Graduate Studies

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://repository.kln.ac.lk/handle/123456789/149

Browse

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2

Information Seeking Habits and Practices of Freshman Medical Students of University of Kelaniya
(Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2016) Abeygunasekera, C.; Solangaarachchi, I.; Beddage, T.; Hewage, S.
Studying information-seeking habits of different groups of students is important as a decision making tool for collection development practices and introducing variety to library services. This study examined the past experiences of information access and usage by freshman medical students prior to their university admission. A survey was conducted on the new batch of MBBS students admitted in 2016 using a self-administered questionnaire distributed at the orientation programme. Of the 155 respondents, majority (65.1%) were female students. They represented eight administrative districts of the country. Highest percentage of students was admitted from the Western Province (52.9%), while 20.6% and 10.3% were from North Western and Central provinces respectively. Students who reportedly visited the library at least on a weekly basis constituted 52.9% of the sample, while the remaining 47.1% did so less frequently. Even though the main information seeking mode was searching the web (99%), a considerable number of students used library books (80%) and personal textbooks (61.9%). Library books were a source of information for 83.7% of females and 75.5% of males, while use of personal text books for this purpose was noted by 62.2% of female and 60.4% of male students. Books lent by colleagues were a source of information for 37.8% of females and 47.2% males. The main purpose of information used by majority of students (84%) was self-study. Seventy-six percent (n=118) of students used information for gaining additional subject knowledge while 68.4% (n=106) used it for entertainment and 50.3% (n=78) for project work. School library is the place for information access for 98.7% of the students, followed by town council libraries (37.4%) and provincial council libraries (16.8%). There was no significant difference between males and females (p = 0.701) or those from the Western Province and other provinces (p = 0.082), when it comes to frequency of library usage. The research finds that even though the main information seeking method of sampled freshman medical students is the internet, a considerable number still rely on libraries and other print based resources.
Pre-University Web Usage Behavior among New Medical Entrants
(Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2016) Solangaarachchi, I.; Abeygunasekera, C.; Beddage, T.; Hewage, S.
With the development and wide accessibility of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) students would be expected to move away from traditional sources of information, such as books, towards the internet. With the objective of studying information seeking behaviour and the use of internet prior to university entrance, a survey was carried out on first year MBBS undergraduates at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya in 2016. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire distributed at the orientation programme for students. Of the 155 students that responded to the questionnaire, 65% were females and 52.9% were from the Western Province. The most frequent method of finding required information prior to entering the university, as noted by the responders, was searching the internet (98.7%). Referring library books (80.0%) and their own textbooks (61.9%) were the next most common methods. This is also reflected by 87.1% of the students stating that they accessed the internet at least several days per week. Finding information was mentioned by most (94.2%) as the reason for going online. But, a considerable number also used the internet for entertainment (85.8%) and accessing social media websites (78.1%). The main devices used when accessing the web were smart phones (87%) and personal desktops/laptops (79.4%). When it comes to frequency of internet usage, comparative analyses failed to show significant differences between the two genders (χ2 = 2.242, p = 0.134) or those residing in and outside the Western Province (χ2 = 1.534, p = 0.215). Even with the inclination towards the internet as a major source of information, the reliance on text books (either their own or of colleagues or from the libraries) seem to have still maintained its relevance (with 94.2% as compared to the 98.7% that referred to the web). Wide availability of devices and methods of accessing the internet, along with the ever increasing influence of ICT in education as well as day-to-day life is reflected in these findings.