ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Aspects sociolinguistiques du discours chretien: Le cas de quelques eglises dans la metropole de Tema

The choice of a language for communication in a multilingual community has to be examined in the light of sociolinguistic factors. The study is centred on the real factors that influence language use in a multilingual environment bearing in mind the background of the participants involved in the communication and the linguistic competences of the speakers? The research is based on the ideas from theoreticians like Labov (variationnism), Hymes (Communicative competence) and Weinreich (Language Contact). A sample of ten churches was selected in the Tema Metropolis and the combination of observation, interviews and questionnaire was used to gather data. This work establishes the fact that the choice one makes of a language for preaching in churches located in a multilingual environment, like the Tema Metropolis, is not only influenced by the linguistic or communicative competence of the speaker but also by the geographical origin and educational background of the participants involved, and the ability of the recipients of the message to understand the particular language being used for the Christian discourse.

Source: UCC
Assertive managerial communication style and employee performance: The dual mediating role of obedience and psychological availability in selected hotels in the Ho Municipality

The study examined the nexus between assertive managerial communication style and employee performance through the dual mediating role of employee obedience and employee psychological availability. Primary data were collected from 162 employees of Volta Serene Hotel, SkyPlus Hotel and Restel Hotel in the Ho Municipality with questionnaire as its data collection tool. Partial least square estimation technique was used to analyze the study data. The study was guided by explanatory research design. The main finding of the study was that the nexus between assertive managerial communication style and employee performance is negative and significant. Also, the study found that the nexus between assertive managerial communication style and employee performance is partially mediated by employee obedience. Besides, assertive managerial communication style perceptions are found to have indirect link with employee performance through employee psychological availability. Hence, it was recommended that the managers of hotels should be more responsive to employees by seeking for innovative ways of communicating and addressing their complaints and concerns through assertive managerial communication style. This is because such initiatives will enhance their chances of improving their performance both financially and non-financially. Again, the managers of hotels should pay attention to employee obedience and improve their psychological availability as the means through which their assertive managerial communication style converts into employee performance.

Source: UCC
Assertiveness Among Nursing Students in the Central Region

The purpose of the study is to assess the assertiveness level among nursing students in the various nursing specialty training schools in the Central Region of Ghana and determine the factors that facilitate and impedes assertiveness among the students during clinical practice training. Data was collected from a primary source which involved a structured questionnaire, and the analysis was done using SPSS version 22. A sample size of 334 nursing students was used in the study. The hypothesis tested was done using Chi-Square. The result indicates that the majority (88%, n= 294) of nursing students were moderately assertive. Furthermore, the assertiveness of males and females revealed that there is no statistically significant difference in the mean score (t=-0.60; p=0.55) on assertiveness behaviour. Moreover, the study also indicated that none of the demographic variables considered has a significant relationship with the assertiveness of the nursing students (p>0.05). Finally, the study showed that the major factor in facilitating the assertive behaviour of nursing students during clinical practical training is a supportive environment. Also, the results further indicate that the major factor impeding assertive behaviour among nursing students is a lack of information regarding personal and professional rights.

Source: UCC
Assess the economic impact of Microfinance Institution on women in Tamale: a case of Baobab Microfinance Company

Microfinance has played a critical role in poverty reduction within its catchment area. A viable microfinance institution helps improve economic status of beneficiaries. This study ascertains the purpose of loan and income generating activities of female clients of Baobab Micro finance Company Limited. The study used The design enabled the researchers to obtained extensive data from women’s who receives microfinance service from Baobab Microfinance Company Limited in Solidarity groups at Tamale Metropolis. The sample size for this study was 100 women determined using Slovin’s formula for sample size determination. The results showed that, 98% of BMC clients confirm that their diet had improved for the past three months whilst only 18.48 % of non-clients confirmed that their diet had improved. Results from the survey revealed that 22 % of respondents obtained loans between GHC1 – 500, while 10 % and 6 % of respondents obtained loans between GHC501-1000 and GHC1001 – 1500. The study recommended that, more avenue of micro credit should be made available to women groups since it has the capacity to improve their household decision making ability.

Source: UCC
Assessing Academic Advising Among Students In Selected Colleges Of Education In Ghana

The main thrust of the study was to assess academic advising among students in selected Colleges of Education in Ghana. To achieve this, the study was nested into the descriptive survey design involving the quantitative approach. The population for the study comprised all the second- and third-year students in the Colleges of Education in Ghana. Using a multistage selection process, 351 students (with a 96.9% return rate on the initial sample of 340) were chosen from the selected Colleges of Education in Ghana. The information was gathered with the use of questionnaires. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data (frequencies and percentages, means and standard deviations). The study found that most students in Colleges of Education in Ghana do not like how academic advising is conducted for them regarding prescriptive and developmental modes. Again, students do as the characteristics of academic advising are offered to them. Furthermore, it was found that most resources, such as communication tools and internet connectivity, are not available for effective and efficient academic advising to be carried out in the Colleges of Education in Ghana. Also, due to some deficiencies in academic advising in the Colleges of Education in Ghana, most students in Colleges of Education are not satisfied with the academic advising services offered. Finally, it was found that academic advising in the Colleges of Education in Ghana is bridled with some challenges that affect its effectiveness. It was suggested that academic advisers at Ghanaian Colleges of Education get to know their students personally, learning about their employment experiences, hobbies, and families to help them achieve their academic goals.

Source: UCC
Assessing barriers to adaptation to climate change in coastal Tanzania: Does where you live matter?

Research on barriers to climate change adaptation has, hitherto, disproportionately focused on institutional barriers. Despite the critical importance of personal barriers in shaping the adaptive response of humanity to climate change and variability, the literature on the subject is rather nascent. This study is premised on the hypothesis that place-speciﬁc characteristics (where you live) and compositional (both biosocial and sociocultural) factors may be salient to differentials in adaptation to climate change in coastal areas of developing countries. This is because adaptation to climate change is inherently local. Using cross-sectional survey data on 1,253 individuals (606 males and 647 females), barriers to adaptation to climate change were observed to vary with place, indicating that there is inequality in barriers to adaptation. In the multivariate models, the place-speciﬁc differences in barriers to adaptation were robust and remained statistically signiﬁcant even when socio-demographic (compositional) variables were controlled. Observed differences in barriers to adaptation to climate change in coastal Tanzania mainly reﬂect strong place-speciﬁc disparities among groups indicating the need for adaptation policies that are responsive to processes of socio-institutional learning in a speciﬁc context, involving multiple people that have a stake in the present and the future of that place. These people are making complex, multifaceted choices about managing and adapting to climate-related risks and opportunities, often in the face of resource constraints and competing agendas

Source: UCC
Assessing basic school mathematics teachers’ Information Communication Technology integration in The teaching of mathematics

The purpose of the study was to assess basic school mathematics teachers Information Communication Technology integration in the classroom. Survey method was used as the design for study. The study employed a survey method as a design. Cluster sampling technique was used to select 148 mathematics teachers in Bibiani in the western region of Ghana. The study employed questionnaires in the data collection. The findings of the study indicated that basic school mathematics teachers reported high ICT knowledge and skills (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge) required for ICT integration. Majority of the Basic School Mathematics Teachers (BSMT) do not employ ICT during mathematics classroom instructions. To determine the School related factor that best predicted ICT usage, the current study also revealed that availability of ICT tools was the major predictor of effective ICT use followed by technical support whiles planning and policy was the least predictor of classroom ICT use in the basic school level. In addition, basic school mathematics teachers have a positive attitude towards ICT use in the classroom. Finally, effective ICT integration in the basic school classroom is most affected by the school-related factors followed by teachers’ knowledge and skills (TPACK) whiles teachers attitude have no effect on effective ICT usage. Stakeholders of education should make ICT tools available in the classroom and explicitly state how ICT tools are used in the mathematics classroom in the Junior High and Primary school teaching syllabus.

Source: UCC
Assessing Biology Teachers’ PCK for Teaching Genetics at the Senior High School Level in Ghana

Genetics has been identified as a topic that Ghanaian students writing the Biology exam of the West African Senior School Certificate Examinations struggle with. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 149 senior high school biology teachers sampled from three selected administrative regions in Ghana to investigate their Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching genetics. PCK was assessed as comprising of knowledge of students’ understanding of science (KSU), of science curriculum (KSC), of assessment in science (KAS), of instructional strategies (KIS) and orientations to teaching science (OTTS), hypothesized by Magnusson et al. (1999). This model of PCK, the nature of its components, their interconnections and differences across different demographics of teachers was assessed using a 43-item multiple choice questionnaire. The five-component model of PCK was confirmed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Pearson’s correlation also revealed significant correlations among the five components of PCK, with KIS making the most connections followed by OTTS. This PCK of Ghanaian biology teachers, teacher-centred in its orientations and instructional strategies was the same regardless of the professional training or years of teaching experience. The findings of this research suggest the need for a shift from the traditional teacher-centred orientations and instructional strategies towards more student-centred, activity-based learning environments that are characteristic of inquiry-based reform teaching.

Source: UCC
ASSESSING BUSINESS STUDENTS’ EXPERIENCES WITH E-LEARNING IN A GHANIAN UNIVERSITY

Though e-learning has gained root in most universities all over the world that has resulted in the change of doing the business of teaching and learning, there are others where this is not so. This paper sought to investigate the perception of students using a Moodle platform from a university where the use of e-learning platform to supplement classroom’s instructional delivery is not mandatory thus almost all courses do not use such platforms. Design: A purposive sampling questionnaire was used in this study to solicit the views of third year business students after using the platform for two courses taught by the author in both semesters of the 2016/17 academic year. A link from Google form that contains the questionnaire was inserted into the Moodle platform for all 414 students who enrolled for the two courses to fill. In all 349 students completely filled the questionnaire indicating a response rate of 84.3%, which was deemed adequate for the study. Results: It was observed that overwhelming majority of the respondents own computing devices spending more than half of each day using those devices. They also use computers for academic purposes (studying and researching) while using mobile devices for non-academic purposes (personal life and social networking). Finally, they have positive impression with studying with the Moodle LMS whiles they identified some challenges in using the said platform. Conclusions: Respondents are ready for e-learning take off since they own their devices, spend most of the time with them and are digital savvy. The identified issues with the existing Moodle platform should be addressed before it is made mandatory

Source: UCC
Assessing Circular Agriculture Practices Behaviour of Smallholder Farmers in Yilo Krobo Municipality of Ghana

The study assessed smallholder farmers' circular agricultural practices and behaviours in the Yilo Krobo Municipality. The study used a descriptive research design with simple random and purposive sampling techniques to interview 358 respondents from communities in the Yilo-Krobo Municipality. A questionnaire and interview guide was used to collect data in the study. The study revealed that smallholder farmers (66.8%) in Yilo-Krobo Municipality are hesitant to adopt circular agriculture practices such as using organic manure or compost, disease-resistant crops, and botanical or organic pesticides, largely due to doubts about their effectiveness and benefits. Financial constraints, limited market access, and inadequate technological infrastructure are major challenges hindering the widespread adoption of circular agriculture practices among farmers in the Yilo-Krobo Municipality. Most farmers in the Yilo-Krobo Municipality do not receive support from government agencies (93%), NGOs (100%), agricultural extension services (92%), and community associations (99%). Financial constraints, lack of modern technologies, inadequate market access, knowledge, training, and support gaps, insufficient market incentives, and varying social norms hindered the adoption of circular agriculture practices among smallholder farmers in the Yilo-Krobo Municipality. Hence, Government agencies and NGOs should collaborate to provide targeted educational programs that increase awareness of the benefits and effectiveness of circular agriculture practices. These programs should demonstrate the long-term benefits of such practices, including soil fertility and reduced chemical use.

Source: UCC
Assessing Climate Change Communication In Selected Coastal Communities In Ghana

Awareness of climate change does not match the level of public engagement needed. The problem emanates from challenges that affect public comprehension of climate change. It is in furtherance to the above premise that the study sought to assess the strategies used in communicating climate change in selected communities along the coast of Ghana. The enquiry adopted the simultaneous triangulation mixed-methods which compensated for the inadequacies in quantitative and qualitative methods while leveraging on their strengths, in four selected coastal communities from the Western and Central Regions of Ghana. The findings revealed that 85% of the targeted respondents were conscious of climate change. Although 65% claimed they understood climate change, the data from the qualitative phase pointed to the contrary. In terms of perceptions, the respondents exhibited ambivalent views about the drivers and repercussions of climate change. The findings, again, uncovered that occupation and community are the most important predictors of climate change communication perception. Public understanding of climate change is impeded due to barriers encountered in the uptake of information which have resulted in limited knowledge on adaptation, little or no adaptation, destruction of properties emanating from unannounced disasters, and poor living conditions. The study also discovered more community-level strategies meant to improve future climate change communication by spurring the necessary engagement needed. The hypothesis found that religion influences one‘s perceptions of climate change causes, by shaping individuals‘ worldview, values and beliefs about the environment's origin and human responsibility. This can lead to varied perceptions, with some attributing climate change to divine will or natural cycles, while others emphasise human activities as primary drivers. Again, awareness of climate change is influenced by the community, marital status, educational level and religion. The study concluded by highlighting that there are gaps in current approaches in climate change messaging, emphasising the significance of localised messaging, community engagement, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Recommendations made include integrating indigenous knowledge, utilising multimedia platforms, and fostering partnerships for sustained impact.

Source: UCC
Assessing community participation in improving basic education delivery in the Gomoa East District, Central Region Ghana

The main aim of this study was to investigate the extent to which communities in the Gomoa East District participate in improving basic education delivery. Specifically, the study looked at the activities that communities perform and the extent to which they engage in those activities to improve access, infrastructure development and academic performance, as well as ensuring effective monitoring and supervision. The sampled respondents consisted of basic school heads and teachers, School Management Committee, Parent Teacher Association and Unit Committee executives. Respondents were selected using the random sampling approach and questionnaire used as instrument for primary data collection. The study showed that community members were aware of the need to participate in the provision of basic education and saw their participation as very significant to improving education delivery. However, they had little knowledge on the specific roles they needed to play in the school to improve education delivery. The study also revealed that lack of understanding of educational issues, poor communication and lack of resources and time on the part of parents and community members in general were major setbacks to participation in education delivery in the area. This study also notes that the top three ways of improving education delivery were using local language at meetings, informing community members about positive things happening in the school and ensuring effective communication between the school and the community by involving community members in decision making about the school.

Source: UCC
Assessing community participation in rural enterprise programme in the Tano north district of Ghana

There is a growing recognition that community participation is a very important element in achieving the goals of the poverty reduction programmes. But is it only in theory or also in practice? This study assessed community participation in the Rural Enterprise Programme (REP) to enhance participation and poverty reduction. A total of 72 respondents consisting of programme beneficiaries, staff of REP and opinion leaders constituted the sample for the study. Data were collected using in-depth interview, key informant and focus group discussion was qualitatively analysed using narrations and documents. The study shows that beneficiaries participated in only implementation and monitoring and evaluation stages and their level of participation was low. Beneficiaries were not empowered to take initiative themselves resulting in a minimal effect of REP on poverty reduction. The sustainability strategies of REP are not effective because beneficiaries were not involved. The study recommends that REP should involve beneficiaries more in their programme. Start up kits should be given to new trainees to enable them put the skills they have acquired into use. Beneficiaries should be involved in the sustainability strategies to make it more effective.

Source: UCC
Assessing components of Ghana’s comprehensive sexuality education on the timing of sexual debut among in-school youth

Although Ghana’s comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) program has been lauded, no study has examined its association with the sexual health outcomes of Ghanaian youth. Using data collected from 2,982 in school youth (male = 1,820 and female = 1,162) aged 15 to 17 years in three administrative regions of the country, we applied discrete-time hazard models to examine associations between components of Ghana’s CSE on the timing of sexual debut among male and female youth. Results indicate significant relationships between components on HIV prevention and timing of sexual debut for male youth. Male youth who learned about HIV prevention delayed sexual debut; however, male youth who endorsed myths about HIV transmission started sex early. Females who learned about values and interpersonal skills delayed their sexual debut, but the influence of this variable was attenuated by respondents’ demographic characteristics. Female respondents residing in the Greater Accra and Northern regions delayed sex compared with those in the Brong Ahafo region

Source: UCC