The Biafran Self-Determination Question: Challenges and Prospects

The Nigerian civil war and Biafra’s failed attempt to secede from Nigeria raised a series of questions about the nature and scope of the right to self-determination in formerly colonised states. The question which this paper focuses on is whether the right to self-determination should always amount to a right to secession. Through a critical analysis of Biafran agitations for statehood during the Nigerian civil war and in recent times, this paper makes the case for a framework through which self-determination claims can be addressed within existing territorial arrangements. The paper argues that, in the case of Biafra, forms of internal self-determination such as autonomy may address the agitations and needs of the people better than secession. Hence, international lawyers, and the international community as a whole, should give more attention to internal forms of self-determination

Effect of Inclusiveness and Contemporary Teaching and Learning Environments on Students with Learning Disability

This work is an overview of the effect of inclusiveness and contemporary teaching and learning environments on students with learning disability. The paper looked at learning disability, inclusiveness in education and contemporary teaching and learning environment from the conceptual perspective as well as the effect of both inclusiveness and contemporary teaching and learning environments on students with learning disability. It was ascertained based on reviewed literature that inclusive education is in tandem with the United Nations Sustainable Developmental Goal (UN-SDG) 4 which stipulates that no child should be left behind in education with special reference to students with learning disability. On the effect of contemporary teaching and learning environment on students with learning disability, as evident, the environment is prepared in such a way to meet the needs of students in this era of information and communication technologies. Indeed, students’ learning is supported by access to portable technologies which as noted are beneficial to students with learning disability. Against the backdrops of identified positive impacts of both inclusiveness and contemporary teaching and learning environments on students with learning disability, recommendations that can further enhance the two concepts were made

Black women and the criminal justice system

Although this thesis statement sounds simplistic enough, there is a need to demonstrate its validity because the theory and practice of punishment focus exclusively on the punishment of offenders' as if anyone who is 'punished' is necessarily an offender. A review of the philosophy and theory of punishment reveals that the punishment of the innocent is conceptualised as a logical impossibility or contradiction because punishment is conventionally construed to presuppose an offence. The present dissertation argues that the punishment of the innocent is not always a mistake or a miscarriage of justice but also an inherent feature of the adversarial nature of criminal justice which assumes formal equality between parties who are substantively unequal in class, race and gender relations. This dissertation is guided by the assumption that the more central punishment is to any theory or practice of criminal justice the greater the tendency for that theory or practice to conceal or truncate relatively autonomous issues that are routinely packaged with, and thereby colonised by, the conceptual empire of punishment. The historical materialist theory of the articulation of race, class and gender relations is applied hereto show how poor black women in particular, poor black people mid poor women m general, are uniquely vulnerable to victimization-as-punishment and victimization-in-punishment and how they struggle against these. The former refers to the ‘punishment’ of innocent people sometimes because they are close to targeted individuals and sometimes because they are framed and made to appear guilty. The latter refers to punishment which is unusual or out of proportion in relation to the nature of the offence. The concept of colonialism is employed in this thesis to underscore the close links between the law-and-order politics of today and the imperial traditions of the past and to emphasise the colonisation of relatively autonomous institutions and processes by the criminal justice system. Towards the decolonisation of victimisation, or the understanding of the nature of victimisation-as-punishment and victimisation-in-punishment as part of the processes of imperial domination which survive in the internal colonies and the colonies of today, the history of the victimisation of black women in the guise of punishment is sketched from the days of enslavement, through conquest and colonialism, to neo-colonialism as a useful background to understanding the victimisation of black women and other marginalised categories specifically in the internal colonies of England , with analogous evidence from other locations brought in to throw more light on the situation in England. Informed by feminist research and by critical criminology, the present dissertation adopts the method of data reception that differs from data collection in the sense that the former respects the autonomy of sources of data which the latter tends to take for granted. Empirical data were received from individuals and groups who were aware of the problems that faced black women in the criminal justice system in England. Such information was complemented by the personal observations of the present researcher and by what is already known from previous research and publications.This dissertation concludes by explaining the theoretical, methodological and practical implications of the present research especially for people who are active m the struggles against the problems that face black women and people like them in the criminal justice system in particular and society in general. The major implication of the present research is that since the problems that face black women in the criminal justice system can be seen to result from the articulation of unequal and oppressive class, race and gender relations; research, theory and struggles must be aware of all three rather than prioritising, distancing or isolating one or two of these social relations

An Empirical study of Librarians and Libraries as drivers of access to Knowledge in Ebonyi State, Nigeria

The library from inception plays a very crucial role in the extension and modification of knowledge. The growing need for knowledge management has influenced every component and operation of a library. This is built on the fact that it is only by transmission of knowledge by each succeeding generation can civilization maintain itself and make advance upon the knowledge of the past. The individual and social meaning of education can only take place on the backdrop of beliefs and values of a particular social setting. In both, the library has a crucial role to play. The library we know is a social system that stores and disseminates information which is knowledge. This paper therefore is an empirical study of Librarians and libraries as drivers of access to knowledge using Ebonyi State, Nigeria as a case in point. This researcher applied a descriptive study method with a sampled population of 138 randomly selected from the different libraries in the State. The study investigated ways through which librarians and libraries operate as drivers of access to knowledge as well as the various challenges encountered by librarians that militate against their optimal performance as drivers of access to knowledge. The study also identified ways of enhancing the role of Librarians and libraries as drivers of access to knowledge. The instrument for the study was structured according to the modified Likert scale on four point rating scale. On this scale, the average mean cut off is 2.50. To this end, an item is accepted if it is 2.50 and above and rejected if it is below 2.50. Statistically, frequencies, percentages and mean scores were used to compute the data collected that led to the decision rule

An assessment of Networking and Resource Sharing in Federal University Libraries in Nigeria

No library today can boast of having it all to satisfy all the vital needs and demands of her clientele without recourse to some forms of collaborative assistance or the other. This study so to speak is an assessment of networking and resource sharing in federal university libraries in Nigeria. The study was guided by four research objectives and questions respectively with a population sample of 86 librarians purposively derived from 43 federal university libraries. The major instrument used for data collection for the study was a 34-item modified Likert scale questionnaire while the data collected were analyzed using frequency and percentile and presented in tables and figures for clarity sake. The outcome of the study showed among other things that most federal university libraries in Nigeria were not participating in Wide Area Networking rather concentrate mostly in local area networking which implies that no federal university library in Nigeria can boast of being fully involved in global networking as to gaining from piles of information available in academic libraries of developed nations. The study further identified some of the factors militating against these services and operations. The study after due consideration of the findings recommended among other steps that all identified challenges as displayed in table 4 and figure 3 should be tackled head-on by all concerned and that the National University Commission (NUC)as universities’ control and monitoring body should partner Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) to sponsor and finance the establishment of Nigerian University Libraries consortium that will ensure effective networking and resource sharing among university libraries in Nigeria and those of developed nations

Social perception of the image of public libraries and librarians by users as catalyst of transformation: A survey

In life, people form impressions of and make inferences about other people as sovereign personalities which is social perception. This study therefore investigated the impression of and the inferences about public libraries and librarians by the users as a catalyst of transformation. The study adopted a descriptive survey design with users of public libraries in Ebonyi State Nigeria forming the population of the study. The study was guided by 5 research question while one null hypothesis was tested. A sampled population of 762 was drawn using Research Advisor table for selecting samples. The primary instruments used in collecting data for the study are a 4-point Likert scale type of questionnaire and oral interview. Using Cronbach Alpha, the questionnaire pre-tested yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.75 whereas data collected with the aid of SPSS 23.0 were analyzed using percentages, tables, mean and standard deviation and the hypotheses analyzed using Pearson Product moment correlation with a criterion mean of 2.50 used for decision. The outcome of this study reveals that librarians are socially perceived and placed at the lowest ebb of the professional strata and to certain level underestimate the level of training required for one to become a librarian. The crown glory is that the users recognized and appreciated the all important role of the public library and librarians as catalyst of transformation. Based on the findings, recommendations were made

Citation Analysis of serials in Postgraduate Theses and Dissertations of Library and Information Science of Public Universities in Southeast, Nigeria

This study is a citation analysis of serials in postgraduate Theses and dissertations of library and information science of public universities in Southeast Nigeria submitted from 2013 to 2021. The study was guide by five research questions in line with the objectives of the study. The study employed a descriptive survey design with a sampled population of 296 derived through census method from four public universities offering library and information science. The principle instruments used in collecting data for this study were self-designed checklists. With the checklists, 12455 serials citations were analyzed using descriptive statistics of mode, mean and range and data presented in tables, charts and graphs using frequencies and percentile. . The study found that the most cited serials types were journals with 76.5% citations followed by conference proceedings/reports with 20% and the least cited being government publication with only .5 citations . This affirms other citation analysis, which found that journals are the most frequently used type. It was further discovered that serials used were either in print or electronic form. . The study also revealed that multi authorship is the most frequently cited author pattern in library graduates theses and dissertations, while annual serials citations range from 1034 to 2205. The study indicated that the average age of serials used was 0 - 20. The study recommended among other things that there should be documentation librarian in each university library whose duty should be tracking down research reports, ensuring proper documentations and upward delivery to the university library circulation unit

Librarians’ perception of violence on the student-librarians: An empirical study

Violence is an antisocial behaviour which is intended to hurt and inflict pain on victims. This study therefore empirically investigated the librarians’ perception of violence on the student librarians. The study employed descriptive survey design while the study was guided by five research questions based on the objectives of the study as well as one null hypothesis. The sampled population for the study was 132 librarians made up of 97 male and 36 female whereas, the primary instrument used to obtain data was a 34-item librarian perception of violence on the student-librarian questionnaire developed by the researcher. The data collected were analyzed using mean scores, standard deviation while student t-test was used to test the formulated null hypothesis. The outcome of the study reveals that librarians have adequate perception of the nature and manifestation of violence on the student librarian. On the other hand, the librarians’ perception of violence on the student-librarian was restricted to physical and not psychological violation on the student-librarian’s right. The study also discovered the need to define violence on the student-librarian as to embrace any violation of the student’s right that may impede the health, total development and academic performance of the student. It is against these backdrops and more that recommendations were made which include that training programmes and workshops should be organized for librarians to address psychological conceptions of violence on the student-librarian

An Examination of Student-Librarians’ Reading Preference: Print Materials or Electronic Materials

Reading a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to construct or derive meaning is an essential skill for academic success. This implies that in any institution of higher learning a lot of readings are done on all programmes by students for them to excel academically. This study therefore examined student-librarians’ reading preference considering the fact that today students are exposed to two main reading material, print materials and electronic materials. The study employed a descriptive survey method with a student-librarian population of 120 randomly selected from four federal universities offering library and information science in Nigeria. The study was guided by three research questions while the main instrument used for data collection was a four-point Likert Scale structured questionnaire validated by three experts two from the department of library and information science and one from the department of educational measurement and evaluation. The data collected were presented in tables and charts analyzed using frequencies and percentages. The outcome of the study did show that despite the emergence of information and communication technologies (ICTs) which have transformed the way information resources are accessed as a result of digitalization of most information materials, student-librarians in Nigeria still preferred reading print materials to electronic materials (e-materials) though they showed acceptability for electronic resources. It was based on the finding that the following recommendations were made; librarians should as a matter of need go for hybrid collections (i.e. both print and electronic format of information sources) and student-librarians as librarians in the making should from the start be exposure to electronic literacy skills so as to gain adeptness in the use of electronic information resources

An Examination of Peer Group Influence and gender as correlates of Library and Information Science Students’ Attitude towards Examination Malpractice: Implication for the development of students

Examination malpractice has become a global cankerworm that has eaten so deep into our educational system and posing a serious threat to total development of students in our educational system. In search of solution to this anti-educational behavior, experts have attributed it to many factors including peer influence on the assumption that birds of a feather flock together and on the axiom; ‘show me your friends and I will tell you who you are’. This study therefore examined the peer group influence and gender as correlates of Library and Information Science students’ attitude towards examination malpractice and it implication for all round development of students. The study applied a correctional research design with a population sample of 259 LIS randomly selected from seven public universities in Nigeria offering degree programs in library and Information Science. The study was guided by three research questions and hypotheses respectively while the principle instrument used to elicit responses from the respondents was a structured question on peer group and library and information science students’ attitude towards examination malpractice’ whereas, the data obtained were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) (Pearson r) which basically was used to establish the relationship between peer group influence and Library and Information Science students attitude towards examination malpractice. The outcome of this study revealed that library and information science students generally have negative attitude towards examination malpractice and frown at it. The result also shows that both male and female students’ attitude towards this canker-worm was same. In the end, it was recommended among others that parents, university management and heads of library schools should regularly organize school programs promoting healthy peer relationship and upholding students’ value of negative attitude towards examination malpractice as discovered by this study for all round development of students