ABSTRACT
The use of ICTs in the
management and safe keeping of students records should become the order of the
day as it has many benefits in the academic and university cycle, as it is
providing timely access and easy retriever of student information. This study
investigated the use of ICTs for students records management in Ambrose Alli
University, Ekpoma. A descriptive survey research design was adopted and
questionnaire was used for data collection. The sample of the study was drawn
from the population through multi-stage sampling whereby five (5) faculties
were randomly selected and thereafter a total sample size of 120 questionnaire
were retrieved and analyzed using tables, percentages, mean, standard deviation
and frequency counts. Findings show that ICTs are available and accessible to
records managers as they use it to store students records such as the students
results (Summary sheets) 100% and student transcripts (100%). Finally, it was
revealed that epileptic power supply (100%) and poor maintenance culture (98%)
are the major challenges hindering the use of these ICTs by records managers in
the university. It was recommended that the university and governing bodies
should provide constant electricity to enable records managers use the
available ICTs, it was also recommended that the value of proper maintenance
culture be taught in the university.
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction 1.1 Background of the Study
Education
is one of the most important needs for the well being of individual and that of
the society. Thus, education is a powerful instrument of social, political and
economic progress, without which neither an individual nor a society can attain
professional growth. Education is very vital to the peace of social, political,
cultural, technological and economic development of any nation. This is the
reason why most nations of the world allocate a proportion of their gross
national income to the development of their educational sector. The university
is the citadel of education in any nation. According to Adekigbe (2005) defines
a university as a place of enlightenment, a place for exploring the frontiers,
and an institution in which people through the process of socialization, are
imbued with ability, not just to discern things but also to apply for theories
to explain events, values, the knowledge of the natural order for the pursuits
of the common good and the individual well-being.
Becta (2008) defined ICT as
technology that is used to process, store, transmit, communicate, create or
exchange information. In order words, ICT is the computing and communication
facilities in education. In the course of this research, ICT refers to the
technical systems that receive, manipulate process and store data. It
facilitates student data management. Lyman (2004) says organizations and
academic institutions have adopted the use of ICT in order to cope with the
ever increasing information generated within the organizations.
One major observation during the
early stages of university education in Nigeria was the little emphasis on the
development of Information Communication Technology (ICT). Computers were in
short supply to the institutions where they were available, they were the old
types of computers, Akpota(1999). As institutions where knowledge is generated,
universities have enormous roles to play in solving individuals and societal
problems. There are many desirable attributes of ICT each of them concerns the
effective provision of information to the recipient. These include the
relevance for intended purpose, accuracy, factual, volume of details and
presentation of information, Adegun (2002).
The term management according to
Adejumo (2000) involves planning and innovation, coordination and supervision
as well as undertaking risks and handling uncertainty. He also argued that
management is the activity of working with people in an organization in
accomplishing results. The scarce resources include people, money, materials
and time. Of all these, human beings are the most important, because the
effectiveness with which they are used determines the quality of result
produced by other resources.
According to Iwhiwhu (2009; 1), he
states that ICT has transformed the way in which organizations store and manage
information. Lyman (2004) also states that organizations today have adopted the
use of ICT in order to cope with the ever increasing information generated
within the organization.
The introduction of ICT in the
management of students academic records in universities could become an
antidote in providing effective solutions to staff personnel and student
personnel problems that otherwise would have been difficult if not impossible.
Commenting on the relevance of students data to the university institution,
Nwosu (2003) noted that for educational development, personnel, educational
planners and administrators need to have adequate and accurate data of
students’ enrolment and students school records through the use of ICT for
effective planning and management of the university educational system. There
is no doubt therefore, that the management of universities has become more
complex, hence, its management demands more from the administrators. The
enormous rise in the number of students in the universities as well as the
multiplicity of programmes have made university personnel to handle a very large
quantity of data which must be accessed speedily in order to provide
information for the university administration, NUC and Ministry of Education
for effective management and decision-making processes. Hence, the use of ICT
in the management of universities becomes more imperative.
The need for and importance of
educational records cannot be over emphasized. Besides the fact that they
guarantee continuity in the school system, records contain the information
policy makers and educational students learning can be evaluated in many
different ways, but in a developing country like Nigeria, where about 40
percent of the adult population are illiterate, parents use the performance of
their children in public examinations to pass judgment on schools and its
teachers. Records are also used during school inspection exercises with a view
to making judgment about the school and providing appropriate recommendations
for improvement. Testimonials and academic transcripts of graduates/students
often demanded by employees and other higher institutions (in and outside
Nigeria) can only be made available through accurate records.
It would be an overstatement to say that
record keeping problems are common to the different levels of the education
sector. It is however becoming clearer that it is more pronounced in the
university system because accurate, reliable and trustworthy records that
fulfill evidential requirements are being created but not properly managed.
This therefore becomes an issue of great concern to governments, parents,
students, individuals and organizations. In the past, frantic efforts to
improve the situation in many universities through the introduction of
computers and internet services as well as development of database management
do not seem to have helped the situation because much because the record
management system is still conventionally paper-based and manual in operation(Akor
and Udensi, 2013).
Fasasi (2004) holds that school
records could enhance managerial duty performances in the areas of planning for
resource acquisition and utilization of student and staff personnel services,
financial management, improvement of instructional programme, and maintenance
of effective inter personal relationship with the community and external
agencies. On a general note, people who make up an institution have the
tendency to exhibit more appropriate behavior when they know that records about
them are kept, Akube (1991) and this in no small measure, enhances progress and
order in the institution.
Record keeping occupies a strategic
position in the efficient and effective management of the university system. In
fact, it is central in the administration of institutions of learning because
it documents the planning and implementation of appropriate course of services
allowing proper monitoring of work. In the conventional paper based
organizations such as the universities, paper continues to be viewed as the
material for records in the administrative documentations (Igwoku, 2008). Generally, record keeping must be guided by
some level of confidentiality, proper maintenance, security, preservation of
the content and context, etc (Iwhiwhu, 2007).
Furthermore, (Nwankwo,2000)
identified level of training of personnel in records keeping offices as
inhibitive to proper records management. He who identified poor infrastructure
undefined policy gap and a poor awareness base as reasons for a poor records
management in tertiary institutions. There must be a conscious effort to plan
records retrieval to eradicate the problem of document retrieval. (Longe, 2001)
describes a plan as a series of actions that have future consequences. Plans
have time frames (Akangbou,2003).
Asogwa(2004) noted that data which arise from
the execution of legitimate functions of schools should be properly managed and
secured. Unfortunately, this has not been the case in most institutions as
Omenyi(1997) observed. According to Afolabi(1991) and Egwuyenga(2009), records
management in Nigeria is plagued by such factors as inadequately skilled and
experienced management personnel, lack of sufficient funds and the placement of
records management in a low priority pedestal in relation to other things.
These problems have eaten deep into records management practice in Nigerian
Universities. In addition, archaic record-keeping methods and technology plus
poor data storage facilities can be listed.
The field of records management has
over the past two decades undergone great advancements and this is due to the
emergence of modern information communication technology, Azad (2008). It is
widely accepted (though not fully appreciated) that the integration of ICT in
organizational functions is necessary for increased efficiency,
cost-effectiveness and competitiveness.
Adeyemi and Olaleye (2010) opined
that the application of ICT is necessary in the collection of student data,
recording of student results, and for effective keeping of students’ records.
Records management involves the creation, storage, retrieval, maintenance,
disposition and the use of compact and other manual or electronic means.
Presently, findings show that records are poorly managed in Nigeria
Universities thereby posing a lot of challenges.
Popoola (2003) therefore noted that records
management services in Nigeria Universities is facing major crises. Alegbeleye
(1993) sees records and information management as an all embracing activity
which includes form control, correspondence control reports inventory and
appraisal records retention and disposition, archives management and control
and reprography.
Daramola
(1995) writes that records are classified as follows;
Ø Reference
Records: policy records which must be possessed by a school which contains
Government policies, decisions of governing council, and procedures on funding
and moral code.
Ø Administrative
Records: this includes records of great visits, events, annual enrolment of
students and records of personnel that have served and still serving in an
organization.
Ø Academic
Records: includes records of curriculum issues, facilities, and equipment for
teaching learning guidelines for the introduction of new academic programs and
students’ academic records.
However,
Olaitan (1995) is of the view that university records are classified into
phases;
Ø Primary
Records- these are kept in the office of the Vice Chancellor, Deputy Vice
Chancellor, directors/controller of different programmes, librarian, registrar
and the bursar.
Ø Secondary
Records- these are kept in the academic and administrative department office
Ø Tertiary
Records- this involves records of supervisors and other officers.
Records
are important in decision making, planning and in general administration of a
university. Mazikana (1996) puts it that records are indispensable tools for
determining the quantity and mix of human and material resources in any
organization. When the creation of records is not properly managed, attainment
of goals and objectives become a problem. These may manifest in difficulty in
locating papers/information, bulky files, wrong filing, wrong titles of files
and having offices clustered with papers and files, Popoola (2003).
This is why Popoola (2003) noted that there
are problems on records creation in Nigerian Universities. Saying that the main
problem is the effective creation and control of records as records are the
greatest consumers of funds, space and equipment among other service activities
in the university system. Accurate and up-to-date records are required to
ensure equity, fair-play and justice both in the award of graduation prizes to
students and in the promotion, retirement and replacement of school staff. Moreover,
researchers in education who write papers and contribute to knowledge for the
improvement of education rely to a large extent on school records for
consultation.
Nwagwu (1995) observes that Nigeria does not
have a developed record keeping culture in the educational system. But records
should be adequately stored and preserved for easy reference and retrieval.
Record keeping enables the school administrators to know the academic and
general progress of students and also report to their parents or guardians when
necessary and to inform employers who may require certain information for their
employment when out of school.
According to Popoola (1999), creation of
records involves collecting basic data about records and their volume; physical
form location, physical condition, storage facilities, rule of accumulation and
use, and similar information for the purpose of planning, retention,
disposition microfilming operations and related archival activities. When the
creation of records is not properly managed, attainment of goals and objectives
become a problem. Ayodele (2004) opined that in records maintenance, red-
tapism hinders proper maintenance with emphasis on rules and regulation which
eventually delay repair and maintenance.
It has been observed that using ICT will
help promote on issues relating on students records and transcript, examination
records, teaching, research and communicating services, Abe and Adu (2007).
It has also been observed that the monitoring
and evaluation of staff, physical planning, curriculum development, financial
management and information dissemination will increase the efficiency of the
universities if information communication and technology facilities are
adequately and properly utilized, Lawsent and Vincent Loncrin (1995);
Foray(2004) and Omirin (2007). Thus in developing countries including Nigeria,
it’s no longer a question of whether universities should invest in ICTs (OECD,
2005).
The purpose of this study therefore to
investigate the availability and utilization of Information Communication
Technology in the effective management of student’s academic records in some
selected faculties at Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma.
The fact that educational records are very
vital in the management of educational institutions, it is disheartening to
observe that many Nigerian Universities do not take record keeping seriously
and most of their essential records are badly stored and are not properly
secured. As a result of this, cases of lost or misplaced documents as well as
butchered or incomplete files become a common occurrence in these institutions.
This is a bane of the Nigerian higher educational system as not only does it
impair the smooth, effective and efficient running of the schools, but grossly
affects staff and students who often need such records for important purposes.
This study therefore examines the
challenges surrounding the use of ICTs in students’ records management in
Ambrose Alli University and to determine the role and impact Information
Communication Technology has on the effective management of students records at
Ambrose Alli University. This study is aimed at
enabling record managers see the importance and effectiveness of using ICTs in
keeping students records and also assist them in making valid contributions to
the challenges they encounter.
The major objective of
this study is to find out the possible use of ICTs for Students Records
Management, using Ambrose Alli University as a case study. To achieve this, the
following specific objectives were formulated;
i)
Investigate if students’ academic
records are kept in Ambrose Alli University using ICTs.
ii)
Find out the type of ICTs used for
keeping students records
iii)
Examine the effectiveness of ICT use in
students records keeping
iv)
Find out the benefits derivable from
using ICTs for keeping students records
v)
Examine the challenges facing the use of
ICTs for keeping students records.
i)
What are the student’s academic records
kept at Ambrose Alli University using ICTs?
ii)
What are the types of ICTs used for
keeping students records?
iii)
How effective is the use of ICT in the
keeping of students’ records?
iv)
What are the benefits derived from using
ICTs for students’ record keeping?
v)
What are the challenges facing the use
of ICTs in the keeping of students records?
The
study will be limited to investigating the use of ICTs in the keeping of
students records in Ambrose Alli University
This
study is based on the premise that the management of students’ records in
Nigerian universities is not efficient. It is hoped that this study will
illuminate the state areas of record-keeping in the universities and also
create awareness on how to use ICTs in students’ records management more
effectively with less stress. University staff, students and graduates will not
be left out as they will begin to enjoy the blessings of getting required
records in their accurate form and within a small space of time.
This
study is expected to enlighten and broaden the knowledge of Head of
Departments, Exam Officers, Secretaries, Higher Executive Officers’, Faculty
Officers about the importance of the use of ICT in Students records management,
how it can reduce difficulty associated with manual records, speed up
operations, provide timely information to information seekers. This study will
be of immense help to researchers who wish to carry out further investigation
on related issues. It is hoped that the study will be an invaluable
contribution to the only small amount of work that has been done on the
lingering issue of students’ record management and that it will provoke more
researchers which will largely draw more attention to this important subject.
The
main limitation of this research work is that it focuses on selected faculties
of the Ambrose Alli University hence its results cannot be used to evaluate
records management system at other university.
1.
INFORMATION:
the knowledge gained through communication research and observation that helps
us in our daily lives.
2.
ICT:
the tools used in handling, processing, storage and retrieving information.
3.
RECORDS:
a
piece of evidence about the past; the sum of the past achievements or
performance of a person, organization or thing.
4.
STUDENT
RECORDS: these are records that are directly related to
students or a student.
5.
RECORD
MANAGEMENT: the act of managing records.
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