ABSTRACT
This study is an assessment of library and
information services to users of academic libraries in Nasarawa state using
descriptive survey method. The study was conducted to assess the library and
information services rendered in academic libraries in Nasarawa state. Six
research questions guided the study. A sample size of 430 registered users of
the population of 4300 was used using proportional sampling method from the six
academic libraries in six higher institutions in the state. Twelve librarians
from the six librarians were randomly selected to seek their opinion on the
assessment by the users. Questionnaire and observation checklist were used to
collect data. Data collected were analyzed using mean x and percentages. The
result of the study showed that most of the library and information services
that help the users to obtain information are rendered by academic libraries in
Nasarawa state. Majority of the users employ resources employed by the
libraries but use textbooks mostly; not all the services rendered in the
library are satisfied with loan, bindery, interlibrary loan, 3udio/visual,
translation and interpreting services are poorly utilized, utilization of
services is challenged by a number of problems such as incompetence’s of
library s:aff1 insufficient time [opening and closing], poor library education,
lack of computers and accessories, computers are not connected, lack of searching
skills and that these problems can be overcome by provision of adequate
materials, training of library staff, provision of ICT resources, increasing of
opening hours, provision of internet services and orientation. Finally, the
study made the following recommendations that all known library services should
be offered audio/visual resources should be richly provided utilization and
satisfaction should be the desire of the librarians, and enough seating space
should be provided, delinquent readers and wrong shelving should be tackled.
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Approval Page ii
Certification iii
Dedication iv
Acknowledgement v
Abstract vi
Table of Content vii
List of Tables x
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
Background of the study 1
Statement of the problem 11
Purpose of the study 13
Research questions 14
Significance of the study 14
Scope of the study 15
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 16
Conceptual framework 16
Concept of academic libraries 17
Concept of assessment 20
The library and information services rendered 24
Information resources employed in the provision of information services to the users 30
The level of satisfaction of satisfaction of users of services 35
The extent of utilization of the services 37
The problems associated with the provision of library and information services 42
The strategies the higher institution libraries can adopt to enhance the utilization 48
The review of related empirical studies 52
Summary of literature review 57
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHOD 60
Design of the study 60
Area of the study 60
Population of the study 61
Sample and sampling techniques 61
Instrument for data collection 62
Validation of instrument 63
Method of data collection 64
Method of data analysis 65
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS 66
Summary of major findings 84
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION 86
Discussion of the findings 86
The library and information services rendered to users 86
Information resources employed 87
The level of the user’s satisfaction 87
Extent of utilization of services provided 88
Problem associated with the utilization of library 89
Strategies to enhance utilization of the library 89
Implications of the study 90
Recommendations 91
Limitations of the study 92
Suggestion for further research 93
Conclusion 93
References 95
Appendix I 101
Appendix II 102
Appendix III 103
Appendix IV 119
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Library and Information Services available in Academic Libraries in Nasarawa State 67
Table 2: User’s perceptions of the Library and Information services rendered in academic libraries in Nasarawa State 69
Table 3: Percentage Responses of Librarians on Library and Information Services Rendered 72
Table 4: Observation
Checklist of Information Resources Employed by Academic
Libraries in Nasarawa State 73
Table 5: Perceived responses of users on the level of
the resources employed by the
academic libraries in the provision of library and information services 75
Table 6: Librarians’ mean responses on the extent of
the resources employed by the
academic Libraries in the provision of Library and information
services 76
Table 7: Mean responses on the level of satisfaction
of the users on the services
provided 78
Table 8: Mean responses of users on their extent of
utilization of these services 79
Table 9: The Mean responses of the users on the problems associated with the utilization of the services provided by the academic libraries 80
Table 10: Mean responses of Librarians on the problems associated with the utilization of the services provided by the academic libraries 81
Table 11: Mean responses of users on the strategies the academic libraries can adopt to enhance utilization of the services 83
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background
of the Study:
The academic library is one of the many types of
libraries charged with the responsibility of satisfying the instructive and
research needs of the students and the faculty. It is an indispensable
instrument for intellectual development which a user of a particular higher
institution can go into at will unrestricted to help him or her to the whole
field of knowledge. Academic library, according to
Reitz(2004) is “a
library that is
an integral part
of the College,
University, or other
institutions of post secondary
education and administered
to meet the
information and research
needs of its
students, faculty and
staff”. The academic
library is fundamentally
established to render
services to the
community in a disciplined
and responsible manner
and to teach
the users how
to use the
library to enjoy
the utilization of
the services available.
Every academic
library usually receives
the mandate of
its parent institution
to carry out
the functions which
are reflective of
their objectives which are
guides by which
it’s proper assessment
can be carried
out. Edoka (2000) has
given the functions
of the academic
library as follow, to:
provide information materials
required for the
academic programmed of the
parent institution, provide
research information resources
in consonance with the
needs of faculty
and research students,
provide information resources
for recreation and for personal
self-development of users,
provide study accommodation
in a useful
variety of locations,
provide protection and
security for the
materials, cooperate with
other libraries at
appropriate levels for
improved information services, provide specialized
information services to
appropriate segments of
the wider community.
The
role of academic
library is to
support teaching, learning, and
research by maintaining
relevant materials and
creating enabling environment
for the users
to achieve their
respective aims of
using it. It
plays the role
of information provider
for the successful
completion of the
users’ courses. An
academic library that
does not carry
out these functions
faces the danger
of criticism by
the users, and
even non-users of
such library. The
lecturers, the students,
and the researchers
are usually affected
in their zeal
to excel in
whatever their academic
desires are if
the functions which
dictate their role
are not performed.
This is because
their success depends
to a large
extent on how
well the library
carries its functions..
For high performance
by the users,
the library is
expected to stock
proper information resources.
And in order
to qualify to
be regarded as
a store house
of record of
human experience which
the academic community
can depend upon
for information, assorted
information resources are
provided. These include Yearbooks,
Almanacs, Directories, Handbooks,
Manuals, Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Periodicals
such as Newspapers,
Magazines, and Journals,
Films, Filmstrips, Slides,
CDROMS, Photographs, Maps,
Atlases, Gazettes, Gazetteers,
Tapes and Cassettes, Projectors,
Computers, Indexes, Abstracts,
Bibliographies, Government documents
etc.. These materials should be
current and adequate in quantity and be consistently made available. The resources can
be provided on
site from remote
storage locations through
Information and Communication
Technology (ICT).
It must
be seen clearly,
to support the programmes
and the courses
offered by the institution. This
support must be
visible in the
hours the library
maintains for its
users. The longer
the hours the
better, to enable
the students have
ample opportunities to
make use of
the library resources
after the hectic
lecture hours that
last from morning
to evening in most
of the days
of the week.
This is one
of the problems
of library services
in Nigeria because
it affects greatly
the students’ utilization
of the resources
therein by reducing the number of hours the users make use of the
library. Observations show that
most of the
students use library
a few hours
per day. Shorter
opening and closing
hour deprive the
users the privilege
they are entitled
to make use
of the library.
Information is
the principal factor
for the establishment
of any tertiary
institution library. The
academic library exists
to gather and
organize information in
different formats to
satisfy the inquisitive
minds of the users.
The New Webster’s dictionary of the English language (1992) defines information
as knowledge obtained by search, study, etc. It
is an important
ingredient to development
in all aspects
of life. No fundamental development or achievement can
take place without it. Every development
hinges on adequate and timely information. Realistically, an
individual or society
that is starved
of information is
stationary in growth
economically,
scientifically,
technologically and otherwise.
Libraries are expected to be
providers of information. The students
desire to be
availed assorted information
resources in all
the areas of
their courses of
study. To be
able to serve
them effectively, the
librarians in the
academic institutions are expected
to be experts
in identifying relevant
information and making
them available to
the users. Libraries usually
develop mechanisms for the timely and adequate provision for their learning
readers through different kinds of library services.
Library
and information service is
provided in the
academic community to
ensure that the
users in the
community are served
optimally. The word
service is defined
by Encarta Dictionary
as “Work done
for somebody, a job, duty,
punishment or favour”. As
a unit that
exists to support the
academic programmes of
its parent institution, the academic library is expected
to provide quality services
to satisfy the
users’ needs to
actually facilitate the
users success and
encourage life-long learning.
Every library service therefore has the following objectives to: implement
the provision of the library, meet the information needs of the
entire community, provide a
high standard of
service and assistance
to readers, provide adequate
facilities for viewing. Provision
of information services
is known to
promote library usage
in the academic
library by the
users. In the
words of Oni-Orisan (1973) “service
concept implies all
the librarian does to
make a reader feel
welcome and comfortable
in his library
and to enable
him get materials
he requires with
minimum efforts either
by himself or
through the assistance
of a librarian”. Library and Information service
consists of finding
specific facts, interpreting
the information sources,
translating, indexing, abstracting,
literature searching. Information services
are carried out
with certain objectives
such as assisting
users to gain quick
access to information,
creating awareness of
information that is
available.
They are
provided by the
library to the
readers to receive
the required attention
to enable them
enjoy their usage
of the library.
Information services can be rendered
to a group
or individually to
enable them get
as much as
possible the information that is
necessary for the
completion of their
academic pursuit. Failure
to render this
service will definitely
affect the performance
of the student
and amount of
information the lecturers can
dole out to the
students. Users of the academic
libraries are assisted
in finding the right books
that contain answers
to questions they
have in mind. Every
information service rendered
should be directly
related to the
needs of the
users and can
be grouped into
the following categories
as revealed by
Weisman(1972) Documentation, Dissemination, Inquiry,
and Special activities. As a result of the critical
nature of information services provision, there is a need to regularly assess
whether these services are adequately provided in academic libraries
Equally, the academic libraries
in whatever type
of institutions should not lose sight of general
reference service, routing
of current periodicals
to the lecturers
and research fellows, preparing library
bulletin and engaging in selective
dissemination of information.
In order to
enjoy fuller exploration
of the libraries,
the academic libraries
equally provide the
following services: registration
of readers to
issue borrowing tickets
to enable them
borrow books and
use the library outside at their
convenient time, photocopying
pages of highly
needed book, preparing
of bibliographies in
certain subject areas,
interlibrary loan to
enable them have
access to the
materials that are
not available in
their own library,
since no single
library can provide
enough information sources
for its readers,
book exhibition, cataloguing,
classification, and shelf management. All these help in no small
measure to utilize library .
The
library service that
is most appreciated
is that which
takes into consideration the
disadvantaged users in
the academic community.
The academic library
should therefore adopt
all-embracing service which
considers the blind,
or the visually
impaired users, the
lame and the
hearing impaired .Their own
materials must be
provided and they
should enjoy friendliness
from the staff
whenever they need
help. Even the
normal readers deserve
to be given
friendly treatment in
order to utilize
the library fully.
The
users of the
academic library are
the students who
form the larger
percentage, the lecturers,
the senior and
junior non-academic staff. The users have
diverse areas of
interest and different
levels of needs
as to their disciplines and years of study. The
needs of the
First year, second,
third, fourth or
fifth year students
differ. There are
also post graduate students whose needs
differ from the
other levels or
categories of readers.
By implication, each
student has special
needs which must
be satisfactorily met
with diverse and
special services. This
means that special
information service facilities
must be put
in place if all
the users will
gain from using
the library The services rendered
by the academic library should be able
to establish, promote, maintain
and increase the
users’ desire to
seek more information.
This kind of
services involve making available varied
authoritative and current
resources that support
the mission of
the library and
the goals of
the parent institution.
The students particularly
should be taught
so that they
can recognize when
an information is
needed and why the information
is needed. In order
to achieve this,
the academic library
must conserve, transmit
and create knowledge.
The
beauty of the academic
library does not lie
so much on
the facilities available but
on how satisfied the users are on the services
rendered to them. The information materials provided to the readers are aimed
at satisfying the information needs.
While it is
good for the
library to select
and acquire materials
of general interests
in large quantities,
there is the
need to make sure they are highly
useful so that they can be made
accessible and satisfactorily used. The
users, both the
students and the
lecturers become fascinated
about the collection
that may be
available in a
library in several
volumes which is an indication
of how good
or bad it
is, but if the
materials do not meet their needs, they will be dissatisfied over them.
The quality of
collection of the
academic library is
one of the
principal indicators of
the quality of
services which it’s
readers enjoy. It is the satisfaction the users enjoy that
explains of the library derives
the honour of
being regarded as
the ‘heart’ of
the institution. If
the relevant materials
are conveniently made
available and they
are actually used,
the outstanding performance
of the students
will be witnessed.
A supplemented
and well stocked
library that is
not used is
as useless as
a library without
adequate collection. Reasons
abound why very
relevant collection may
not be used
in an academic
library. Such reasons are
summarized by Aguolu and Aguolu (2002) as follow: the users
do not know
precisely what they
want, they can
