ADRRI JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

pISSN: 2026-674X ISSN-L: 2026-674X

VOL. 2, No.5 (1), February, 2015
Published by Africa Development and Resources Research Institute
ADRRI JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

ADRRI JOURNALS (www.adrri.org)

pISSN: 2026-674X ISSN-L: 2026-674X VOL. 2,No.5(1), February, 2015

Polytechnic students’ ICT competencies in using productivity tools.

Mubashir-Ahmed Iddrisu Bamie1 and Danso Kwasi Antwi2
1Department of Information and Communication Technology, School of Applied Science and

Technology, Wa Polytechnic, P.O. Box 533 Upper West Region, Ghana.

Email: bamie_mubash2000@yahoo.com or bamie147@gmail.com

2Department of Information and Communication Technology, School of Applied Science and

Technology, Wa Polytechnic, P.O. Box 533 Upper West Region, Ghana.
Email: exdanso@live.com
1Correspondence: bamie_mubash2000@yahoo.com or bamie147@gmail.com

Received: 28th January, 2015 Revised: 27th February, 2015 Published Online: 28th February, 2015
URL: http://www.journals.adrri.org/ http://www.journals.adrri.com
[Cite as: Mubashir-Ahmed, B. I. and Antwi, D. K. (2015). Polytechnic students’ ICT competencies in using
productivity tools. ADRRI Journal of Engineering and Technology, Ghana: Vol. 2, No. 5(1). Pp. 1-19, ISSN: 2026-674X,
30th February, 2015.]

Abstract
Technology is said to be the driver of this new economy and human capital is the fuel. ICT literacy is using
digital technology, communications tools, and/or networks to access, manage, integrate, evaluate and create
information in order to function in a knowledge society. In a developing country like Ghana, ICT
competencies of graduates in tertiary institutions are seldom reported and it is not known whether
graduates from Ghanaian tertiary institution possess the requisite ICT competencies to support economic
growth in the world of work. This study therefore evaluates the competencies of polytechnic graduates in
the use of productivity tools. The researcher adopted the descriptive survey method. Data was analyzed
into frequencies, means and standard deviation. T-test and ANOVA were used to test for statistically
significant differences. The findings showed no significant differences on ICT productivity tools
competences between males and females. However there were significant differences in the use of the
productivity tools: word, excel and PowerPoint based on program. It is recommended that every
polytechnic graduate is trained to be an intermediate ICT productivity tools user.

Keywords: computer literacy, computer competencies, computer skills, productivity tools, Polytechnic
graduates,

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INTRODUCTION
Technology plays an important and pervasive role in modern business and everyday living. It is
associated with an efficient modern society and economic health. The advent of the computer has
been hailed as comparable to the printing press; the more recent growth of communications
technologies has introduced features such as 24-hours stock market trading; email replacing fax
and many more. The terms globalization, new economy, knowledge economy, wealth creation
and digital economy are now ubiquitous.

Some common features that can easily be identified with our present day economy or new
economy are globalization and widespread use of ICT. The new economy can be talked of as an
economy in which people work with their brains instead of their hands, an economy in which
information and communication technologies create global competition, investments buys new
concepts or the means to create them and a world in which rapid change is important (UNESCO
IITE, 2003). Technology is said to be the driver of this new economy and human capital is the fuel
(Moe & Boldget, 2000). Human capital can be defined as workers knowledge, skills, competence
or abilities that can results in effective and efficient performance. Knowledge is not only beneficial
to the well-being of the worker, but it is also viewed as a major competitive advantage for the
company and a key element to ensure national prosperity and social development. Technology
plays a crucial role, but this era differs to the extent by which it is dominated by knowledge and
skills. In fact, ICT revolution makes knowledge a competitive resource and prosperity depends on
brains rather than brawn. Value creation is realized by means of employing knowledge workers
and continuous learning. Thurow (1999) argues that in an economy dominated by knowledge-
based activities, two interlocking but differing sets of skills related to the creation and the
deployment are required:

 Knowledge creation requires highly educated creative skills at the very top of the skills
distribution.
 Knowledge deployment requires widespread high-quality skills and education in the
middle and bottom of the skills distribution.

Information and Communication Technology is defined as a ‘diverse set of technological tools

and resources used to communicate, and to create, disseminate, store, share or transmit, and
exchange information’. Olakulehin (2007) defined ICT as a range of technologies that are applied
in the process of collecting, storing, editing, retrieving and transfer of information in various
forms. ICT competences are said to be synonymous to ICT skills, computer competencies,
computer skills, computer ability, computer capabilities and computer literacy (Walcot et al.
2011). Kim & Lee (2013) describe ICT skills as those necessary for living in a modern information-
based society, whiles Seunghum et al (2011) describe ICT competences as mastering of application
software (word, spreadsheet, presentation and internet) and being able to use information well.
Competence is defined as the ability to combine and apply relevant attributes to a particular task
in a particular context. These attribute include high level of knowledge, values, skills, personal
dispositions, sensitivities and capabilities, and ability to put those combinations into practice in

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an appropriate way (Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training, 2002). The
importance of technology in people’s lives is unimaginable and it is envisaged that technological
competences will soon become a functional requirement for people’s work, social, and even
personal lives.

Polytechnic education in Ghana is a collective term used to identify post-high school curricula to
teach students job skills and prepare them to enter employment. The raison d’être for establishing
polytechnics in Ghana is to produce high caliber, career-focused middle level technical personnel
possessing knowledge-based modern skills for various sectors of the economy. For industry,
Polytechnic graduates are crucial for transforming knowledge and ideas into goods and services
through productive processes. Graduates of polytechnics are usually equipped with high-quality,
middle-level skills for knowledge deployment. Polytechnic programs in Ghana typically include:
business, technology, agriculture, marketing and other trade and industrial professions.

As part of the requirements for programmes run in Wa Polytechnic, every student offering
Higher National Diploma (HND) is required to take two courses in computer literacy during their
first year of study. The course content of Computer Literacy I for first semester usually comprises
‘introduction to computers and how to use word processing software’. Computer Literacy II is
taken in the second semester and the course content is made up of how to use spreadsheet
software and the internet. In the second year students take other computer courses directly
related to their fields of study. Students in the engineering department take courses in ‘auto-card
software’, whiles accounting students take ‚tally accounting software‛.

The Republic of Ghana in its National ICT Policy for Education (Ministry of Education and
Sports, 2008) is mindful of the importance of information and communication technology in the
world of today which is ICT driven; hence its integration in the school curriculum at all levels of
education in the country. The document states that ‚every Ghanaian should be able to use ICT
tools and resources confidently and creatively to develop the skills and knowledge needed to
achieve personal goals and be full participants in the global economy‛ (Ministry of Education and
Sports, 2008, p. 17). It is argued that ICT competence is necessary for economic development and
social change worldwide (Kozma, 2005), therefore ICT skills training has been integrated into the
curriculum of many schools and institutions globally (Walcot et al, 2013).

In the light of the demands of skills and competences that must be possessed by Ghanaian
polytechnic graduates as stipulated in the National ICT Policy for Education, it is important to
determine the competency levels of polytechnic graduate as they get into the job market in order
to establish whether the current computer literacy course offer in Wa polytechnic is actually
enough for students to be effective in today’s job market. Polytechnic graduates may not have
gained the necessary computer skills from the polytechnics’ computer literacy curricula although
they could be using electronic devices. The ICT competencies examined were the use of
productivity tools such as word, spreadsheets, presentation and computer maintenance. All the

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productivity tools mentioned above are part of the curricula taught as computer literacy except
computer maintenance.

This study is fundamentally important since it will help to inform policy makers, administrators
of polytechnics, industry and employers about the level of ICT competences of polytechnic
graduates as they leave school. This will allow creation of intervention programs aimed at
improving ICT skills of graduates if the need be. Since the study of this type has never been
reported in the literature before in Ghana, the findings of this study will served as baseline study
for future references.

The purpose of the study was to investigate ICT competency levels of polytechnic graduates in
the use of productivity tools. It also sought to determine if there are any significant differences in
their ICT competencies based on gender and program of study.

This study was guided by the following research questions:

1. What are the ICT competency levels of polytechnic students in the use of productivity
tools: word processor, spreadsheet, presentation tools?
2. What are the ICT competency levels of polytechnic students in the maintenance of their
computers?
3. Are there significant differences in word processing skills, spreadsheet skills, presentation
skills and computer maintenance skills attributed to their demographic characteristic?

LITERATURE REVIEW

Research has indicated that generally, ICT literacy proficiencies play a critical role in determining
educational success, enhancing productivity and innovation, and in improving social cohesion
(International ICT Panel P.10). Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is not just
about knowing computers. It involves being able to use digital technology as a tool to create
information, that works or innovate so that you can function in the emerging digital global
society. Several research institutions and World Associations have tried to define ICT in various
ways and the definitions provided a foundation for the generally acceptable one worldwide.
Some definitions examined the effects of ICT at work, teaching and learning, literacy or fluency,
research and creativity etc. The purpose of finding an acceptable definition is to determine how
the individual can achieve ICT competency to function in the knowledge base and the emerging
digital global society. The Educational Testing Service (ETS) organized an international ICT
Literacy Panel meeting to come out with an acceptable definition for ICT. ‚ICT literacy is using
digital technology, communications tools, and/or networks to access, manage, integrate, evaluate
and create information in order to function in a knowledge society‛. This study dovetails well
with this definition since it attempts to determine the ICT competencies of polytechnic graduates
in Ghana. The ICT competencies assessed were the use of productivity tools (Word, excel, power
point) and computer maintenance. Productivity tools are design to help user accomplish tasks

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without necessary knowing the complex computations going on within the central processing
unit.

In recent years many studies have been conducted into ICT competencies of students in different
countries including Nigeria (Danner & Pessu, 2013), Malaysian (Rasit, Rosli & Ibrahim, 2012; Hew
& Leong, 2011), Barbados (Walcott et al, 2011; Grant & Walcott, 2009; and Walcott, Garner-O’Neal
& Depradine, 2013), USA (Caruso & Kvavik, 2005) and UK (Ramanau, Cross & Healing, 2010).
The most recent study on ICT competencies emerged from the Caribbean (Walcott, Garner-
O’Neal & Depradine, 2013).

In the study of Walcott et. al. (2013), the students rank ordered their ICT competencies in the use
of productivity tools as word, spread sheet, and presentation tools. On the average the students
agreed that they were not skillful in maintaining their computers. The study also reported the
competences of both male and female in the use of productivity tools to be similar.

The results from the ECAR 2005 study of 18,039 students from 63 higher education institutions in
the USA suggest that students in the USA rank ordered their ICT skills (from highest to lowest) as
word processing, presentation software, spreadsheets, performing computer maintenance and
securing their electronic devices (Caruso & Kvavik, 2005).

In the UK the Media Technologies: Access and Use survey 2003 (MTAU2003) was administered at
the Open University (OU) in 2003. One of the objectives of this study was to examine how well
students used specific ICT applications. A 40 item questionnaire was sent to 5,000 undergraduates
and graduates of the OU and 1753 responded. These students rank ordered their ICT skills (from
highest to lowest) as word processing tools, spreadsheet, and presentation software (Rae, 2004).

In another study of five UK universities in 2010 it was found that the rank order of ICT skills was
different between male and females. Female students rank ordered their skills (from highest to
lowest) as presentation software, computer maintenance, spreadsheet and computer security,
while males’ ordered their skills as computer maintenance, presentation software, and
spreadsheet (with computer security having the same rank) (Jones, Ramanau, Cross & Healing,
2010).
A study conducted of 182 new (first year) Accounting students at a Malaysian university found
that students who had previous completed a diploma programme (where they had already
received ICT training) rank ordered their ICT skills (from highest to lowest) as presentation
software, word processing software and spreadsheets (Rasit, Rosli & Ibrahim, 2012). Conversely,
a study of 208 pre-university Malaysian students, both male and female rank ordered their ICT
skills (from highest to lowest) as word processing, presentation software, PC maintenance and
spreadsheets (Hew & Leong, 2011).

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Finally a study of 100 undergraduates at a university in Nigeria determined that students’
perceived that their highest competency was in word processing and lowest in the use of
presentation tools (Danner & Pessu, 2013).

In nearly all of the countries reviewed students perceived that they were most competent in the
use of word processors. The exception however was in Malaysia (Rasit, Rosli & Ibrahim, 2012)
where the difference appeared to be due to the prior ICT training students received during their
diploma programme.

In the studies reviewed it appeared that males were more competent that females in the ICT skills
investigated (Haywood, et al., 2004; Jones et al., 2010) although the gender gap narrows when the
computer exposure (types and amount of computer experience) is the same (Kirkpatrick &
Cuban, 1998).

A study by Walcott et. al. (2011) on sophomores’ use of productivity tools across departments
established differences on respondents ICT competencies in the use of productivity tools.
Students of the Computer Science Department were more competent in word processing than
students of Language, Linguistics and Literature and Government Department. The study also
showed that students of the Computer Science Department were more competent in the use of
spreadsheet software than students of History and Philosophy, Language, Linguistics and
Literature, and Government Departments. Again, Computer Science Department students
exhibited better competencies that the students of Language, Linguistics and Literature in the use
power point productivity tools.

METHODOLOGY

The descriptive survey method was adapted to investigate ICT competency levels and other
related issues of the polytechnic graduate. A descriptive survey method allows the researcher to
pose a series of questions to willing participants, summarize their responses with percentages,
frequency counts, or more rigorous statistics, and draw inferences about a particular population
from the responses of the sample (Danner & Pessu, 2013).

The population of the study was all polytechnic graduates of 2014 who have just finished writing
their final examination. The target population was the 2014 completion batch of Wa Polytechnic
(512 students). A sample size of 120 was randomly selected from the target population. A
researcher-designed set of questionnaire on ICT competency levels on the use of productivity
tools was used to collect data for the study. The questionnaire was made up of demographic
characteristic and four other sections in productivity tools. Each section made up of a self-rated 4-
point likert scale questions. The questionnaire was validated by the researcher’s colleagues in
ICT, Educational Technology and Measurements and Evaluation from University of Cape Coast
and University of Education. The Cronbach’s Alpha reliability coefficient was calculated for each
of the section. The reliability coefficient for word processing, 0.85, for spreadsheet, 0.83 for

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presentation software, 0.75 and for computer maintenance was 0.70. According to Kline (2005), an
alpha value of 0.90 is considered excellent, 0.80 very good, and 0.70 acceptable. In this study, the
items in each of the categories had good internal consistency.

The researchers personally administered the questionnaire to the respondents and collected them
on the spot. A total of 110 questionnaires were retrieved and deemed fit to be used for the study.
This gave a return rate of 92% and data was collated, analyzed using percentages, means and
standard deviations. The independent sample t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA)
were employed to answer research question three.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Table 1. Demographic Information of Respondents

Variable Category Frequency Percentage

Male 86 78.2
Gender
Female 24 21.8

18-24 24 21.8

25-30 67 60.9

Age 31-34 11 10.0

35-40 7 6.4

>41 1 0.9

Secretariateship and Management 26 23

Accountancy 35 31.8

Program of study Building Technology 13 11.8

Estate Management 12 10.9

ICT 24 21.8

Table 1 presents Socio-demographic features of respondents. Of the 110 respondents who

attended to the questionnaire, 84 were males and 24 were females. Majority of the respondents
were aged 25-30 years (60.9%) followed by those within the 18-24 (21.8%) age brackets. Thus over
82.7% of all the respondents were below the age of 30 years and can be said to belong to the

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Millenial or Net Generation (Oblinger, 2003). The Net Generation is known to be tech-savvy and
very comfortable in using technology.

In Table 2 below, respondents were asked to rate their ICT competency levels on the use of the
productivity tool ‘word’ on a four point scale of ‚None‛, ‚Low‛, ‚Moderate‛ and ‚High‛.
Respondents rated their competences to be above moderate on entering text and symbols, editing
text and grammar, formatting text, inserting page headers and footers, managing and printing
documents. The competency levels of respondents in the rest of the items were rated below
moderate. The overall mean (M = 2.925) rating of respondents’ competencies in the use of the
productivity tool word could be considered to be moderate. Word processing software can
facilitate typing, storing, revising, and printing of textual materials and this increases the
efficiency and productivity of office workers such as typist, secretaries, administrative assistants,
staff professionals and managers.

Table 2: Competency levels of polytechnic students in the use of productivity tools (Word)

S/N Items Skills Level

None Low Moderate High Mean St.
Deviation
1 Entering Text and Symbols. 7.3 10.9 48.2 33.6 3.08 .86
2 Editing Text and Grammar 3.6 10.0 40.9 45.5 3.28 .79

3 Automatic Features. (Correct, 5.5 21.8 50.0 22.7 2.90 .81

format)
4 Utilizing Graphics 10.0 27.3 46.4 16.4 2.6 .86

5 Formatting Text 6.4 17.3 37.3 39.1 3.09 .90

6 Formatting Paragraphs 8.2 17.3 45.5 29.1 2.55 .89

7 Formatting Tabs and Columns 5.5 20.0 48.2 26.4 2.95 .83
8 Formatting Pages 6.4 20.9 50.0 22.7 2.89 .82

9 Inserting Page Headers/Footers 5.5 20.0 43.6 30.9 3.00 .86

10 Organizing Content 10.0 22.7 50.9 16.4 2.74 .85

11 Managing and Printing Documents 3.6 18.2 41.8 36.4 3.10 .83

In the same vain, respondents also rated their ICT competences in the use of excel. Table 3 below,
depicts respondents rated their skills in the use of excel to be above moderate in creating new

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workbook, previewing and printing a worksheet, saving and re-opening workbook and
formatting fonts and values. In the rest of the items respondents rated their skills to be between
low to moderate. The overall mean (Mean = 2.861) suggest that respondents skills in the use of
excel were between low to moderate.

Table 3: Competency levels of polytechnic students in the use of productivity tools (Excel)

S/N Items Skills Level

None Low Moderate High Mean St.
deviation
1 Creating a New Workbook 7.3 18.2 41.8 32.7 3.00 .90
2 Using Excel Toolbars 2.7 30.9 45.5 20.9 2.85 .78
3 Previewing and Printing a 7.3 13.6 40.9 38.2 3.10 .90
Worksheet
4 Saving and Re-opening a 5.5 10.9 38.2 45.5 3.24 .86
Workbook
5 Formatting Fonts and Values 5.5 17.3 46.4 30.9 3.03 .84
6 Adding Borders 6.4 26.4 35.5 31.8 2.93 .92
7 Switching Between Sheets in a 10.0 32.7 35.5 21.8 2.69 .93
Workbook
8 Using AutoComplete 14.5 21.8 40.9 22.7 2.72 .98

9 Creating a basic Formula 17.3 31.8 35.5 15.5 2.49 .96

10 Creating a Chart 9.1 29.1 41.8 20.0 2.73 .89
11 Formatting and Editing Charts 10.0 30.9 39.1 20.0 2.69 .91

Respondents rated their power point competencies to be between low and moderate. Most
respondents rated their competencies in power point use to be closer to moderate in formatting and
editing text, Using auto-correct features, Inserting and formatting and setting up slide show. The
competency rating of the other items on the use of the productivity tool power point are shown in
table 4 below. The overall power point productivity tools mean rating of competencies was 2.663,
depicting that respondents had low to moderate competencies in the use of power point.

Productivity tools use are essential for the world of work (Alshare & Hindi, 2004). Most employers
will require employees to have some amount of skills in productivity tools use (Word, Excel and
power point). However, far too many of the polytechnic graduates skills were below moderate and
this should be a matter of concern since these are graduates going into the world of work.

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Table 4: Competency levels of polytechnic students in the use of productivity tools (Power point)

S/N Items Skills Level

None Low Moderat Hig Mean St.
e h Deviation
1 Creating Presentation with 15.5 32.7 35.5 16.4 2.53 .95
templates
2 Formatting & Editing Text 8.2 14.5 48.2 29.1 2.98 .88
3 Using Auto Correct Features 9.1 20.0 36.4 34.5 2.96 .96

4 Importing Outline and 19.1 29.1 35.5 16.4 2.49 .98

Documents
5 Exporting to Other Applications 18.2 26.4 40.0 15.5 2.52 .96

6 Inserting & Formatting Tables, 11.8 23.6 36.4 28.2 2.81 .98
Charts, Photos, Clipart

7 Formatting Slides Background, 15.5 26.4 35.5 22.7 2.65 .99

Size and Orientation

8 Formatting Slides animation and 19.1 26.4 33.6 20.9 2.56 1.03
transition
9 Formatting Slides using Slide 20.0 33.6 30.0 16.4 2.43 .99
Master
10 Setting up a Slide Show 12.7 26.4 39.1 21.8 2.70 .95

Data presented in Table 5 below shows that respondents rated their computer maintenance
competencies to be between low and moderate. Running an antivirus scan, removing unused
application, performing windows update and installing patches for systems software were activities
respondents rated their competencies to be closer to moderate whiles the rest of the items could be
considered to be low. The overall mean score for computer maintenance was 2.50 and standard
deviation 1.01. It is important that polytechnic graduates should possess good competencies in
computer maintenance because a student’s inability to maintenance his/her computer may make the
system unstable and performing poorly. In addition not performing computer maintenance, such as
creating systems restore point, defragmenting, checking your hard disk for errors and backup critical
data may damage the systems hard drive leading to loss of essential data.

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Table 5: Competency levels of polytechnic students in computer maintenance

S/N Items Skills Level

None Low Moderat High Mean St.
e deviatio
n
1 Run disk cleanup 21.8 32.7 24.5 20.9 2.45 1.05
2 Run antivirus scan 15.5 23.6 30.0 30.9 2.76 1.06
3 Defragment and check your hard 18.2 36.4 25.5 20.0 2.47 1.01
drive for errors
4 Remove unused applications and 16.4 29.1 29.1 25.5 2.63 1.04
other services
5 Performing windows update 16.4 29.1 32.7 21.8 2.60 1.01
6 Perform application & utilities 18.2 31.8 34.5 15.5 2.47 .96
software updates
7 Performing updates on web 20.9 32.7 26.4 20.0 2.45 1.04
browsers
8 Installing newer versions of 23.6 31.8 25.5 19.1 2.40 1.05
systems software
9 Download and install patches for 16.4 34.5 31.8 17.3 2.50 .96
systems software
10 Download and install patches for 18.2 34.5 29.1 18.2 2.47 .99
application software
11 Create a system restore Point 20.9 36.4 30.9 11.8 2.34 .94
12 Back up critical data 20.9 33.6 28.2 17.3 2.42 1.01

The t-test was utilized to determine whether differences that existed in respondents’ productivity
tools competencies could be attributed to gender. Findings of the t-test in Table 6 indicate no
significant differences at (p< 0.05) between male and female respondents regarding word, excel,
power point and computer maintenance. This means that gender has no bearing on the
competencies of polytechnic graduates in the use of productivity tools.

Table 6: T-Test results of productivity tools skills possessed by polytechnic graduates due to
gender

Gender No Mean SD t df Sig.

Word Male 86 2.88 .86 -.169 108 .866
Female 24 2.92 .78
Excel Male 86 2.94 .89 -.926 108 .357

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Female 24 3.13 .74
Power Point Male 86 1.71 .59 .007 108 .994
Female 24 1.71 .55
Maintenance-Security Male 86 2.02 .81 1.509 108 .134
Female 24 1.75 .68
To ascertain if polytechnic graduates’ productivity tools competencies varied according to program
of study, a one-way analysis of variance was run at p < 0.05. The findings showed (Table 7) that
significant differences existed in the productivity tools use competencies (Word, Excel and Power
Point) of respondents with respect to program of study. This means that the productivity tools
competencies of one or more of the groups seem to be better than the others. There was however no
significant differences in respondents competencies in computer maintenance with respect to
program of study.

Table 7: ANOVA results of productivity tools skills possessed by polytechnic graduates by

program of study.

Sum of Squares df Mean F Sig.

squares
Word Between Groups 14.241 4 3.560 5.986 .000

Within Groups 62.450 105 .595

Total 76.691 109

Excel Between Groups 12.396 4 3.099 4.816 .001

Within Groups 67.567 105 .643

Total 79.964 109

Power Point Between groups 4.105 4 1.026 3.307 .014

Within Groups 32.586 105 .310

Total 36.691 109

Maintenance-Security Between groups 2.986 4 .746 1.208 .312

Within groups 64.869 105 .618

Total 67.855 109

A Scheffe multiple comparison post hoc test was utilized to detect which programs graduates differed
statistically (p < 0.05) in word competencies since the number of subjects in the five groups i.e.

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programs (12, 13, 35, 26, 24) were unequal. The scheffe multiple comparison post hoc test revealed that
graduates of the ICT program possessed better competencies in the use of word productivity tool than
graduates of Building Technology, Accountancy and Estate Management (Table 8). Though there were
differences in the mean score of ICT graduates and Secretaryship & Management graduate in the
competencies of words, the differences were not statistically significant.

Table 8: Results of post hoc Comparisons Using Scheffe Method for Independent variable
Word.
Secretaryship Accountancy Building Estate ICT
& Management (Mean=2.6857) Technology Management (Mean=3.3750)
(Mean=3.1538) (Mean=2.5385) (Mean=2.3333)
Secretaryship & X .46813 .61538 .82051 .22115
Management
(Mean=3.1538)
Accountancy X .14725 .35238 .68929*
(Mean=2.6857)
Building X .20513 .83654*
Technology
(Mean=2.5385)
Estate X 1.04167*
Management
(Mean=2.3333)
ICT X
(Mean=3.3750)
*. The mean difference is significant at 0.05

In the same vein, Scheffe multiple comparison test was used as post hoc to determine graduates of
which program possess better competencies in the use of excel. The results revealed that the mean score
of the programs differed for each of the programs (Table 9). The mean score differences were however
significantly different between the ICT and Building Technology programs, Secretaryship &
Management and Building Technology programs (Table 9). In both cases, graduates of the Building
Technology programs possess less excel competencies than the graduates of ICT and Secretaryship &
Management programs.

Table 9: Results of post hoc Comparisons Using Scheffe Method for Independent variable
Excel.
Secretaraiteship Accountancy Building Estate ICT
& Management (3.000) Technology Management (3.2917)
(3.2308) (2.3846) (2.4167)
Secretaryship & X .2014 .8462* .8141 .0609
Management (3.2308
Accountancy (3.000) X .6448 .6128 .2623

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Published by Africa Development and Resources Research Institute
Building Technology X .0321 .9071*
(2.3846)
Estate Management X .8750
(2.4167)
ICT (3.2917) X
*. The mean difference is significant at 0.05

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This study examined polytechnic graduates’ competencies in the use of ICT productivity tools.
Another important issue investigated was whether there were differences in ICT productivity
tools use with respect to gender and program of study. Respondents overall mean rating of their
ICT productivity tools competencies in word, excel, PowerPoint and computer maintenance were
2.925, 2.861, 2.663 and 2.4699 respectively. This result showed that polytechnic graduate rank
ordered their ICT competencies in word to be the highest and computer maintenance to be the
lowest. This findings are consistent with similar findings in other parts of the world where
students rank ordered their ICT competencies in word, excel, presentation software’s and
computer maintenance in descending order as found USA (Caruso & Kavik, 2005),UK (Rae, 2004),
Malaysia (Hew & Leong, 2011), New Zealand (2008) and Nigeria (Danner & Pessu, 2013). The
finding that is inconsistent with this finding is that of Rasit et al, (2012), where presentation
productivity tools were rated ahead of word and excel. Computer maintenance received the
lowest ranking of all the four variables because computer maintenance is not a productivity tool
and will not be required in the routine work of any polytechnic graduates except trained ICT
technicians. Computer maintenance is a technical area that senior management may consider
hiring specialist for or consider outsourcing. Again computer maintenance is not part of the
computer literacy curricula taught in polytechnics. These could be the reasons accounting for the
low competencies of polytechnic graduates in computer maintenance.

Regarding gender effect on ICT productivity tools competencies, this study found no significant
differences in the ICT productivity tools competencies in word, excel, power point and computer
maintenance. This means that the competency levels of both male and female polytechnic
graduates were considered to be similar. Though not significant, the mean score of the female was
better than that of their male counterparts in word and excel but the vice versa in powerpoint and
computer maintenance. In terms of word processing and spreadsheet competencies, Hew &
Leong (2011) found that more females had slightly better competencies but these findings do not
support Rajagopal & Bojin (2003) who found that more males were excellent in the use of word
processor and excel than females. In terms of power point and maintenance, competences, though
the differences were not statistically significant the mean score of males was higher than that of
females. This finding is in agreement with that of Atan et al (2002), Walcott et al (2013) who also
found out that computer maintenance competences is significantly dominated by males.

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Examining the results of ICT productivity tools competencies of the students across programs of
study, indicated a significant differences in word, excel and power point. The ICT and
Secretaryship & Management graduates’ competencies were comparable; but higher than those of
the graduates of the other departments. This study is consistent with the findings of Walcot et al.
(2013). For the ICT graduates, it is not surprising, since a major part of their studies is focused on
courses in Information Technology, which have a direct bearing on productivity tools use and
computer maintenance. The pre-requisite for taking some advance level course in the ICT
program is to be proficient in the use of basic computer application software such word, excel,
power point and database management. It must also be stated clearly that the ICT students have
ample time in the computer laboratory than students of any other program. Per the nature of the
ICT program students are required to present projects, assignment and desktop application they
might have developed in a softcopy form. It was initially however unclear why the graduates of
the Secretaryship & Management program possess comparable competencies to graduates of the
ICT program since they don’t take the IT courses. A check on the computer literacy curriculum of
Wa polytechnic indicated that apart from students of the ICT program who are not required to
take courses in computer literacy, the content of the computer literacy course for the other
programs are the same except that of Secretaryship & Managements. The content of the computer
literacy course for the other programs are as outlined in the introduction but that of Secretaryship
& Managements is shown in Table 10 below

Table 10

Level of study Course Name Course content

First Year first Semester Computer Literacy I Word
First Year Second Semester Computer literacy II Excel
Second Year First Semester Computer Application Microsoft Access

It is quite clear that the Secretaryship & Managements program lay more emphasis on the use of
productivity tools than the other programs as far as Computer Literacy is concern. They also take
Typewriting as a course which is closely related to the word productivity tool. It is worth
knowing that the Department of Secretaryship & Managements has a typing pool, where students
of their program can practice to develop accuracy and speed. In the case of the excel productivity
tool, the competencies of graduates of Secretaryship & Managements could be high because they
take a full course in excel and another full course in Microsoft Access which has a close link with
excel.

In the rating of the productivity tools computer maintenance received the lowest rating. This was
not surprising since most studies reflect that computer maintenance is one of the lowest rank ICT
competences among students ( Caruso & Kvavik, 2005; Hew & Leong, 2011). What is surprising is
that there were no significant differences in the competency levels of graduates of the ICT
program in computer maintenance as compared to graduates of the other programs. Higher

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National Diploma program are to produce graduates with middle level manpower for
deployment, implementation and maintenance of policies, projects, programs or facilities
(Government white paper, MOE, 2004). The core objectives of the HND ICT program in Wa
Polytechnic as stated in the re-accreditation documents in 2012 are to enable graduates from the
program to acquire:

i. Broad foundational skills in all key areas of Information Technology and establish a solid
interpretation of specialized IT disciplines
ii. Practical understanding of various technological solutions and how to apply those
solutions to solve business problems.
iii. The requisite technical skills to propose viable solutions to technical problems which will
better support and serve the business needs of employers.

The aims and objectives of the ICT programs are to produce technician for industry and public
sector. It is therefore surprising that after three years of studying ICT courses some of which are
specifically into computer hardware and software installations and maintenance, HND ICT
graduates, still did not perceive their levels of competencies in computer maintenance to be
different from graduates of other programs.

After a brief interaction with faculty and some students of the ICT department, it was realized
that the problem was inherent and that the ICT graduate should not be blamed much. The type of
training offered by the ICT department is much more theoretical with very little practical
sessions. The course taken in Computer Hardware and Software Maintenance and Installation
which is supposed to include areas in computer maintenance as captured in questionnaire have
not been included at all. The course content of computer hardware and software maintenance and
installation rather laid much emphasis on trouble shooting and diagnosing malfunctioning
computer hardware parts such as malfunctioning fan, malfunctioning processor, malfunctioning
mother board etc. The software installation and maintenance was completely ignored. The most
likely first time job an HND graduate in ICT can get in the ICT industry is to work as a help desk
attendant. Help desk attendants are knowledgeable technicians who will answer users’ questions
quickly to help increase productivity and they are also responsible for updating software,
upgrading software, creating backups and routine maintenance (Satzinger, et. al, 2004). It is
therefore disappointing that the training offered at the ICT Department laid little emphasis on
software maintenance. The performance of most computers is greatly influence by the version of
software it is running. Maintenance of systems software, application software, defragmenting
drives, and updating browsers are essential activities in ensuring proper functioning of a
computer.

Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that;

 During the course of training of polytechnic students, much emphasis must be placed on
the practical use of productivity tools and computer maintenance to ensure that every

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polytechnic graduate is trained to be an intermediate productivity tools user by the
standards of Childers’ Computer Proficiency Chart (Childer, 2003).
 The course outlines on computer literacy of the various programs must be harmonized
and tailored towards the computer literacy course content of Secretaryship &
Management Studies program.
 The faculty of the ICT Department and the Polytechnic as a whole must take a candid look
at the HND ICT program and the quality of training being offered to students. During the
training, equal emphasis must be given to both theoretical and practical aspect of training.

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