEIs) in Malaysia. In the past 5 years, entrepreneurship education has grown dramatically in Malaysia resulting to 19 universities offering entrepreneurship education and training. Furthermore, in the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2015–2015, the government’s aspiration is to instill an entrepreneurial mindset throughout Malaysia’s higher education system. Such programs introduced at the tertiary level are to encourage the young generation to delve themselves into becoming “job creators” rather than “job seekers” by channeling and realizing their untapped potential to innovate creating economic and commercial value. Positive outcomes from entrepreneurial education would be perceived as a reduction in unemployment levels and job-seeking exercise by university graduates. However, there was a reported increase in the unemployment rate in 2015 of 3.1 % amounting to 400,000 unemployed individuals who have completed their studies in the last 6 months despite being given entrepreneurship education. This chapter intends to discuss the government’s role and initiatives in ensuring that the entrepreneurship education addresses the importance of self-reliance, willingness, and the level of interests of students at universities to embark on entrepreneurship venture upon graduating, thus reducing the dependency of graduates to be employed.

In-Service Training for Teachers to Improve the Quality of Education in Pekanbaru, Riau Indonesia

Penyelidikan ini bertujuan mengkaji penggunaan pembelajaran koperatif (PK) dalam mata pelajaran Geografi di sekolah menengah rendah dengan menggunakan struktur Jigsaw, Group Investigation dan Student Teams Achievement Division (STAD). Pembolehubah yang dikaji ialah peningkatan kemampuan guru di dalam: (1) memotivasi pelajar dalam pembelajaran koperatif, (2) menstruktur pembelajaran koperatif, dan (3) menilai proses aktiviti pembelajaran koperatif. Penyelidik juga mengkaji kesan pembelajaran koperatif ke atas pencapaian Geografi pelajar dan mengkaji sikap pelajar terhadap mata pelajaran Geografi sebelum dan selepas didedahkan dengan modul pembelajaran koperatif. Penyelidik juga mengkaji kemampuan pelajar dalam kemahiran berkolaborasi iaitu: (1) kemahiran komunikasi, (2) interaksi ahli-ahli kumpulan, dan (3) kemahiran koperatif. Kaedah kajian yang digunakan ialah penyelidikan tindakan. Penyelidikan tindakan ini dilakukan secara berkolaboratif antara penyelidik dan seorang guru Geografi, serta 25 orang pelajar tingkatan 1 di Maktab Rendah Sains Mara Kuala Klawang, Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan. Kaedah pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui pemerhatian, ujian pra dan pasca pencapaian Geografi, dan soal selidik untuk mengukur sikap pelajar terhadap Geografi sebelum dan selepas menggunakan kaedah pembelajaran koperatif. Hasil kajian tindakan yang dijalankan menunjukkan bahawa kemampuan guru memotivasi pelajar dapat mewujudkan pergantungan yang positif antara pelajar untuk berkomunikasi dan berkoperatif. Kemampuan guru menstruktur dan menilai proses pembelajaran koperatif pula dapat meningkatkan interaksi antara pelajar dengan guru yang mewujudkan peningkatan pencapaian Geografi dan kemahiran pelajar berkolaborasi. Keputusan untuk sikap menunjukkan pelajar-pelajar telah berubah kepada sikap yang sangat positif terhadap geografi dengan kaedah pembelajaran koperatif. Implikasi kajian tindakan ini antaranya adalah guru perlu mengubah amalan kepada pengajaran dan pembelajaran menggunakan pembelajaran koperatif. Seterusnya pelajar dalam pelbagai golongan boleh meningkatkan pencapaian Geogafi, perubahan sikap terhadap Geografi dan memperlihatkan nilai sosial.

National Professional Qualification for Headship Program Participant Learning Evaluation

The objective of this research was to identify the students entrepreneurial career aspirations in the public instituitions of higher education. The research also was designed to determine the factors that influence the entrepreneurial career aspirations of the students. A set of questionaires were distributed to 420 respondents from three universities namely, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Islamic International University of Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. The findings showed majority of the students were not interested to become entrepreneur eventhough more than 80 percent of them have positive attitude towards entrereneurship. Profit-orientation factor and the needs to have a successful life are the dominant factors that influenced the students towards entrepreneurial career. However, the entrepreneurial characteristics of the students was high, except for the willingness to take risks. The finding also showed that there are a positive and significant correlations between entrepreneurial characteristics, interest towards entrepreneurial career and attitude towards students entrepreneurial career aspirations. These findings concluded that races, educational fields and family members are considered as the factors that contributed to the students entrepreneurial career aspirations. Based on the findings, several ways are suggested to inspire the entrepreneurial career among the students in the public higher education. Therefore, the students, the universities, lecturers, the ministry, parents and the public are resposible in realizing and believing that the entrepreneurial career is a career option once graduated.