Availability, Accessibility, and Use of Information and Communication Technology in the Management of Students’ Academic
Chapter One
Purpose
The study intended to establish how ICT affected the management of students‟ academic affairs in the University of Uyo.
Objectives
- To find out levels of availability of ICT for exam management in University of Uyo.
- To find out levels of accessibility of ICT for exam management in University of Uyo
- To find out level of use of ICT for registration Management in University of Uyo
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
ICT and Social Development in Nigeria
Through the use of ICT, modern society has been described as an information age and the knowledge economy (Knupp, 1996). The ability of ICT to stimulate development in any sector of the economy has awakened the interest of the government and people around the world over as to its importance- of which education is not an exception. The impact of ICT has become multidimensional, visible in all aspects of human endeavors such as politics and governance, religion, economy, education, healthcare, civil society, manufacturing, transportation etc (Horrigan, 2009). the leaders of the world’s eight major industrialized 14 democracies (G8 Heads of State, 2000) have noted that ICT has become an engine of growth for the global economy and has the potential to contribute significantly to sustainable economic development, to enhance public welfare, to strengthen democracy, to increase transparency in governance, to nourish cultural diversity, and to foster international peace and stability (Kozman, 2007). A World Bank (2003) report cites the potential that ICT has to improve efficient delivery of resources to the poor, to bring markets within reach of rural communities, to improve government services, and to transfer knowledge needed to meet the Millennium Development Goals. The introduction of GSM phones in Nigeria for instance, has created a source of livelihood for some people ranging from telecommunication companies to road side telephone operators. The infusion of internet into human daily activities has also created a paradigm shift in both private and public sector service delivery corroborated with the advent of new terms like e-governance, e-commerce, e-learning, e-banking, telemedicine and so on. In Nigeria, the sector with the most obvious impact of ICT has been the banking and related organizations. Customers can now have access to their funds 24/7, do online trading and transact business with their debit cards anytime, anywhere. No longer does a client have to go back to his/her branch where the account was opened to get access to their money or transact other business. The introduction of online/electronic banking as facilitated by ICT has solved all these problems. In agriculture, access to timely and quality information by farmers has no doubt enhanced the efficiency of their farming activities. Same goes for 15 sectors of the economy especially education as everybody, everywhere has become aware of the importance and usefulness of the preservation and access to information. Other aspects are digital mapping, land use, soil types, meteorology, ecology, fisheries, and agricultural records. A recent phenomenon is the ‘work at home’ lifestyle which is increasingly erasing the idea of ‘office space’ (Enakrire & Onyenenia, (2007)). People can now work and transact business within the comfort of their homes- an opportunity offered by the boundary-less nature of the internet. In this regard, the World Bank report notes that ICT can increase access to education through distance learning, enable a knowledge network for students, train teachers, and broaden the availability of quality education materials (Kozman, 2007). A particularly common rationale for investment in ICT is the role it can play in preparing a future workforce and supporting economic development. The key to this policy approach is an articulation of specific ways that the deployment of ICT can support these broad economic goals. For example, a major economic goal for most countries is sustainable economic growth. Economists attribute such growth to increases in productivity, which can include the absorption or more productive equipment, more skilled and productive workforce, and the creation of new knowledge (Stiglitz & Walsh, 2002). Other countries have focused more on the potential social impact of ICT and governments have justified ICT investments with policies that promote their use to share knowledge, foster cultural creativity, increase democratic participation, make government services more widely available, and enhance social cohesion and the integration of different cultural groups and individuals with different abilities. Other areas of ICT applications include national security and law enforcement. ICT are being used to combat contemporary and emerging security threats and challenges that are being re- 16 defined by Information Technology and migration policies. Protecting citizens, public infrastructure and assets from illegal and destructive activities can be done effectively through ICT applications. Issues such as Digital Signature, Intellectual Property/ copyright, Consumer Protection, Media Convergence, Privacy are accompanying technology concerns that ICT creates and ironically solves. ICT can also promote arts, culture & tourism. Creating websites to project culture and heritage, which attracts tourism, have become a major foreign exchange for some nations such as UAE. Hotel reservations and tours can now be done with a click of the computer mouse. ICT is now being used in the Health sector to provide affordable but quality health delivery. Health-care Information Systems cutting across primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare improving the efficiency of patient care and reduce cost of healthcare delivery is now a common place. ICT applications are named various concepts such as telemedicine, emedicine, on-line antenatal lectures etc. Also, consider ICT deployment for the study and control of epidemics. ICT enhances research and development through private sector and the universities partnership for industrial and academic purposes.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we described the research procedure for this study. A research methodology is a research process adopted or employed to systematically and scientifically present the results of a study to the research audience viz. a vis, the study beneficiaries.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research.
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitutes of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
This study was carried to examine availability, accessibility and use of information and communication technology in management of students’ academic. University of Uyo form the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which only seventy-seven (77) were returned and validated. This was due to irregular, incomplete and inappropriate responses to some questionnaire. For this study a total of 77 was validated for the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain availability, accessibility and use of information and communication technology in management of students’ academic. In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing an availability, accessibility and use of information and communication technology in management of students’ academic
Summary
This study was on availability, accessibility and use of information and communication technology in management of students’ academic. Three objectives were raised which included: To find out levels of availability of ICT for exam management in University of Uyo, to find out levels of accessibility of ICT for exam management in University of Uyo and to find out level of use of ICT for registration Management in University of Uyo. A total of 77 responses were received and validated from the enrolled participants where all respondents were drawn from University of Uyo. Hypothesis was tested using Chi-Square statistical tool (SPSS).
Conclusion
The study concluded that ICT facilities are not adequately available in University of Uyo. It was noted in the study that the few available ICT facilities in schools are not accessible for teaching and learning. The study also concluded that most of the teachers in University of Uyo did not fully utilise the available ICT facilities.
Recommendation
Parents should join hands with the schools and government to provide ICT facilities for teaching of the school subjects to enhance learning.
Teachers should improvise few ICT facilities they can afford to make their lessons practical and more interesting.
Teachers should work hard to improve their ICT literacy level in University of Uyo to enhance the utilization of the ICT facilities.
Government should provide more ICT facilities for teachers to work with to improve their skills in ICT and also promote students’ academic performance.
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