Title: Digital Technological Tools And Industry Partnership For Enhancing Engineering Education: A Study Of Polytechnics In North Central Nigeria
Authors: Ekwueme-Duru Uchechukwu, ABDULSALAM, Abdulmajeed Bidemi
Volume: 9
Issue: 12
Pages: 155-161
Publication Date: 2025/12/28
Abstract:
This research investigated the extent to which digital technological tools and industry partnerships are available and utilized for the purpose of improving engineering education within polytechnics located in North Central Nigeria. The study highlighted that a scarcity of digital resources, combined with insufficient industrial collaboration, obstructs engineering students from acquiring essential competencies. This deficiency has undeniably created a disparity between the training students receive and the digital skills required by the industry. A descriptive survey design was employed for the investigation. While the total target population stood at 1,200, a purposive sampling technique was utilized to select 152 participants specifically: 100 engineering educators and 52 factory supervisors, drawn from a larger institutional population of 700. To direct the study, two research questions and two null hypotheses were formulated. Data collection involved the administration of a 46-item questionnaire, which utilized a modified 4-point rating scale and was distributed with the assistance of five research assistants. The validity of the instruments-comprising the questionnaire and multiple-choice questions-was established through face and content validation by three experts. Additionally, the internal consistency of the instrument was confirmed using Cronbach's Alpha, yielding a reliability coefficient of 0.85. In terms of analysis, mean and standard deviation were used to address the research questions, while the null hypotheses were tested using an independent t-test at a 0.05 level of significance. The results indicated that the availability of digital technologies and active industry collaboration for engineering students in the region is critically low. Consequently, the study recommended, among other measures, that government authorities at all tiers should facilitate the provision of adequate digital technological tools and actively promote partnerships with industrial sectors for engineering students in polytechnics across North Central Nigeria.