Internet Use by Teachers and Students in Engineering Colleges of Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh States of India: An Analysis

Authors

Rajeev Kumar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of Engineering and Technology
Amritpal Kaur, Guru Nanak Dev University

Date of this Version

Spring 2006

Document Type

Article

Citation

Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (Spring 2006) 7(1). Also available at http://southernlibrarianship.icaap.org/content/v07n01/kumar_r01.htm. Supplemental file also available at http://southernlibrarianship.icaap.org/content/v07n01/kumar_r01_app2.doc.

Comments

Copyright 2006, the authors. Used by permission.

Abstract

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyze the use of the Internet and related issues among the teachers and the students of engineering colleges in India’s three States viz. Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. A well-structured questionnaire was distributed among the 1980 teachers and students of all the engineering colleges of the three states of India under study. The response rate was 80.9 percent. The present study demonstrates and elaborates the various aspects of Internet use, such as frequency of Internet use, methods used for learning of Internet skill, most frequently used place for Internet use, purposes for which the Internet is used, use of Internet services, ways to browse the information from the Internet, problems faced by the users and satisfaction level of users with the Internet facilities provided in the college. The result of the survey also provides information about the benefits of the Internet over conventional documents. The study was conducted particularly to find an answer to the question: Can the Internet replace library services? It was found that the Internet has become a vital instrument for teaching, research and learning process of these respondents. Some suggestions are set forth to make the service more beneficial for the academic community of the engineering colleges under study.