Perception of the relevance of shorthand skills in note-taking among secretarial students in federal polytechnic, mubi

Abstract

Shorthand is one of the major skilled courses in secretarial office education or office technology management programme in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. The study was carried out to determine perception of the relevance of shorthand skills in note-taking among secretarial students in Federal Polytechnic, Mubi. The major objective was to determine perception of the relevance of shorthand skills in note-taking among secretarial students in Federal Polytechnic, Mubi. Research questions were respectively formulated to facilitate the study. Survey design was used for the study. The population of the study comprised 90 students of the National Diploma in office technology management (OTM). Purposive sampling was used for the study. The instrument used was a structured questionnaire, which was validated and reliably established (reliability coefficient of 0.05) by the staff of the Faculty of Education, Adamawa State University Mubi. Frequencies and percentages were used to analyze the bio-data of respondents. Frequency tables and mean were used to analyze the research questions. Among the major findings were: shorthand skills in note-taking have significant relevance on secretaries’ job for employment purpose, it also has significant relevance on confidentiality of secretaries in record keeping in public and private institutions in Mubi. The conclusion drawn from the finding of the study was that: even with the introduction of modem technology in offices; secretaries with shorthand skills in note-taking are of higher standard in effectiveness and efficiency in discharging their duties than those without shorthand skills. It was recommended, among others, that students should be engaged in more practical exercises to enable them learn more shorthand skills in note-taking in order to become more effective and efficient in their jobs in the future.