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This study investigated the relevance of libraries and librarians in distance education programs of Nigerian universities. Investigation was carried out in Federal Universities in the South East Geopolitical Zone of Nigeria using a descriptive survey research design. Five research questions and two null hypotheses guided the study. 138 librarians in these Federal University Libraries made up the population. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire. Data collected for the study were analyzed using percentages, standard deviation and mean. The hypotheses were tested using t-test at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings among others show that the delivery of interactive tutorials between faculty and librarians would inculcate requisite knowledge to the distance education students.

Purpose: The paper aims at investigating how user education is organized, coordinated and implemented in South East Nigeria Federal University Libraries. It also addresses the challenges encountered by academic librarians in the process and itemizes the strategies for enhancing user education. Methodology: Survey method was adopted and the instrument for data collection was a questionnaire. Population of the study was twenty-six and. twenty-six copies of the instrument were administered. All the copies were returned and were found usable. Descriptive statistics involving frequencies, percentages and mean scores were used for data analysis Findings: Only one university library did not have user education policy but all of them had written objectives. User education lectures were compulsory and credit bearing. Responsibility for delivering user education lectures differed among university libraries. Coordination and implementation of user education studies were centered in the university library but the university libraries differed in the manner in which coordination of library user education was handled. Course-related and course-integrated instructions were the means of delivering user education lectures and an examination taken by students before the end of the session was the only means of evaluation of library user education. Hands-on demonstration using workstations, online resources and online databases were not being used during lectures. Practical Implications: Students were not exposed to the current ICT technologies of accessing and retrieving information resources. So, their approach to library usage remained mainly traditional Originality/Value: The value of this paper lies in the identification and recommendation of available critical ICT-enabled library services which could provide students with current approaches to library use. It articulated various categories of evaluation of both the course content and course lecturers in order to improve both the quality of the content of the course and the erudition of the academic librarians Keywords: Academic librarians, coordination, evaluation, Federal University Libraries, implementation, libraries, planning, South East Nigeria, user education. Paper Type: Empirical., Introduction Library instruction can be traced back to the 1800s in American academic institutions and back to the 1600s in Germany. (Salony,1995). This was corroborated by Tiefel (1995), when he [...]

This paper traced the origin of library and information science education in Nigeria to the advent of new technologies which have brought about tremendous impact in the delivery of services in academic libraries.. The population comprised 17 library educators in library schools in South East Nigeria Federal Universities. A structured questionnaire was used as instrument for data collection and copies of the questionnaire were distributed to respondents. Thirteen responses were received giving a response rate of 76.47%. The study centered on acquisition and application of knowledge-based and skills'-based competencies' assessment. Data collected were analyzed using percentages and mean scores. Findings of the study showed that elements of knowledge such as copyright and intellectual property law, evaluation of information communication tools' interfaces, virtual librarianship and digital technologies were not acquired by 45%, 38.75%, 45% and 6.25% of library educators respectively. Skills-based competencies such as website development and web page development were not acquired by 22.50% and 28.75% of library educators respectively. Challenges confronting library educators with respect to acquisition of competencies as well as strategies to enhance their competencies are addressed. There are conclusions and recommendations. Keywords: Library and Information Science Education, Library Educators, 21st.century, Nigeria, Library Competencies and Academic Libraries, Introduction: The library and information science educators are concerned with the production of competent and dedicated professionals in the management of acquisition, organization and information dissemination in libraries. Saleh (2012) [...]

The paper tries to explore social implications of ICTs, their positive impacts and potential dangers. In addition, the study examines some important imperative factors that sustain favourable social implications as well as critical factors that pander to unfavourable social implications of ICTs. Descriptive survey method was adopted. Population consisted of 88 academic librarians who are working in four Federal University libraries in South East Nigeria. A 59 -item structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The instrument was face validated and the reliability of the instrument was established through Cronbach Alpha reliability coefficient. Eighty-eight copies of the questionnaire were delivered to respondents and eighty-five copies were completely filled and returned. The data collected were analyzed using mean scores and percentages. The paper found out that core factors of social implications of ICTs were the Internet and other ICTs which facilitate development in developing countries and aid propagation of indigenous knowledge. It was found that ICTs do not induce unemployment in developing countries, nor promote social exclusion. They neither aid mass destruction of property nor induce organizational stress. It was also found that gender inequality and ethnicity/racism do not constitute challenges that affect social implications Other findings showed that while quest for current information was the greatest factor which could facilitate favourable social implications of ICTs, lack of Internet skills was the greatest challenge which could affect social implications of ICTs. It was also identified that the greatest strategy for enhancing social implications of ICTs would be by posting ICT compliant teachers to schools. Some of the practical implications of the paper were that favourable social implications of ICTs could be hampered by factors which focus on domains purported to create digital divide, cultural neo-colonialism, popularization of pornography and breakdown of law and order. The value of this paper lies in the identification of core factors of social implications of ICTs as well as rebuttal of the impressions that ICTs induce mass unemployment in developing countries, promote social exclusion, cause mass destruction of property and induce organizational stress. Innovative strategies for enhancing favourable social implications of ICTs have also been articulated, Introduction Antecedents of the current ICTs started with the radios and telecommunications which were delivered by copper wire. Because it was costly to string along, the telecommunications facilities were concentrated [...]

Introduction In the past, librarians were not always categorized as faculty or academics. Presently, librarians in many universities world-wide are academics and are subjected to the same promotion criteria as [...]