This study examines the effects of challenge-based and activity-based learning approaches on technical college students’ achievement, interest and retention in woodwork technology. A quasi-experimental research design was adopted. The study constituted a total number of 122 subjects, 63 for Challenge-based learning, while 59 were for activity-based learning. The study revealed that students who taught woodwork using the challenge-based learning instructional approach had a higher mean score than students taught using the activity-based learning teaching method in cognitive achievement tests, psychomotor achievement tests and tests for retention of learning.  Consequently, the research recommended that the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) should consider a review of the Woodwork work curriculum for Technical Colleges with a view to incorporating the challenge-based learning instructional approach into the teaching of the woodwork.

This study adopted the quasi-experimental research design, precisely, pre-test, post-test nonequivalent control group design. The population for the study was 210 National Technical Certificate (NTC II) furniture craft technology students (175 males and 35 females) in Technical Colleges. This study was carried out in Zamfara and Katsina State. The analysis was guided by three research questions and three hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The data were obtained with Furniture craft technology Cognitive Achievement Test (FTCAT) and Furniture craft technology Interest Inventory (FTII). The lesson plan, FTCAT, and FTII were subjected to face and content validation by three experts. The instrument was trial tested on a sample of 22 NTC II furniture craft technology students of Government Technical College FCT-Abuja. Kuder-Richardson 20(K-R20) and the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient were utilized to establish the coefficient of internal consistency and stability of the FTCAT. The values were found to be 0.72 and 0.81 respectively. Data obtained from the administration of the instrument was examined with mean to answer the research questions and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) statistic was used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that the Challenge-based learning approach is more successful in enhancing the students' achievement in furniture craft technology than the Activity-based learning approach. It was recommended that the Ministry of Education and National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) should organize workshops, seminars and in-service training for technical teachers regularly

This study identified the practical skills possessed and skills required by furniture construction teachers in Zamfara and Katsina State, Nigeria. Three research questions that sort to determine the skills needs of furniture construction teachers were answered and one hypothesis was tested at 0.05 level of significance. A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population for the study was 42 teachers. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from the 42 woodwork furniture construction teachers. The instrument had a reliability coefficient of 0.89 using Cronbach Alpa statistic.  Mean and standard deviation was used to answer research questions and a t-test was used to test the hypothesis using the IBM SPSS version 20. The findings of the study revealed that the respondents require skills on the ability to hold a saw with fore-finger straight out on one side of the handle, the ability to follow the “FEWTEL” method in preparing a piece of wood require further training, setting sliding bevel when marking out dovetail joint and selection of the right adhesive according to the purpose and type of wood as well as amount of force the adhesive would be subjected to required skills. It was recommended that; government should provide opportunities for furniture construction teachers to go on further training on the modern furniture construction technology required. The identified skills required by teachers of furniture construction should form the basis for the up-skill workshop to be organized as in-house training.

The study identified basic technology difficult topics in upper basic curriculum as perceived by teachers and students in Ibadan metropolis. A research question and one hypothesis guided the study. The study adopted a descriptive survey of the correlational research design using multi-stage sampling technique. “Questionnaire for Identification of Basic Technology Difficult Topics in Upper Basic Education” (QIBT-DTUBE) was the main instrument for data collection. Face and content validity of QIBT-DTUBE was established by three technology education experts. The reliability coefficient for QIBT-DTUBE yielded 0.91 using Cronbach Alpha reliability technique. Research questions were analyzed using Mean and Standard deviation while the null hypotheses were tested at .05 level of significance using t-test statistics. Result obtained indicated that teachers and students perceived ten topics as difficult to teach and learn while the students identified additional nine topics that are difficult to learn. More so, a significant difference exists between the mean ratings of upper basic education teachers and students on their perceived levels of difficulty of basic technology topics. Based on these findings, it was recommended among others that basic technology specialist teachers be supported with appropriate trainings and refresher courses on all the topics identified as difficult. Keywords: Difficult Topics, Basic Technology, Basic Education Curriculum, Teachers’ Perception, Students’ Perception

The study was to determine the tw0 m0de 0f instructi0nal meth0ds 0n students’ perf0rmancein W00dw0rk. The p0pulati0n 0f the study c0nsisted 0f 232 TC II students 0fferingW00dw0rk in Niger State. The study sample was made up 0f 192 TC II W00dw0rkTechn0l0gy students. The quasi-experimental research design which utilized n0n-rand0mized pre-test, p0st-test, experimental-c0ntr0l gr0up design was empl0yed. Mean, t-test, ANOVA and ANCOVA statistics were used t0 analyze data. The findings revealed that:there was a significant difference between the p0st-test Mean sc0re 0f the c0ntr0l gr0uptaught with c0nventi0nal teaching meth0d and that 0f the experimental gr0ups taught withK0lb’s experiential learning m0del and Gardner’s multiple intelligences learning m0del. Itwas rec0mmended that w00dw0rk teachers sh0uld be enc0uraged t0 empl0y K0lb’sexperiential learning m0del and Gardner’s multiple intelligences learning m0del m0re intheir teaching meth0d in 0rder t0 increase the level 0f students’ perf0rmance in W00dw0rk.