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University of Zululand Proceedings of 13th Annual IS Conference Theme “Empowering and Inspiring Current Information Studies Worldwide” Editors Dennis N. Ocholla and Neil Evans i Proceedings of 13th Annual IS Conference Theme “Empowering and Inspiring Current Information Studies Worldwide” Editors Dennis N. Ocholla and Neil Evans ii Proceedings of 13th Annual IS Conference Published by the Department of Information Studies- [Online] http://www.lis.uzulu.ac.za University of Zululand Private Bag x1001 KwaDlangezwa 3886 South Africa Email: [email protected] : [email protected] All rights reserved © Authors 2013 ISBN 978-0-620-45757-6 Cover design: Ntobeko Mthembu Copy Editor: Prof. C.T. Moyo Conference and Programme Chairs Prof Dennis Ocholla and Mr. Neil Evans Programme Committee Mr. Neil Evans (UZ) Prof. Daisy Jacobs (UZ) Prof. Jerry Le Roux (UZ) Prof. Bosire Onyancha (UNISA) Prof. Janneke Mostert (UZ) Prof. Stephen Mutula (UKZN) Prof. Patrick Ngulube (UNISA) Mr. Ntando Nkomo (UZ) Prof. DN Ocholla (UZ) Prof. Japheth Otike (MU) Mr. Mzwandile Shongwe (UZ) iii Proceedings of 13th Annual IS Conference The Information Studies Conference at the University of Zululand has been held under different names since 2000. The conference has grown from a Departmental project into a regular and recognized conference in South Africa and regionally in Africa. Looking back, we can say that this conference has been able to achieve its purpose that is popularizing LIS research largely among postgraduate students and LIS educators/faculty, particularly within South Africa. Over the past years, we have been fortunate to host prominent guests and speakers at our annual conferences from Botswana (UB), Kenya (Moi University and Kenya Polytechnic University College), New Zealand, South Africa (DUT, NRF, UKZN, UP, UNISA, UZ,), Uganda (Makarere University) and USA (University of Wisconsin Milwaukee), which has significantly improved the quality and visibility of the conference. The purpose of the Information Studies conference has not changed. Above all, we aim to popularize LIS research and knowledge sharing among students and staff/faculty through research capacity building, research presentations, discourse and publications. As a result, we have published our conference proceedings both in print and electronic format for open access on our website (http://www.lis.uzulu.ac.za). Most of the conference papers have also been published as articles in scholarly journals and as chapters in books. We believe that researchers studying LIS in Africa will find the research publications relevant and worthwhile for LIS education and research. The current 2012 conference was equally diversified by attracting papers both from within and outside South Africa. The conference theme was “Empowering and Inspiring Current Information Studies Worldwide”. Contributions are invited that address current research issues related to the LIS field. Themes and sub themes that may be addressed were wide and open: • Research concepts and application • Information and knowledge management • Bibliometrics and Informetrics • Social/community informatics and ICT4D • Information seeking and user studies • Information Retrieval • Information Ethics • Indigenous knowledge • Institutional Repositories • Open Access • Scholarly publishing • Digitization • E-records management, e-learning and e-government • LIS education and training The Conference Program was based on accepted participants’ paper proposals and special invitations issued by the Organizing Committee to selected experts in the Conference topics. Enjoy the Conference Dennis Ocholla and Neil Evans, University of Zululand, September 2012. iv Contents Library and Information Science (LIS) Education and Training: Uganda Perspective Constant Okello-Obura……………………………………………………………………………1 Establishing a Library and Information service environment supportive to knowledge workers Ezra M. Ondari-Okemwa ………………………………………………………………………. 18 A Situational Analysis of Information Management in Selected Government Ministries in the Context of Kenya Vision 2030 Evans Munge, Daniel C. Rotich and Justus Wamukoya ……………………………………….39 Publish or Perish: Remaining Academically Relevant and Visible In the Global Academic Scene through Scholarly Publishing Daniel C. Rotich and Joseph J. Musakali..…………………………………………………….58 Factors Motivating and Impeding Courseware Development in Nigeria Gbola Olasina……………………………………………………………………………………..82 Pursuit of effective pedagogy through Facebook in an ODL landscape Blessing Mbatha…………………………………………………………………………………107 Overview of research on information behaviour in contexts of palliative care with an indication of some research gaps Ina Fourie………………………………….……………………………………………………..122 Review of Service Quality Model and Their Implications on Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction With Reference To Academic Libraries Paul Mbua & D.N.Ocholla………………..……………………………………………………149 Library and Information Science Education in Anglophone Africa: Past, Present and Future Japhet Otike……………………………………………………………………………………...214 An Overview of the Diffusion of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the Informal Sector in Kenya Wakari Gikenye& Dennis N Ocholla.…………………………………………………………231 Challenges and Opportunities in Providing Information Services to Students and Staff by University Libraries: A Kenya-Uganda Survey Maurice Kisenyi …………………………………………………………………………………256 v An investigation of e-Learning within developing economies: The impact of ICT Barriers in the transfer of nonverbal communication. W. van Wyk, L. Thompson and M.A. Holmner ……………………………………………….287 vi Library and Information Science (LIS) Education and Training: Uganda Perspective Constant Okello-Obura Research Fellow, Department Of Information Science, Unisa And Dean East African School Of Library And Information Science (Easlis), Makerere University, Uganda E-mail: [email protected] OR [email protected]. Abstract LIS education and training in Uganda has continuously responded to the global dynamics of change. As Uganda’s economy grows, the demand for proper information management will continue to propel LIS educators to be innovative amidst dwindling support to public institutions of higher learning by the government. This paper makes a brief exploration of LIS education in Uganda. It highlights quality assurance management practices, the challenges affecting LIS Education and training and recommends some strategic measures that need to be adopted not only in Uganda but for most LIS Education and training institutions in Africa. Keywords – Library and Information Science Education, Library and Information Science Education and Training –Challenges, Uganda 1. Contextual Background Libraries and information science education institutions in Africa started quite early as 1960 in the continent. By 1980s there were five main LIS education institutions based in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Uganda (Ocholla and Bothma 2006). Much as LIS education in Africa today no longer focuses on the training and education of librarians to work in libraries only, originally LIS schools’ major focus in the education and training area was librarianship (Ocholla and Bothma 2006). With the changing need of employers and the proliferation of related courses and programmes to librarianship, many changes have taken place in the field of librarianship. The names of LIS education programmes, LIS Education awards and LIS education courses have all changed. These changes have been especially due to the re-orientation of higher education in the world and the need to stay relevant in the global competitive world (Okello-Obura and Kigongo-Bukenya 2008). A quick look at Africa shows that, in the past most departments were simply called Departments of Library Science / Library Studies or Librarianship. 1 In the eighties many departments changed their names to Department of Library and Information Science / Studies. In the nineties, many of these departments again changed their names to Information Science / Studies (Ocholla 2005 and Minishi-Majanja 2004). Through a combination with other (information-related) disciplines, some have incorporated this in their names as well, for example the Department of Information and Communication Studies at the University of Namibia (Ocholla and Bothma, n.d). At the University of Johannesburg, the Department’s name was changed to the Department of Information and Knowledge Management (Ocholla and Bothma 2006). In Uganda, the East African School of Librarianship was changed to East African School of Library and Information Science (EASLIS). From then, the changes have made significant impact on the LIS Education, training and awards. Given the competition now in the field of LIS and the realization of the LIS profession to remain relevant, the global reorientation has not spared the content. The issue of what constitutes or should constitute the 'core' in library and/or information science (LIS) education and training is one that is frequently debated in different circles by LIS professionals (Raju 2004). Drexel University (2000), notes that education for LIS professionals should integrate both human and technical aspects of information systems and exhibit a strong client orientation in service delivery to the library and information users. As noted by Feather and Sturges (2003), there is a clear manifestation for the need to balance between core skills of LIS and those, which apply to specific work environments. What remains unanswered well is what the “core”