CHALLENGES IN THE UTILIZATION OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN BUSINESS EDUCATION PROGRAMME FOR SUSTAINABLE KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY.

With the vast and various new technologies being introduced into the contemporary global world and the changing business environment, the utilization of these new technologies in the teaching and learning of Business education courses for the enhancement of knowledge based economy cannot be over emphasized. This study therefore determined the challenges in the utilization of new technologies in Business education programme in Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri, Imo State. The study adopted a descriptive research design, the population of the study consisted eighty-five (85) Business education students comprising 81 Second Year Degree and 4 Post NCE Degree students. Three research questions guided the study, questionnaire was used for data collection and data collected were analyzed using Simple Mean and Standard Deviation. The finding revealed that there are non-availability of new technologies for teaching and learning Business education courses. The analysis also showed that there are University authority-related challenges towards the utilization of new technologies in Business education programme and there are also lecturers-related challenges to the utilization of new technologies in Business education programme. A decision rule based on items with mean rating value of 2.5 and above were considered and accepted while items with mean rating value of below 2.5 were disagreed on and rejected. The study therefore, recommended among others that management of the institution should as a matter of urgency, make available the needed new technologies such as broadcast materials, CR-ROM, micro-computers, etc. for the teaching and learning of Business education programme and as well provide retraining opportunities on the new technologies for the lecturers as these technologies keep evolving. Relevant authorities should supervise to ensure that the new technologies are utilized effectively for the achievement of sustainable knowledge-based economy.