INVESTIGATION OF STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION TOWARDS TEACHING PRACTICE EXERCISE IN EKITI STATE UNIVERSITY

The study investigated the constraints of teaching practice exercise as perceived by the students. It investigated the benefits or otherwise of teaching practice exercise as perceived by the students. It also examined the level of students’ interest in the teaching practice exercise. The study was guided by three research questions. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The sample consisted of two hundred and fifty students purposefully selected from the 300 and 400 Level in the Faculty of Education from which five departments were randomly selected to participate in the study. A self-designed instrument titled “Perception of Students’ towards Teaching Practice Exercise Questionnaire (PSTPE-Q)” was used to elicit information on teaching practice exercise as perceived by the students. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency counts and percentages. The results showed that the perceived unwillingness of the students’ to become teachers after graduating from the university was the major constraint of teaching practice exercise, followed by lodging/accommodation problem. However, period of time allocated for teaching practice was not a constraint. The results also showed that (73%) of the students’ perceived teaching practice exercise to be beneficial while (27%) perceived otherwise. Findings from the study further showed that (56%) of the students’ showed interest in teaching practice exercise. Article visualizations