YUSUF MAITAMA SULE UNIVERSITY, KANO

GENERAL STUDIES UNIT

COURSE: GSP 1206/2206 (LIBRARY SKILLS)
LECTURE NOTE

COURSE OUTLINE
Lesso Topics to be Covered
n
Introduction
st
1 Basic Terms in Library and Information Work
Definition and Types of Libraries
Types and Sources of Information Resources
2nd
Care and Uses of Library Materials
Introduction to Library Technical Services
3rd Selection and Acquisition
Classification and Cataloguing)
Introduction to Library Reader Services
Circulation Services
4th
Reference Service
Serials Management services (Indexing and Abstracting)
Bibliographic Citation and Referencing
5th
Copyright and Plagiarism
Introduction to e-library Services
Computer, Internet and the Web
6th
Assessing information on the internet
Using Social Media for Learning
Open Educational Resources
7th Open Access
Mass Open Online Course

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INTRODUCTION

This course intends to introduce students to the basic Information Literacy skills. Information
Literacy skills enable learners to identify, locate, select, utilize and evaluate information sources
and resources. The skills allow learners to use information in order to excel in their education as
well as their day to day life. This is necessary considering the complexity of information sources
more especially with the recent development in the area of Information and Communication
Technology (ICT). So, the immediate aim of the course is to assist the students to pass their
courses while the ultimate objective of the course is to assist students to use credible information
in their day to day life.

BASIC TERMS IN LIBRARY AND INFORMATION WORK

There are terms that are commonly used in library and information work, such terms are
important in understanding this course, some of the terms include;

Information; is the message conveyed by the use of a medium of communication or expression.

Whether a specific message is informative or not depends in part on the subjective perception of
the person receiving it. It can also mean all the facts, conclusions, ideas, and creative works of
the human intellect and imagination that have been communicated, formally or informally, in
any form.

Source; is the short way referring to “Information Sources” it is any document that provides
information sought by a writer, researcher, library user, or person searching an online catalog or
bibliographic database. Also refers to a document that provides information copied or
reproduced in another document, for example, a quotation or excerpt.

Work; is distinct expression of human thought or emotion made in language, signs, symbols,
numerals, images, or some other medium, for purposes of communication and record. When
such an expression is issued to the public, it is considered a published work; examples include
books, musical piece, films, drawings etc.

Book; is a collection of leaves of paper, parchment, vellum, cloth, or other material (written,
printed, or blank) fastened together along one edge, with or without a protective case or cover.
Examples include monographs, dictionaries, encyclopaedias etc.

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Publication; is the act of distributing copies of a creative work to the public by sale, lease, rental,
or lending. Also refers to a work capable of being read or otherwise perceived (book, audio
recording, video recording, CD-ROM, etc.), issued by a publisher for sale to the general public,
usually in multiple copies and sometimes in multiple editions.

Database; A large, regularly updated collection of digitized information related to a specific

subject or field, consisting of records of uniform format organized for ease and speed of search
and retrieval. Content is created by the database producers usually on CD-ROM or online via the
Internet, examples include Science Direct, Jstor, and Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
etc.

Document; A generic term for a physical entity on which information is recorded for the
purpose of conveying or preserving knowledge. It is also a "medium" in which a "message"
(information) is communicated. Document formats include manuscripts, print publications
(books, pamphlets, periodicals, reports, maps, prints, etc.), microforms, nonprint media,
electronic resources, etc.

Documentation; The systematic collection, classification, recording, storage, and dissemination

of specialized information, generally of a technical or scientific nature.

Publisher; is a person or corporate entity that prepares and issues printed materials for public
sale or distribution, normally on the basis of a legal contract in which the publisher is granted
certain exclusive rights in exchange for assuming the financial risk of publication and agreeing to
compensate the author, usually with a share of the profits.

Internet; The high-speed network that interconnects computer networks around the world,
enabling users to communicate, transfer data and program files, find information on the World
Wide Web, and access remote computer systems such as online catalogs and electronic databases
easily and effortlessly.

Web (World Wide Web, or www): A global network of Internet servers providing access to
documents written in a script called Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) that allows content to
be interlinked, locally and remotely.

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DEFINITION AND TYPES OF LIBRARIES

The word library came from a Latin word ‘liber’ meaning a book. However, scholars define
library in different ways. Aina (2004) define library as a collection of information resources
organized for use. Library therefore, is concerned with the collection, processing, organizing,
storing and dissemination of recorded information for the purpose of reading, study and
consultations. Library can also be seen as an institution (physical, virtual or both) establish to
provide physical or digital access to information sources and resources to a defined community
for study, reference or borrowing. Library collection may include, books, newspapers,
manuscripts, maps, e-books, CDs, cassettes, films, video, etc. Early libraries were found in
ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Greek. Archaeological findings revealed that
Egyptian historical records and literature were preserved in the form of clay tablets and papyrus
since about 5000-3020 BC. Libraries began as archival centers in ancient Mesopotamia and
Egypt and as repositories in courts and temples. Evidences have shown that the first two libraries
with well organized collections of written knowledge were in Alexandria in Ptolemaic Egypt and
Pergamum in Hellenic Turkey.

In 20th century, the world witnessed the growth of electronic media such as television, radio,
satellite, video, and audio-cassettes. This development improved the library services by opening
a media section responsible for collecting, processing, and preserving information sources in
audio-visual formats. Library automation also began in this century. This improved the
efficiency of the services rendered by many libraries in developed countries and reduced the
burden on the library staff. In 21st century, the world saw the growth and development of
Information and Communication Technology (ICTs). This development, allowed for online
acquisition of electronic resources and remote access to library resources, online databases,
digitization of library materials and so on.

All libraries are aimed at satisfying the information needs of their clienteles, through provision of
information resources, information services, recreational materials and conducive atmosphere for
study.

Functions of Libraries

To achieve their objectives, libraries engage in the following tasks;

 Selection of the right information resources,

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  Acquiring the selected resources,

 Organizing the acquired resources,

 Preserving the organized resources, and

 Dissemination of the resources to library users.

Rules and Regulation of Using Libraries

Below are the common rules and regulations use in libraries:

1. All consulted books are left on the reading tables.

2. Eating, drinking and smoking are not allowed in the library.

3. Silence must be maintained in the library.

4. Writing is not allowed on any print source (books, etc.).

5. Users must present whatever material they carry to the security personnel at the
entrance for checking, while leaving the library.

6. Briefcases, luggage, bags, etc. are not allowed into the library.

7. Book mutilation, pilfering, theft are strongly prohibited in the library.

8. Making or receiving of phone calls are prohibited in the library.

9. Books in the reference section, serials or reserve units are not taken out of the
library.

10. Any materials leaving the library must be properly borrowed.

11. It is an offence to keep materials (books) beyond the date specified for return.

12. Penalties (fine) are charged for over-due books.

Types of Library

All libraries can fall in one of the following categories:

1. National Libraries

2. Public Libraries

3. Academic Libraries

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4. School Libraries

5. Special Libraries

National Libraries

These are libraries established by the central government of a given country, to serve as the apex
body to control library and information services in the country. It directly or indirectly collect
and preserve literature published in the country; about the country or by the citizens of the
country. National Libraries serve as important national information repositories. National
Libraries (through their nationwide branches) complement and supplement the services of public
libraries in providing access to information sources to the general public for study and
references. National libraries often include numerous rare, valuable, or significant works.

Functions of National library

a. National libraries receive copies of all works published within the country as legal deposit.

b. It issues ISBN and ISSN to the owners of all publications made in the country.

c. It advises individuals, corporations and government on the development of libraries and

information services.

d. National libraries also contribute in the compilation of universal bibliography

Public Libraries

Public libraries are established with public fund, for the provision of free and unrestricted access
to all kinds of information resources to the community members, regardless of their educational
background, sex, age or socio-economic status. Public libraries are established by the
government, to serve all categories of people including young children, people with disabilities,
patient in hospitals, prisoners, etc. Public libraries are generally financed and managed by
governments, local communities, and occasionally by non-governmental organizations.

Functions of public libraries

a. Meeting the information needs of all individuals in the community irrespective of their
race, skin colour, disabilities, age, religion, language, status, gender, and education attainment.

b. Provision of mobile library services for people in captivity or at remote locations.

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c. Serving as community centre for event such as wedding, receptions, lectures, seminars,
conferences, symposia, etc.

d. Public library helps members of a community to study independently by providing

information resources for school assignments, adult literacy and leisure reading.

Academic Libraries

Academic library is the library attached to higher educational institutions such as universities,
colleges of education, polytechnics and so on. Academic libraries support teaching, learning,
research and community services of their parent institutions. Academic libraries are used by
students and staff of the parent institutions for academic work, pleasure reading, and current
affairs information.

Functions of Academic Libraries

a. Academic library provides access to different information resources for the staff and
students of the parent institution.

b. Academic library organizes an orientation exercise to newly admitted students on use the
information resources.

c. Academic library collects, preserves and makes students’ projects/theses/dissertations

reports available to users for consultations.

d. Academic library also collects, preserves, and makes available the scholarly publications of
academic staff of the parent institution

Special Libraries

Special library is the library established to cater for the information needs of particular group of
people such as lawyers, engineers, the blind and so on. Special libraries may be attached to
government department to support the special need of the unit. In other words special libraries
are libraries found in research institutions, hospitals, law schools, corporate bodies, national
assemblies; military based, high courts, etc., where special collections are made available to
researchers, staff of the organization and sometimes the general public. Special library is
characterized by special collections, special users and special services.

Functions of Special Library

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 a. Special library supports the mission of the sponsoring organization through provision of
relevant information resources.

b. Provision of information resources for researches on a particular field.

c. It provides appropriate information resources to people with special needs.

School Libraries

School library is the library found in primary and post primary institutions of learning, where
staff, pupils/students and in some cases their parents get access to a variety of information
resources. Like academic library, school library also supports the school curriculum, through
provision of text books on the subjects offered by the school. School library is characterized by
small amount of collections.

Functions of school libraries

a. School libraries provide reference materials to staff of the school.

b. School libraries provide textbooks and other learning resources to students for
consultation and borrowing.

c. School libraries also inculcate the reading culture in the students/pupils.

It is important to note that, any of these types of libraries may be a physical library that contains
information resources in printed formats or a digital (virtual) library that contains information
resources in electronic formats. Considering the fact that libraries are in transition from print
base to electronic base, most of the large libraries today are hybrid comprising both digital as
well as print information resources.

TYPES AND SOURCES OF INFORMATION RESOURCES

Information Resources comprise of published works and other documents collected by a library
and made accessible to users for learning, research and information in various formats. With
respect to the format, Information Resources can be divided into print and non-print Information
Resources.

Print Information Resources; are resources that are usually printed on sheets such as papers,
leather, skin, cloth, wood etc. These can be sub-divided into Books and non-books materials.
Book as according to UNESCO (1964) is non-periodical, printed publication of at least forty

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nine (49) pages excluding cover page. It can also be considered as a collection of manuscripts or
printed leaves fastened together to form a volume or volumes of bibliographic units. Books can
be sub-divided into fiction and non-fiction. Fiction books are the literature books or books of
invented imaginations e.g. novels or short story books. Public libraries keep a good collection of
fiction whereas other libraries keep fiction as supplement. Non-book resources are the printed
materials that have no qualities of a book. These include periodicals (journals, magazines, and
newspapers), pamphlets, diagrams, maps, chart, pictures, etc.

Non-print materials; are those Information Resources that are not in print format. They can be
in form of sound, or multimedia e.g. video cassettes, CDs, microfiches, computer software,
websites, etc. non-print resources are also sub-divided into: electronic and audiovisual resources.
Electronic resources are non-print information resources that need computing devices to be
accessible. Audiovisual resources are information materials in forms of films, filmstrips, video
and audio cassette and so on.

Irrespective of the format, information resources can be categorized into the followings;

1. Textbooks and Monographs; these are the resources that are developed to cater for
school courses and programmes. Textbooks are mainly used to support classroom
teaching. They cater for the students’ need in a particular course. Students may acquire
personal copies of such resources however; libraries keep credible collection of textbooks
and monographs for consultations and borrowing. Nowadays, there is increasing use of
electronic textbooks and monographs (e-books) are increasing and libraries are
continually acquire e-books for their users. It is interesting to note that, there are many
sources of free e-books. Users can download to support their education and information
need. Some of the sources of free e-books include;

 doabooks.org

 http://www.oapen.org

 https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks

 Free-ebooks.net

 Freecomputerbooks.com

 Bookboon.com

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 Openlibrary.org (classic books)

2. Reference Materials; these are resources that are designed to cater for specific
information needs. They include dictionaries, atlases, and encyclopedias. These are
expensive resources that are used within the libraries. Students use reference materials for
a specific information need. They are also consulted to get the grasp of a research topic.
Today, many reference resources are accessible freely online. Some of the freely online
reference resources include;

 Encyclopaedia Britannica – www.britannica.com

 Encyclopedia.com - encyclopedia.com

 Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/

 Ancient History Encyclopedia - https://www.ancient.eu/

 The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics - https://www.libertyfund.org/

 Encyclopedia of Earth -
https://editors.eol.org/eoearth/wiki/The_Encyclopedia_of_Earth

 Encyclopedia of Life - https://eol.org/

 Science world - https://www.wolfram.com/

 FOLDOC (Computing) - http://foldoc.org/

 Encyclopedia of Mathematics -
https://www.encyclopediaofmath.org/index.php/Main_Page

 MathWorld - http://mathworld.wolfram.com/

 The Canadian Encyclopedia – www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en

 Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – https://plato.stanford.edu/

 King Abdulla Bin Abdulaziz Arabic Health Encyclopedia-

www.kaahe.org

3. Periodicals/Serials; these are resources that are issued in successive parts to cater for
new developments in a particular field. They include newspapers, magazines, and

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 journals. Students consult periodical for current development in a particular area. Many
periodical resources are now freely online. Some sources of free articles are;

 doaj.org

 Jurn.com

 ajol.info

4. Grey literature; this comprises of reports and projects that are produced in educational
institutions for internal use. These resources are not published for public consumption.
They include students’ theses and dissertation, reports and so on. Students and
researchers are allowed to consult and cite these resources in their academic write-up.
Today, most major universities render access to such resources through their institutional
digital repositories. Major gateway to such resources include;

 Opendoar.org

 Roar.eprints.org

 Network.bepress.com

5. Government Document/Publications; these are publications by government agencies

and multinational association like United Nations. These publications provide valuable
information for students and researchers. Libraries collect and keep such resources;
however such resources could better be accessed from the libraries or websites of the
institutions concerned. Some sources to government documents include;

 cbn.gov.ng

 ncc.gov.ng

 hscic.gov.uk/home

 ncdc.noaa.gov

 worldbank.org

6. Corporate Publications; these are the publications publish by for-profit and not-for-
profit organizations. They may serve as valuable source of information. However,

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 students need to be extra careful when using these publications as they may be for
advertisement and other non-academic purposes.

CARE AND USES OF LIBRARY MATERIALS

Library buildings and resources are provided for the use of library clienteles. Resources of the
library can be used within the library or borrowed for home use. General reference
materials/books are consulted within the library i.e. they are not borrowed for use outside the
library. Reserve books are also loaned to the library users for use within the library, usual for the
period of 1-2 hours. Periodicals, theses or dissertations are used within the library. However,
officials of a university (in case of academic library) can borrow them for short period of time.
Circulation materials (books at open shelves) can be used within the library and borrow for
home use. Registered library users can use their borrowers’ tickets to borrow books for home
use, usually for two weeks. In the process of using the library resources, users cause damages to
the materials through:

 Careless/rough handling.

 Exposing them to extreme temperature.

 Handling them with wetted or dirty hands.

 Pushing back the books’ covers on either side.

 Dog earring of a book page.

 Marks or highlighting the library materials.

 Use of rubber band on library materials.

 Forcing book to open.

 Exposing library material to water.

 Eating and drinking near the library materials.

 Tearing or mutilating the materials, And

 Stealing the library materials.

To preserve the library resources, library users should take the following measures;

 Handle library materials with clean and dry hands,

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  Grasp the book in the middle, while removing it from shelf,

 Do not push back the book on either side, as that can lead to the removal of the
cover,

 Support book spines and covers while holding a book open,

 Keep your work surfaces clean and uncluttered,

 Do not “dog ear” a book page, bookmark with a sheet,

 Do not tie library materials with a rubber band,

 Never force a book open,

 While photocopying a book page, do it gently,

 Do not expose library materials to water, which can cause deformation and
staining,

 Cover books and other library materials with rainy day bags,

 Avoid eating and drinking near library materials, as that can attract vermin and
insects,

 Keep library materials away from children,

 If you damage library materials don’t attempt to repair them yourself, instead,
return them to the library as soon as possible.

To safeguard, protect and secure the library materials, library staff take the following measures;

a. Watchful at all activities of the library users.

b. Checking in and out of the library users.

c. Theft of library materials is punished accordingly.

d. Fumigating the library at regular interval.

e. Control the atmospheric condition such as humidity and sun light.

f. Allow for photocopying service.

g. Regular maintenance and repairs of the library materials.

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 h. Proper shelving and re-shelving of used books.

i. Installing a security system at the main exit of the library.

j. Installing and use of CCTV to monitor the activities of the library users.

INTRODUCTION TO LIBRARY TECHNICAL SERVICES

Services render by libraries can be broadly divided into: technical services and reader services.
Technical services are the library activities undertaken to process the library materials in order to
make them easily accessible to users. These activities take place behind-the-scene. They involve
ordering, classifying and cataloguing, indexing and abstracting of the information resources.
Traditionally, library technical services can be divided into:

i. Collection development

ii. Processing, and

iii. Classification and cataloguing

Collection development: This involves identification, selecting and acquisition of the right item
to be added to the library collection. These activities ensure library collection support the
information need of the library users.

Processing: This involves un-packaging, accessing, sorting, stamping, labeling, binding and
repairing of arrived items in preparation for cataloging and classification. This process also
involves preserving and maintaining of both print and electronic materials. It involves repairing
damaged books, binding journals into hardcover volumes and reformatting print materials to
digital. It may also include maintenance of online catalogs as well as securing, processing and
maintaining a library’s technology resources.

Classification and Cataloguing: Books and other information resources of the library are
classified (organized) for easy retrieval. Libraries use standard classification schemes to organize
their resources. Dewey Decimal Classification Scheme (DDC) is the most popular among small
and public libraries, while Library of Congress Classification Scheme (LC) is the most popular
among the academic and research libraries. Beside this, newly arrived resources are also
catalogued. Catalogue is the comprehensive and systematic list of collection of library or groups
of libraries. A catalogue is composed of record entries for each item in the library collection; it

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stands as a guide to access the items wherever they are kept within the library. While
cataloguing, is the process of creating library catalogue. As cataloger describes a document,
classifier provides the class mark to the document.

Forms of library catalogs

Catalog can exist in:

 Card format (usually 3 by 5cm )

 Computerized format

 Microfiche

 Book format and

 Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC)

A sample of library catalog entry

LB
.U3

How to study for success/by Vincent E. Unegbu.-

Ilishan Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria: Eze & Bross Print, 2013.
V, 1411p: ill.; 78cm, pbc
ISBN: 978-978-935-171-8
Includes: Index
1. Study 2. Success
i. Title ii. Author

Library classification is the system according to which library materials are arranged on the
library shelves. In other words classification is described as the process of establishing the
subject of a document, assigning class mark (notations) relevant to the subject of the document to
ease arrangement and retrieval of document according to their subjects.

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In the process of classifying a document (book), a classifier looks at the title of a document, table
of content and sometimes chapters covered to confirm the subject treated by the document. Thus,
assign a class mark (notation) to the book/document based on classification scheme.

Dewey Decimal Classification Scheme (DDC)

This is the classification scheme use by many public and smaller libraries for the arrangement of
information resources (books). The scheme divides knowledge into ten main subject divisions.
Each division is represented by figures beginning from 000 to 999. Below is the summary of
DDC main classes:

000-099 = Generalia class e.g. general encyclopedia

100-199 = Philosophy and psychology e.g. work of Aristotle, Plato, etc.
200-299 = Religion and mythology
300-399 = Social science e.g. law, government, education, etc.
400-499 = Languages e.g. English, French, etc.
500-599 = Pure science e.g. biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics.
600-699 = Applied science e.g. medicine
700-799 = Art and Recreation e.g. music and arts
800-899 = Literature
900-999 = History, Travel and Geography
Library of Congress Classification Scheme (LC)

This classification scheme uses mixed notations i.e. combination of numbers and letters. The
scheme is used mostly in academic and research libraries. The main divisions of the scheme are
as follows;

A= General work
B = Philosophy, Psychology and Religion
C = Auxiliary science of History
D = World History and History of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, etc.
E = History of America
F= History of America
G = Geography, Anthropology and Recreation
H = Social science
J = Political Science
K = Law

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L = Education
M = music and Books on music
N= Fine Arts & Visual arts (General)
P = Language and Literature
Q Science (General)
R = Medicine
S = Agriculture
T: Technology (General)
U = Military science
V = Naval science
Z = Bibliography, Library science, Information resource (general)
It is important to note that, alphabets I, O, W, X and Y have intentionally left vacant for future
use. Library users should be able to recognize the notations or class marks for the subjects of
their interest. More especially as the library classification schemes are used uniformly all over
the world.
Indexing and Abstracting

Index is a systemic list of information sources published on a particular subject or in a particular

geographical area or within a particular period of time. In other word, an index is defined as a
systematic arrangement of entries designed to enable users locate information sources. End of
book index is an index that is appended to the end of book to assist users in locating particular
information in the book. Nowadays, index is also appended to a website to serve same purpose
with end of book index. Libraries carry out various indexing services to assist users locating
information sources.

Indexing Service is a service that assigns descriptors and other access points to documents.
Typical examples of indexes are journal indexes and back of book indexes. Periodicals such as
journals are indexed to provide easy access to their voluminous resources.

Abstract is a summary of the essential content of each document. In other words, an abstract is a
brief summary of a research article, thesis, review, conference proceeding, or any in-depth
analysis of a particular subject. Abstracts are compiled to form a volume on a particular subject
area. Abstract helps the reader to quickly ascertain the purpose of the paper or document and
decide to read the whole content of the work or not.

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Abstracting Service is a service that provides abstract of publications, often on a subject or
group of related subjects, by providing citations where required or useful.

INTRODUCTION TO READER SERVICES

Library readers’ services are the services that are directly offered to library users. Readers’
service includes all the services that allow contact between the users and information resources
of the library. The major sections that are usually available under the Reader Service department
are as follow:

 Reference section

 Serial/Periodical section

 Circulation section and

Reference section: This is a section of reader service department rendering professional

assistance to library users. Staff in this section answer users’ queries; provide guidance on the
arrangement of the library and use of catalog. New library user without any knowledge on how
to use the library and its collections, needs a reference librarian to give him a personal assistance
to enable him satisfy his information needs. In general, library reference services comprise the
following services:

i. Current Awareness Service (CAS): This service intends to inform the library
users about the existence of an information source using bulletin board, newsletters, RSS feeds,
twitter, facebook, etc.

ii. User education/orientation: This is a program design to educate the library users
on how to use the library resources as well as rules and regulations of the library.

iii. Information literacy: Within the realm of this service the library aims at helping
the library or information users to unbundle or un-package various information resources e.g.
assisting a user to search the content of a book or sign up to an electronic database.

iv. Selective Dissemination of Information (SDI): This involves identifying and

creating profile of information needs of library users to alert them on any new arrival of
information resources relevant to their area of interest. SDI is done using e-mail, RSS feed,
twitter, Facebook, etc.

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v. Answering users’ queries: This entails answering users’ questions ranging from
simple directional or informative questions to a complex question that may need intensive
literature search. At times, a reference librarian has to conduct a reference interview in order to
identify and redefine the information need of a user, with the view to assisting him/her to find
relevant information resource that can satisfy his/her need. Beside face-to-face reference
interview conduct by reference librarians, they also engage in answering questions of users
outside the library environment (online reference service) through social media (Facebook,
twitter, etc.); telephone calls, e-mails, etc.

Reference materials

These are publications that are designed to provide users with pieces of information i.e. they are
not read from cover to cover. Example of reference materials include: dictionaries, encyclopedia,
almanacs, atlases, abstracts, concordances, “who is who”, bibliographies, etc.

Characteristics of reference materials

 Reference materials provide pieces of information i.e. they are not read from cover to
cover.

 In most cases, they come in volumes.

 They are edited work.

 They are updated from time to time.

Serial/Periodical Section

Serial section of the readers’ service department houses and provides access to serial
publications. Serials imply to publication (print and electronic) issue in successive parts, usually
at regular intervals, and intended to be continued indefinitely. Serials or periodicals include
magazines, scholarly journals, newspapers, and newsletter. Serials section oversees the
procurement of journals and keeping of proper records of journal subscription.

Characteristics of Serials

 They are the major sources of current and up-to-date information,

 They are the major ways of disseminating research reults,

 They are issued in parts but maintain a single title,

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  The content is usually contributed by different people, and

 They are managed and controlled by a team of editors.

Reserve Section

This is a section of readers’ service department where expensive and rare books are reserved or
kept for use on first to come first to serve basis. Reserved books are:

i. Rare books

ii. Of high demands

iii. Not loaned for use outside the library

iv. Borrowed or used for few hours (within the library)

Users of reserve books must present their library I.D. card before they are allowed to use the
library reserve books and no user is allowed to directly retrieve books from shelves.

Circulation Section

This section of readers’ service department engages with the activities of lending of library
books to users. The main objective of the section is establishing effective charging and
discharging system of library books. The work of circulation section includes:

a. Registration of new members

b. Lending of books

c. Charging of overdue

d. Reservation of books

e. Loan renewal

f. Maintenance of record and statistics and

g. Inter-library loans

How to borrow books from a library

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When a registered library member wants to borrow a book from the library, he/she should:

 Take the book (from open shelve) to the circulation desk.

 Open the back page.

 Show the I.D. card and borrower’s ticket to the staff on duty, who signs and stamps the
two cards and insert them in the borrower’s pocket of the book.

 Go with the book for use within stipulated time.

COPYRIGHT AND PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism: is the act of citing or quoting or copying other authors work(s) without due
acknowledging the source. In other words, plagiarism is the act of claiming the ownership of
words or ideas of another person’s. In practice plagiarism entail representing an idea without
acknowledging the source. It is a serious and punishable offense in academic cycles. In many
universities and colleges, it leads to automatic failure of a course, suspension or dismissal.

Copyright: is the exclusive legal right to reproduce a scholarly, literary, dramatic, musical or
artistic work. This right is tenable for a limited but long period of time, which varies from one
country to another. Copyright law exists to protect intellectual property. In Nigeria, the copyright
act 1988, amended in 1992, made it clear that an infringement of copyright is a crime, punishable
by a fine, imprisonment or both.

BIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION AND REFERENCING

Bibliography refers to a systematic list of all information resources consulted (either directly
cited or not) while compiling a write-up. Bibliographic citation on the other hand refers to the
formal way of acknowledging the source of information in an academic writing. This can be in
form of quotation, summarizing or paraphrasing.

Referencing is the standardized method of acknowledging source of information and ideas use
in academic assignment or report in a way that uniquely identifies the sources. Quotations, facts,
figures ideas and theories from both published and unpublished works must be referenced.
Reference list on the other hand refers to a systematic list of the work cited in text or write-up.

Philosophy Behind the Bibliographic Citations and Referencing

a. To avoid plagiarism

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b. To verify quotations

c. To inform a reader about the existence of publication

d. To get details of all sources cited within the work

e. Developing earlier researches, discoveries and other intellectual works.

f. Crediting the originators of intellectual work.

TYPES OF REFERENCING STYLE

Below is the list of most popular referencing style use in the world:

1. American Psychology Association (APA) reference style

2. Chicago Reference Style

3. Harvard Reference Style

4. Modern Language Association (MLA) reference style

5. Turabian Reference Style

6. Oxford style

7. Council of Biology Editors (CBE)

APA styles: APA is one of the most popular citation style use in Nigeria. The current edition of
APA is 7th edition. This is based on the following guidelines:

a. The author(s) surname(s) is/are written in full, while the other names are
initialized.

b. Only the first letter of the first word of a book or article’s title is capitalized, but
all the remaining words are written in small letters.

c. Significant words in the title of a journal have their first letters capitalized.

d. Lines following the first line of entry must be indented 5 spaces.

e. Copyright date of a book or website is used.

f. In case of journal, publication date is used.

g. When the work is not dated n.d. (no date) is used in place of the date.

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 h. Retrieval date must be used for e- resources.

In-text referencing

In-text Citation is also the standard way of indicating the source of idea within the body of
academic write-up. It is supported with author’s surname, year of publication and page number.
Though, page number is used when indicating a specific portion in the source document.
Quotations of less than 40 words are set out within the body of the text and enclose with double
quotation marks “…..” e.g. Sagir (2010) states that “all of us need reassurance occasionally”. Or
“all of us need reassurance occasionally” (Sagir, 2010, p.67).

However, Quotations of more than 40 words should be started in new line double line spaces and
indented 5 spaces from left hand margin. Quotation marks are not used and pane number of the
source document is indicated. For example:

Most of academics in 21st century depend on the Internet for their researches preparing lecture
notes, and publishing their research findings/work. Internet reduces the students reading
culture and gives room for laziness and plagiarism among tertiary institutions students.
Nowadays, students copy and paste directly from the Internet resources. (Dan’ladi, 2012, p. 18).

Reference list

Reference list is a systematic list of all the sources cited in a particular write-up. Each entry on
the list contains author’s name and initials, date of publication, title, edition (if any), place of
publication and publishers. For e-resources, the entry includes web address or URL and date of
retrieval. Examples of reference list entries are s below:

Sagir, J. (2010). Mental retardation or illness. (2nd ed.). Kano: Longman. (1 author)

Jamil, L. and Garba, M. (2013). Psychology of education. Zaria: ABU press. (2 authors)

Mapping W.A. (2009). Geographic information system. Retrieved October 17, 2008, from
http://gis.aum/Default.aspx?=cvr (online resource)

INTRODUCTION TO E-LIBRARY SERVICE

E-Library library is the library that provides access to electronic information resources. It can be
seen as the physical library that provides access to digitized information resources in different

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format i.e. audio, images, video, text and multimedia. E-library consist of collection
infrastructure; access infrastructure; computer and network infrastructure.

E-libraries Services

E-libraries render the following service to their users within and outside the library environment:

1. Provision of free Internet service.

2. Subscribing to bibliographic databases on behalf of their users

3. Making scholarly databases available and accessible to users

4. Preserving traditional (print-based) library collections through digitization process.

5. Assist users to acquire and source for reliable electronic information anywhere in the
world.

6. Uploading the digital collection of an institution onto the web.

GENERAL REGULATIONS ON HOW TO USE E-LIBRARY SERVICES

1. Access to library computer is based on first-come, first-serve basis.

2. Only one library user in allowed to use a workstation at a time.

3. Daily time limits are applied by libraries to give equal opportunity to all library users.

4. Fee is charged for print by the user from a workstation.

5. Users can save their work to a removable storage device.

6. Damage to computer equipment or software is strictly prohibited.

Library computers are configured to restrict the following activities, usually to protect and secure
the library computers and network.

a) Loading software onto a library computer through an external drive.

b) Downloading software onto a library computer via Internet connection.

COMPUTER, INTERNET AND THE WEB

Computer is a machine that accepts data (input), manipulates the data and brings out the output
as (information). Computer is a device that can be instructed to carry out an arbitrary set of
arithmetic or logical operation automatically. Library computers are connected to network and

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printer to allow users access online and offline resources. Libraries also provide space for laptop
use, where users can come to the library with their personal laptops, sit comfortably, and get
access to e-resources and services. Library provides access to computers for the purpose of
conducting online research and accessing the library’s electronic resources. Students also use
library computers to carry out other task such as word processing (typing) or creating slides for
presentation. Library computers are valuable resource, especially for individuals who do not
have access to computer of their own. However, it is advisable students should own their
personal computers as the institutional computer terminals may not be abundant always. While,
taking their work to commercial computer operators may not guarantee the quality of the work.

Internet

Internet is the large computer network linking smaller networks worldwide. It can be described
as the network of computer networks across the globe. Development of the Internet allows
libraries to improve their services through the following ways:

 Acquisition of new library materials at relatively easier and faster way.

 Online registration of new members.

 Library resources and services are made available online.

 Subscription of online scholarly databases e.g. AGORA, Science Direct, etc.

 Libraries can use the Internet tools such as e-mail, and social media to reach users with
their services.

 Making Online Public Catalogue (OPAC) available.

The Web

The Web or World Wide Web and the Internet are wrongly used interchangeably. The Web or
World Wide Web is simply part of the Internet that is accessible through browser. It can also be
described as a collection of resources that are linked and accessible over a global network of
computers. Considering the fact that, the Web is so complex and the resources are not always
trust worthy, students need to learn web searching skills as well as the additional skills to be able
to evaluate web resources.

Web Searching

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Traditionally, students rely on the basic search interface using natural language to search the
Web. This is an ineffective searching strategy. For a better result the following strategies may be
followed;

1. Use good key words rather than putting your question in natural language sequence,

2. Use Boolean operators such as AND (+), AND NOT (-), OR and so on,

3. Use advance search interface to narrow or widen your search,

4. Try different search engines,

5. Go directly to databases, gateways, directories and websites that are important to your area
of interest, as only a small fraction of web resources could be accessible through web search
interface.

Evaluation of Internet Resources

Unlike print information sources, many Internet resources are not edited before publishing i.e.
often information on the Internet is not regulated for quality or accuracy. Many websites do not
clearly identify their authors and where they are identified, the author may not represent
themselves honestly. Therefore, it is important for every Internet user to evaluate the Internet
resources before use.

Criteria for evaluating web resources

While evaluating any web resource, one needs to consider the following:

1. Authorship
2. Purpose of the web page
3. Objectivity of the page
4. Publishing body
5. Currency
6. Links
7. Reliability and Credibility
8. Citations
9. Website domain
Authorship

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Author is a person, group of persons, or organization that writes a book or creates a web page.
While using the information from the web page, an Internet user needs to consider the author’s
name, educational qualification, contact information (e-mail address, phone number, etc.); and
the organization where the author works or belongs to. The author’s educational qualification can
be used to determine his/her authority i.e. whether the author is in good position to write on the
subject matter or not. This confirmation can be made via his/her personal home page on the web,
campus directory entries and information retrieved from search engines. Print sources in library
reference area e.g. ‘who is who’ Biographical index and other bibliographic sources can also be
used to determine the author’s credentials.

Purpose of the web page

The motive behind the creation of a page can help an Internet user assess its content. Some sites
clearly stated their target audience (whether general public, scholars, etc.), while others not. An
Internet user therefore should consider the purpose for which the site is created. Is it created to
teach or enlighten, persuade or sell products or otherwise?

Objectivity

The bias or otherwise of the information on the page is also subject to evaluation. An Internet
user therefore, needs to look carefully at the information, whether it covers facts, opinion or
propaganda.

Publishing body

The reputation of the publishing body such as e-journal, online newspaper, etc. is subject to
consideration, while evaluating the resource on the Internet. Any journal has qualified editors,
who go through the scholarly articles before publishing. Hence, online scholarly articles are
authentic.

Currency

One of the attributes of good information is its timeliness or currency. Up-to-date information is
considered more reliable then out-dated source. An Internet user therefore, should consider the
time of last update of the site.

Links

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The to-and-fro connection or link of the page with other relevant pages is also a matter of
consideration, while assessing a web page. Web page with many links to other pages is more
authentic then the one with no or less links.

Reliability and credibility

How dependable or trustworthy is the information on a web page is also subject to consideration.
A well research information and information supported by evidences is considered authentic. A
user may check fact presented in a web page if it correspond to other sources.

Citations

The number of quotations made to support ones work add value to the work and makes it more
acceptable or authentic. The reference list compile by web page creator would enable the Internet
user to trace the accuracy of the information given in the web page.

Website domain

This is an identification character, which represents an area of administrative autonomy,

authority or control within the Internet. Domain names are used as simple identification labels to
indicate ownership or control of a resource, usually in e-mails system and in many URLs. An
Internet user needs to look at root domain name of the URLs of the page he/she consults. This
can assist him/her in deciding whether the site is in good position to produce such information or
not. For example ‘.gov’ sites are in good positions to represent government agency; likewise,
‘.net’ sites are good sources of information on networking and Internet related matters. One
needs not wary about URLs ‘.com’ domain as they are usually selling something.

Use of Social Media for Learning

Social media are the Internet-based software and interface that allows user community to
interact, exchange details about their lives, professional information, photos, videos, up-to-the
minute thought, etc. Examples of social media platform include facebook, micro-blogging such
as twitter; Publishing tools like WordPress, blogger, etc; collaborative sites such as Wikipedia,
wikibooks, etc; photo sharing sites like Flikr, Istagram, Pinterest, etc; Video sharing sites such as
YouTube, academic profiling site such as academia.edu, researchgate etc.

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The popularity of social media among all ages engenders an outrageous fear for the tendency of
social media to distract learners from their curriculum content. However, social media
applications could be used to support learners and learning programmes. Some of the ways that
students could use social media to support their learning programme are as follow;

 Learners can form a discussion group to continue with their class discussion on social
media.

 Learners can get contact with other learners and renown scholars from the world renown
universities and learning centres.

 Learners engage with discussion groups around various topics for learning and mentoring
on the social media

 As discussion on social media is sometimes asynchronously, teachers feel more

comfortable to attend to learners questions on social media.

 Most educational institutions are now represented on the social media, so a learner may
follow a particular institution on the social media to receive reliable information.

 Today, authors and publishers continue with the discussion on social media, so students
may follow the discussion to learn and seek for clarification.

OPEN ACCESS TO SCHOLARLY PUBLICATION

Open Access (OA) is a revolution in scholarly publishing. It means making research or scholarly
publications freely available on the internet for reading, citing, downloading, sharing, mining,
bookmarking etc. provided the work will be credited to its originator. Open access publications
are scholarly publication that are available online to the reader “without financial, legal or
technical barriers other than those inseparable from gaining access to the internet itself. They
remove price barriers e.g. subscription, licensing fees etc. A student or researcher can utilize OA
publications the way they like, provided they have internet connection and the work would be
credited to its originator.

There are two routes to OA articles, these are;

 Gold OA, this entails making research articles available to public through an open access
journal. The main directory of OA journals is the Directory of Open Access Journals
www.doaj.org

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  Green OA, this entails making research articles available to public through a digital
repository. The Main directory for institutional repositories is www.doar.org. The major
types of repository are (1) institutional repository, example, www.dash.harvard.edu
which is a Harvard University Institutional Repository, and (2) subject repository,
example, www.arXiv.org which is a scientific repository of the Cornell university.

However, a part of research and scholarly articles, monograph such as textbooks are now made
OA. One of the platforms that index OA books is the Directory of Open Access Books
www.doabooks.org

Major Benefits of OA

 it increases the visibility of a research finding

 it increases research impact

 it helps researchers of the developing nations to have access to research finding from all
over the world

 it saves consumers of research findings (individual and institutional) access to critical

information

 Unrestricted access to material, enriched edge and allowing equality of learning in poor
as well as in rich nation.

OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

Open Educational Resources (OERs) are educational resources, tools and practices that are free
of legal, financial and technical barriers and can be fully used, shared and adapted by other
educational institutions. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation defines OER as teaching,
learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an
intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others. UNESCO also
defines OERs as teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise,
that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost
access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions. Open licensing
is built within the existing framework of intellectual property rights as defined by relevant
international conventions and respects the authorship of the work. OERs are made possible as a
result of the development in the area of information and communication technology (ICT).

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Advantages of OERs

 It offers free alternatives of credible educational resources such as textbooks,

 Teachers can modify it to suit their local needs,

 It create savings to the parents, students and their institutions, and

 It allows students and teachers to share educational resources without any restrictions.

The most important segment of OERs especially to the students of the Developing Countries is
the open textbooks. Open textbooks are books designed to support a particular course of study or
a particular level of education, but are made freely available on the Internet. Teachers and
learners are allowed to use the materials as it is or modify it to suit their particular needs or
situations. Some of the major sources of OERs are as follows;

 OER Commons (https://www.oercommons.org/)

 OpenCourseWare (OCW) (https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm)

 MERLOT (https://www.merlot.org/merlot/index.htm)

 Slideshare (https://www.slideshare.net/)

 OpenStax CNX (https://cnx.org/)

 Open Course Library (http://opencourselibrary.org)

 OpenLearn (http://www.open.edu/openlearn/)

 Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/)

 The College Open Textbooks Collaborative

(http://www.collegeopentextbooks.org/textbook-listings)

 Open Book Publishers (https://www.openbookpublishers.com/)

Mass Open Online Course

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are educational courses or programme that are
delivered online and is open anyone who has Internet connection. The courses capitalize largely
on OERs in form of e-books, videos and other digital resources. MOOCs emerged in 2008 at the

31
University of Manitoba in Canada. Thereafter, the development attracted the attention of many
universities. Presently, most of the major world universities offer MOOCs whether as a part of
in-campus programme or as an independent course that leads to certification.

Advantages of MOOCs

 It is open to anyone at whatever distance, and enrollment procedure is simple,

 Students especially from the developing countries may have free access to video-
recorded lectures, often from renown scholars,

 Students can support their in-campus courses by enrolling into its MOOC equivalent,

 Computer-based assessment, usually using multiple-choice questions, quizzes and

immediate feedback, combined sometimes with peer assessment,

 It may serve as collaboration and mentoring ground among students,

 Learning can take place at individual pace and often self directed,

 More importantly, participation in MOOCs is usually free.

Some of the major gateways to MOOCs include;

 Udacity – https://udacity.com

 Coursera - https://www.coursera.org

 EdX - https://www.edx.org

 FutureLearn - https://www.futurelearn.com

The content of this note intends to introduce the students to the information environment both
print and digital. The ultimate objective is to enable the students to use credible sources of
information for their academic success in particular and for the general information need.

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