Paper Title: Industrial Training of Construction Students: Perceptions of Training Organizations in Ghana

Auhors: Ayarkwa, J1, E. Adinyira2 and D. Osei-Asibey

Address

Department of Building Technology, College of Architecture and Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana. E-mail: ayarkwajosh@yahoo.com Phone Contact: 233-3220-60311 or 233-244-010870

Professional Biography of Authors Dr. Joshua Ayarkwa is an Associate Professor and currently Head of the Department of Building Technology of the College of Architecture and Planning in the KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. He has undertaken extensive research in many areas, especially, on construction materials. Professor Ayarkwa is currently leading a team of researchers in his Department to address problems confronting the construction industry in Ghana.

Dr. Emmanuel Adinyira is a Lecturer in the Department of Building Technology of the College of Architecture and Planning in the KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. He is an enterprising young man with great expertise in research and professional practice. Dr. Adinyira is currently part of the team of researchers in the Department addressing problems confronting the construction industry in Ghana.

Industrial Training of Construction Students: Perceptions of Training Organisations in Ghana Abstract

Purpose The industrial training component in a universitys curricula adds tremendous value to a degree programme by enhancing the employable skills of graduates. This paper assesses the perception of organisations that have trained construction students from the Department of Building Technology of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, as part of its industrial training programme.

Design /methodology/approach Through a structured questionnaire survey of 120 organisations which have offered industrial training to construction students in the Accra, Kumasi and Cape Coast metropolitan areas of Ghana, the paper assessed industrys views on issues relating to the nature and objectives of industrial training, preparation towards training, performance of students during training, effectiveness of the training and areas of improvement. Data collected through the survey was analysed using largely descriptive statistics and content analysis.

Findings In the opinion of the training organisations, industrial training exposes students to real work environment and helps them to apply theory to practice. During industrial training, the trainees showed high level of performance achievement in their ability to carry out instructions, ability to function as team players and ability to apply knowledge gained from the university among others. They however showed a low level of performance achievement in negotiation skills, independence, social and multiracial awareness and ability to make decisions. Major areas requiring improvement in the way industrial training is currently organised include: the need for learning institutions to provide guidelines for industrial training for use by host organisations and to monitor trainees during industrial training; training organisations should design training programmes which emphasise all competencies, appoint industrial supervisors and submit industrial feedback to learning institutions. Practical implications

The findings from the study will not only make industrial training programmes in Ghana and other developing countries more effective and successful towards the improvement of skills of trainees and thereby increase their chances of employment after graduation but also provide a reliable source of highly skilled and educated workers and an expanded pool of qualified future employees.

Originality/value - The paper provides a basis for enhancing and developing effective IT practices as well as serves as indicators for evaluating existing IT practices in Ghanaian and other universities in developing countries to positively influence future employees of the construction industry.

Keywords - Industrial training, construction students, organisations, Ghana

Paper type Research paper

Introduction
The Ghanaian labour market has become more competitive. The recent oil discovery and processing are expected to result in growth of infrastructural development and increase the chances of construction graduates to secure jobs in the construction industry. Employers, however, have high expectations of fresh construction graduates, and graduates are expected to perform in the organisation as soon as they are employed. Currently, there are growing concerns about a perceived mismatch between industrys needs and demand and skills of graduates produced by higher education institutions. Haupt (2003) states that there is a gap between what employers appear to want and what higher education provides. The success of university graduates in the employment market results in a better reputation for a given university thus attracting higher calibre prospective students. Universities and training institutions therefore hold the responsibility to produce graduates with sufficient background and excellent qualification to meet the expectation of the industry. As an assurance that the performance of new graduates is up to the standard expected by the construction industry, the Department of Building Technology of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, considers students exposure to industrial training (IT) as crucial in the building technology education programme.

The Value and Objectives of Industrial Training Past research has viewed IT as an extremely valuable component of university education, especially for professional courses (Rahman et al., 2009; Osman et al., 2008; Connor and Shaw, 2008; Pillai and Yusoff, 2007; Mihail, 2006; Teoh, 2006; Wasonga and Murphy, 2006; Callanan and Benzing, 2004; Gibson, 2001; Fallows and Steven, 2000). According to Ballinger and Lalwani (2000), IT provides opportunities for undergraduates to apply what they have learnt in the university. It provides a laboratory environment for students pursuing academic programmes to test out the theory and knowledge they have learned in the university while enriching the academic experience with work-based issues and examples (Dodge and McKeough, 2003). IT also provides students with onthe-job training and real-life job experience, making them more aware of the needs and expectations of industry as well as making them more employment ready (Ballinger and Lalwani, 2000). In the opinion of Yorke (2006), IT provides a set of achievements skills, understanding and personal attributes - that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen occupations. Knouse et al. (1999) asserted that students who undergo internships tend to find jobs more quickly upon graduation than students who do not undergo internships. In the opinion of Garavan and Murphy (2001) work experience provides credible means for softening the reality shock of transitioning from the world of academics to the world of work. Objectives of the IT are reported to include exposure of students to engineering practice specific to their field of specialisation, exposure to the nature of the industry selected and the acquisition of job relevant skills (Osman et al., 2008). Harvey (1999) reported that UK companies generally consider graduate attributes as important criteria in the recruitment selection. Maclean and Ordonez (2007) also argue that the new 'information age' requires knowledge workers. Expectations of industry The current competitive economic environment implies that graduates should have the knowledge of an academic subject, as well as a range of portable skills that harness growing knowledge, technology, and engineering advances (Liyanage and Poon, 2003). Mohammad et al. (2004) argue that current economic challenges and globalisation are forcing employers in the engineering sector to seek competent engineers. Thus, students have to equip themselves with skills desired by their future employers. Beyond good academic qualifications, employers also require new engineers to be equipped with relevant capabilities, skills, abilities and personal qualities (Azami et al, 2009). Employers require that entry-level graduates be able to read, write, and compute; communicate clearly

and effectively; have solid work ethics; be technologically literate; and be able to work in teams, make decisions, solve problems and manage their work (Connecticut State Department of Education, n.d.). Education, therefore, needs to overhaul not only its content and delivery modes, but also the way it is used to promote the knowledge management process in organisations. Cox and King (2006) concluded that now-a-days, preparing students for future careers has become a priority. A university education is regarded as developing more generic cognitive capabilities, usually assessed by evidence of critical thinking in individual written work (Holian, 2004). Majumder (2008) stressed that education looks at the general development of students to give them a wide range of opportunities and choices to prepare them for employment, while industry looks for technicians and employees with specific skills who will fit directly into the system. Cox and King (2006) articulated that different stakeholders value employability differently. To employers, employability skills reflect the abilities of recent graduates to perform immediately without further training. Bennett (2002), however, argued that this is not the case anymore and employers are more responsive to changing market needs and seek to employ a flexible and adaptable workforce and have to provide further training to fresh graduates. Gill and Lashine (2003) assert that there have been calls for a more market oriented focus in engineering education, a better balance between theory and practice (Conger and Xin, 2000), new models of curricula and propositions for a new paradigm of engineering education that is transformational and emancipatory, and encourages critical reflection rather than being linear and prescriptive (Dehler et al., 2001). The role of universities in industrial training IT is an extremely valuable component of university education, especially for professional courses (Bansal et al., 2010; Pillai and Yusoff, 2007). The formation of competencies in students is the major responsibility of learning institutions (Fowler and Tietze, 1996). Academic institutions organise and promote the placement of students in private enterprises and other organisations to foster work experience so that students will attain the necessary skills to supplement their theoretical training (Mihail, 2006). While students are still in the university, IT helps them develop a core of global market skills such as communication and time management skills, better selfconfidence and better self-motivation, that are now considered requirements (Gill and Lashine, 2003). The National Higher Education Research Institute of Malaysia (2004) cited Cheetham and Chiver (1996) as having proposed a holistic model of professional competences. The model comprises of four core components being cognitive, functional, behavioural and ethical

competences. These core competencies are supported by meta competencies that include among others communication, self-development, creativity, analysis and problem solving. Educational institutions need to prepare its graduates to become 'new' knowledge workers who are able to use logical-abstract thinking to diagnose problems, research and apply knowledge, propose solutions, and design and implement those solutions, often as a member of a team (Maclean and Ordonez, 2007). In the opinion of The National Higher Education Research Institute of Malaysia (2004), there is an in-built conflict among the various parties involved in IT in an attempt to develop various competencies in industrial trainees. Whereas learning institutions may plan for the students to acquire all the relevant competencies so that they would end up as holistic professionals, employers may emphasise more functional competencies.

Students undertaking IT are supervised by their university lecturers as well as industry supervisors, and students have to prepare and submit written reports on their IT experience (Pillai and Yusoff, 2007). Connor and Shaw (2008) emphasised the need for higher educational institutions to continue to strengthen links with industry and commerce, not only to give graduates the skills which employers value but also to make sure that students are aware of what is happening in the labour market and what employers are seeking. The flow of supply and demand information between training institutions and employers and the integration of that information into training programs are at the crux of providing strong support to a countrys industrial workforce needs (Chileshie and Haupt, 2006). Currently, there are growing concerns about the perceived mismatch between industry needs and demand and skills of the graduates produced by higher education institutions (Haupt, 2003).

Bansal et al. (2010) assert that although Universities curricula have provision for IT and various training schemes are in force, especially for professional courses, some IT programmes have not made the considerable impact expected and need quick redress. If students are to meet the skills requirements of an ever-changing labour market, adequate resources need to be invested in appropriate forms of work experience and in building up transferable skills (Mihail, 2006). This paper assesses industrial views on issues relating to the nature and objectives of IT in Ghana, preparation towards training, performance of students during training, effectiveness of the training

and areas of improvement, with a view to incorporating measures to enhance construction education and provide better satisfaction to all stakeholders.

Research Methodology
The study reviewed literature on the nature, objectives, benefits and other issues relevant to IT (Rahman et al., 2009; Callanan and Benzing, 2004; Osman et. al., 2008). The relevant data collected from the literature formed the basis of a structured questionnaire administered to organisations which had trained construction students from the Department of Building Technology of the KNUST since 1991. The choice of these organisations was based on the assumption that with their prior experience in training construction students, they would be able to provide objective and accurate IT perspectives. Out of 186 organisations on record at the Departments office as having provided IT to students, 120 active organisations in the Accra, Kumasi and Cape Coast metropolitan areas were selected for the study. Questionnaires were administered to 70 organisations in Accra, 40 in Kumasi and 10 in Cape Coast. The questionnaire comprised of three main sections. The first section focused on companies profile and the second intended to assess the training organisations perceptions on the nature and objectives of IT, students level of preparation towards training, students performance during training, and the effectiveness of the training. The third section focused on suggestions of the training organisations on areas of improvement. Closed-ended questions were mainly used in the survey, but open-ended questions were used to sample suggestions for improvement. A face-to-face questioning approach was adopted for the administration of the questionnaire in order to maximise the response rate. Seventy-eight out of the total of 120 questionnaires administered, comprising 49 in Accra, 23 in Kumasi and 6 in Cape Coast, were retrieved and analysed. The response rate of 65% obtained was considered sufficient for the study (Moser and Kalton, 1993).

Method of data analysis Data collected through the survey was analysed using largely descriptive statistics and content analysis. For evaluation of training objectives and effectiveness of training, respondents were asked to score the factors on a Likert scale of 1 to 5, where score 1 = strongly disagree, score 2 = disagree, score 3 = neutral, score 4 = agree, and score 5 = strongly agree. For evaluation of students level of preparation towards IT and performance during training, however, score 1 = most unsatisfactory,

score 2 = unsatisfactory, score 3 = neutral, score 4 = satisfactory, and score 5 = most satisfactory. From the scores the factors were ranked according to their mean scores and standard deviations. Mean scores greater than the neutral value of 3.00 were considered significant (Ofori et al., 2002; Tse, 2001).

Results and Discussion

Company profile The core businesses of the respondent-organisations are building construction and civil engineering works. Sixty percent of the training organisations are involved in building construction and civil engineering works, and 30% in consultancy and project management. Only 10% are involved in engineering services (Fig. 1).

Fig.1 Percentage by Core Business of Training Organisations

The respondent-organisations are of varying sizes in terms of capacity and workforce. The organisations admit student trainees based on their capacity and the number of projects on hand. Twenty-seven percent of the training organisations accept between 1 and 10 trainees annually, 10% accept between 11 and 20 trainees, and only 3% of the organisations accept more than 20 trainees annually. Perceptions on the nature of industrial training The organisations were asked to indicate their perception on the nature of IT (Fig. 2). All the organisations perceive IT to expose students to real work environment. Ninety-eight percent (98%)

and 93% also perceived the training to allow students to have a better understanding of what they have learned in the classroom and to ensure good partnership between the learning institution and the host organisation for successful implementation of IT respectively. Eighty percent of the organisations, however, perceived that IT should help fulfil the needs and objectives of the host organisation. The results, generally, show that training organisations perceive that IT should benefit the student trainees more than the host organisation. This result agrees with Rahman et al. (2009) who stated that IT is an important strategy to expose students to real work life situation and equip them with the necessary skills so that they would be job ready when they graduate.

Fig. 2 Perceptions on the nature of industrial training

Perceptions on industrial training objectives Mean scores of all the 15 IT objectives evaluated (Table 1) are greater than 3.00. This indicates that the respondent-organisations agree that the objectives of IT are to understand the nature of the job, to expose the students to the real working environment and to help students apply theory to practice among others. The above three objectives are ranked as the first three important training objectives in that order. These findings confirm those in literature (Osman et al., 2009; Mihail, 2006; Schuetze and Sweet, 2003; Ballinger and Lalwani, 2000) which concluded that training ensures that students are equipped with working knowledge to cope with their specific job role and enables them appreciate school based education by relating theory to application in the workplace. Table 1 Organisations perceptions on industrial training objectives

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Statement To understand the nature of a job To expose the students to the real working environment To apply theory to practice To allow the students to gain new ideas To work in a team environment To learn to interact with others To develop a sense of responsibility in students To apply the technical skills and knowledge learned To provide self improvement opportunities To use the technology in the organization To provide opportunities for self development/ career guidance To expose students to the latest and industry related technologies To develop planning and coordination skills To provide opportunities to participate in decision making To provide opportunities to enhance communication skills

Mean score 4.40 4.32 4.22 4.18 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 3.95 3.90 3.90 3.88 3.82 3.62 3.60

Std. Dev. 0.632 0.888 0.920 0.675 0.877 0.906 0.961 1.013 0.677 0.928 1.057 0.939 0.747 0.952 0.871

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Perceptions on preparation towards industrial training Mean scores of all the attributes evaluated on preparation towards IT are greater than 3.00 (Table 2). Thus, the respondent-organisations are generally satisfied with the level of preparation of students towards IT, especially, their interaction skills, creativity, and non-verbal communication skills which are ranked first, second and third respectively among the nine attributes evaluated. Students proficiency in English language is, however, ranked the lowest. The results confirm findings from the literature. Judging whether graduates are employable, from the employers perspective, depends upon whether the graduate exhibits attributes expected to ensure their preparedness for the work place (Harvey et al., 1997). Nurita et al. (2007) reported that graduates are currently well equipped with technical skills such as proficiency in ICT, management, engineering and marketing. The National Research Institute for Higher Education (2007) found that, generally, organisations require their employees to have good communication skills and knowledge in ICT. Table 2 Perception on industrial training preparation No. 1 2 3 4 5 Attributes Interaction skills Creativity Communication skills (non-verbal) General knowledge Academic knowledge Mean score 4.12 3.78 3.70 3.68 3.68 Std. Dev. 0.686 0.862 0.911 0.997 1.141 Rank 1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9

Leadership ability Computer skills Personality Proficiency in English Language

3.62 3.52 3.40 3.12

1.030 1.062 0.928 1.137

6 7 8 9

Perceptions on effectiveness of industrial training The results of the evaluation of the perceptions of respondent-organizations on the effectiveness of IT are summarized in Table 3. Mean scores of 10 of the factors evaluated are greater than 3.00, indicating that the organisations are of the perception that the IT programme is effective with regards to these activities. The IT programme is effective in ensuring that students are able to acquire new skills during the training, training organisations do their best to provide the students with the necessary work exposure and students are able to adapt to the work environment during IT among others. Mean scores of three of the factors evaluated, however, are below 3.00 and ranked 11th, 12 th and 13th (Table 3). Thus, the respondent-organisations are of the perception that contact between the university and the host organisations is not sufficient, that students on IT are not adequately briefed by their institutions, and that the university does not provide sufficient guidelines for the organisation to supervise the students. These three statements are primarily the responsibility of the learning institution, and therefore suggest that host organisations are dissatisfied with the level of contribution of the training institution to industrial training of students. The above results corroborate those in the literature. Pillai and Yusoff (2007) indicated that students undertaking IT are supervised by their university lecturers as well as industry supervisors, and students have to prepare and submit written reports on their IT experience. Connor and Shaw (2008) emphasised the need for higher educational institutions to continue to strengthen its links with industry and commerce, not only to give graduates the skills which employers value but also to make sure that students are aware of what is happening in the labour market and what employers are seeking.
Table 3 Perceptions on effectiveness of industrial training

No 1 2 3

Statement Students are able to acquire new skills The organisation does its best to provide students with the necessary work exposure Students are able to adapt to the work environment

Mean 4.20 3.85 3.70

Std. Dev. 0.516 0.893 0.791

Rank 1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Supervisors are given clear guidelines on how to assess the students on industrial attachment Students are disciplined Students are self motivated Generally the students are able to complete work assigned to them successfully Students on industrial training put in their best effort to learn Training the students benefits the company Students have the right attitudes towards their industrial attachment The university provides sufficient guidelines for the organisation to supervise the students Students on the industrial training are well briefed by their institutions The contact between the university and the company pertaining to the student on attachment is sufficient

3.42 3.38 3.32 3.28 3.25 3.22 3.20 2.88 2.82 2.38

0.958 0.705 0.694 0.757 0.954 1.025 0.823 1.159 1.083 1.275

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Performance during industrial training Mean scores of twenty-one performance criteria, coded P1 up to P21, were assessed by the respondent-organisations. The results presented in Figure 3 show the percentage of students evaluated from satisfactory to most satisfactory by the respondent-organisations. The results generally show that host organisations are quite satisfied with the performance of student trainees. Ninety-five percent of the respondent-organisations are of the perception that trainees are able to carry out instructions well during IT, 94% of the perception that trainees are able to function as team players, and 93% of the perception that they are able to apply their knowledge and have good listening skills. The trainees communication skills are also perceived to be satisfactory. The findings from the study confirm those in the literature. Nambudiripad (2003) asserted that students graduating from universities are like uncut diamonds and look useless like trifles, but when given proper training they dazzle forth in all their glory. Stewart and Knowles (1999) reported that employers seek graduates endowed with good communication skills, creativity, initiative, interpersonal skills, leadership, motivation, organisational ability and teamwork.

Fig. 3 Students performance during industrial training

Performance achievement levels of trainees The performance of the student trainees in the 21 performance criteria are categorized into three achievement levels: high, medium and low (Figures 4, 5 and 6 respectively). High performance achievement level comprises performance criteria with rating of more than 90% of respondentorganisations. Medium achievement level comprises criteria with rating between 80% and 90% of organisations, and low achievement level comprises those with rating below 80% organisations. Seven criteria including ability to carry out instructions (P16), ability to function as a team player (P18), and ability to apply knowledge (P19) are considered as high achievement levels, with ratings of more than 90% of organisations (Figure 4). The seven criteria under this category relate to positive attitudes and soft skills. Ability to apply knowledge to problem solving is one of the key aspects of innovation practice in a construction organisation (Baxter et al., 2009). The high level of achievement in these criteria indicates that the learning institution has been successful in providing positive attitudes and soft skills to students to enable them take up challenges in the construction industry in Ghana.

Fig. 4 High level of achievement in performance criteria Where P8 is listening skills, P10 is ability to extract information, P16 is ability to carry out instructions, P18 is ability to function as a team player, P19 is ability to apply knowledge, P20 is adequate background knowledge, and P21 is seriousness towards work Seven criteria including environmental awareness (P13), ability to interact (P9) and discipline and motivation (P12) are considered as medium performance achievement level, with ratings of between 80% and 90% of respondent-organisations (Figure 5). Ability to interact, and discipline and

motivation play vital role for professional success and help graduates to excel in the workplace. Callanan and Benzing (2004) assert that internship provides students with the opportunity to develop a more accurate self-concept and test for fitness between their own individual characteristics and the demands of the work environment. Jamil et al. (2010) asserted that sustainable development and environment awareness issues taught at the university level prepare students for environmental management of construction projects. The understanding and importance of sustainability and costeffectiveness in design and development of a construction project is a positive development.

Fig. 5 Medium level of achievement in performance criteria Where P3 is ability to express ideas (written), P4 is ability to express ideas (oral), P6 is ability to communicate with public, P9 is ability to interact, P12 is discipline and motivation, P13 is environmental awareness, and P17 is ability to function as a leader The remaining seven criteria including negotiation skills (P7), independence (P1), social and multiracial awareness (P14) and ability to make decisions (P2) are considered as low performance achievements levels, with ratings of below 80% of respondent-organisations (Figure. 6). Thus, the organisations are less satisfied with trainees performance achievements in the seven criteria under this category. For example, only 70% of respondents are of the perception that students exhibited the ability to make decisions. The attributes placed in this category relate to leadership characteristics that must be possessed by graduates for success in the world of work. Employers desire non-technical attributes such as independence, ability to make good decisions, good communication skills, professionalism and good work ethics, and multi-racial awareness in young graduates who are expected to work in a multidisciplinary team in the real world of work (Azami et al, 2009; Maclean and Ordonez, 2007; Liyanage and Poon, 2003). Learning institutions providing construction education therefore have to evolve from providing students solely with technical skills to providing them with courses that provide students with non-technical attributes required in the world of work (Liyanage and Poon, 2003). The results also confirm Callanan and Benzings (2004) doubts about the contribution of IT towards improving decision-making outcomes for graduates.

Fig.6 Low level of achievement in performance criteria Where P1 is independence, P2 is ability to make decisions, P5 is non-verbal communication skills, P7 is negotiation skill, P11 is lifelong learning, P14 is social and multi-racial awareness, and P15 is professionalism and work ethics Factors motivating organizations to accept industrial trainees Eighty-five percent of the respondent-organisations indicated their willingness to continuously accept students for IT (Figure 7). Factors that motivate these organisations to accept students are summarised and presented in Figure 7 as benefit to students (60%), benefit to organisations (25%), benefit to society (21%) and benefit to the learning institutions (20%). The results agree with the objectives of IT programmes stated earlier by the training organisations as offering placement to students mainly to help them develop their skills and expose them to the work environment and the responsibilities associated with their chosen profession. The results have also shown that some training organisations accept trainees in order to increase their workforce and also as a means for selection of potential employees.

Fig. 7 Percentage by respondents reasons for accepting trainees

Coco (2000), Greenhaus et al. (2000) and Hodgson (1999) pointed out that IT provides a risk-free method for organisations to evaluate prospective employees and also helps organisations to gain a positive recruiting image that ensures an available pool of talented newcomers. Some organisations also accept trainees in order to deliver the organisations social responsibility to the society. Areas of improvement The respondent-organisations were asked to suggest possible areas of improvement in the IT programme. The suggestions were subjected to content analysis by grouping them into three categories of contents related to the areas of improvement required as follows: Guidelines The most predominant among twenty-seven (27) suggestions made by respondent-organisations pertaining to guideline is the need for learning institutions to provide guidelines for IT and present it the host organisation. This was suggested by 56% of the respondents-organisations. Supervision and reporting The most frequent among twenty-three (23) suggestions on supervision are the need for learning institutions to get involved in the supervision of trainees during IT (87%) and the need for trainees to prepare IT reports (13%). Increased supervision makes IT programmes more effective and trainees realize the full benefits of the programme. Afonja et al. (2005) contended that when students are accepted by employers for IT, they are often not well supervised or assessed. In Malaysia, however, Jamil et al. (2010) stated that students undergoing IT are supervised by an IT coordinator from each learning department as well as industrial supervisors. Students also prepare written reports on their IT experience, and the training supervisor is required to evaluate the performance of the students by filling up the assessment sheet. Students preparation The most frequent among 25 suggestions on students preparation towards IT is the need for learning institutions to organise students orientation on the IT programme to acquaint trainees with issues and challenges to be expected during IT. Callanan and Benzing (2004) and Greenhaus et al. (2000) suggested that for one to achieve consistency within the work environment, it is necessary to have awareness of ones personal characteristics and expectations as well as an understanding of various work environments. The National Research Institute for Higher Education (2007) also concluded that

the outcome of industrial attachment depends on how students are prepared for it, on the participation of the organisations and on the system administered by the learning institution. Thus, all the three stakeholders of the programme play important roles in ensuring the effectiveness of the programme.

CONCLUSION The paper assessed perceptions of training organisations on industrial training of construction students in Ghana. The training organisations perceive industrial training to help students to understand the nature of the job, to expose students to a real work environment, and to help students apply theory to practice. Industrial trainees show high levels of performance achievement in their ability to carry out instructions, ability to function as team players, and their ability to apply knowledge among others during industrial training. They, however, show low levels of performance achievement in negotiation skills, independence, social and multi-racial awareness and ability to make decisions. Among the major areas requiring improvement in the way industrial training is currently organised include the need for learning institutions to provide guidelines for industrial training for use by host organisations, improve contact with the host organisations, and also get involved in the supervision of trainees during industrial training. Learning institutions providing construction education also have to introduce courses that provide students with non-technical attributes required in the world of work. Training organisations should help trainees learn all aspects of an industry by 1. Rotating students through departments; 2. Offering job shadowing experiences to complement classroom-based training; 3. Appointing industry supervisors who will mentor trainees on all aspects of the industry, coach trainees on skills necessary for success in the workplace and report on trainees IT performance; 4. Designing more relevant and effective training programmes which will not only emphasise more on functional competencies but all other relevant competencies so that trainees end up as holistic professionals. The findings of the study hold much significance for both construction education institutions and the construction industry in Ghana and other developing countries: education institutions to adopt corrective action to re-design IT programmes, to refine educational curricula and to re-orient teaching methods to enhance quality of education and ensure better satisfaction to the construction industry; the industry to submit industrial feedback to influence curriculum development and help educational institutions develop effective IT to create a reliable source of highly skilled and educated workers and an expanded pool of qualified applicants. The findings will provide a basis for

enhancing and developing effective IT practices as well as serve as indicators for evaluating existing IT practices in Ghanaian and other universities in developing countries.

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