Title: ICT Skills as Determinant of Online Public Access Catalogue Use among Students in Federal Polytechnic Offa, Kwara State, Nigeria
Author(s): Tunde Idris YUSUF; Ruth Chinomso BASSEY; Abosede Olufunke AYENI; Iskil Arisekola BOLAJI
Publication Year: 2024; Volume 19, Issue 2, pages 102-113

The study examined ICT skills as a determinant of Online Public Access Catalogue Use among Federal Polytechnic Offa, Kwara State, Nigeria students. The study adopted a survey research design. The study population was 3400 registered users of the library for 2022/2023 academic session. Probability proportionate to size was use as the sampling technique. Thus, 5% of the total population was considered a sample size of one hundred and seventy (170). A questionnaire was used for data collection. The data collected were analysed using frequency table and percentage. The study revealed that the students rarely use OPAC to know if a document is available in the library without necessarily visiting the library. It was also revealed that the main purpose of using OPAC included the location of documents: the level of the ICT skills possessed by students was high, and they were proficient in the use of computers and had knowledge of electronic formats, among others. The study concluded that the Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) is a crucial tool used by undergraduate students in academic libraries to locate materials and access the libraries. The study recommended that efforts should be geared towards teaching polytechnic students the knowledge and skills required to use OPAC; universities should be equipped with the enabling infrastructure, such as adequate power supply, effective Internet connectivity, etc., that will encourage the use of OPAC, polytechnic libraries should formulate policies that would encourage mandatory use of OPACs, among others