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The impact of internet use on teaching, learning and research activities in Nigerian universities
A case study of Obafemi Awolowo University
Chinwe M.T. Nwezeh
Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of internet resources and the evaluation of their usefulness on teaching, learning and research in Nigerian universities with particular emphasis on Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on a descriptive survey using questionnaires for data collection. The respondents constitute students (750) and academic staff (115) from OAU. Descriptive statistics (frequency counts and percentages) were used to analyze the data. Findings The results from the paper reveal that a majority of the surveyed academic staff and the students found the internet to be very useful. Internet resources mostly used by both groups were e-mail and the world wide web (WWW). Search interfaces were used for looking for research information. It was discovered that the users were not given adequate user education to enable them make use of the internet resources available. Originality/value That the internet is widely used is not a surprise, but the paper points to the fact that more conscious efforts must be made in the introduction of user education and information literacy programmes, as well as in staff training on information and communication technology resources in the library. Keywords Nigeria, University libraries, User studies, Information literacy, Internet Paper type Research paper

688
Received 30 April 2009 Revised 30 June 2009 Accepted 22 September 2009

The Electronic Library Vol. 28 No. 5, 2010 pp. 688-701 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0264-0473 DOI 10.1108/02640471011081960

Introduction The productive use of information technology is one of the most signicant indices of national and economic development. The improvements in technology, especially computer technology, bring changes and makes things easier for every part of daily life. It is a reality that the role of technology is highly signicant and globally discussed issues in contemporary education policy (Jegede, 1990). In the educational sphere, most specialists, agree that when information and communication technology (ICT) is properly utilized, it fosters and enhances teaching and learning. Usha (2002) states that the emergence of the internet, especially the world wide web (WWW) added a new dimension to information creation and delivery which also globally triggered digitization programmes. According to Ojedokun and Owolabi (2003), as new technologies transform classrooms over the next 20 years, teachers will have to change their teaching styles and acquire internet skills. Teachers will need to learn new skills to teach students how to search for and use information from the internet and about superhighway safety. This is already happening in some developed countries. The education sector and

tertiary institutions in particular are becoming primary users of ICTs and this trend has been driven by the recognition of the fact that ICTs provide for exible teaching and learning approaches. The web is becoming hegemonic as an interface for information particularly that of an academic nature. Individual articles can be found scattered around the web on authors own web sites. Scholarly journals are increasingly available online either in subscription-based publishers digital libraries or posted in publicly accessible web sites (Kling and Callahan, 2004). The internet has broken down barriers of communication access from anywhere in the world. It is fast, reliable and does not have restrictions on content or format (except in certain countries). It also has a limitless range of facilities which assist users to access the almost innite information on the net. It has changed the nature of publishing. The internet offers the opportunity to access up-to-date research reports and knowledge globally in topics as diverse as science and technology, business and nance, music and the arts. Thus, it has become an important component of electronic services in academic institutions and thereby an invaluable tool for learning and research. For internet resources to be used effectively, students and scholars are having to develop a set of new skills that include strategies for searching relevant materials, skills in evaluating the quality of documents found, knowledge of web design, skills in using discussion forums and chat rooms, as well as basic understanding of how to send e-mail attachments. ICT services in university libraries in Nigeria ICT facilities in libraries (as well as elsewhere) are those that assist in providing efcient and current information services to users. Information as generally known today is an economic resource and people can pay huge amounts of money in order to acquire the information needed. Libraries these days apart from providing reading resources also place much emphasis on information provision that is always available on the WWW particularly because much of it is free. Current information and the knowledge derived from it is very important for the development of mankind. Writing a few years after the introduction of the WWW, Onyekwelu (1998) stated that all types of information are available on the internet, from the common and domestic to highly technical ones. Argued that the web and the internet have made the world a global village, he outlined the challenges facing Nigerian libraries. Nigerian academic and university libraries were not exactly slow in starting the process of computerization of their library resources and most importantly installing internet services in their libraries. The history of computerization of Nigerian university libraries dates back to the 1970s. In 1984, the University of Ibadans Kenneth Dike Library produced its rst computerized serials catalogue. The University of Lagos Library attempted computerizing its circulation records in 1975 while Ahmadu Bello University Library, Zaria started its computerization in 1984 (Arikenbi, 1997). The Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife started in 1997 with the establishment of a general backbone and an eleven-node local area network (LAN). In 1998, the Librarys LAN was hooked to the internet through the campus-wide OAU net while the number of PCs was increased to 13 in 1999. The year 2002 saw the launching of the second phase of the librarys computerization. This involved the addition of thirteen PCs eight for catalogues, two in the reference room for users to browse the internet and three for the heads of the circulation,

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reference and orders sections. This second phase also involved an upgrading of existing systems, a change in the server operating system, a change in the library database, the setting up of the Librarys web site and locally-built library management software. Also the librarys internet connectivity was upgraded from Wavelan to ber optics. Attention has also been given to the cataloguing section for retro-conversion of the card catalogues, building of the library database and implementation of the online public access catalogue. Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library, Ile-Ife is now on the third phase of its computerization and now can also boast of an e-library where students can browse the internet. Recently, almost all the federal universities in the country have joined the race towards providing technology-oriented services in their libraries. This is to enhance services to their users and at the same time improve the learning standard of their library patrons. The application of computers in Nigerian libraries have become an acceptable norm being the most realistic way and means of improving timely, accurate and efcient information services. The electronic environment has and will continue to have an impact on libraries. Teaching, learning and research in Nigeria The current information revolution and the increasing impact of ICTs according to Kumar and Kaur (2005) has gone a long way in modernizing the process of teaching, learning and research in most Nigerian universities. The exponential growth in information and knowledge and the corresponding increase in user needs have stimulated a greater degree of technological inventions and strategies towards the management, transmission/dissemination, organization and the use of information. It has been observed that the traditional method of lesson delivery and educational services can no longer meet the demand for education especially in Africa. Ene (2001) stated that the present age is an information driven age which is an era of sophisticated inter connectivity of information through the net. Ene, further added that as a result of the internet, communication between persons, establishments, etc. is made more convenient, faster and precise. Hackbarth (1996) opined that it is this revolution that gave birth to satellite beam of instructional radio and television to remote villages and urban classroom video recordings of teaching sessions, the marriage of compact disc and computer technologies which enables us to have an entire library at our nger tips and to walk or y in simulated virtual library environments, the joining of computer networks world wide via internet and the focus on electronic wizardry linked by information superhighways to bring knowledge in all its splendour within the reach of everyone. Zhang (2001) conducted a research on scholarly use of internet-based electronic resources. The survey aimed at the perceived needs for internet resources and which quality mattered most to users. From the research, it was discovered that men are the biggest group of internet users while the female users are increasing more slowly. Also, 79 per cent of responses are from university or research institutions. Dong (2003) found that in the internet age, channels of obtaining information are a mixture of modern and traditional ways as well as formal and informal methods. Among these channels,search engines are the most commonly used tools. University teachers in Nigeria have a problem of large classes which pose a serious threat to teacher effectiveness in assessment. Odesanya and Ajiferuke (2000)

emphasized that information technology has highly improved all the performance parameters of agencies. It is further stated that in the case of the professionals, the use of IT has highly improved their productivity and creativity. Ibegwam (2004) reported that most users of the internet do so for surng the web and for e-mail. Following others, Ojedokun (2001) stated that the internet is fast, reliable and does not have restrictions on content or format. With the daunting amount of information available, the ability to seek and evaluate the appropriate information has become a key requirement for success in our digital society. Information consumers have to develop expertise that often challenges the old goals of traditional classroom. The web, despite rich data and powerful connections, will not support learning by itself. The challenge is to turn it into a cognitive tool as Lajoie (2000) has characterized the computer. The cognitive tool metaphor suggests the existence of tools to help learners with cognitive tasks. Some 15 years ago, Marchionini (1995, p. 5) dened information seeking as a process in which humans purposefully engage in order to change their state of knowledge. Much of human activity involves information seeking a purposeful search for information in order to bridge the gap between what is known and what is unknown and as such, it demands cognitive process. Impact of internet use With the above background in mind, a study was undertaken to assess the impact of internet use on the research and teaching activities of academic members of staff and the learning and research activities of the students of OAU, Ile-Ife, Nigeria based on services provided by the Universitys Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library. The objectives of this study are to: . assess the impact of internet use on the research and teaching activities of academic staff members of OAU, Ile-Ife (www.oauife.edu.ng/); . determine the extent to which internet services in Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library inuence the academic performance of OAU Students; . determine the extent to which the students of the university have access to the internet Faculty in their library; and . determine the extent to which the students are satised with the librarys internet services. To gather information for this study, a descriptive survey was the research method adopted and the instrument for data collection was a questionnaire. The student population for the study was 800 while the staff population was 120. Random sampling techniques were used to select respondents across the faculties in the university. Copies of the questionnaire were distributed across the various Faculties in the University. A total of 750 (93.8 per cent) students responded and 115 (95.8 per cent) academic staff respondents completed and returned the questionnaire. Descriptive statistics such as frequency and percentage tabulations were used in analyzing the data. Analysis of data Academic staff Availability of personal computers. When respondents were asked to indicate whether computers and the internet are available to them for use, almost 96 per cent of the

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academic staff responded that they have their own personal computers in their ofces, with over half saying that they also have personal computers at home. Some 70 per cent of staff indicated that their PCs in their ofces are connected to the internet while a little under 10 per cent indicated that they have internet access at home (Table I). Experience using the internet. The length of time that staff say they have been using the internet facilities is as shown on Table II. Over half the respondents stated that they have been using the internet for about three to ve years, while just over one-third noted that they had been making use of the internet for longer than ve years. Frequency of use of the internet. When staff were asked to indicate how often they make use of the internet, about one-fth of respondents indicated that they make use of the internet very regularly, while half indicated that they used it on a regular basis, with around a further quarter saying they made moderate use of it. Only a handful of staff members replied that they scarcely use the internet which ties in with the response on experience with it (Table III). Use of internet and its resources. The staff respondents were asked to indicate the various internet resources they used. The results as presented on Table IV show that virtually all made use of e-mail, and almost all made use of the web. Some 85 per cent using the internet for gathering news. About one-third made use of discussion groups,
Availability Personal computer in ofce Personal computer at home Internet access in ofce Internet access at home Note: n 115 No. of response 110 65 80 10 Percentage 95.7 56.5 69.6 8.7

Table I. Computer and internet availability, staff response

Years One to three Three to ve Over ve No response Total Note: n 115

No. of response 10 6,563 40 2 115

Percentage 8.7 54.8 34.8 1.7 100

Table II. Staff experience on internet use

Frequency Very regularly Regularly Moderately Scarcely Total Note: n 115

No. of response 25 60 27 3 115

Percentage 21.7 52.2 23.5 2.6 100

Table III. Frequency of staff internet use

while another third of the respondents made use of le transfer. This has a bearing on their skills of course but nearly all respondents were experienced in using the internet. Frequency of use of internet facilities. Following on from this, staff were also asked to indicate the frequency with which they used these various internet resources. The results are shown in Table V and not surprisingly they indicate that the high rate of e-mail use is consistent with the general trend in literature showing e-mail is the most commonly used of the internet resources. The low rate use of discussion groups and Usenet news is consistent with the ndings of Liebscher et al. (1997) who discovered that only a few faculty members use these resources and they are mostly passive users. However, what is interesting to note is that a relatively high number (one-third) of respondents said they did use discussion groups and le transfer and a much higher number (85 per cent) said they used News presumably to keep abreast of local and international news and events and what was happening in the world around them. But their actual frequency of use of these services particularly news is staggeringly low. Regularity of internet use in research activities. Respondents were asked to indicate the frequency with which they used the internet resources for research activities. Table VI shows that 89 per cent of the staff respondents used the internet for searching the literature (for their own research as well as for teaching purposes), while 78 per cent of them used the internet for research methods. Frequency of internet use in teaching. Respondents were asked to indicate the frequency with which they used the internet and its resources in teaching. The result is as shown on Table VII. What is revealing is that although e-mail was the most used internet facility, fully three quarters of staff rarely, if ever, used it to communicate with students. Of course, this may be because students often did not have their own
Application E-mail Web Discussion News File transfer Telnet Note: n 115 No. of response 113 105 35 98 40 7 Percentage 98.3 91.3 30.4 85.2 34.8 6.1

Internet use in Nigerian universities 693

Table IV. Use of internet and its resources

Application E-mail Web-browsing Discussion groups News File transfer Telnet

Most used (MU) 108 (93.9) 92 (80) 8 (7) 6 (5.2) 4 (3.5) 2 (1.7)

Used 5 (4.3) 18 (15.7) 16 (13.9) 9 (7.8) 3 (2.6) 5 (4.3)

Least used (LU) 2 (1.7) 7 (6.1) 91 (79.1) 100 (87) 108 (93.9) 108 (93.9)

Notes: n 115; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

Table V. Frequency of use of internet facilities

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computers, but it seems that an opportunity for setting and correcting course work or for the distribution and referral of additional lecture materials is being lost. Usefulness of the internet in research and teaching. Staff were asked to indicate the extent of usefulness of the internet in their research activities and teaching. The results obtained are shown in Table VIII. Nearly, three quarters responded that the internet is very useful for their research while over half indicated it was very useful for their teaching activities. sixty two (53.9 per cent) of the respondents for teaching. In total nearly everyone found the internet effective in research, however, somewhat worryingly over 13 per cent of staff did not nd the internet very useful for teaching purposes. Constraints to effective use of the internet. Asked to indicate the constraints to effective use of the internet, despite using it for research and teaching one-third of staff nevertheless responded that their use was particularly hampered by a lack of time followed by a lack of searching skills and ignorance of resources (Table IX). Students Awareness of internet services in the library. The question which sought to nd out whether students are aware of the existence of the e-library within the Hezekiah
Regularity of use Frequently Occasionally Rarely No response Literature search 102 (88.7) 10 (8.7) 3 (2.6) Research method 90 (78.3) 21 (18.3) 4 (3.5)

Table VI. Regularity of internet use in research activities

Notes: n 115; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

Regularity of use Frequently Occasionally Rarely Never No response

General teaching material 67 (58.3) 33 (28.6) 15 (13) 0

Referral for additional lecture materials 42 (36.5) 55 (47.8) 18 (15.7) 0

Internet e-mail communication with students 11 18 26 60 (9.6) (15.7) (22.6) (52.2)

Table VII. Frequency of internet use in teaching

Notes: n 115; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

Extent of internet usefulness Very useful Useful Just useful Rarely useful Not useful No response

Research effectiveness 83 25 7 0 0 (72.2) (21.7) (6.1) (0) (0)

Teaching effectiveness 62 (53.9) 38 (33) 9 (7.8) 6 (5.2) 0 (0)

Table VIII. Usefulness of the Internet in Research and Teaching

Notes: n 115; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

Oluwasanmi Library at OAU revealed that 83 per cent of the 750 students responded in the afrmative (Table X). This shows that most of the respondents are aware of the internet services available in the library and points to their own interest as well as that of the librarians in making students aware of it. Access to library internet services. Analysis of the question on whether the students are allowed to have access to and use internet services (including e-mail and the web) in the library revealed that the vast majority of the respondents (700-93.3 per cent) indicated that they did. Only 50 (6.7 per cent) students out of 750 replied no. These ndings are contrary to those of Odesanya and Ajiferuke (2000) who reported that not many have ever used e-mail because only a few of the organizations sampled have e-mail connections. Even in the case of those that have connections, the usage was restricted to certain individuals while some of the library personnel could not even operate the computers. But the authors were writing ten years ago and the situation regarding the provision and use of computers, telecommunications, networks has changed a lot since then. Frequency of use of library internet services. Table XI shows the frequency with which the students used the internet services provided by the Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library. As might be expected a high proportion (60 per cent) used them frequently,
Constraints Lack of computer with internet access Lack of personal computer Lack of time Lack of searching skills Ignorance of resources Note: n 115 No. of response 11 5 36 33 30 Percentage 9.6 4.3 31.3 28.7 26.1

Internet use in Nigerian universities 695

Table IX. Constraints to effective use of the internet

Response Aware Not aware Undecided Total Note: n 750

No. of response 620 130 750

Percentage 82.7 17.3 100

Table X. Response on awareness of internet services in the library

Frequency Frequently Occasionally Once a week Never Total Note: n 750

No. of response 450 190 100 10 750

Percentage 60 25.3 13.3 1.3 100

Table XI. Frequency of access to library internet service by students

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while another quarter used them occasionally (i.e. more frequently than once a week). Nearly, 15 per cent of students did not use the internet so often. The study further investigated why a few of the respondents never used the library internet service much. Some of the student respondents claimed that they did not know how to effectively use the internet services. This nding is similar to that of Odesanya and Ajiferuke (2000) which claimed that among the professionals, the major constraint hindering the use of IT available in their agencies was inadequate knowledge of how to operate the equipment. Ojedokun (2001) in a similar study revealed that most students acquired skills in internet access and usage through friends. Improvement of academic performance. The questionnaire also investigated whether the library internet services have in any way improved the academic performances of the students. From Table XII, nearly half of the respondents claimed that through the internet services provided in the library, their academic performances have been improved considerably. A third claimed that since they have been making use of the library internet services, their academic performances have been good, while a further fth believed their academic performances have been fair. Only a handful replied that they have not had any positive effect in their academic performances (perhaps these were those who did not use the internet much possibly because of not knowing how to). From the ndings it is obvious that the majority of the respondents have improved in their academic performances since they started using the library internet services. These ndings are similar to the ndings of Odesanya and Ajiferuke (2000). The study further investigated the academic areas where the internet facilities have effectively assisted them most. Some of them revealed that it has assisted them generally in their areas of specialization. Some indicated that it has helped them in writing their technical reports, assignments and seminar papers while others indicated that it has help them to write their projects, browse and send electronic mails to their friends and relations. Satisfaction with library internet service. The students were also asked to indicate whether they were satised with the library internet services or not. A very large number (650-86.7 per cent) of the respondents indicated that they were satised with the provision of the general internet services, while only 100 (13.3) said they were not. This nding is contrary to that of Oyedun (2006) who showed that in a similar study, 200 (30.8 per cent) of the respondents indicated that they were satised with the provision of the general internet services at Federal University of Technology, Minna, while 450

Response Excellent Good Fair None Undecided Total Note: n 750

No. of response 350 240 145 15 750

Percentage 46.7 32 19.3 2 100

Table XII. Impact of the internet on academic performances of students

(69.2 per cent) answered negatively. However, in the present study the proportion is considered too high and the reasons for this dissatisfaction need to be ascertained. Students experience on internet use. Like the academic staff, the students were asked to indicate how long they have been making use of the internet and their response is shown on table XIII. Nearly, two-thirds had been using the internet for three to ve years, but a much smaller proportion, compared to the academic staff, had been using it for more than ve years. Frequency of use of the internet. The students were asked to indicate how frequently they make use of the internet. Exactly one-third of them indicated that they use the internet very regularly, whereas nearly two-thirds responded that they use the internet regularly. Virtually none replied that they scarcely used the internet (Table XIV). These results bear out the frequency with which students said they accessed the internet services provided by the Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library where 60 per cent said they used them frequently. Use of the internet and its resources. The students were asked to indicate the various internet resources they used. The result is as presented in Table XV. As anticipated,
Years One to two Three to ve Over ve No response Total Note: n 750 No. of response 150 480 100 20 750 Percentage 20 64 13.3 2.7 100

Internet use in Nigerian universities 697

Table XIII. Students experience of internet use

Frequency Very regularly Regularly Moderately Scarcely Total Note: n 750

No. of response 250 450 45 5 750

Percentage 33.3 60 6 0.7 100

Table XIV. Frequency of the use of the internet by students

Application E-mail Web Discussion groups News (usenet) File transfer Telnet Note: n 750

No. of response 740 680 85 210 34 28

Percentage 98.7 90.7 11.3 28 4.5 3.7

Table XV. The use of the internet and its resources by students

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it conrms that e-mail is the most used resource among students, with virtually all of them using this facility, followed by the WWW. All other resources are used to a greater or lesser extent, with le transfer and Telnet being the LU. MU internet facilities. The students who responded to the questionnaire were asked to indicate which of the various internet facilities listed they made most use of (Table XVI). The vast majority of the respondents indicated that they made most use of the e-mail facility of the internet, followed by the web. The LU facilities were discussion groups, news, le transfer and Telnet. Use of internet for research activities. Regarding the regularity with which the internet is used by students for research activities, see Table XVII. Almost all students replied that they frequently used the internet for both literature searches and research methods. Interestingly, this is higher in both categories that the academic staff. Discussion The survey revealed that a majority of both the academic staff and students who responded to the questionnaire have three to ve years experience on the use of the internet. The majority of academic staff also use the internet regularly. This may be because of the enormous amount of resources available on the internet. The e-mail facility is frequently used because this allows for communication with colleagues elsewhere on daily basis. This observation corroborates the work of Ojedokun and Owolabi (2003). However, despite the fact that e-mail is also the most used facility by students, there is little e-mail communication between academic staff and their students. This is clearly a shortcoming that is worth addressing since it would surely be convenient in terms of immediacy and the time and efforts to be saved for both groups. The regularity of internet use for research by academic staff and students was also studied and it was observed that that most of the academic staff as well as students used the internet for research activities especially in sourcing for materials such as

Application E-mail Web-browsing Discussion groups News File transfer Telnet

MU 730 650 50 60 3 0 (97.3) (86.7) (6.7) (8) (0.4) (0)

Used (U) 21 95 120 98 5 6 (2.8) (12.7) (16) (13.1) (0.7) (0.8)

LU 4 5 580 592 742 744 (0.5) (0.7) (77.3) (78.9) (98.9) (99.2)

Table XVI. Frequency of use of internet facilities by students

Notes: n 750; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

Regularity of use Frequently Occasionally Rarely No response

Literature search 710 (94.7) 30 (4) 10 (1.3)

Research method 700 (93.3) 45 (6) 5 (0.7)

Table XVII. Regularity of internet use in research activities

Note: n 750; the values in parentheses are calculated in percentage

literature search and research methodology. The frequency of internet use for teaching purposes was also evaluated at it was discovered that over half of academic staff responded that they frequently used the internet for receiving general teaching materials. A third of the academic staff also claimed that they occasionally used the internet as a referral to additional lecture materials though they clearly communicated this material verbally to their students rather than via e-mail. Both the academic staff and students indicated that they are motivated to use the internet by making use of some search engines particularly GoogleScholar which has improved their access to scholarly resources where the library cannot afford subscriptions to proprietary databases. The constraints to effective use of the internet and its resources was also assessed and a large number of the respondents indicated they did not possess the requisite skills for searching the and/or knowledge of the resources available on the web for teaching and research. Lack of time was also cited as a reason but this is probably simply an excuse to mask other shortcomings. Conclusions This study was undertaken in an effort to assess the impact of internet use on the research and teaching activities of academic staff members of OAU as well as to determine the extent to which the internet services provided in the University Library were accessible and used by students and thus inuenced their academic performance. From the outcome of this study, it can be concluded that the majority of the students at OAU are satised with and benet from the internet Services of its Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library. This has improved the students access to information in their different disciplines as well as their academic performance. However, despite having quite a few years experience of using the internet as well as having computers in the workplace as well as at home, academic staff are not skilled in the use of internet for enhancement of teaching activities possibly because of limited skill in the area or lack of motivation. Although internet access for academic staff is provided, the University authority should organize workshops for academics on the use of the internet in two areas: for teaching and research; and on the vast resources that are available to carry out these activities. Courses should not only concentrate on the essential skills required for searching, but also on the skills required to electronically present course descriptions, deliver additional lecture notes and send les or links to students. Use of e-mail for communicating to students (as opposed to academic colleagues and family) should be emphasized and actively encouraged. In addition to their traditional role of assisting students, library staff should not neglect the academic staff and realize that they may also sometimes require some assistance in using resources. As for the students the library staff who normally participate in teaching the use of the library course should make a point of always informing them about this vital e-library service and at the same time, teach and guide them on how to use internet services and resources in the library. Also, the use of the library instruction course assignments should incorporate both the traditional and ICT services available in the library. The instructors should ensure that all the students taking the course do their practical assignments in the library, using both the ICT and other library facilities. A signicant relationship exists between computer literacy and the use of electronic

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information resources and services. It is, therefore, desirable that adequate emphasis be given to develop adequate computer skills among library users through user education programmes. Universities are unique because they are institutions where research is combined with education. Academic education is considered to be part of the advancement of knowledge and thus in the knowledge-dominated twenty-rst century, university libraries in developing nations will have to adapt to the new requirements of high-speed access to information becoming increasingly available in their countries.
References Arikenbi, J.A. (1997), Automating the acquisition processes of the University of Lagos Library, Lagos Librarian, Vol. 8. Dong, X.O. (2003), Searching information and evaluation of the internet: a Chinese academic user survey, The International Information and Library Review, Vol. 35 Nos 2/4, pp. 163-87. Ene, I.O. (2001), Information technology in teacher education, paper presented at the National Conference of NDEMT, Owerri, September 9-15. Hackbart, S. (1996), The Educational Technology Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide, Educational Technology, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Ibegwam, A. (2004), Internet Access and Usage by Students of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, p. 2 (unpublished). Jegede, O.J. (1990), Technology and the third world: students perception of computer in education in Nigerian classrooms, paper presented at the 5th World Conference on Computer in Education, Sidney, Australia. Kling, R. and Callahan, E. (2004), Electronic journals, the internet and scholarly communication, in Cronin, B. (Ed.), Annual Review of Information Science and Technology, p. 37. Kumar, R. and Kaur, A. (2005), Internet and its usage in engineering colleges of Punjab, India: a case study, Webology, Vol. 2 No. 4, pp. 1-22. Lajoie, S.P. (Ed.) (2000), Computes as cognitive tools: no more walls, Vol. 2, Erlbaum, Mohwah, NJ. Liebscher, P., Abels, E.G. and Denman, D.W. (1997), Factors that inuence the use of electronic networks by science and engineering faculty at small institutions, part II: preliminary use indicators, Journal of American Society for Information Science, Vol. 48 No. 6, pp. 496-507. Marchionin, G. (1995), Information Seeking in Electronic Environments, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Odesanya, O.A. and Ajiferuke, I. (2000), Information technology usage by advertising agencies in Lagos, Nigeria, African Journal of Library, Archives and Information Science, Vol. 10 No. 2, pp. 113-23. Ojedokun, A. (2001), Internet access and usage by students of the University of Botswana, African Journal of Library, Achieves and Information Science, Vol. 11 No. 20, pp. 97-107. Ojedokun, A.A. and Owolabi, E.O. (2003), Internet access competence and use of the internet for teaching and research activities by University of Botswana academic staff, African Journal of Library, Archives and Information Science, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 43-53. Onyekwelu, D.C. (1998), Information technology: challenges for library services in Nigeria, New Nigerian, July 14, p. 15. Oyedum, G.U. (2006), Internet utilization and satisfaction by students of Federal University of Technology, Mina, Borno Library, Archival and Information Science Journal, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 1-9.

Usha, M.M. (Ed.) (2002), Information Management in New Millennium, Allied, New Delhi, p. 679. Zhang, Y. (2001), Scholarly use of internet-based electronic resources, The Journal of American Society of Information Science, Vol. 52 No. 8, pp. 625-8. Further reading Badru, F.M. (2002), Using Information and communication technology to pursue the goals of primary education, paper presented at the National Conference of Nigerian Association for Educational Media and Technology (NAEMT), Ibadan, November 20-23. Bemah, G.B. (2002), Internet information resources usage among undergraduates at the University of Ibadan, unpublished MLS thesis, University of Ibadan, Ibadan. Crawford, J. (2006), The use of electronic information services and information literacy: a Glasgow Caledonian study, Journal of librarianship and Information studies, Vol. 38 No. 1, pp. 33-4. Garrod, P. (2001), Staff training and end-user training issues within the hybrid library, Library Management, Vol. 22 Nos 1/2, pp. 30-6. Morgan, S. (2001), Change in university libraries: dont forget the people, Library Management, Vol. 22 Nos 1/2, pp. 58-60. Patrick, T. and Urquhart, E. (2001), The acceptance of electronic journals in UK higher education, Information Services & Use, Vol. 22, pp. 234-48. Waldman, M. (2003), Freshmens use of library electronic resources and self-efcacy, Information Research., Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 1-24. Wright, C.A. (2004), The academic library as a gateway to internet: an analysis of the extent and nature of search engines access for academic access pages, College & Research Libraries, Vol. 65 No. 4, pp. 276-86. About the author Chinwe M.T. Nwezeh is currently the Principal Librarian and Head of Africana Section of Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library, OAU, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. She has Bachelor of Arts degree in Education from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka; a Postgraduate Degree in Library and Information Science, from the University of Ibadan, Ibadan; a Masters Degree in Education from the University of Ife (now OAU, Ile-Ife) and a certicate in ICT from OAU. She started the Library of Oyo State College of Arts and Science, Ile-Ife, and has worked in different sections of Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library as Head of the Audio-visual Section, Africana Section and in the Document Section. She has been the Special duty librarian at the University as well as Chief Cataloguer. Chinwe M.T. Nwezeh can be contacted at: chinwezeh2002@yahoo.com

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