Influence of infrastructural facilities on library usage of secondary school students in Owerri Municipal Council, Imo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated Infrastructural Facilities on Library Usage of Secondary School Students in Owerri Municipal Council, Imo state, Nigeria. Two research questions and two null hypotheses guided the study, Pearson Product Moment Correlation design was adopted for the study. A total of 394 respondents comprised of SSS II and SSS III students were selected from 25, 195 students from nine public secondary schools in the study area using Taro Yamane sampling formula and proportionate sampling technique to ensure an unbiased representation of the population. The instrument used for the study was a four-point Likert rating scale titled “Influence of information resources and Infrastructural Facilities on Library Usage (IIFLU), the rating scale was divided in two sections. Section A was on respondents' biodata while section B covered the research question and usage of school library. Pearson Moment coefficient correlation formula was used. Cumulative reliability coefficient of .79 and .77, for each variable were obtained showing that the instrument is reliable. Pearson Moment coefficient correlation formula was used to answer the research questions, while t-test of simple linear correlation was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The study found out, among other things, that there is weak positive relationship between information resources and usage of secondary school libraries by students in the study area but the relationship is significant and that there is very weak positive relationship between recreational facilities and usage of secondary school libraries by students in study area but the relationship is significant. Based on the findings, it was therefore recommended that Government at all levels (local, state and federal) should look towards libraries and provide infrastructural facilities as it will go a long way in solving the problem of unavailability of library facilities and library usage in Owerri Municipal Council as found in this study.