ghanaopendata/ghanaian-research-english huggingface dataset:
Assessing the impacts of quarrying on the geological structure of Weija hills in Ga South Municipality

Quarrying has become an important socio-economic activity in many societies as it provides a number of services for human well-being. This notwithstanding, the unique environmental characteristic of every proposed site for quarry activity should be taken into consideration. The Weija Hills at the Ga South Municipality falls within the earthquake zone of Accra, yet quarrying activities are carried out at various sections of the hills causing series of environmental problems. The study assessed the impact of quarrying on the geological structure of the Weija Hills. The study employed the mixed method approach following the exploratory sequential research design. The study found out that, the local geology of the Weija Hills is still stable. However, there are serious environmental problems such as erosion taking place and large quantities of weathered and eroded sediments are carried down slope any time it rained. This leads to flooding and blocking of the Mallam-Kasoa Highway annually. The study also found that, institutional control and involvement in dealing with the problem had not been very effective. If the condition remains unchanged, there could be an imminent landslide at the Weija Hills in the near future. Therefore, the study recommended that; first, the quarrying activity should be stopped on the Weija Hills and secondly all government institutions; the Minerals Commission, Mines Department of the Environmental Protection Agency, NADMO and the Municipal Assembly should collaborate and reclaim the land at the quarried sites as early as possible.

Source: UEW
Assessing the importance of Maintenance in the Building industry (case study of Bagabaga demonstration school in Sagnarigu district)

A building fabric is referred to as an “environmental envelop” because it is the means by which the natural or the external environment may be modified to produce a satisfactory internal environment for man to live in, buildings do not provide guarantee for their appearance and working conditions and is always subjected to wearing, decay and filth. This research is conducted in Tamale metropolitan area specifically Sagnarigu District to assess maintenance of public buildings in Ghana. The objective of the research was to assess the current conditions and state of public buildings, identify the principal causes of non- maintenance of public buildings, analyze the maintenance policies and practices, make suggestions and recommendations toward the adoption of effective policies. Data collection techniques such as observation, interview, questionnaire and rating scales were employed by the researcher. The outcome of the study depicted that; housing maintenance is a real problem among public institutions in Ghana, with 85 percent of all residential buildings of public institutions surveyed were having maintenance problems, maintenance problems are more prominent in Bagabaga Demonstration School with 45.3 percent of their buildings in a bad condition. To accomplish this aim, extensive study of the practical implications of the research, such as; embracing preventive maintenance practices as a high priority rather than an adhoc maintenance, gain optimum benefit from maintenance, ensure that maintenance department are adequately staffed with requisite manpower etc. Managers should oversee periodic inspection of buildings, there should be effective national maintenance policy, law and regulation to compare managers and occupancies to undertake maintenance.

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of head teachers’ transformational leadership practices on teacher job commitment a case study of kwadaso municipality

Leadership is very necessary in an organization to shape the goals, coordinate efforts, motivate employees and monitor their performances. Therefore, this study assessed the influence of headteachers’ transformational leadership practices on teacher organizational commitment. Descriptive survey design was used in this research. The target population for the study was all the teaching staff in all public basic schools in the Kwadaso circuit of the Kwadaso Municipality of which a sample size of 200 teachers and 4 head teachers was taken for the study. Descriptive statistics, percentages, tables, graphs were used to present the data analyzed from the field. The analysis of data collected revealed that teachers who perceived their headteachers as not able to meet their individual needs were also not intellectually stimulated. Head teachers who serve as role models also inspire and motivate their teachers. Headteachers’ openness and sincerity in dealing with their subordinate teachers led to teachers accepting their vision of what could be achieved academically. When leaders are open and sincere, it also elicits trust from their followers. It was also revealed by the study that teachers placed higher premium on the social and economic benefits above personal satisfaction and loyalty values when inspired by their headteachers. The study further found weak but positive and statistically significant relationships between transformational leadership practices and teacher’s affective, and continuance commitments in that, heads who serve as role models and inspire their teachers are somewhat positively related to teacher's emotional attachment or feeling towards their educational institutions. It was recommended among others that headteachers should do everything they can to arouse their teachers’ emotions and identification with them so that they can mentor and coach them to meet the challenges of the profession. Head teachers must also, provide opportunities for teachers to interact and collaborate with each other to build strong professional ties that will promote high level of affective commitment among the teachers

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of head teachers’ transformational leadership practices on teacher job commitment a case study of Kwadaso Municipality

Leadership is very necessary in an organization to shape the goals, coordinate efforts, motivate employees and monitor their performances. Therefore, this study assessed the influence of headteachers’ transformational leadership practices on teacher organizational commitment. Descriptive survey design was used in this research. The target population for the study was all the teaching staff in all public basic schools in the Kwadaso circuit of the Kwadaso Municipality of which a sample size of 200 teachers and 4 head teachers was taken for the study. Descriptive statistics, percentages, tables, graphs were used to present the data analyzed from the field. The analysis of data collected revealed that teachers who perceived their headteachers as not able to meet their individual needs were also not intellectually stimulated. Head teachers who serve as role models also inspire and motivate their teachers. Headteachers’ openness and sincerity in dealing with their subordinate teachers led to teachers accepting their vision of what could be achieved academically. When leaders are open and sincere, it also elicits trust from their followers. It was also revealed by the study that teachers placed higher premium on the social and economic benefits above personal satisfaction and loyalty values when inspired by their headteachers. The study further found weak but positive and statistically significant relationships between transformational leadership practices and teacher’s affective, and continuance commitments in that, heads who serve as role models and inspire their teachers are somewhat positively related to teacher's emotional attachment or feeling towards their educational institutions. It was recommended among others that headteachers should do everything they can to arouse their teachers’ emotions and identification with them so that they can mentor and coach them to meet the challenges of the profession. Head teachers must also, provide opportunities for teachers to interact and collaborate with each other to build strong professional ties that will promote high level of affective commitment among the teachers.

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of head teacher’s transformational leadership practices on teacher Organisational commitment a study of selected basic schools in Upper Manya Krobo D District

School leadership is supposed to be effective, strategic and transformative; resulting in high teacher commitment and motivation to do more than they are originally expected to do. The study examined the influence of headteacher’s transformational leadership practices on teacher organizational commitment in the Upper Manya Krobo District in the Eastern region. Cross-sectional descriptive survey design was used for the study. The purposive sampling technique was used to select 200 teachers from the district for the study. A 35-item Likert scale questionnaire was used for the data collection. Basic descriptive statistics were computed and the Spearman correlation analysis at an alpha level of .05 was used to explore the relationship between headteacher transformational leadership and teacher commitment. The study revealed that teachers perceived their headteachers to practice transformational leadership slightly above average. It was also evident that teachers had slightly weak commitment to the Ghana Education Service or School Management, but had passion and a sense of responsibility to the school children. The study also found weak but positive and statistically significant relationships between transformational leadership practices and teacher’s affective, and continuance commitments as well as positively weak but insignificant relationship between transformational leadership practices and teacher’s normative commitment The study recommended a leadership training programme, designed to improve and to increase headteacher's transformational leadership practices for public and private basic school teachers. Furthermore, a Ghanaian school leadership model that will examine the context of competencies, a typology of skills, for national school development was recommended as a necessity.

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of planning on selected instructional behaviours of physical education student-interns from University of Education, Winneba, Ghana

The purpose of this study was to assess the influence that planning have on some selected instructional behaviours of student-interns within two different teaching episodes, one planned and the second unplanned. Eight physical education student interns from the Department of Health, Physical education, Recreation and Sports of University of Education, Winneba taught two 30-minutes lesson to Senior High School and College of Education students. Teacher planning, including lesson note preparation was done for the first lesson by the student-interns but no planning was done for the second lesson. The two teaching episodes were videotaped for all the student-interns and were employed in data analyses. A mixed-methods design was used to report the project. Two instruments were used for the analysis of selected teaching behaviours: The Qualitative Dimensions of Lesson Introduction, Task Presentation, and Lesson Closure (QDITC) system and an interview. Graphs, tables, frequency counts, percentages and t-test analysis were used to analyse data gathered. The results showed significant differences in the selected instructional behaviours of all the eight student-interns across the two teaching episodes. It was evident that planning had a positive influence on the four instructional behaviours selected for the student-interns. This implies that a considerable amount of time must be devoted to teaching how to plan during Physical Education Teacher Education programmes so that teachers in training can be effective and can acquire proper planning skills before they become in-service.

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of site operatives’ attitudes on health and safety performance of construction project sites in Ghana a study of selected projects sites in the Northern Region

Construction site accidents constitute a major source of hindrance to productivity on construction sites globally. Many construction site accidents happen as a result of unsafe behaviors of construction site operatives. Arguably, controlling or managing the attitudes of construction site operatives could enhance the health and safety performance of construction sites. The aim of the study was to to explore the relationship between site operatives’ attitudes on health and safety performance of project sites in Northern Region of Ghana. The specific objectives of the study include; to assess the health and safety attitudes of construction site operatives on construction site in Northern Region of Ghana, to identify the critical determinants of health and safety performance of construction project sites in Northern Region of Ghana in relation to attitudes of operatives, to assess the influence, if any, of health and safety attitudes of site operatives on health and safety performance of construction project sites in Northern Region of Ghana, and to make recommendations based on the findings of the study for improving health and safety performance of construction project sites in Northern Region of Ghana. The study employed a cross sectional survey design and a quantitative strategy. The target population comprised site managers and construction site operatives. Purposive sampling technique was employed to select experienced site managers and literate tradesmen who could read, understand, and respond to survey questions. The response rate achieved was 83%. The findings of the study revealed that the key health and safety attitudes of site operatives on project sites in the Northern Region include; willingness to identify hazards that could lead to accidents, reluctance to work during holidays and week-ends, developing hatred for management when they are either sick or hungry and willingness to participate in health and safety training. The study revealed that the critical determinants of health and safety performance in relations to attitudes of construction site operatives in Northern region included; effective communication, provision of adequate protective clothing, regular and periodic training, education and awareness creation and good cordial working relationship between management and workers. The findings of the study suggest that the health and safety attitude of construction site operatives significantly correlates with health and safety performance of construction sites. Based on the findings, the study has made recommendations for improving health and safety performance of project site

Source: UEW
Assessing the influence of the rural enterprise programme in poverty reduction in the Saboba district, Ghana.

The study explored the influence of Rural Enterprise Programme (REP) in reducing poverty in the Saboba District. The qualitative research approach, with the case study design was used for the study. The target population was 389 staff and beneficiaries. Purposive Sampling was used to select 15 beneficiaries and 2 officials. Data was collected using semi-structured interview, and the data collected was analysed thematically. The study found that REP is not into direct creation of new jobs but offered skills training and business development training for beneficiaries. It was found the interventions were effective since it had direct and immediate impact on the quality of work and profits of the beneficiaries. Despite, the impact, the programme is saddled with beneficiary related challenges such as difficulty getting access to raw materials, inadequate training and poor interpersonal relationship between the beneficiaries and the coordinator, financial challenges and administrative related challenges such as inadequate manpower, inadequate motivation and the lack of means of transport. Based on the outcome of the study, it was recommended that REP should organise training regularly for the beneficiaries, and REP see to it that the beneficiary and administrative related-challenges are addressed.

Source: UEW
Assessing the integration of information and communication technology in teaching a case of Awutu Senya West District

The study assessed the integration of information and communication technology in teaching and learning using data from senior high schools in the Awutu Senya District in Ghana. Simple random sampling technique was used to select teachers in the District. In all, one hundred and ten teachers were selected for the study. Self-administered questionnaire was used as an instrument for the study. SPSS version 20.0 was the software’s used for the data analysis. Frequency tables and pie charts were also used in presenting the data. Conclusions from relevant related literature were captured along to authenticate the findings of the study. The findings revealed that most of the teachers’ attitude influences their integration of ICT in teaching. This was revealed among other factors through teachers desire to use ICT tools and the frequency with which these tools were used. it was further revealed that most of the teachers used in the study have received training on ICT before and it influences their decision to integrate them in their teaching. The findings further showed that majority of the teachers do not have time to prepare for their teaching using ICT tools because of their workload. The study concluded that the use of ICT has not been adequately integrated into teaching and learning in the district.

Source: UEW
Assessing the kitchen ergonomics of selected restaurants in the Accra Metropolis

The study sought to examine the ergonomic practices in kitchens of selected restaurants in the Accra Metropolis. The sample for the study comprised 60 kitchen staff of the selected from 10 restaurants using the purposive sampling technique. A descriptive survey research design was used with mixed approaches of data analysis. Quantitative data were analysed using frequencies and percentages with help of SPSS whilst qualitative data were analysed descriptively. The study revealed that the layout of majority of the selected kitchens confirmed to an ideal kitchen layout as discussed in literature. The layout of the kitchen made it possible for the easy and smooth movement of workers and objects within the working area as indicated by slightly over half (54.0%) of the participants. It is observed that workers perform repetitive motions and abnormally stretched some parts of their body and muscles when performing some tasks as indicated by slightly below half (48.0%) of the participants. These actions and the lack of some necessary equipment and gadgets for performing some tasks instead of manual handling were deemed to pose ergonomic risks to workers with their attendant health and safety implications. It is recommended that management should regularly investigate risks in the kitchen, undertake regular assessment of risks to identify potential hazards and adopt measures to eliminate them.

Source: UEW
Assessing the knowledge and practices of food safety management systems in restaurant a case study in the Wa municipality

In the Wa Municipality, food related diseases are prevalent and empirical examination has indicated that large proportion of these diseases are caused by poor food sanitation and unhygienic handling of foods in the restaurants and other eating outlets in the municipality. To this effects, the aim of the study was to assess the knowledge and practices of food safety management systems in the hospitality industry with regards to restaurant operations in the Wa municipality. The study used a cross-sectional descriptive survey. The population consisted of cooks and Restaurant operators in the Wa municipality. Systematic random sampling technique was used to select 150 respondents for the study. Structured questionnaire was the main instrument of data collection. Data obtained from the questionnaires were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16. The study revealed that 93.4% of the respondents agreed that personal hygiene practices are properly adhered to, in order to improve the quality of the food. Also, 93.3% of the respondents agreed that handwashing signs are posted to enhance consumer safety. Moreover, 93.4% of the respondents agreed that to ensure food safety cooks must wash their hands properly and frequently and appear in good health because of possibility of transfer of food borne diseases. The study also revealed that inadequate regulatory authorities to monitor the food preparation and storage process, inadequate storage facilities, lack of effective training and development programmes regarding food safety issues, poor food sanitation and unhygienic handling of foods in the restaurants were some problems faced by restaurant operators. The study concluded that there is the need to monitor the food preparation and storage processes of the restaurant operators in the Wa Municipality.

Source: UEW
Assessing the knowledge and utilization of energy efficiency assessment tools for office buildings in Ghana :a case study of the Kumasi Metropolis

Conducting an energy efficiency assessment helps construction firms and management team understand how and where energy is used, where to improve usage and equipment, and how to reduce costs. This dissertation was conducted with the main aim of assessing the level of knowledge and utilization of energy efficiency assessment tool for office buildings in Ghana. The study adopted descriptive survey as the research design with a population of owners and tenants of office buildings as well as construction managers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, quantity surveyors, civil engineers, architects who worked in some public office buildings in the Kumasi Metropolis. The study used simple random sampling technique to select twenty (20) building owners and tenants and purposive sampling technique was used to select seventy (70) building professionals. In all, ninety (90) respondents were used for data collection through questionnaires. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel (MS Excel) were used to analyze the data and the results were presented in charts and tables showing their frequencies and percentages. The study found that, the Pearl Rating System (ESTIDAMA), the Green Building Assessment (GBA), Comprehensive Assessment System for Building Environmental Efficiency (CASBEE) among others are the major energy efficiency assessment tools that building professionals in Kumasi metropolis are aware of. The study concluded that, even though building professionals are aware of energy efficiency assessment tools, its cost was identified as a barrier to the adoption and application to improve energy consumption in office buildings. The study also concluded that, inculcating energy efficiency factors in both new and existing office building stock can substantially reduce energy consumption and most of the environmental impacts. The study recommended that, building professionals must make it a point to abreast themselves with more sustainable energy efficiency assessment tools that are less costly to encourage client’s acceptance and adoption in their designs.

Source: UEW