Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Abstract
The study investigated the perceptions of Social Studies Education (SSE) students towards the use of conventional and digital libraries in South-east Nigeria Universities. It adopted a survey research design. Five research questions and five null hypotheses guided the study. The study was conducted in the South-east zone of Nigeria. The target population for this study was 238 Students. A sample size of 152 students using multi-stage sampling technique. A self-developed instrument titled “Questionnaire on perception towards the use of the conventional and digital Libraries (QPDCL)” was used for data collection. The reliability of the instrument was ascertained using Cronbach Alpha and the reliability was .847 which indicates that the instrument is reliable. The research questions were answered using percentage while the null hypotheses were tested using Man Whitney U test at 0.05 level of significance. The results showed among others that the perception of SSE students towards the conventional and digital libraries is highly satisfactory. However, it was discovered that the students preferred the digital library platform to the conventional library and this was as a result of its accessibility, currency, completeness, ease of use and accuracy. Some of the strategies recommended for improvement of the students use of the conventional and digital libraries include constant evaluation of the library service from student’s point of view to know their user needs, library needs to add new books and reference resources in various subjects’ disciplines especially the SSE related disciplines and increase number of journals and extension of library hours till 8.00 pm to enhance students use.
Included in
Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Higher Education Commons, Liberal Studies Commons, Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education Commons