Internet Use by Students of the University of Dar es Salaam
| Published date | 01 December 2004 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/07419050410577550 |
| Pages | 13-17 |
| Date | 01 December 2004 |
| Author | Ireneus Luambano,Julita Nawe |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science |
Internet Use by Students of the University of
Dar es Salaam
Ireneus Luambano and Julita Nawe
LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 10 2004, pp. 13-17, #Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/07419050410577550 13
Introduction
The internet has nowadays become
an important component in academic
institutions as it plays a pivotal role in
meeting information and
communication needs of institutions. It
makes it possible to access a wide range
of information, such as up-to-date
research reports, from anywhere in the
world. It also enables scholars and
academic institutions to disseminate
information to a wider audience around
the globe through having web sites and
a way to search them and organize the
output.
The internet also makes it possible
for various scholars at different
locations on the globe to exchange
ideas on various fields of study.
Students and lecturers, for instance, can
communicate with each other
irrespective of distance. The internet
has also enabled the growth of distance
learning, both within nations and across
international borders.
It is in the light of these and other
advantages that individuals,
organizations and academic institutions
regard the internet as an integral
component in improving the quality of
education.
The University of Dar es Salaam is
an academic institution in Tanzania that
has was connected to the Internet in
order to solve various problems facing
the university. Internet presence helps
to improve the educational process and
to address problems related to weak
collaborative partnerships, declining
educational standards, rising costs,
increasing student numbers and to meet
the general increased demand for higher
education.
The university has three campuses,
namely the Main Campus, the
Muhimbili University College of
Health Sciences (MUCHS) and the
University College of Lands and
Architectural Studies (UCLAS). Access
to the internet is provided at various
points, such as through faculty and
departmental computer laboratories, as
well as at the main libraries. Privately
owned Internet cafeÂs within and outside
the university premises are also
becoming popular access points.
The general objective of the study
was to identify the type of use that
students of the University of Dar es
Salaam made of the internet. The study
also aimed at finding out the level of
students' access to the internet, the
problems students faced in internet use
as well as recommendations by
respondents as to what should be done
to address the problems.
ICT development at the University of
Dar es Salaam
The University of Dar es Salaam
came into existence on March 25, 1970
after the University of East Africa was
split into three independent universities
for Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania
(UDSM, 2003). The degree
programmes offered are tenable at the
University's three campuses, namely
the Main Campus, MUCHS and
UCLAS.
Developments of application of ICT
at the University of Dar es Salaam
started in the mid-1990s. According to
Mutagahywa (2000), major ICT
developments at the University were
preceded by a pre-planning phase,
which started in 1994. The phase
resulted into the development of an ICT
Policy and ICT Master Plan, which
comprised, among other things, a
phased implementation of various
information systems, and the
implementation of a university-wide
network infrastructure linked to
international networks.
The Master Plan identified a number
of projects, which were regarded as
crucial for successful application of
ICT at the university. What was to
follow after the just described
developments was the inclusion of ICT
in education and research, and as a
result, Technology Enhanced
Independent Learning (TEIL) was
launched. This will ultimately result in
all courses of the University of Dar es
Salaam to be available online.
The campus is connected to the
Internet through the University
Computing Centre (UCC), the
University's ICT Company. The UCC
operates a fiber optic backbone on the
whole campus and connects outside
institutes with microwave links to this
backbone. MUCHS and UCLAS are
thus connected to the Internet through
the UCC.
The presence of the Internet at the
University of Dar es Salaam has
changed the learning environment. It is
playing a vital role in meeting
information and communication needs
of the university community. Access to
the internet is provided at various
access points, such as the campus
libraries and faculty computer
laboratories. Members of the university
community can access the facility
through those points and/or from their
offices.
Students and staff of the university
through the Programme for the
Enhancement of Research Information
(PERI), can now have access to a wide
range of journal databases in various
academic disciplines. Such access
includes full text journal articles,
abstracting and indexing services. To
access the scholarly literature, relevant
URLs and passwords may be needed.
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