ABSTRACT
An attempt to find out a study of the influence of academic library on the academic performance of library and information science students prompted this study. Ambrose Alli University was used as the case study. The 100 level – 400 level students in Library and Information Science was the target audience. Since the research is an evaluative one, a survey research method was adopted. A 57- items structured questionnaire supplemented was used to generate data. Tables and Simple Percentage were used to analyze the data collected. The major findings of the study revealed that students make regular use of academic libraries; that there is a direct positive relationship between the use of academic libraries and students’ academic performance. Finally, the research recommends that there is need for expertise and professionalism in Library Practices; and the use of the library should be an introductory course for Fresh Students in higher institutions of learning and it should be taken beyond the classroom level; libraries should be centrally located for easy accessibility, and the teaching staff should always refers students to the library for assignments and other relevant things.
Word Count: 194
Key words: Academic Libraries, Academic performance, Libraries, Students
TABLE OF CONTENT
Title page………………………………………………………………… … ii
Certification………………………………………………………………… iii
Declaration……………………………………………………………… …. iv
Dedication…………………………………………………………………… v
Abstract…………………………………………………………………….. vi
Acknowledgement……………………………………………………… …. vii
Table of Content……………………………………………………………..viii
Chapter One
- INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study – – – – – – 1
1.2 Statement of the problem – – – – – – 4
1.3 Objectives of the study – – – – – – 6
1.4 Scope of the study – – – – – – – 7
1.5 Significance of the study – – – – – – 7
1.6 Operational Definitions of terms – – – – – 8
Chapter two
- Review of Literature – – – – – – 11
2.1 Introduction – – – – – – – 11
2.2 Concept of Academic Libraries – – – – – 12
2.3 Functions of Academic Libraries – – – – – 14
2.4 Objectives of Academic Libraries – – – – 15
2.5Usage of Academic Libraries – – – – – 16
2.6 Academic Libraries and Students Performance – – – 18
2.7 Perception of Libraries Services – – – – – 20
2.8 Quality of Staff and Services – – – – – 23
2.9 Library Resources – – – – – – – 25
Chapter Three
3.0 Method of Study – – – – – – - 27
3.1 Research Design – – – – – – – 27
3.2 Population of the study – – – – – – 27
3.3 Sampling Techniques/ Sampling Size – – – – 29
3.4 Research Instrument – – – – – – 29
3.5 Validity of Instrument – – – – – – 30
3.6 Procedure of data collection – – – – – 30
3.7 Methods of Data Analysis – – – – – – 30
Chapter Four
- Presentation and Analysis of data – – – – – 32
4.1Analysis of Data – – – – – – – 32
4.2Discussion of findings – – – – – –
Chapter Five
- Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation – – – 45
5.1 Summary – – – – – – – – 45
5.2 Conclusion – – – – – – – 46
5.3 Recommendation – – – – – – – 47
5.4 Suggestion for Further Research
Reference – – – – – – – – 49
Appendix – – – – – – – – 52
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- Background of the study
Education is the primary agent of transformation towards sustainable development since it increases people’s capacities to transform their visions into reality. Education does not only provide scientific and technical skills, it also provides the motivation, justification, and social support for pursuing and applying knowledge. The quality of education as instrument of societal transformation is often predicated on the quality of the library.
A library is a collection of sources and services and the structure in which it is housed. In this connection a library as it relates to academic library is organized for use and maintained by the institution where it is domiciled. In order words, a library is a collection of books. The term can mean the collection, the building that houses the collection, or both.
Libraries are repositories of knowledge. They are more than just a place where books, films, records and other information-bearing materials are kept.
Osumah (2004) defines a library as a collection of books and non books materials systematically organized for the maximum utilization of those in search of information and engaged in research work. While Akowe (2001) defines a library as collection of records of human culture in diverse formats and languages preserved, organized and interpreted to meet broad and varying needs of individuals for information, knowledge, recreation and aesthetic enjoyment.
In addition to housing books, journals, documents and other physical manifestations of the printed word; Karl (2003) stated that libraries are now places to go to accomplish the following tasks, which are:
“A place where you Access e-mail, you can send e-mail, you can access on-line journals or database, get inter library loan forms and fill them to enable you acquire a book or any article of any kind from any other library, then obtain and photocopy course materials and also acquire training for software packages applications etc.
The purpose for which academic libraries exist is to perform functions directly related to the mission of the institution they are attached.
The international Encyclopedia of information and library science {2003} defines academic libraries as those libraries that are attached to academic institutions above the secondary or high school level, serving the teaching and research needs of students and staff.
Academic libraries are libraries attached to higher institutions of learning. E.g. university, polytechnics, monotechnics etc. The library exists to support the academic curriculum of the parent institution.
The services academic libraries in the university provide is more elaborate than that of college of education, schools of nursing etc. the materials found in the academic library of universities are more in number to that of college of education; They are distinctive and unique because they are not limited. Academic are centers for research and learning. The academic is a nerve center or hub around which scholarship resolves. It is an indispensable instrument for intellectual development. A well-stocked academic library is a storehouse of information or a record of human experience to which users turn to for data or information.
Yusuf and Iwu (2010) citing Jubb and Green (2007) states that academic libraries have for centuries played critically important roles in supporting research in all subjects and disciplines within their host universities or colleges. Opara (2001) according to Yusuf and Iwu, posits that the library stands in the same relationship to the society as the memory of an individual by making available and accessible to its users information required for teaching and independent study. The main purpose of an academic library as stated by Aina (2004) is to support the objectives of an academic environment in the areas of learning, teaching, research and service.
Oyesiku and Oduwole (2004) assert that in academic communities, libraries are indispensable. Guskin (1996) notes that the use of university libraries promotes active learning, thus contributing to students’ ability to think critically and work well independently or in group. An academic environment without a library is tantamount to a person without a brain.
Academic libraries are setup solely to provide materials and services which will now in the future best contribute to the fulfillment of the objectives of the institution and to provide materials in support of the learning processes, that is materials for students’ course work, assigned reading as well as background reading for essays, term papers and projects. In stating the purpose of academic libraries, Nwana (2005) said that college of University library is especially established to aid scholars in their never ending search for knowledge. These libraries are regarded as Focal Point for teaching, learning and research.
- Statement of the problem
Academic libraries provide numerous services to their clientele to facilitate teaching, learning, research and other interests of the parent academic community. Undoubtedly, libraries are the centre of academic activities and therefore attract instructors, learners and the general public. They are the backbone of tertiary educational institutions. Educational institutions oblivious of the fact that academic libraries are the driving force behind them and fail to adequately resource their libraries are doomed to extinct.
The rapid advances in information communication technologies have widened the borders of accessing information as it enables users to retrieve and store information in varied formats. This has the tendency to influence information seeking behavior of users through the options it offers in accessing and storing information. Adeniran (2011) cites Cullen (2001) as stating that the global digital revolution is affecting both the traditional forms of the creation, organization and dissemination of knowledge and the world of tertiary education itself. The e-learning resources on the web have spurred learners to look for information stored in various formats and from places previously unimagined for learning and research purposes. The use of computers and modems by students to access information on the internet may lead to low patronage of the services of academic libraries.
Academic libraries are faced with competition as a result of the seemingly easy-access platform offered by information communication technologies which could lead to low use of the traditional services it provides. It is apparent that the digital environment poses a threat to libraries which predominantly have printed materials.
Apart from the easy-access platform offered by information communication technologies ICT’s, not all libraries located within an academic community today are meeting these expectations or performing these functions of enhancing the teaching, learning and research of the academic libraries. This could be due to stocking materials that are irrelevant to institutional objectives; the library been starved of fund for smooth operation, ignorance of the existence of a collection and non-acqusition of the necessary skills needed to locate and use such materials by users, etc.
The undergraduate students constitute the primary and major users of any academic library, meeting the needs of these students is one of the ways in which academic libraries justify their existence.
But where the aforementioned are prevalent, the academic performance of the students in particular will be influenced and the learning function of the parent body in general will not be enhanced. The study therefore will embark upon to determine a study of the influence of academic libraries on student’s academic performance of library and information science undergraduate in Ambrose Alli University.
1.3 Objectives of the study
The objectives of this study are;
- To know the types of library materials available in the library
- To know the purpose for which Library and Information Science undergraduates use the library
- To examine the frequency of library usage by Library and Information Science undergraduates.
- To ascertain if and how library usage influence Library and Information Science undergraduates academic performance.
- To know the effect/ influence that academic libraries has towards L. I. S academic performance.
- To determine the hindrances against the use of academic libraries by Library and Information Science undergraduates.
Research Questions
- What are the types of library materials available in the library?
- What are the purposes for which Library and Information students undergraduate use the library?
- How often do L .I .S undergraduate use the library?
- How does library usage influence L. I. S undergraduates academic performance?
- Does the resources effect/ influence L. I. S undergraduates academic performance?
- What are the hinderances against the use of academic libraries by L.I.S students?
- SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The library is regarded as the heart of the intellectual system of the university. To a large extent therefore, the quality of an academic library has a direct bearing on the students and their performance academically. Therefore, the scope of this study covers the resources and usage of academic libraries, perceptions of library services and student relationship between academic libraries and their academic performance using Ambrose Alli University, Edo State.
- SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of an academic library is to support both the instructional programmes of its parent institution and the research needs of students, faculty members and other members of the Academic community. In an academic community, students constitute the majority of the users yet, many of the students do not believe there is a common denominator between the use of the library and their academic performance. This is because many academic libraries have failed in the area of quality of service delivery. The findings of this research work will create awareness among students in an academic setting so they know that making use of the library has great influence in their lives academically. To this end, they owe the library a duty of offering constructive and suggestions with a view to helping the library to enhance the quality of service delivery which in turn improve their academic performance.
- OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS
Some of the terms used in this work are defined below.
Academic Libraries: Academic libraries are libraries attached to tertiary institutions such as universities, polytechnic institutions, colleges of education, colleges of Agriculture, colleges of technology and also research institutes (Akporhonor, 2005). Singh and Kaur (2009) stressed that preservation and access to knowledge and information is the main mandate of academic libraries along side supporting the mission of their parent institutions which is teaching and research.
Academic libraries are at the forefront of providing information services to their respective communities which comprises of students, lecturers, and researchers in order to support their teaching, learning, and research needs. Scholars have emphasized on the crucial role of academic libraries in research and scholarship in institutions of higher learning. Many a times academic libraries are referred to as the heart or nerve centres of institutions of higher learning where all academic activities revolved.
Academic Performance: Academic performance refers to the way students may be faring in their academic responsibilities. It can also be seen as the outcome of education; the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has achieved their educational goals.
Influence: Influence means the effect that somebody or something has on the way a person thinks or behaves or on the way that something works or develops.
Influence is the power that somebody/something has to make somebody/something behave in a particular way. Influence means to have an effect on the way that somebody behaves or thinks, especially by giving them an example to follow. Most students are influenced academically, in a positive way. Being influenced, it helps them to be broad in knowledge and also in their various areas of learning.
Perception: Perception is said to be the way one notice things, especially with the senses. It means the ability to understand the true nature of something. Perception also means an idea, a belief or an image you have as a result of how you see or understand things.
Summary
In this chapter, various definitions of the concept of library by different authors were examined. This was done with a view to having a better understanding of the traditional functions of libraries so that future services can be anticipated. Academic libraries are basically set up to promote and enhance the teaching learning and research function (academic programmes) of their parent bodies.
In the statement of the problem, steps were taken to present the problem that awoken the researchers’ consciousness to conduct this investigation. The research objective were unambiguously itemized which in a way reflect the research questions. Significantly, those who tend to benefit from the study were identified such as undergraduate student, post-graduates students e.g researchers; budget authorities as well as those who want to make advances in similar fields of endeavor.
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