Undergraduate students’ perceptions of digital library: A case study

Undergraduate students’ perceptions of digital library: A case study

The International Information & Library Review (2010) 42, 149e153 available at www.sciencedirect.com journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/iilr ...

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The International Information & Library Review (2010) 42, 149e153

available at www.sciencedirect.com

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/iilr

Undergraduate students’ perceptions of digital library: A case study N.K. Sheeja Cochin University of Science and Technology, Cochin-22, Kerala, India

KEYWORDS Digital libraries; User studies; Users’ perception; Undergraduate students; India

Abstract The major purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of undergraduate students towards the digital library of the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), Cochin, India. Specifically, the study made an effort to determine the sources consulted and the general pattern of information gathering by the students. The study adopted a descriptive survey design and data was collected using a questionnaire administered to 225 respondents randomly selected from seven branches of engineering faculty in the CUSAT. The results obtained show that almost all students use the digital library for learning. They frequently access the digital library for getting previous exam question papers, syllabi and other materials pertaining to their study. They are satisfied with current digital library features and functionality. Students recommended the addition of more documents related to their courses and useful links to the digital library. ª 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Introduction The digital revolution has brought dramatic changes to information storage, access, and retrieving processes. The creation of digital libraries has made a radical impact on the teaching and learning process. Digital libraries facilitate information services for students, independent of time and place. This is much needed, especially if active learning styles become more commonplace (Barnard, 1997; Beagle, 2000; Roes, 2001). Major benefits of digital libraries include storing resources in digital format, which allows online access to users at numerous locations around the globe at any time. Moreover, digital libraries provide various search techniques to access the digitized resources (Wiederhold, 1995). A digital library is a collection of information objects and the services that support users in dealing with information E-mail address: [email protected]

objects, available directly or indirectly via electronic/ digital means (Leiner, 1998; Seadle & Greifeneder, 2007). Digital libraries containing representations of original works provide opportunities for students and scholars to conduct research from personal computers and workstations located in their homes, offices and laboratories. Facilitating remote research from private and public locations offers learners’ opportunities that are unconstrained either by the limited resources found in particular physical libraries or by their schedules of operation. (Downs & Friedman, 1999). The concept of digital libraries in developed countries started during the 1970s. In India, it began in the mid-1990s. Vidyanidhi is India’s premier digital library initiative to digitize PhD Theses submitted to Indian universities. The Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) is a national level collaborative project for the Indian medical system. The Digital Library of India (DLI) is a project to foster creativity and provide free access to all human knowledge with a free-to-read, searchable collection of one million books, predominantly in Indian

1057-2317/$ - see front matter ª 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.iilr.2010.07.003

150 languages, available to everyone over the Internet (Jain & Babbar, 2006). Gyandoot, Samadhan Kendras, Indian National Digital Library in Engineering, Science and Technology (INDEST) consortium, and CSIR consortium are other examples of digital library initiatives in India. There are many examples of academic institutions that have taken the initiative to create digital libraries in India. Cochin University Science and Technology (CUSAT) is one among them. It provides access to a variety of documents, including previous examination question papers, syllabi, news items related to CUSAT, video clippings of speeches, journal articles, conference papers, etc. The study presented in this paper investigates undergraduate students’ perceptions of the CUSAT digital library. Undergraduates who are working on research papers encounter much information during their quest for useful sources. Their views about knowledge and how they construct it have implications for their information-seeking behavior (Whitmire, 2003). Therefore, it is vital to inquire what they think about digital library resources and services in this digital era.

Cochin University of Science and Technology Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) is one of the major universities in India. CUSAT is academically organized into nine faculties and currently it has 29 departments of study and research offering undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate programmes across a wide spectrum of disciplines in frontier areas of various faculties. The present study concentrated on students of the undergraduate programme of engineering faculty. CUSAT offers seven courses under the engineering department, namely: Computer Science, Information Technology, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical and Electronics, Civil Engineering, Electronics and Communication, and Safety and Fire Engineering. Student’s intake for this four year course of study is 540.

CUSAT digital library The CUSAT community of teachers, researchers and students, belonging to various faculties, generate vast numbers of documents, such as journal articles, research reports, dissertations, theses, images, teaching materials and other records of communication. A system was essential to identify, select, organize, keep online and preserve this knowledge. CUSAT digital library is an important achievement for accomplishing this task. The CUSAT digital library was started in 2003. It was built using DSpace open source software. Its structure is planned on the DSpace principles of communities, sub-communities, collections and items. Now the digital library contains around 2000 documents. The task of collection building is decentralized. Faculty members and library staff from different departments can upload items online at their locations. Fig. 1 represents a screenshot of CUSAT digital library. CUSAT digital library offers open access to all documents. The access statistics of CUSAT digital library show that it is visited from all over the world. The data collected using Google Analytics (2010) Service for the period of January 2009 to September 2009 is presented in the Fig. 2. It shows that CUSAT digital library received 14,725 visits during the nine month period, with a total of 23,711 page

N.K. Sheeja

Figure 1 Screen shot of CUSAT Digital Library (http://dspace. cusat.ac.in/dspace).

views recorded. These visits were from 78 countries in the world, with India on the top followed by USA.

Objective of the study To carry out the study systematically, the investigator laid down certain objectives. The following are the objectives of the study:  To study the use of CUSAT digital library among the students of CUSAT  To identify the user stratification and perceptions of the students with CUSAT digital library

Literature review The majority of the prior research has focused on technological development of the digital library system, such as information storage, information retrieval, and system integration (Adam, Atluri, & Adiwijaya, 2000; Rao et al., 1995; Watters, 1999). Individual digital library case studies were another research area (Fox et al., 1993; Hill et al., 2000; Marchionini, Plaisant, & Komlodi, 1998). User perception of digital libraries is a less focused area. There is a need to investigate the factors that determine users’ acceptance of digital libraries (Hong, Thong, Wong, & Tam, 2002) in order to help redesign the system as per user needs. The goal of digital library evaluation is to assess to what extent a digital library meets its objectives and user suggestions for improvements (Chowdhury & Chowdhury, 2003). The evaluation of digital libraries must be done based on certain criteria. There are a number of digital library

Figure 2 Visitors overview of CUSAT Digital Library (Cherukodan & Kumar, 2009).

Undergraduate students’ perceptions of digital library evaluation frameworks from different dimensions and levels. Fuhr et al. (2007) developed a digital library evaluation framework based on a large-scale survey of digital library evaluation activities. Nicholson (2005) also developed a conceptual framework for the artifact-based evaluation in digital libraries to have an in-depth understanding of digital library services and users. Bishop et al. (2000) examined extent of use, use of the digital library compared to other systems, nature of use, viewing behavior, purpose and importance of use, and user satisfaction. Cherry and Duff (2002) investigated how the digital library was used and the level of user satisfaction with response time, browse capabilities, comprehensiveness of the collection, print function, search capabilities, and display of document pages. Yang (2001) observed learners’ problemsolving processes in using the Perseus digital library by adopting an interpretive and situated approach. Kassim and Kochtanek (2003) conducted a usability study of an educational digital library for determining user needs, desired features, and assessing overall user satisfaction. Blandford and Buchanan (2003) stated that “Digital libraries are potentially powerful tools, but their potential will be realized only if users are able to harness that power and take it in fruitful directions”. Tammaro’s (2008) survey on user perceptions of digital libraries in Italy indicated that users have different perceptions with regard to digital libraries and that they tend to use the services of more than one cultural institution. Overall, there is a positive attitude towards digital libraries, but the survey also underlines that users often do not know how to use the libraries and are unaware of all of the services offered. Muhammad and Kanwal (2009) investigated the acceptance and importance of the digital library among female students of International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan. They found that digital library access is indispensable to the students in order to complete their research work. Although a good number of studies have been conducted on digital library use and acceptance, the issue of undergraduate students’ perceptions of digital libraries, particularly in the Indian context, has not been given much consideration. The present study is an attempt in this direction.

Methodology To achieve the objectives of this study, the survey research method was used to collect data from the population. The digital library creator was interviewed to collect data on the present status of the digital library. Out of 2160 undergraduate students, a sample of 225 was taken from the seven branches of engineering in CUSAT to measure users’ perceptions. A questionnaire was developed and circulated to the students. In total, 204 questionnaires were returned and among them four were not usable. Hence, the response rate was 89%. The questionnaires were distributed personally by visiting the classes. Data were analyzed by using SPSS. Descriptive statistical methods were used to analyze the data.

151 use the digital library two to three times a week, followed by 26% who use them weekly, 22% who use them occasionally, and 17% who use them daily. The results show that 39% of the students use the digital library in order to access previous year examination question papers and 33% of them for getting syllabi. Fifteen percent of students access it for project work and 8% for completing assignments. Very few students use it for further readings and other purposes. The respondents were asked to indicate the major reasons for using the digital library. It is observed that majority of the respondents (62%) use it mainly because it is easy to access. Many (32%) respondents indicated that they prefer to use digital formats and 5% reported that it is easy to download from the digital library. A majority of the respondents (94%) strongly agree that search and browse options of the digital library are very helpful and easy to navigate. Most (87%) of them are satisfied with the display format. All the respondents are satisfied with the authenticity of materials available in the digital library and believe that materials available in it are very relevant to their study. It is revealed that about half of the respondents (47%) have been using help options; others are familiar with search and browsing of the digital library. The majority (76%) of the respondents strongly agree that access to the digital library helps them to improve their performance. Half of the students (48%) requested the inclusion of more documents and useful links related to their course of study in the digital library.

Conclusion Digital libraries are becoming increasingly useful because they make essential documents accessible online. Therefore, it is important to maintain a digital library in an academic institution. Data from the survey indicates that almost all students use the digital library for learning. They frequently access the digital library to obtain previous exam question papers, syllabi, and other materials pertaining to their study. It is noted from the analysis that students prefer digital information formats and they assume the digital library is very significant for their studies. Students were satisfied with current digital library features and functionality. The overall results show a high acceptance of the digital library by undergraduate students.

Suggestions and recommendations    

Add more variety of collections to the digital library Add subject terms to facilitate “browse by subject” Create more useful links to the digital library Provide training to the undergraduates on the use of the digital library

Data analysis

Acknowledgement

A large majority of the respondents (98%) say that they are aware of and use the digital library. Almost 28% of students

Author is thankful to G. Santhosh Kumar, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science and the CUSAT digital

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N.K. Sheeja

Appendix Survey Questionnaire 1.

Name

:

2.

Name of the Course

:

3. Are you aware of CUSAT digital library (Please √ your answer)

: Yes/No

4. If yes, how frequently you access the digital library

: Daily/2-3 times a week/ Weekly/Monthly/Rarely

5. Main purpose of using digital library (please rank 1 for major purpose; 6 for least purpose)

: Searching question papers Searching syllabus Assignments Project work Further readings Other purpose

6. Main reasons of accessing the digital : Prefer to use digital formats library (please rank 1 for main Easy to access reason; 3 for least reason) Easy to download 7. Do you find the search options are Helpful

: Yes/No

8. Do you satisfied with the display of : Yes/No search output 9. Are you confident with the : Yes/No authenticity of items available in the digital library 10. Do you use help options

: Occasionally/ Frequently/Never

11. Do you agree that digital library helps you to improve your performance

: Strongly Agree/ Agree/No opinion/Disagree/ Strongly Disagree

12. Please suggest your views for improving digital library service…………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

library administrator for the viewers data derived from Google Analytics Service.

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