Preferred Types of Academic Websites Accessed and Used by Students at Maasai Mara University During 2012/2013 Academic Year

Abstract

Advancement in technologies has led to the migration of print information to web in universities. Maasai Mara University (MMU) is investing highly on web-based information resource to meet the growing needs of their users and supplement their limited library print collection. Despite this effort, there has been low usage of academic websites by students. This paper seeks to determine range and form of academic websites accessed and used by MMU students. The paper used the survey research design to collect the views and opinions of respondents. The target population was 4,947 students in which a sample of 362 students participated in the study. Data was collected using questionnaires and participant-observation and analyzed using descriptive and hierarchical linear methods for quantitative and qualitative data respectively. Presentation of data used descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages. The findings revealed that although the students visited varied academic websites including institutional, scholarly, research, educational and academic library websites, majority preferred scholarly websites. Study and learning, assignments and research were cited as main reasons for using academic websites. The findings established that relevancy of a site is the major determinant preference Maasai Mara University students choose when they access and use academic websites. The study concluded that Maasai Mara University students demonstrated a reasonably high level of awareness and use of academic websites. From the findings the study recommended that MMU library develops comprehensive continuous training programs that address information retrieval and literacy skills for its patrons on effective identification, selection, access and use of academic websites and that the university invest in more computer laboratories and high-speed internet bandwidth to ease access and use to academic websites.