TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page- – – – – – – – – – i
Approval Page- – – – – – – – – ii
Certification Page- – – – – – – iii
Dedication – – – – – – – – – – iv
Acknowledgements – – – – – – v-vi
Table of Content- – – – – vii-viii
List of tables – – – – – – – – – ix
Abstract – – – – – – – – – – x
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study- – – – – 1-5
Statement of the problem- – – – – 5-6
Purpose of the Study- – – – – – 6-7
Research Questions- – – – – – 7
Significance of the study- – – – – 7-8
Scope of the study- – – – – – – – – 8
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Conceptual framework- – – – – 9-14
Role of School Libraries in Teaching and learning in secondary schools- – 14-17
Library resources Essential for teaching and learning in Secondary schools- 17-20
Utilization of library resources in teaching in secondary schools – – – 20-22
Problems Associated with the use of Library Resources in teaching- – 22-24
Factors that enhance the Utilization of library resources in Teaching- – 24-25
Empirical Studies- – – – – – 26-29
Summary of Literature Review- – – – – 30-31
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODS
Research Design- – – – – – 32
Area of Study- – – – – – – 32
Population of the Study- – – – – 32-33
Sample and Sampling Technique- – – – 33
Instrument for Data Collection- – 33-34
Observation checklist- – – – 34
Validation of the Instrument- – – – – – 34
Method of Data Collection- – – – – 34-35
Method of Data Analysis- – – – – 35
Decision Rule- – – – – – 35
CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA – 36-45
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATION – – – – – 46-53
References – – – – – – – 54-56
Appendix 1- – – – – – – 57
Appendix II- – – – – – 58
Appendix III- – – – – – – 59
Appendix IV- – – – – – – 60
Appendix V- – – – – – – – 61
Appendix VI- – – – – – – – 65
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 Percentage return of instrument according to schools- – 36
Table 2 Available library resources in the schools under study- 37
Table 3 The frequency of use of library resources – – – 38
Table 4: Reading purpose – – – – – – 39
Table 5: Studying purpose- – – – – 40
Table 6: Teaching purpose – – – – – 41
Table 7: Recreation purpose- – – – – 42
Table 8: Problems with the use of library resources in teaching – 43
Table 9: Strategies enhancing teaching in secondary schools- – 44
Table 10 Population of the study- – – – 57
Table 11 Sample of the study – – – – – 58
ABSTRACT
The study is a survey of
utilization of school library resources in teaching in secondary schools in
Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. To achieve this five(5)
research questions were formulated. Four hundred and ten (410) teachers were
used as sample out of eight hundred and twenty (820) that forms the population
of the study from the fourteen secondary schools in Obio/Akpor Local Government
Area of Rivers State. Questionnaires and observation checklist were used to
collect data. Tables, percentages and mean were used for data analysis. It was
found that most of the relevant materials were not available in all the
schools. Some problems such as lack of convenient accommodation, lack of funds,
lack of reading tables and chairs, non-involvement of library staff in
collection development, lack of qualified librarians were among the problems of
these libraries. The major recommendations are: that there is need to increase
full allocation of the school libraries, the state branch of Nigerian library
Association (NLA) should organize development and training courses for school
librarians and media specialist to enhance their efficiency in the running of
the school libraries, the Post Primary Schools Board (PPSB) should see to it that
every secondary school established should have a library, new books and other
educational resource materials should be provided including audio-visual
equipment, principals of various schools should encourage both teachers and
students to maximize the use of few resources at their disposal, among others.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
The term “Utilization” is got from the word “Utilize” which means to use. Therefore utilization means the process of using something. In the context of this work, utilization means the process of using library resources in teaching. According to Dike (1989:365) “utilization is defined as being able to employ appropriate instructional material expertly and at the right time in order to attain an instructional objective”.
Accessibility of library resources can play a major role in encouraging reading by making a varied collection available to teachers and student (Dike, 2007:36). Hence, accessibility will encourage teachers to go and browse, read and use the library resources in the libraries. The full utilization of these materials will help to uplift the objectives of secondary education.
The school libraries have been seen by various authors as an indispensable tools essential for modern teaching in schools. This position is informed by the role the library resources play in enhancing effective teaching especially in secondary schools. The library is designed to facilitate teaching in schools. According to Edoka (2000) school libraries refers to those libraries in primary and secondary schools which select, acquire, conserve, retrieve and disseminate information to both teachers and students for the broad goals, aims and objectives of the school as well as that of education itself.
The term “school libraries” with time and technological development has changed its traditional concept and meaning. Today, the school library is also called: school library resource centre, school media centre, instructional media centre, media resource centre, learning resource centre. These terms evolved in schools in place of the traditional school library. It aims at the meeting the requirement of modern philosophy of education that stresses the need for individualized instruction and the use of multi-media resources in teaching. Hence, Dike (2006:1) stated that “the school libraries has been described as “the heart” of the school, learning resource centre and the laboratory of all laboratories”. Just as “the heart” is central to the human body so also the library is to the school. It means that the library is the core aspect of the school system. If the library is removed from the workings of the school, the aims for establishing the school will not be achieved. Fayose (1995) asserts that “the school library resource centre is that part of the school where a collection of books, periodicals, magazines and newspapers, films and filmstrips, recording of all types, computers are housed”.
School library is usually a collection of books and other resource materials organized and placed in a silent environment in the school for use by teachers and students. Onanuya and Okeh in Adesoji (2008). According to them its collections are maintained with the funds provided by the school through gifts received from the Ministry of Education, information service, philanthropic organization and Parent Teachers Association (P.T.A.). Teachers and students go to the library singly or in small group to satisfy their information needs, identifying sources of information, evaluating sources of information. Just to mention but a few. The secondary school library provide teachers with a variety of resources required for teaching. Teachers encounter books of various types- periodicals and the ranges of audio-visual resources. The variety of resources help in instruction by providing different formats to carter for individual learners – gifted, average or slow.
The library being a resource centre houses materials that could help a teacher carry out his duty efficiently. These resources are: Book – general, reference, non-fiction and fiction books, Periodicals, Newspapers, Audio materials – discs, phonographic records, audio-tapes on reals and cassettes. It is imperative to note that no education can rise above the quality of its teachers and the library has a role to play in harnessing teachers for quality output. Hence, teachers in secondary schools should be provided with libraries to improve their skills in use like browsing the shelves, use of catalogue cards, use of reference materials and teaching methods.
The school library through its resources is the best educational services that can facilitate teacher quality and qualitative education for students, this is because it fosters lifelong learning and resource based learning. American library Association as quoted by Ferdinand and Ezekwe (1999) listed the responsibility or function of the school library as follows:
- School library provides materials that will enrich and supplement the curriculum taking into consideration the varied interest, abilities and maturity levels of the students served.
- Provide background information which will enable students to make intelligent judgment of their daily life.
- Provide materials on opposing side of controversial issues, so that young citizens may develop under guardians the practice of critical reading and thinking.
- Provide materials representative of many religious, ethnic group and their contributions.
- Place principles above personal opinion and reason above prejudice in the selection of materials of the highest quality in order to ensure a comprehensive collection appropriate for users of library.
- Provide current materials for the staff to be abreast with development.
The school library resources have the potentials for enhancing teacher’s and student’s teaching and learning process. The availability of these resources provide teachers with vast quantities of information materials which will be used in teaching. There must be communication between the teachers and learners which the library resources facilitates. Teachers are supposed to be conversant with different formats of library resources so as to know when and how to employ them in teaching.
Teaching is communication between the teacher and learner. It follows that teaching is characteristically an intentional activity which produces another characteristically intentional activity called learning. To teach therefore, is to engage someone in an activity or experience which influences a change in behaviour. Amadi (2006) emphasized that teaching is goal-oriented. It is obvious that the quality of the educational system depends on their quality and devotion. Rogers (1983) sees teaching as permitting the students to feed his or her curiosity, arguing that “merely to absorb facts is of only slight value in the future”. Concluding that learning how to learn is the element that is always of value, now and in the future”. This implies that teacher is a catalyst who makes students desirous of learning. The teacher designs the appropriate learning environment in such a way that the students are restless until they have satisfied their curiosity by interacting with other components of instructional system which includes the content, media, materials and teacher.
Teaching is the work anybody does so long as they spend part of their lives in influencing the thoughts, feelings and behaviour of others. Macytyre in Amadi (2006). Admittedly, teaching is concerned with education and behaviour change, but it is a system of activities by a formerly designated person – the teacher, and who should be of a higher knowledge, working with one or more learners to achieve certain learning outcomes. The primary function of a teacher is to facilitate learning by various means and the intention of all teaching activities is to bring about learning. Teaching has to be learner centered and the library provide the resources for resource based teaching which makes teaching learner centered. The situation at hand in our secondary school is that in realization of the fact that library is one of the educational services according to National Policy on education (Nigeria 2004), and to improve the quality of teaching and learning in secondary schools in River state, the government in collaboration with Ministry of Education supply books and other library materials to all government –aided secondary school in the state. This kind of gesture from the government attract the positive attention of both teachers and students to use the library. It is on the basis of this that this study intends to look into the utilization of library resources in teaching in secondary schools.
Statement of the problem
The school library is an important tool in the school system as it supports the secondary school curriculum and provide means which helps the school to achieve its educational objectives and goals. It does this by making available library resources which encourages self development among teachers as they use the resources in the library in planning their lesson notes and employ them in teaching and learning in classes. The school library provide a comprehensive source of learning materials in different forms for use by teachers. It serves as a store of materials and equipment for use by teachers in classrooms. Hence, its importance cannot be over emphasized.
