Distance education and the role of library services in Iran: a case study of Shiraz University Distance Learners
| Date | 07 August 2009 |
| Pages | 11-14 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/07419050911000508 |
| Published date | 07 August 2009 |
| Author | Aliakbar Khasseh,Hadi Sharif Moghaddam,A. Jowkar |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science |
Distance education and the role of library
services in Iran: a case study of Shiraz
University Distance Learners
Aliakbar Khasseh, Hadi Sharif Moghaddam and A. Jowkar
LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 7 2009, pp. 11-14, #Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/07419050911000508 11
Introduction
Distance education is one of the
fastest growing trends in higher
education (Gu, 2006). It is often
described as the ‘‘formalized learning
received while the student is on a
location outside the university-campus.
Both the teacherand student are expected
to have minimal physical contact, but
much reliance is on electronic
communications’’ (Mabawonku, 2004).
Distance educationhas made remarkable
progress over the last two decades and
has now gained widespread acceptance
as a viable alternative learning delivery
system (Rao, 2006). Distance education
has had effect not only on the discipline
of education, but it has also
fundamentally affected services that
support it (Watson, 2006). One of the
most essential support systems
influencing the quality of the courses
offered in distance education is the
provision of library and information
services and resources. Most researchers
in distance learningare in agreement that
library support is a key element (Copers
et al.,2001).
Access to adequate library services
and resources is essential in post-
secondary education, regardless of
where students, faculty, and programs
are located (Koohang, 2004). The
library can make distance learning either
the most pleasant or the most distressing
experience for remote students
(Buchanan, 2000). In other words,
library is the key to an institution’s
academic strengths; it is the heart and
soul of the learning process, and
‘‘perhaps the greatest obstacle to create
a complex and comprehensive set of
distributed learning offerings lies in
meeting the information needs of
students in an electronic medium’’
(Thompson, 2002). Although many
consider the library to be the heart of the
university, the use of the library is often
not incorporated into distance learning
courses (Lebowitz, 1997). Few, if any,
campuses have defined a scalable and
viable strategy for making library
information resources available to
distance learners (Thompson, 2002).
In order to provide quality library
and information services for distance
learners, it is essential for the institution
to have a philosophy that recognizes the
provision of library services to their
students as a primary responsibility.
Most of the institutions in Iran do not
provide sufficient support for distance-
learning students to pursue their courses
successfully, particularly when it comes
to students’’ information needs. To
provide students with the resources they
need in a timely and efficient manner,
studies need to be conducted examining
user requirements, preferences and
technological abilities (Payetts and
Rieger, 1998).
A growing body of literature is
gradually discussing library services for
distance students, but this discussion
appears primarily in library literature
(Lebowitz, 1997). When library services
are discussedin the non-library literature,
there is little or no recognition of the
central role that the library plays in
support of the quality of education or in
the development of lifelong learning
skills. The studies that are related mainly
attend to the issues of library usage and
access to electronic and traditional
resources, and the challenges faced by
distance learnersin information access.
Some studies have been conducted to
assess library and information services
to distance education students. For
example Tipton (2001) reports a survey
to evaluate library support services for
distance learning within the Texas A &
M university system. The study revealed
that students were not utilizing library
services and resources to their full
potential (Tipton, 2001). Dew (2001)
reports on a survey conducted at the
University of Iowa, on their off-campus
students. In this survey, students were
asked to rank various library services
based on their importance. The
following services were ranked highest:
web and/or email reference, 71.3
percent; remote access to full-text
databases, 65.1 percent; home delivery
of books and articles, 60.7 percent.
Guides to doing library research were
ranked tenth with only 30.9 percent. The
survey revealed that reference services,
electronic services, and document
delivery were ranked high, while user
education services were ranked the
lowest (Dew, 2001).
The study of Rowland and Rubbert
(2001) on the information needs and
practices of distance education students
in the UK showed that the university
libraries included in their sample ‘‘often
did not cater for the specific needs of
part-time and distance learners, which
leads to an increasing use of the internet
as a substitute for traditional information
channels.’’ Books and journals were
found to be the informationsources most
frequently used. The study also revealed
that part-time students were making use
of electronic information sources
increasingly as only 12 percent of the
respondents did not have internet access
at home (Rowlandand Rubbert, 2001).
Boadi and Letsolo ( 2004) in a survey
entitled ‘‘Information needs &
information seeking behavior of distance
learners at the Institute of Extra-Mural
Studies in Lesotho’’ came to the
conclusion that information provided for
distance learners must be relevant,
timely, easily available, and up-to-date.
Findings revealed that a large majority of
respondents (83.3 percent) use the
library. The most common reason noted
To continue reading
Request your trial