Assessment of ICT Skills of LIS Educators for the Adoption of Blended Learning in Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed ICT skills of Library and Information Science (LIS) educators for the adoption of Blended Learning in Rivers State. The study adopted a descriptive survey design, with a population of 45; census sampling technique was adopted to sample all the 45 library educators in four library schools in Rivers. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data for the study. 42 copies of the instrument were returned and found valid for analysis. The data collected were analyzed using mean scores and simple percentages. The findings revealed that despite the fact that LIS educators could use basic computer interfaces, mobile and new media technologies for blended learning, they were not adopting blended learning. The challenges were attributed to lack of facilities, lack of skills and lack of policy. It was therefore, recommended among other things that Librarians’ Registration Council of Nigeria should formulate a policy that will motivate and guide the use of blended learning in LIS education and LIS educators should acquire skills to exploit blended learning.

Keywords: ICT Skills, LIS Educators, Blended Learning, Rivers State