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Digital vs Print resources at African University Institutions: A Discussion Document

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 April 2022

Hans M. Zell
Hans M. Zell*
Affiliation:
Hans Zell Publishing, Lochcarron, Wester Ross, Scotland
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Extract

Digital resources and the speed and ease with which researchers anywhere can now access vast amounts of information have transformed the nature of the research process. The advent of electronic resources and digital libraries and repositories has also dramatically changed the function of academic libraries in terms of organization, service delivery, and collection development, with much information and many resources now accessed online. Nowadays, librarians and information professionals are expected to provide services to library users who increasingly demand instant access to information on multiple digital platforms.

The attraction of electronic resources and the archiving of these resources, is easy to understand: they are eco-friendly, time and cost saving, offer multi-access, round the clock availability, and provide a facility to access resources without requiring a physical presence in the library.

Type
Research Article
Information
African Research and Documentation , Volume 138 , 2020 , pp. 3 - 16
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2020

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References

Notes and references:

1 Barringer, Terry, and Marion Wallace, eds. African Studies in the Digital Age. Disconnects? (p. 2) Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2014. 262 pp.CrossRefGoogle Scholar https://brill,com/view/title/25415

This is a recurring theme in the above thought-provoking collection of papers published by SCOLMA, the UK Libraries and Archives Group on Africa. Based on papers presented at its Golden Jubilee conference in Oxford in 2012, it seeks to understand the complex changes brought about by the digital revolution, and the impact of the Internet age for the study of Africa, in and beyond the continent.

For a review of the above collection see The African Book Publishing Record volume 41, no. 3 (2015). https://www.degruyter.com/view/journals/abpr/41/3/abpr.41.issue-3.xml

A freely accessible pre-print version of the review can be found at https://www.academia.edu/11989705/African_Studies_in_the_Digital_Age._DisConnects_Edited_by_Terry_Barringer_and_Marion_Wallace._Leiden_and_Boston_Brill_2014

2 Adetoun Oyelude, Principal Librarian, Kenneth Dike Library, University of Ibadan, Nigeria; personal communication, 17 June 2020.

3 The following are examples, among many others, of a wide range of high quality reference resources published by Hans Zell Publishers in the early 1990s. All have been long out-of-print, but to the best of my knowledge none are available/have been reissued in digital editions.

Ngugi wa Thiong'o: The Make of a Rebel: A Source Book in Kenyan Literature and Resistance. By Sicherman, Carol. 1990.504 pp.Google Scholar

Guide to Archives and Manuscripts Relating to Kenya and East Africa in the United Kingdom. Vol. 1: Official Records, Vol 2: Non-Official Archives and Manuscripts. By Thurston, Anne. 1991. v. 1: 634 pp., v. 2: 576 pp.Google Scholar

A Biographical Dictionary of the British Colonial Service, 1939-1966. By Kirk Greene, A.H.M.. 1991.420 pp.Google Scholar

Dambudzo Marechera: A Source Book on His Life and Work. By Veit-Wild, Flora . 1992.432 pp.Google Scholar

French Colonial Africa: A Guide to Official Sources. By Westfall, Gloria. 1992. 224 pp.Google Scholar

Nigerian Artists. A Who's Who and Bibliography. Compiled by Kelly, Bernice M. and edited by Stanley, Janet L. . 1993. 608 pp. (Published for the National Museum of African Art Branch, Smithsonian Institution Libraries, Washington, DC)CrossRefGoogle Scholar

An Atlas of International Migration. By Segal, Aaron. 1993. 244 pp.Google Scholar

A Bibliography of African Language Texts, in the Collections of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, to 1963. By Mann, Michael and Sanders, Valerie . 1994. 448 pp.Google Scholar

4 See, for example, these studies:

Foluke, Okocha O., “Determinants of Electronic Book Adoption in Nigeria.” DESIDOC Journal of Library & Information Technology, 39, no. 4, July 2019) 175-179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/b574/5e6c754c566el2db8bb2bd43abd4582ec69b.pdf

Idiegbeyan-Ose, Jerome; Goodluck Ifijeh, Ayooluwa Aregbesola, Sola Owolabi, and Eyiolorunshe Toluwani.

“E-Resources vs Prints: Usages and Preferences by Undergraduates in a Private University, Nigeria.”

DESIDOC Journal of Library & Information Technology, 39, no. 2 (March 2019): 125-130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

https://publications.drdo.gov.in/ojs/index.php/djlit/article/view/13885/7052

Also at https://core.ac.uk/reader/228380450

Leonard, Anna. The Views, Adoption and Use of E-books by Undergraduate Students at the University of Namibia. Pretoria: University of Pretoria, MA dissertation (Information Science), 2017. 213 pp.Google Scholar

http://uir.unisa.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10500/23180/dissertation_leonard_a.pdf.pdf?sequence=1

Nwagwu, W.E., and Okafor, J.-L. “Diffusion of E-books Among Postgraduate Students of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria.” Library Review, 63, no. 1/2 (2014): 86-109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

https://doi.org/10.1108/LR-04-2013-0056

Olasina, Gbolahan, and Mutula, Stephen “The Acceptance and Use of E-books: A Group Study in Nigeria.” International Journal of Global Education, 3, issue 3 (2014): 19-41.Google Scholar

http://www.ijge.info/ojs/index.php/ijge/article/download/346/437

Samzugi, Athumani, “User Preference on Use of Print and Electronic Resources in Selected Universities in Tanzania: A Survey.” Library Philosophy and Practice, Summer 7-ll-(2019): 1-31.Google Scholar

https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/2811/

Tlakula, T.P., and Fombad, M. “The Use of Electronic Resources by Undergraduate Students at the University of Venda, South Africa.” The Electronic Library, 35, no. 5 (2017): 861-881.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

https://doi.org/10.1108/EL-06-2016-0140

Ujakpa, Martin Mabeifam; Delene Heukelman, Lynn Kleinveldt, Symon Nyalugwe and Lucy Kiana “Use and Acceptance of E-Books Among Undergraduate Students.”

https://www.academia.edu/39108184/Use_and_Acceptance_of_E-Books_Among_Undergraduate_Students(A paper presented at the 1ST Africa Conference held in Nairobi http://www.ist-africa.org/home/ in May 2019.)

Wiese, Melanie and Du Plessis, Giselle “Emerging Technologies: E-Textbooks, One Piece of the Puzzle.” Africa Education Review, 14, no. 2 (2017): 15-36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/18146627.2016.1271281

Yamson, George Clifford, Appiah, Antonia B., and Tsegah, Marian “A Survey of Perception, Usage and Preferences Among Central University Undergraduate Students.” European Scientific Journal 14, no. 7 (March 2018): 291-304.Google Scholar http://dx.doi.org/10.19044/esj.2018.vl4n7p291

5 Mizrachi, Diane and Salaz, Alicia M. “Beyond the Surveys: Qualitative Analysis from the Academic Reading Format International Study (ARFIS).” College & Research Libraries, 81, no. 5 (July 2020): 808-821.Google Scholar https://doi.org/10.5860crl.81.5.808 https://crl.acrl.org/index.php/crl/article/view/24513/32333

(UK version of the study at https://copyrightliteracy.org/arfis-academic-reading-format-international-study/)

The Academic Reading Format International Study (ARFIS) collected data from over 21,000 university students in 33 countries (including one African country, South Africa) regarding students’ reading format preferences and behaviours when engaging with academic texts over a three year period. The authors of the study reported that quantitative analysis showed a consistent preference for print reading among most students worldwide:

“Analysis of the comments are consistent with earlier studies showing that students prefer print primarily because they believe print facilitates better learning engagement and outcomes with less detrimental physical effects such as eyestrain and headaches. Electronic format is preferred more for its perceived lower costs, greater accessibility, convenience and environmental friendliness. Some p-students admit to compromising with electronic for the same reasons, and many demonstrate a willingness to read shorter texts online. We found it common for e-students to prefer electronic format for everything except textbooks. In general, participants here prefer print for reasons related to learning, and prefer electronic formats for reasons related to cost and convenience. … Logistical factors of convenience and cost appear to be the primary drivers of their digital format preference.” (pp. 817-818)

6 For a more extensive discussion of the digital vs. print debate see also the sub-sections ‘The new digital age, and the digital versus print debate', and ‘Embracing the digital transformation’ in “Publishing in Africa: Where Are We Now? An Update for 2019.” Logos. Journal of the World Publishing Community,

Part I: Volume 30, Issue 3 (2019): 17-25. https://doi.org/10.1163/18784712-03003004

Part II: Volume 30, Issue 4 (2019): 16-36. https://doi.org/10.1163/18784712-03004002

Pre-print version of parts I and II combined also at (freely accessible) https://www.academia.edu/39210555/Publishing_in_Africa_Where_Are_We_Now_An_Update_for_2019

7 StreetLib-TNPS Publish Africa no. 8: (7 June 7020).Google Scholar https://mailchi.mp/22ae477893d5/streetlib-tnps-publish-africa-8?e=075ffd321e

8 Cox, Justin, and Kitchen, Stephanie “African Books Collective: African Published Books in the North.” African Research & Documentation. Journal of SCOLMA the UK Libraries and Archives Group on Africa”. No. 136: (2019)Google Scholar: 7.

https://scolma.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/SCOLMA-African-Research-No.l36-Web.pdf?fbclid=IwAR15CwY7rlxzWtKhfcqcJIRQqB2G7iWRb601oUoXmW7uKZAuTdiCluAWaaO(Full text of this issue, free access).

9 https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/pearson-moves-away-fromprint-and-adopts-digital-first-strategy.html

10 APNET's Country Report of African Publishers in COVID-19 Period (April 2020)

https://african-publishers.net/images/APNET_COUNTRY_REPORT_OF_PUBLISHERS_IN_AFRICA.pdf

See also:

IPA in Conversation with … Samuel Kolawole. Chairman, African Publishers Network.

African Publishing During the COVID-19 Pandemic. (24 June 2020)

https://www.internationalpublishers.org/copyright-news-blog/990-african-publishing-during-the-covid-19-pandemic (IPA Vice President, Bodour Al Qasimi in conversation with the chair of the African Publishers Network/APNET about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on publishing in Africa, and what the future might hold.)

The transcript of this conversation can be found at https://www.internationalpublishers.org/images/aa-content/other-ipa-events/other-ipa-events-2020/IPA-in-conversation-with/Transcript_IPA_in_conversation_with_Samuel_Kolawole_APNET.pdf

11 IPA Calls for Project Proposals to Tackle Africa's Remote Learning Challenges in 2021-2022. (02 June 2020) https://www.intemationalpublishers.org/copyright-news-blog/984-ipa-calls-for-project-proposals-to-tackle-africas-remote-learning-challenges-in-2021-2022

12 https://www.apinnovation.fund/

13 https://www.dubaicares.ae/

14 Startling Digital Divides in Distance Learning Emerge. (21 April 2020) https://en.unesco.org/news/startling-digital-divides-distance-learningemerge

This UNESCO press release states, inter alia:

“Disparities are particularly acute in low-income countries: in sub-Saharan Africa, 89 per cent of learners do not have access to household computers and 82% lack internet access.

Furthermore, while mobile phones can enable learners access to information, connect with their teachers and with one another, about 56 million learners live in locations not served by mobile networks, almost half in sub-Saharan Africa.“

15 https://www.internationalpublishers.org/copyright-news-blog/984-ipa-calls-for-project-proposals-to-tackle-africa-s-remote-learning-challenges-in-2021-2022