Library orientation as a predictor of library use among freshers in two selected academic libraries in Kwara State, Nigeria

Abstract

The paper is a study on library orientation as a predictor of library use among freshers in two selected academic libraries in Kwara State, Nigeria. The survey design was used for this study with a total population of two thousand and ten (2,010) registered students from Summit University, Offa (94) and Federal Polytechnic Offa (1916) for the 2021/2022 academic session. Two stage sampling technique was used in the study. The first stage selected departments similar to each of the institutions, these departments are Accounting, Business Administration, Banking and Finance, Computer Science and Mass Communication. The second stage involved the use of sampling fraction of 20% to select the sample size from each of the selected departments. This, therefore, gave a total sampling size of 201. Out of 201 questionnaires distributed to respondents, 200 questionnaires (representing 99.5%) were returned and found valid for analysis. The data collected were analysed using frequency table and mean. The hypothesis was tested using linear regression. Findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between library orientation and utilisation of library resources among newly admitted students in selected institutions in Kwara State, Nigeria. The findings showed the challenges confronting library orientation in academic libraries in Kwara State including but not limited to over population, and lack of instructional materials, among others. It was recommended that library orientation programmes in academic libraries of this nature should be imposed on newly admitted students. Library staff should adopt regular interaction with students and be willing to help and have a user-friendly disposition with them in their quest for services.