Entrepreneurial pedagogy, incubator use and student innovative capability in institutions of higher education, Kenya

Abstract

Student innovative capability in Institutions of Higher Education is of major interest in most economies. This has ignited the presumption that innovativeness is anchored on Entrepreneurial Pedagogy. However, there is limited understanding on the interactive effect of incubator use on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogical approaches and student innovative capability in higher education. This study was designed to examine the moderating effect of incubator use on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogy and student innovative capability in institutions of higher education in Kenya. A post-positivist philosophy was the basis upon which the study was anchored. The specific objectives of the study were to establish whether problem based learning, competence based learning, direct learning and case study based learning approaches enhanced student innovative capability. The study was guided by the Social cognitive theory, Schumpeter’s theory of Entrepreneurship economics and the componential theory of creativity. An explanatory research design was employed. This study targeted 1545 fourth year finalists taking entrepreneurship as their primary discipline in the sampled institutions of higher education in Kenya. In selecting a sample of 380 respondents, proportionate stratified sampling and simple random sampling was employed.. Questionnaires were the primary data collection instruments in the study. The reliability of the device was tested using Cronbach Alpha while factor analysis was used to validate the tool. Pearson’s pair wise correlation coefficient was used to determine the relationship between the independent and the dependent variables. Results were presented using descriptive and inferential analytical techniques. Standard multiple regression and moderated multiple regression analysis were used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that problem-based (β = 0.187, p < 0.05), case study (β = 0.318, p < 0.05), and direct learning (β = 0.297, p < 0.05) significantly affected student innovative capability. Incubator use moderated the relationship between problem-based learning (β = 0.242, p = 0.05), competence-based learning (β = 0.218, p = 0.05) and case study (β = 0.268, p = 0.05) on student innovative capability. The outcome of the study provides valuable information to institutions of higher education as it creates new insights on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogy and student innovative capability.The findings indicated that problem based, direct and case study learning had a significant effect on student innovative capability. It was further revealed that incubator use has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between entrepreneurial pedagogy and student innovative capability when three predictor variables were measured. From the findings conclusion was drawn that entrepreneurial pedagogy approaches are closely associated with student innovative capability and that incubator use moderates the relationship between the two.The findings that case study learning approach accounted for the highest significance variance on student innovative capability and that at a higher incubator use the pedagogical approaches had a higher effect on student innovative capability presents major contributions of this study as it extends both Schumpeter’s theory of Entrepreneurship,Social cognitive theory and componential theory of creativity. Therefore, the study recommended that institutions of higher education, should adopt policies that take into account, case study, problem based, direct and competence based learning approaches to enhance innovative capability of students.