The Use of e-Resources and other Technological Techniques for Strategic Educational Research

A Presentation during a workshop themed “Research Grant Writing And Publishing Techniques” organised by Akwa Ibom State University Board of Research (AKUBOR).

11 min readDec 7, 2017

1. Introduction

The availability of e-resources especially in university libraries is now common but their proper and maximum use is a thing of concern. In this presentation, we will examine the “The Use of e-Resources and other Technological Techniques for Strategic Educational Research”.

Rapid technological advancement especially in the area of computers and its applications has brought about changes in how we access information. E‐resources are increasingly important to all aspects of education from teaching and learning, through to the collection of data, administration and marketing.

E‐resources in this presentation shall cover Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), platforms, research software, Web 2.0 technologies, social networking technologies, mobile phones or Audio Visual technologies as they relate to systems used to aid learning, teaching, administration or management.

A few decades ago, if something happens in the UK or US, we had to wait for 6 months to 1 year to have access to the paper or magazine that carried the information. Today, we get informed in real time. We get to know as it happens globally.

The emergence and use of information technology is one of the most significant development affecting scholarly communication. In research, we are still having the challenge of availability of local contents online because we are so used to consuming foreign contents to our detriment. If we search for a local content online and it is not available, we tend to ignore and look for the alternative. Imagine those that uploaded the ones we saw never did?

The ways in which we now gather, store, access, retrieve and consume data have changed and are getting better by the day. We cannot talk about e-resources without mentioning the Internet and the Web and their role in making research easier. With the Internet you can efficiently retrieve information and meet your research needs. This is very important for strategic educational research and its cost effectiveness is the icing on the cake.

1.1 What are e-Resources

An electronic resource is any information source that the library provides access to in an electronic format. e-Resources consists of data (information representing numbers, text, graphics, images, maps, moving images, music, sounds etc.), programs (instructions, etc., that process the data for use), or combinations of data and programs. Electronic resources often include components with characteristics found in multiple classes of materials.

1.2 Types of e-Resources

Research Guides by Subject: Subject guides are web resources that provide an overview of resources in a subject area. They include staff contacts, print collections, electronic resources, as well as links to other relevant websites. Subject guides are a good place to start when you are beginning research on a specific topic.

Electronic Books and Texts: These are books and publications in electronic format. Some of them are large searchable databases.

Electronic Journal: This constitutes a database of journals in electronic format.

Library Catalogues: A library catalogue is a register of all bibliographic items found in a library or group of libraries, such as a network of libraries at several locations. Most libraries now provide access to their catalogs from their websites. Many others provide information about their holdings into larger databases such as World Cat or the RLG Union Catalog.

Reference Sources: Many dictionaries, almanacs, encyclopedias and other reference sources are now available online in full-text.

Image Databases (Arts, Maps, Medical, etc.): These databases include graphics or images, such as photos, paintings or maps.

1.3 What is a Database?

A database is a collection of information that is organized so that it can be easily accessed, managed and updated. Data is organized into rows, columns and tables, and it is indexed to make it easier to find relevant information.

Database Management Systems (DBMSs) are specially designed applications that interact with the user, other applications and the database itself to capture and analyze data. A general-purpose database management system (DBMS) is a software system designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update and administration of databases. Types of DBMS include MySQL, SQLite, Microsoft SQL Server, Dbase, IBM DB2 and FowPro.

1.4 Usage and Permissions

It is normally acceptable to:

Search, view, retrieve, and display content for non-commercial personal, instructional, or academic research purposes.
Save, print, or make copies of reasonable amounts or parts of the resource (such as individual journal articles) for noncommercial personal use.
Share content with other current University faculty, staff, and students
Post links to specific content in such a way that it is available only to other authorized users.

It is normally NOT acceptable to:

Sell or redistribute content, or provide access to someone outside the allowed access points.
Engage in systematic or substantial printing, copying or downloading of content.
Share content with people other than those covered by copyright.
Post actual content or articles to websites or listservs, private (e.g. a corporate intranet) or public.
Modify or alter the content of licensed resources in any way.

1.5 Usage and statistics

While there are very few reliable statistics on the rate of technological adoption by staff of Nigerian Universities, what is apparent is that there is a gap between where we are and where we should be. There are no Nigerian Universities amongst the top 1000 ranked universities in the World (Webometrics, July 2017).

Egberongbe (2011) in a research on The Use and Impact of Electronic Resources at the University of Lagos deduced that Lecturers and Research Scholars prefer using eJournals, World Wide Web (WWW) and eMail compared to Bibliographic Databases and eThesis.

2. Benefits of e-Resources

Advantages of e-Resources

Huge range of information available.
Timely, up-to-date information sources
Value added functionality like ability to search
Additional skills development — ICT Skills
Large volume of quality, free information

Disadvantages of e-Resources

Technical barriers to use — need computers, network connection, software etc
Infrastructural problems — Bandwidth and telecommunication issues, unreliable electricity supplies etc.
Skills and training requirements
Costs can be high: Technology and content
Variable quality of information

3. Technological Tools and Techniques that enhance the use of e-Resources

Computers and related electronic resources have come to play a central role in education. Whatever your feelings about what some have called the digital revolution, you must accept that many, perhaps most, of your students are fully immersed in it (MacDonald and Brock, 2013). At the very simplest level, you will rarely receive a paper or other assignment from a student that has not been written with the help of a computer. Most of your students will have considerable experience with the Internet and will, whether you like it or not, make use of it for much of their academic work. Many of them will be accustomed to using email as a normal form of communication. But it is not just students who find electronic resources valuable. Teachers can benefit from these resources as well, by employing a series of useful tools.

The word “useful” is stressed because electronic resources complement, but seldom replace, more conventional teaching techniques. Electronic tools can make classes more efficient; lectures more compelling, informative, and varied; reading assignments more extensive, interesting, and accessible; discussions more free ranging and challenging; and students’ papers more original and well researched. Only you, however, can judge if these techniques advance your own teaching goals.

Through the improvements in Technology over the years, research has been made easier as resource materials are now more readily accessible. Also, cross-locational collaboration has been enhanced through the use of tools like E-mail, Microsoft Word and Google Docs.

Some of the technological tools which help to enhance research include the following:

Data Processing

Microsoft Office tools (Word, Excel, Powerpoint etc)
Online tools (Google Docs, Google Sheet, Google Slides)

Utility tools

Search Engines (Google Search, Bing, Yahoo Search etc).
Google Tools (Google Books, Google Scholar, Google Docs, Google Sheet etc).
Online fora (LinkedIn, Quora, Slack etc).
Email (Gmail, Yahoo, Customized university emails).
Note taking (Sticky Notes, Notepad)
Calendar for reminders and scheduling of online sessions.

Collaborative Platforms

Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID)
Research Gate
Academia.edu
Mendeley

Online Journals

International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications (IJSRP)
International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET)
African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology
International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning (iJAC)

Learning Platforms

Youtube
Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) such as Coursera, EdX, Udacity and Udemy.

Plagiarism Checkers

4. Using e-Resources and Techniques

Adequate training is required for the use and access of e-Resources, but here is a brief description of what is required.

Internet Resources: This is an important area of study in today’s information environment. Using the internet to access updated and past information from anywhere in the world.

Data Processing Tools

Microsoft Suite
Word: popular word processing program used primarily for creating documents, such as letters, brochures, tests, quiz, students’ home assignment.
Excel: a spreadsheet program used to store and retrieve data in a grid format using rows and columns. It’s mostly used in workplaces.
Powerpoint: This is usually called ‘powerpoint’ , it is a presentation program that uses slides to convey information.
Publisher: A desktop publishing application used to create variety of publications (concerned with designs and page layout) such as, business cards, greeting cards etc.
Outlook: This is used mostly for emails and personal management of information.
Access: A database management tool that helps you store information for reference, reporting and analysis.It manages large amounts of data in a very efficient way.

Online Tools: This is just the same with the above listed, but has more advantages over it. Advantages include:

Collaboration : One or more people can work on the same document at the same time.
Backup : your documents are automatically saved as you type.

Online Journals: Publishing in online journals offers greater visibility and prestige for both the lecturers and the institutions. Online journals are divided into uni-disciplinary journals and multi-disciplinary.

Uni-disciplinary journals publish research papers from only one field of specialization. For example, a journal that publishes only papers on Data Analytics.
Multi-disciplinary Journals accept papers from different fields of specialization. An example is a journal that publishes papers on Engineering.

Links to websites of journals you can send your research papers to:

N/B: Some journals require a stipend to be paid before research papers can be featured. This usually comes after the papers have been vetted to ensure that meet the no-plagiarism standards.

5. Challenges hindering the use of eResources

There are challenges which have hindered the widespread adoption of e-Resources in Nigerian Universities. Some of these challenges are:

Information

Information about the changes in the technology that can aid research can be a problem for many of the staff in Nigerian Universities. This is not a problem unique to them though. The fear of change and the desire to avoid looking inept can hinder them from making the necessary transition towards using using tools such as Microsoft Word and Google Books.

The information necessary to learn is available at the click of a button. Just about anything can be learned by searching for “How to…” on Google Search which often throws up hundreds of useful suggestions. Also, there are more people now willing to teach basic computing skills to whoever is willing to learn. Interestingly enough, as the old adage goes, the only thing constant is change. Those who are afraid to change would be rendered obsolete by those resources they refuse to adopt. It is less a question of whether the change has to be made and more a question of whether you choose to make it now, make it later or get left behind.

Access

Potential researchers rarely have unhindered access to these resources because of their geographical location at point of need. In cases where the ICT equipment are in place, power supply will be an issue. Today in Nigeria, Nigerian Communications Commission puts broadband penetration at 10 percent meaning 90 percent of Nigerians do not have access to quality internet.

Knowledge

Uneven skillset among researchers is also a challenge. It takes someone who is computer literate and dynamic to accept change and pick new skills that will keep him relevant. In most occasions, you even have to depend on e-Resources to upgrade your skills. So the reason most people do not take advantage of e-Resources is the inability to use them because of lack of knowledge.

Finance

The availability of the necessary finance is also one that prevents people from learning how to utilize these resources. One needs a computer (laptop or desktop) and in most cases, a good internet network connection in order to make progress. These are reasonably expensive in Nigeria and thus, in cases where people do not see the direct benefits of these, they would be unwilling to make the sacrifices to obtain them.

Universities can go some way in alleviating these problems by providing ICT centers where staff can learn these skills and encouraging them to get computers. Also, programs could be in place for staff to buy laptops at subsidized prices.

Support

The support that is required to aid staff in the process of using online tools is sometimes lacking. Finding out how to use resources such as online libraries and journals, Google Docs and others can be a tedious affair, without any guidance.

Being able to have people that provide the necessary guidance through this learning curve is very important and can be the difference between computer literate staff and staff who do not know how to use these computer resources. Universities and other institutions can go some way in providing training and support for staff that indicate interest in learning. There are also online tools which can aid learning, such as Google Search, ask.com, Help Pages on the various sites and so on.

6. Conclusion/Recommendations

The use of e-resources is increasingly important. This importance with respect to research is reflected in the way in which institutions have developed e-learning strategies and centralised e-learning units which oversee the use of these resources.

Although e-resource use is a high priority, uneven skill-sets of personnel still hinder wider utilisation of these technologies. To maximise the use of e-resources, I would recommend supporting those that are savvy in this area to help share the knowledge and infrastructure with other colleagues to aid access and usage.

The benefits of this would be reflected in the improved research output by lecturers, higher ranking in the local and international University rankings, and an increased ability of the lecturers in the University to obtain grants from relevant bodies and foundations.

Here is the link to the slides

7. References

Halima Sadia Egberongbe (2011). The Use and Impact of Electronic Resources at the University of Lagos. Available at: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/
S. Thanuskodi (2012). Use of E-resources by the Students and Researchers of Faculty of Arts, Annamalai University, International Journal of Library Science, 1(1): 1–7. Available at: http://article.sapub.org/
Dr. Chetan Sharma (2009). Use and Impact of E-Resources at Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (India): A Case Study, Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship v.10 no.1 Available at: http://southernlibrarianship.icaap.org/. Accessed on September, 2017.
MacDonald, W. Brock (2013). Research Using the Internet. University of Toronto. Retrieved 23 March 2015. Available at: http://libraryguides.mta.ca/. Accessed on September, 2017.
Karina Berzins and Anthony Hudson (2011). The Use of E‐resources. A snapshot of e‐resource use among Linking London LLN partner institutions. Available at: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/
Webometrics (2017). Global Universities Ranking. Available at http://www.webometrics.info/en/Africa/Nigeria. Accessed on September, 2017.
NATIONAL MIRROR PG. A20 36 (MONDAY JUNE 8, 2015). Available at: http://www.ncc.gov.ng/

Additional Information

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