INFORMATION LITERACY AND ICT SKILLS OF LIBRARY STAFF IN SOME SELECTED FEDERAL POLYTECHNICS IN NIGERIA

This study assessed the information literacy and ICT skills of library staff in Federal Polytechnics in southwest Nigeria. The study adopted a survey research design and a total population of 154 which cut across six states in the Southwest geopolitical zone with five federal polytechnic. The study adopted stratified sampling techniques from which a sample size of 136 library staff was sampled. The major instrument used for data collection was questionnaire. A total of 154 copies of questionnaires were sent out, from which 136 copies were found to be valid and found fit for analysis. The data were analyzed using descriptive frequency table and mean with the aid of Statistical Products for Service Solutions (SPSS). The study established among others, that the library staff acquired basic information literacy skills through attending workshops/seminars, trial and error, through the help of their colleagues, and through the guidance from library staff; library staff possessed high information literacy skills, which include ability to recognise a need for information resources, distinguish potential information resources, construct strategies for locating information, compare and evaluate information obtained from different sources, locate and access information resources, organise, apply and communicate information, and ability to synthesize and build on existing information among others. The study concluded that library staff possess information literacy and ICT skills and they could recognize a need for information resources, distinguish, potential information and deploy the resources appropriately. Besides, the research shows that Federal Polytechnics in Southwest have information resources. The study recommended that Federal government should continuously fund the federal polytechnic libraries to enhance productivity; Polytechnic management should provide more computers with Internet access in their polytechnics. The bandwidth for Internet connectivity should be increased to improve the speed of accessing information from the Internet among others