Awareness and Usage of Open Access among University Lecturers in Nigeria

The study examined the level of awareness and usage of Open Access among lecturers in the Faculties of Arts and Education, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria. A questionnaire designed by the researchers was employed to collect data for the study. The study revealed that lecturers had high level of awareness of Open Access and used them for conducting and publishing their scholarly works; however their level of awareness of Open Access content were higher than their actual use of the contents. The study further revealed that some lecturers used some open access contents, such as, e-journals, e-dictionaries and e-encyclopedias daily, weekly, monthly and whenever the need arises while some others like e-handbooks, e-guides and e-technical reports were not used at all. It further revealed that Open Access journals were the most utilised of all the Open Access contents surveyed amongst ot her findings. Many recommendations were proffered amongst which were sensitisation of faculty about benefits, challenges and policies guiding Open Access use through information literacy training provided by academic librarians and that academic staff should made themselves available for information literacy training programmes so as to make wise and effective use of Open Access to enhance their academic status. Keywords: Awareness and Usage of Electronic Resources; Open Access Scholarly Communication, Nigerian Universities, Nigerian Lecturers’ Use of Electronic Resources; Scholarly Publishing

Lecturers’ Variables and Utilization of Web-Based Resources in State Colleges of Education in South-South Nigeria

This research investigated the influence of lecturers’ variables and use of web-based resources in State Colleges of Education in South-South Nigeria. Three research questions and one hypothesis guided the study. Survey research design was used for the study. The population consisted of 796 lecturers. 629 lectures were chosen for the study using simple random sampling techniques. “Lecturers’ Variables and Use of Web-Based Resources Questionnaires” (LVUWBRQ) with a reliability index of .83 determined using Cronbach Alpha method was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics and t-test were used for data analysis. The result showed that lecturers variables (competency, qualification, and gender) do influence their use of web-based resources in State Colleges of Education. Recommendations were made based on the result of the study. Keywords: Lectures’ Variables, Utilization, Web-based Resources, Colleges of Education, South-South Nigeria DOI: 10.7176/JEP/14-8-04 Publication date:March 31st 202

A Critique of Relationship between Performance and Effort Expectancy of Lecturer’s and Their Adoption of Open Access Scholarly Publishing in Nigerian Universities.

The study investigated the relationships between lecturers’ performance expectancy, effort expectancy and their adoption of open access scholarly publishing in the state universities. A correlational research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprised 1,111 lecturers in Faculties of Education and Sciences in the five state universities in the South-East of Nigeria while the sample was 834 respondents selected through proportionate sampling technique. The alpha coefficients of the instrument were 0.85 and 0.83 for the two sections of the instrument. The Pearson Product Moment correlation was used to answer the research questions while t-test was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study showed that there is high and positive relationship between performance expectancy of lecturers and their adoption of open access scholarly publishing in state universities. Also the findings of the study revealed that there is high and positive relationship between effort expectancy of lecturers and their adoption of open access scholarly publishing in state universities. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that management of the universities should reward the lecturers’ performance through grants to enable them engage more in open access scholarly publishing. There is need to conduct more training and workshops on the use of open access outlet to enhance the lecturers’ capability to use such system

AWARENESS AND USAGE OF ELECTRONIC INFORMATION RESOURCES AMONG POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA

The study aims at investigating the awareness and usage of electronic information resources among postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria. The descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The census sampling technique was adopted for this study. Thus, the entire population of three hundred and seventy-five (375) postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria were used as the sample for this study. The questionnaire tagged: Awareness and Usage of Electronic Information Resources by Postgraduate Students of Library and Information Science Questionnaire (AUEIRPSLISQ) was used as instrument for data collection. Four research questions were answered and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The simple percent statistical tool was used to answer the research questions and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMCC) for testing the hypotheses. The results obtained revealed that postgraduate students of library and information science are quite aware and highly use electronic information resources. The study also reported that postgraduate LIS students are skilled in the use of electronic information resources. Based on the findings the study concluded that electronic information resources are essential tools for empowering postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria

AWARENESS AND USAGE OF ELECTRONIC INFORMATION RESOURCES AMONG POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA

The study aims at investigating the awareness and usage of electronic information resources among postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria. The descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The census sampling technique was adopted for this study. Thus, the entire population of three hundred and seventy-five (375) postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria were used as the sample for this study. The questionnaire tagged: Awareness and Usage of Electronic Information Resources by Postgraduate Students of Library and Information Science Questionnaire (AUEIRPSLISQ) was used as instrument for data collection. Four research questions were answered and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The simple percent statistical tool was used to answer the research questions and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMCC) for testing the hypotheses. The results obtained revealed that postgraduate students of library and information science are quite aware and highly use electronic information resources. The study also reported that postgraduate LIS students are skilled in the use of electronic information resources. Based on the findings the study concluded that electronic information resources are essential tools for empowering postgraduate students of library and information science in Southern Nigeria

Cutting out the middle man?: disintermediation and the academic library

Big Deals, open access, and digitisation increasingly mean that selection decisions are being removed from librarians and transferred to the end user. David Ball looks at the forces pushing towards this ‘disintermediation’ and considers the future role of the academic library

Open Access Scholarly Communication Practices at the University of Zambia

Open access plays a significant role in expanding access by enabling scholars more equitable participation in research and development activities globally. However, little is known about researchers’ awareness and adoption of open access at the University of Zambia. To address this gap, this study investigated open access scholarly communication practices at Zambia’s premier University. Using a survey research design, data were collected from a sample of 67 participants via an online questionnaire. Findings showed that though all (67) of the respondents were aware of open access and were upbeat towards this new form of scholarly communication, 79.1% had used OA platforms more to access scholarly content than to disseminate their own research output while 21.9% used open access publishing models to disseminate their research output. The misapprehension about open access and lack of digital skills were the major barriers to open access adoption. The paper recommends that the open access committee at the University should proactively sensitise the University community on the benefits of open access. This study contributes to the growing literature on scholarly communication practices in Zambia by offering evidence from the University of Zambia

OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES: PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES TO ACADEMIC STAFF IN TWO PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN DELTA STATE, NIGERIA

Open educational resources (OER) are being utilised more often to support pedagogical objectives and learning requirements in higher education institutions all over the world. The OER: opportunities and difficulties for academic staff at private institutions in Delta State, Nigeria were the subject of this research. For this study, the descriptive research design was used. The goal of the research is to determine the extent of academic staff use of OERs, the reason for such usage, the advantages associated with that usage, and the obstacles that academic staff face in using OERs. The study\u27s findings revealed that both institutions\u27 academic staff members used open educational resources (OERs) extensively. Participants also used OERs to learn new things and find inspiration. Some advantages of employing OERs include making research work easily accessible and offering free internet access to books required for study. The usage of OERs was hindered by weak Internet infrastructure and an insufficient power supply. The report suggested, among other things, that tertiary institutions work to develop their own repository where done research might be uploaded. Students and academic staff would gain from it. Additionally, policymakers in Delta State must to think about launching a serious OER campaign at private institutions. This will increase accessibility and use by ensuring that both academic staff and students are aware of their presence

AN APPRAISAL OF OPEN ACCESS INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORIES USE BY ACADEMIC STAFF IN FEDERAL UNIVERSITIES IN NORTH CENTRAL STATES OF NIGERIA

This research was carried out to evaluate the Awareness and Use of Open Access Institutional Repositories by Academics in Federal Universities in North Central States of Nigeria. The research questions raised among others include: How often do academic staff use Open Access IR for dissemination of research outputs in Federal Universities in North Central States of Nigeria? What challenges are academic staff faced with in accessing Open Access IR in Federal Universities in North Central States of Nigeria? Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the research. The target population are 3,547 academics in the Federal Universities in the North Central States excluding University of Agriculture Makurdi, and University of Abuja. A sample of 355 respondents (Academics) was selected for the study. The figure represents approximately 10% of the target population of academics in the Federal Universities in North Central States of Nigeria. The instrument that was used to collect data for the study is questionnaire. The data collected was subjected to descriptive statistics. Mean and standard deviation were used to analyze the data. Some of the major findings revealed: that the Open Access Institutional Repositories were used by scholars on daily bases and at their will. That academics experience a kind of delay when looking for information from their Open Access Institutional Repositories during their academic activities which can lead to unproductive academic productivity. The study recommends that university management should provide necessary facilities and formulate policies that would encourage mandatory deposit and use of scholarly works in open access institutional repositories and other open access outlets to raise the level of usage among others