ABSTRACT
Fundamental areas responsible for the dwindling educational standards
and fortunes in our educational system today especially at the secondary school
level is the area of library education and library service utilization among
our pupils, as the. The mission of libraries are to provide timely, accurate,
current, and reliable information to their users. Olowu (2004) posited that
“librarians are devoted to improving access to information and satisfying the
user’s information needs”. “There is a growing recognition in library services,
particularly in public libraries, as an integral part of the national
socio-economic development and improvement of the general quality of life”
(Kibat, 1990). Libraries have an important role in the advancement of
knowledge. “This role can be effectively carried out with well-structured and
well-planned library services, which include the packaging and repackaging of
information” (Iwhiwhu, 2008).
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background to the Study
Fundamental
areas responsible for the dwindling educational standards and fortunes in our
educational system today especially at the secondary school level is the area
of library education and library service utilization among our pupils, as the.
The mission of libraries are to provide
timely, accurate, current, and reliable information to their users. Olowu
(2004) posited that “librarians are devoted to improving access to information
and satisfying the user’s information needs”. “There is a growing recognition in
library services, particularly in public libraries, as an integral part of the
national socio-economic development and improvement of the general quality of
life” (Kibat, 1990). Libraries have an important role in the advancement of
knowledge. “This role can be effectively carried out with well-structured and well-planned
library services, which include the packaging and repackaging of information”
(Iwhiwhu, 2008).
A public library is therefore a
library that offers services to the public free of charge and it also provides
educational, social and political information to people in a particular
community. Generally, public libraries are accepted as a public good. In the
words of Olanlokun and Salisu (1993), public libraries are libraries set up to
provide free but traditional “service to everyone”. A public library is an
organization established, supported and funded by the community, either through
local, regional or national government or through some other form of community
organization. It provides access to knowledge, information and works of the
imagination through a range of resources and services and is equally available
to all members of the community regardless of race, nationality, age, gender,
religion, language, disability, economic and employment status and educational
attainment.
A public library serves the
community and is generally referred to as a layman's library or
university. The public library, the
local gateway to knowledge, provides a basic condition for lifelong learning,
independent decision-making and cultural development of the individual and
social groups.’
Public libraries are a world-wide
phenomenon. They occur in a variety of societies, in differing cultures and at
different stages of development. In 1953, the Federal
Government of Nigeria with the help of UNESCO organized the first regional
seminar on the development of public libraries in the various regions of
Nigeria with the following objectives (Edoka, 2000):
i. creating and
strengthening reading habits in children from early age;
ii. supporting
both individual and self -conducted education as well as formal;
iii. providing
opportunities for personal creative development;
iv. stimulating
the imagination and creativity of children and young adults;
v. promoting
awareness of cultural and appreciation of the arts, scientific achievement and
innovations;
vi. providing
access to cultural expressions of all performing arts;
vii. fostering
intercultural difference and favoring cultural diversity;
viii. supporting
oral tradition;
ix. ensuring
access for citizens to all sorts of community information;
x. providing
adequate information services to local enterprises, associations and interests
groups
xi. facilitating
the development of information and computer literacy skills and;
xii. supporting
and participating in literacy activities and programmes for all age group and
initiating such activities if necessary.
Oderinde
(1980) affirmed that the “foundation of Nigeria’s public libraries services was
laid by non-Nigerians, and with funds from abroad”. It was only in 1950s that
the government of the Federation of Nigeria started to encourage library
development. It was argued that the UNESCO seminar on development of public
libraries in Africa held at the University College, Ibadan in August 1953 was
the starting point. The Ibadan UNESCO seminar focused and highlighted on
organizing public libraries on Regional or National scale, provision, selection
and use of publication and audio-visual materials in African public libraries
and on professional training for public libraries services.
The
public library was established to provide materials, which communicate
experience and ideas from one person to another and make them easily and freely
available to all people. The public library is a local Centre of information
that makes all kinds of knowledge and information readily available to its
users. It is established, supported and funded by the community, either through
local, regional or national government or through some other form of community
organizations. It provides access to knowledge, information and works of
imagination through a range of resources and services. It is equally available
to all members of the community regardless of race, nationality, age, gender,
religion, language, disability, employment status and educational attainment
(Aboyade, 1984).
People
in all works of life use the public library resources, facilities and services.
These users include pupils, students, teachers, scholars, scientists, business
executives, government officials and even dropouts. Large numbers of people
also turn to public libraries to satisfy their desire for knowledge or to
obtain materials for some kind of leisure-time activities. The public library
is essentially a medium of education. In fact, the various roles, which the
public library could play to ensure the realization of national development in
Nigeria, include the following: Provision of information for planning, Provision
of educational, information and facilities, Provision
of political information,
Undertaking Researches, Provision of economic documents and Organization
of enlightment programmes.
Use of information resources refers to the
extent to which users make use of the resources of a library to meet their
information needs. Buckland (1975) identified ‘use’ as an activity which measures
the worth of an item to a library or information system. Use is the single
criterion, which could be used to determine the reason for retaining a document
within the collection of a library; and use is essential in guiding the
collection development effort of a library. The use of a library can be
obtained from the demand of its items. The library tries to meet the needs of
its users who may not be satisfied with the output they are getting from the
system. The package or item provided to the user may not satisfy these needs.
All these are problem that could possibly emanate from the use of a library
with the aim to address them.
Public information centers should be
designed to serve actual need as well as anticipation to meet these actual
needs. Public libraries specialists must be technically and professional
trained. Information therefore, is an important ingredient in all human
endeavor and human survival in any society. Information today is a commodity,
package and sold at obtainable price. It is regarded as vital source that must
be made to achieve organization goals
and management option in survival technique.
The objective of the Public library is to
utilize and maximize the exposure of the user to the library resources. Ray
(2004) remark that the library should be organized to utilize the effort
required by users to access the needed information as soon as possible when the
need arises. Public libraries should be involved in the provision of all kinds
of information resources for the use of their client because they play a vital
role in transmission of knowledge that could be impacted because it is a way of
providing the users with a totaling formation environment with the development
of science and technology. The record of man’s achievement come in a wide
varieties of forms each equally varied, each capable of giving information in
its own unique way
and even complementing the other. Normally,
it is information that the library client look for and not the library building.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
There
is a general belief that reading culture is on a decline in Nigeria. It is not
an overstatement to say that reading
culture is dying every day. Reading has become a burden to most students and
their academic achievement have continued to remain poor. This has become a
major challenge in the academic sector. It is observed by the researcher that students
with poor reading skills receive poor grades at school, get easily distracted,
frustrated, have behavioral problems, seem to dislike school, and often fail to
develop their potentials. Similarly it is observed that Various research have
been carried out on the use and utilization of academic libraries but little
has been carried out on the use of public library resources. The public Library
has great and significant roles which it should be made to play to ensure
effective reading among students.. It has been observed that from all
indications that students at all levels have poor study habit which might lead
to poor academic performance. In recent years several works have been carried
out on use of public library resources by secondary school students but none
has been carried out on the resources available in public library, the services
rendered by public library, frequency of use of public library by secondary
school students, the information literacy skills of the secondary school
students using public library and the resources used previously in public
library by secondary school students. Hence this study is aimed at addressing
this gap.
1.3
Objectives of the Study
The main aim of
this study is to examine the use of public library resources by secondary
school pupils. The specific objectives are
1.
To determine the resources available in
public library.
2.
To study the services rendered by public
library.
3.
To determine the frequency of use of
public library by secondary school students.
4. To
determine the information literacy skills of secondary school students using
public library
1.4 Research Questions
1.
What are the resources available in
public library?
2.
What are the services rendered by public
library?
3.
What is the frequency of use of public
library by secondary school students?
4.
What is the information literacy skills
of secondary school students using public library?
1.5 Scope of the Study
This study focused on a study of the
use of public library resources by secondary school students in Esan West local
Government Edo State.
1.6 Significance of the Study
It is hoped that this study will be of immense importance to
students, scholars and the society at large
To students It will
encourage them to patronize public libraries, and cultivate a good reading
habit which in turn, will help to address students’ poor achievement.
Findings
of this study will help the people and students to have a rethink and be more
conscious on Using Public Libraries Findings of this study will kindle a new
zeal in the people towards promoting literacy through the use of Public
libraries.
1.7 Operational definition of terms
Library:
A
collection of sources of information and similar resources made accessible to a
defined community for reference and borrowing.
Literacy:
The
quality or state of being literate
Students:
A person studying in any institution of learning
School:
An Institution of Learning
Public:
Something
open to people in general
Public
Library: A public
library is a library that is accessible
by the general public
Resources:
Stock of materials and other assets
that can be drawn on by a person or organization in order to function
effectively.
Secondary
School Pupils: A student or learner who attends a
secondary school
Library
resources: These
are Stock of
materials and sources of information found in the library
Use:
The
value or advantage of something
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