Formal Training Programs For Students Assignment
Added on 2022-09-09
17 Pages5702 Words17 Views
Internet Use Among University Students:
A Survey in University of the Punjab, Lahore
Sakina Bashir*
Khalid Mahmood**
Farzana Shafique***
Abstract
The paper presents the results of a survey of the
undergraduate, graduate and post graduate students of the
University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. The objective of the
study was to explore the Internet use behavior of students. The
results show that most of the students use this technology for
course related reading and research needs. They are new users of
the Internet. They use it at the University Library’s Digital Lab Unit
as well as their departments and homes. A large number of them
have learnt to use the Internet tools by themselves, or relying on
assistance from friends without attending any formal training
programs. Ease of work and time saving are the reasons of
Internet use among university students. Google as a search
engine and Yahoo as an email service are the most popular
among students. The paper recommends that the university
authorities should arrange training programs for the students’
Internet use.Keyword: Internet; Students; User studies; University of the
Punjab.
* Librarian, Beaconhouse School System, Johar Town, Lahore.
Email: sakinabashir@gmail.com
** Professor & Chairman, Department of Library and Information Science,
University of the Punjab, Lahore. Email: khalid@dlis.pu.edu.pk
*** Lecturer, Department of Library and Information Science, Islamia
University of Bahawalpur. Email: alakhdarem2001@yahoo.com
49
A Survey in University of the Punjab, Lahore
Sakina Bashir*
Khalid Mahmood**
Farzana Shafique***
Abstract
The paper presents the results of a survey of the
undergraduate, graduate and post graduate students of the
University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. The objective of the
study was to explore the Internet use behavior of students. The
results show that most of the students use this technology for
course related reading and research needs. They are new users of
the Internet. They use it at the University Library’s Digital Lab Unit
as well as their departments and homes. A large number of them
have learnt to use the Internet tools by themselves, or relying on
assistance from friends without attending any formal training
programs. Ease of work and time saving are the reasons of
Internet use among university students. Google as a search
engine and Yahoo as an email service are the most popular
among students. The paper recommends that the university
authorities should arrange training programs for the students’
Internet use.Keyword: Internet; Students; User studies; University of the
Punjab.
* Librarian, Beaconhouse School System, Johar Town, Lahore.
Email: sakinabashir@gmail.com
** Professor & Chairman, Department of Library and Information Science,
University of the Punjab, Lahore. Email: khalid@dlis.pu.edu.pk
*** Lecturer, Department of Library and Information Science, Islamia
University of Bahawalpur. Email: alakhdarem2001@yahoo.com
49
Internet Use Among University Students
Background of the Study
Internet use is spreading rapidly into daily life, and directly
affecting people’s ideas and behavior. Internet has an impact in
many areas including the higher education system. Internet
heralded the development and implementation of new and
innovative teaching strategies in higher education institutions.
Educators who advocate technology integration in the learning
process believe it will improve learning and prepare students to
effectively participate in the 21st century workplace. Internet use
has become a way of life for the majority of higher education
students all around the world. For most college students the
Internet is a functional tool, one that has greatly changed the way
they interact with others and with information as they go about
their studies. They use computers to accomplish a wide range of
academic tasks. Many students prepare course assignments,
make study notes, tutor themselves with specialized multimedia,
and process data for research projects. Most exchange emails
with faculty, peers, and remote experts. They keep up to-date in
their fields on the Internet, accessing newsgroups, bulletin boards,
listservs, and web sites posted by professional organizations.
Most access library catalogs, bibliographic databases, and other
academic resources in text, graphics, and imagery on the World
Wide Web (Asan & Koca, 2006). Usun (2003) mentioned that
Internet is appealing to higher education for a number of reasons:
it reduces the time lag between the production and utilization of
knowledge; it promotes international co-operation and exchange
of opinions; it furthers the sharing of information; and it promotes
multidisciplinary research.
In Pakistan, the Internet came for the first time in 1995
when Digicom launched an Internet service in Karachi. This
service was connected to the global Internet by a 64 Kbps line. In
1996, the PakNet data network, operated by Pakistan
Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), was upgraded to
provide Internet services as well. PakNet was connected to the
global Internet via a total of 512 Kbps. By mid-1997, nine ISPs
were operational, offering services in five cities to approximately
25,000 subscribers. PTCL also offered Internet service in 10 cities
50
Background of the Study
Internet use is spreading rapidly into daily life, and directly
affecting people’s ideas and behavior. Internet has an impact in
many areas including the higher education system. Internet
heralded the development and implementation of new and
innovative teaching strategies in higher education institutions.
Educators who advocate technology integration in the learning
process believe it will improve learning and prepare students to
effectively participate in the 21st century workplace. Internet use
has become a way of life for the majority of higher education
students all around the world. For most college students the
Internet is a functional tool, one that has greatly changed the way
they interact with others and with information as they go about
their studies. They use computers to accomplish a wide range of
academic tasks. Many students prepare course assignments,
make study notes, tutor themselves with specialized multimedia,
and process data for research projects. Most exchange emails
with faculty, peers, and remote experts. They keep up to-date in
their fields on the Internet, accessing newsgroups, bulletin boards,
listservs, and web sites posted by professional organizations.
Most access library catalogs, bibliographic databases, and other
academic resources in text, graphics, and imagery on the World
Wide Web (Asan & Koca, 2006). Usun (2003) mentioned that
Internet is appealing to higher education for a number of reasons:
it reduces the time lag between the production and utilization of
knowledge; it promotes international co-operation and exchange
of opinions; it furthers the sharing of information; and it promotes
multidisciplinary research.
In Pakistan, the Internet came for the first time in 1995
when Digicom launched an Internet service in Karachi. This
service was connected to the global Internet by a 64 Kbps line. In
1996, the PakNet data network, operated by Pakistan
Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), was upgraded to
provide Internet services as well. PakNet was connected to the
global Internet via a total of 512 Kbps. By mid-1997, nine ISPs
were operational, offering services in five cities to approximately
25,000 subscribers. PTCL also offered Internet service in 10 cities
50
Sakina Bashir, Khalid Mahmood & Farzana Shafique
to approximately 8,500 subscribers. A multitude of Internet service
providers emerged quickly following the introduction of Internet
service in 1995 (Wolcott & Goodman, 2000).
During recent years, a dramatic growth in the use of
Internet has been witnessed in Pakistan. The prices of Personal
Computers (PCs) have decreased substantially and now more
people have PCs at their homes. Therefore, cheaply available
Internet cards are used by the people to connect to the Internet at
their residences, etc. Internet cards are available as low as Rs. 2.5
per hour. There were 12 million Internet users (7.2% of the
population) by the end of 2006. By early 2006 Internet penetration
remained low. But the numbers are growing. Broadband access is
now available in the major cities (Internet World Stats, 2007). Also
wireless broadband Internet has been introduced by the WLL
(Wireless Local Loop) Networks in many major cities. In January
2007, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority reported over 12
million internet users, however the low bandwidth is a concern for
most. Most Pakistani companies, and government departments
maintain web sites which have further increased the demand for
internet (Wikipedia, 2007). The Internet facility is available in 1898
cities in Pakistan, of which 1166 cities are in Punjab Province, 202
in Sindh Province, 420 in NWFP, while 110 are in Baluchistan
Province. PTCL has now launched Universal Internet Number, the
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can, therefore, subscribe this
highly effective service and send to their customers a strong
message of care and service excellence (Pakistan
Telecommunication Company, 2007).
University of the Punjab, established in 1982 at Lahore, is
the oldest and largest university in Pakistan. It comprises of four
campuses, 13 faculties, nine constituent colleges, 64 departments,
canters, institutes, and 412 affiliated colleges. It has 623
permanent faculty members involved in teaching and research and
over 24000 on campus students. Access to the Internet is
provided at various access points in the University, such as the
campus libraries and computer laboratories. Members of the
university community can access the facility through those points
and /or from their departments. As availability of Internet access
51
to approximately 8,500 subscribers. A multitude of Internet service
providers emerged quickly following the introduction of Internet
service in 1995 (Wolcott & Goodman, 2000).
During recent years, a dramatic growth in the use of
Internet has been witnessed in Pakistan. The prices of Personal
Computers (PCs) have decreased substantially and now more
people have PCs at their homes. Therefore, cheaply available
Internet cards are used by the people to connect to the Internet at
their residences, etc. Internet cards are available as low as Rs. 2.5
per hour. There were 12 million Internet users (7.2% of the
population) by the end of 2006. By early 2006 Internet penetration
remained low. But the numbers are growing. Broadband access is
now available in the major cities (Internet World Stats, 2007). Also
wireless broadband Internet has been introduced by the WLL
(Wireless Local Loop) Networks in many major cities. In January
2007, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority reported over 12
million internet users, however the low bandwidth is a concern for
most. Most Pakistani companies, and government departments
maintain web sites which have further increased the demand for
internet (Wikipedia, 2007). The Internet facility is available in 1898
cities in Pakistan, of which 1166 cities are in Punjab Province, 202
in Sindh Province, 420 in NWFP, while 110 are in Baluchistan
Province. PTCL has now launched Universal Internet Number, the
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can, therefore, subscribe this
highly effective service and send to their customers a strong
message of care and service excellence (Pakistan
Telecommunication Company, 2007).
University of the Punjab, established in 1982 at Lahore, is
the oldest and largest university in Pakistan. It comprises of four
campuses, 13 faculties, nine constituent colleges, 64 departments,
canters, institutes, and 412 affiliated colleges. It has 623
permanent faculty members involved in teaching and research and
over 24000 on campus students. Access to the Internet is
provided at various access points in the University, such as the
campus libraries and computer laboratories. Members of the
university community can access the facility through those points
and /or from their departments. As availability of Internet access
51
Internet Use Among University Students
and media coverage increases, significant new demands have
been placed on libraries to provide training Punjab University was
the first public university to lay 6KM fiber Optic Cable Network in
2001. There were only 33 computers in 1999, but today there are
over 3800 Pentium III and IV computers. All departments have
their computer labs. Bandwidth has been increased from 64KB to
7MB and the network has now grown to over 28 Km, which is the
largest amongst the universities of Pakistan. Students and staff of
the university, through the Higher Education Commission (HEC)
Digital Library, can access to the wide range of journal databases
in various academic disciplines. Such access provides full text
journal articles, abstracting and indexing services (University of
the Punjab, 2007). The University has established a Digital Lab
Unit at its Central Library with 66 Internet nodes and about 2900
registered members. The students can use Internet facility
provided by this Lab free of cost (Shafiq-ur-Rehman et al., 2006).
Literature on the Internet Use Among Students
Internationally, there are many surveys on the use of the
Internet, and nearly all find that Internet use is most prevalent
amongst younger, more educated people (Hoffman, Novak &
Schlosser, 2000). Korgen, Odell, and Schumacher (2001)
investigated Internet use among students, focusing on whether or
not there are differences by race/ethnicity. They reported that use
is affected by presence or absence of a computer in the home of
origin. Bao (1998) surveyed Internet use at Seton Hall University.
The findings reported that 40.2% of respondents used the Web on
a daily basis, 38.3% weekly, and 10.7% on a monthly basis. About
10% respondents said they seldom or never used the Internet. It
was also discovered that students and faculty searched the
Internet for information related to both their academic (83.2%) and
nonacademic studies (73.8%). Stern’s (2002) study was on the
information competence of incoming students into universities and
how they use the Internet for general and academic research.
A survey of a large Australian university by Foster (2000)
revealed that 88% students used Internet for course related
research. Eighty percent students used Internet at their homes
52
and media coverage increases, significant new demands have
been placed on libraries to provide training Punjab University was
the first public university to lay 6KM fiber Optic Cable Network in
2001. There were only 33 computers in 1999, but today there are
over 3800 Pentium III and IV computers. All departments have
their computer labs. Bandwidth has been increased from 64KB to
7MB and the network has now grown to over 28 Km, which is the
largest amongst the universities of Pakistan. Students and staff of
the university, through the Higher Education Commission (HEC)
Digital Library, can access to the wide range of journal databases
in various academic disciplines. Such access provides full text
journal articles, abstracting and indexing services (University of
the Punjab, 2007). The University has established a Digital Lab
Unit at its Central Library with 66 Internet nodes and about 2900
registered members. The students can use Internet facility
provided by this Lab free of cost (Shafiq-ur-Rehman et al., 2006).
Literature on the Internet Use Among Students
Internationally, there are many surveys on the use of the
Internet, and nearly all find that Internet use is most prevalent
amongst younger, more educated people (Hoffman, Novak &
Schlosser, 2000). Korgen, Odell, and Schumacher (2001)
investigated Internet use among students, focusing on whether or
not there are differences by race/ethnicity. They reported that use
is affected by presence or absence of a computer in the home of
origin. Bao (1998) surveyed Internet use at Seton Hall University.
The findings reported that 40.2% of respondents used the Web on
a daily basis, 38.3% weekly, and 10.7% on a monthly basis. About
10% respondents said they seldom or never used the Internet. It
was also discovered that students and faculty searched the
Internet for information related to both their academic (83.2%) and
nonacademic studies (73.8%). Stern’s (2002) study was on the
information competence of incoming students into universities and
how they use the Internet for general and academic research.
A survey of a large Australian university by Foster (2000)
revealed that 88% students used Internet for course related
research. Eighty percent students used Internet at their homes
52
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