Psychological intervention for career self-esteem among students of agricultural education programme.

BACKGROUND: This study determined the efficacy of rational career intervention on career self-esteem of students of Agricultural education programmed in Universities in Southeast Nigeria. METHODS: Data were collected from a sample of 54 students. The sampled students were allocated to 2 (treatment and control) groups using the sequence allocation software package. Students in the treatment group were counseled through a rational career intervention programmed that lasted for 12 sessions while similar students in the control group were not treated. The 2 groups of students were then assessed 3 times based on a career self-esteem scale. Data collected were analyzed using Analysis of variance and partial eta square statistical tools. RESULTS: The study's findings indicated a strong impact of rational career intervention on career self-esteem levels. The findings also showed that group and gender interaction effects had a substantial impact on the professional self-esteem scores of students in agricultural education. The findings also indicated a statistically significant relationship between time and students career self-esteem in agricultural education. The findings also showed that the group and time interaction effect had a substantial impact on the professional self-esteem scores of students in agricultural education. The follow-up findings showed that the rational career intervention has a long-term impact on career self-esteem among students in Agricultural Education. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that rational career intervention is useful in improving self-esteem among students of agricultural education in universities in Southeast Nigeria. It was then recommended that year-1 students should be counseled immediately after registration.

Irrational career beliefs in agricultural education students, demographics, impacts, and rational career education intervention.

BACKGROUND: Studies have shown that a good number of students admitted into Agricultural Science Education program in Nigerian universities exhibit irrational career interest which affects their perceptions, feelings, and academic behaviors. This study, therefore, explored the effect of rational emotive career education on irrational career beliefs among students enrolled in agricultural education program in federal universities in Enugu state. Three null hypotheses guided the study. METHOD: Of the population (N = 79 students) targeted for the study and who underwent a screening exercise, 61 students were recruited as participants/sample size for the study. Sequence allocation software was used to assign 31 students into experimental groups and 30 into waitlisted control group. Participants in the intervention group received a rational emotive career education program that lasted for 12 sessions while those in waitlisted group did not receive the intervention. The participants in both groups were assessed at three points (Time 1, Time 2, and Time 3) using rational and irrational belief scale. A repeated measure (ANOVA) and partial eta square statistical tools were used to analyze the data collected. RESULT: This study result showed that rational emotive career education significantly reduced irrational career beliefs among students enrolled in Agricultural Science Education program exposed to intervention group compared to those in waitlisted control group. It also showed that there was time × group interaction for irrational career beliefs. The follow-up assessment indicated that the efficacy of rational emotive career education was sustained overtime. CONCLUSION: This study concluded that rational emotive career education is beneficial in reducing irrational career beliefs of university students enrolled in Agricultural Science Education program. Recommendations were also made in line with the results.

Effect of Moringa oleifera Seed Powder on the Clarity, Colloidal Particles, and Nutritional Contents of Cashew Apple Juice.

Cashew apple juice is a good source of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Cashew apples are being wasted due to lack of processing and are not much cherished because of its astringency. Some of the available clarifying agents are costly and are mainly imported. The study was, therefore, aimed at finding out the effect of M. oleifera seed powder on the clarity and phytochemical and nutritional contents of cashew apple juice. The study adopted an experimental design where 5 g, 10 g, 15 g, and 20 g of M. oleifera seed powder were used to clarify 250 cm3 of cashew apple juice. The setups were filtered using a filter paper after standing for an hour to get the clarified juice. The clarity of each filtrate was determined using an atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS). Similarly, the tannin, lignin, pectin, protein, starch, calcium, zinc, copper, magnesium, and vitamin C were determined following the procedure of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC). Results showed that cashew apple juice clarified with 10 g/250 cm3 gave the best clarity. The colloidal particle contents of cashew apple juice were significantly reduced by the use of M. oleifera seed powder. It was equally found out that the clarified cashew apple juice contained an appreciable amount of nutrients. The flavour, colour, and general acceptability of the clarified cashew apple juice were very much liked by the panellist while the aroma was moderately liked. The study recommended that M. oleifera seed powder should be used for clarifying cashew apple juice and be included at the rate of 10 g/250 cm3.