Entrepreneurship Education is a study that is concerned with

providing students with the knowledge and skills of creating and

operating their own businesses successfully, using the available
resources to develop themselves and the country in general.
The Kauffman Foundation (www.kauffman.org) defines it as the
process of providing individuals with the concepts and skills to
recognize opportunities that others have overlooked and to have the
insight, self-esteem and knowledge to act where others have
hesitated. It includes instruction in opportunity recognition,
marshaling resources in the face of risk, and initiating a business
venture. It also includes instruction in business management
processes such as business planning, capital development,
marketing, and cash flow analysis.
Main Content and Concepts to Emphasize
In this topic, we shall discuss:
(a) the meaning of entrepreneurship,
(b) an entrepreneur,
(c) the functions of an entrepreneur,
(d) how to become a successful entrepreneur,
(e) the qualities of a successful entrepreneur and
(f) the benefits and challenges of being an entrepreneur.
By the end of this topic, students should be able to:
Define entrepreneurship
Define an entrepreneur
Discuss the functions of an entrepreneur
Describe how to become a successful entrepreneur

 Outline the qualities/characteristics of an entrepreneur

Discuss the benefits and challenges of being an entrepreneur
Job related life skills
By the end of this topic, learners are expected to have acquired the
following Job Mart related Skills:
Personal attributes self confidence, time management,
creativity/imaginative, recording skills, enthusiasm, imagination,
leadership skills and self awareness.
Communication observation & listening skills, recording, reading
reporting in writing.
Team work task oriented leadership skills,group work.
Problem solving - information seeking, Practical experiment,
environmental protection & conservation, seeking for information
(research),discussion making
Application of number - numeracy (as they compare crop yields
in treated and untreated plots)

Entrepreneurship is the quality and skill required to become an

entrepreneur. It refers to the capacity required for identifying and generating
innovative business ideas, mobilizing resources, organizing production,
marketing the products, managing the risks and constantly working for
growth and excellence of the business.
The attributes underlying entrepreneurship include:

Self-direction
Self-nurturing
Action-oriented
High energy level
Tolerant of uncertainty
Several factors affect entrepreneurship in an area. Some of these are
financial capital, human capital, infrastructure, local economy size, and
natural amenities.
Student Activity 1

What do you think entrepreneurship is?

List the attributes of an entrepreneur.
Discuss some of the pros and cons for each factor affecting

entrepreneurship (i.e. financial capital, human capital, infrastructure,

local economy size, and natural amenities).

Meaning of an entrepreneur
The term entrepreneur has had varied meanings. The term entrepreneur is
a French word which literally means between or go-between. A female
entrepreneur is sometimes known as an entrepreneuse. An entrepreneur is
a person who operates a new enterprise or venture and assumes some
accountability for the inherent risks.
An entrepreneur is simply an individual who has the ability to see and
evaluate business opportunities, gather the necessary resources, start a
business and once started to take appropriate actions to ensure its success.

Entrepreneurs are people who have a high drive and creativity. They
constantly strive to achieve success using their own efforts and they take
credit of whatever outcome. Likewise, they take responsibility for any failure
that may befall their businesses. In other words, an entrepreneur is a person
who:

Perceives his/her needs, analyses him/herself in relation to what

he/she would like to be in future

Scans the environment and identifies business opportunities that

he/she could possibly do in order to achieve his/her goals in life

Conducts a market survey to assess the feasibility and viability of the

identified business opportunities to select the most suitable one

Calculates the risks involved in doing the selected business

opportunities so as to find out if he/she can reduce them to

manageable levels, and if not, leave and choose another alternative

Mobilizes the necessary resources to start the selected business

Sets an organization or arrangement through which the planned
business will be operated

Regularly monitors business performance against set or planned

targets

Takes corrective actions to achieve his/her targets.

Students' Activity 2
1. What do you think an entrepreneur is?
2. Identify any entrepreneurs you know or any famous entrepreneurs in your
local communities.
3. Do you consider yourself to be an entrepreneur?