Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Library and Information Studies)http://hdl.handle.net/11394/31532024-03-28T09:45:58Z2024-03-28T09:45:58ZRe-constituting Ghanaian public university libraries to conform to universal design principles to accommodate students with disabilitiesAlu, Augustine Adukohttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/105322023-11-14T00:03:37Z2023-01-01T00:00:00ZRe-constituting Ghanaian public university libraries to conform to universal design principles to accommodate students with disabilities
Alu, Augustine Aduko
Ten Ghanaian public university libraries were investigated to determine if they conform to universal design principles to accommodate students with disabilities. The study employed a multiple case study design and was underpinned by the Social Model of Disability and the International Federation of Libraries Associations and Institutions checklist for access to libraries for persons with disabilities. A mixed methods approach was adopted employing online questionnaires, and in-depth interviews to gather data from university librarians, heads of the physical development office, heads of disability units, and students with visual, mobile and hearing impairments. Data were further verified by observation and document analysis. Data were analysed thematically.
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
2023-01-01T00:00:00ZThe use of information and communication technologies for accessing HIV and AIDS information by healthcare professionals in ZimbabweGandiwa, Tapiwahttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/84872021-10-01T00:01:21Z2021-01-01T00:00:00ZThe use of information and communication technologies for accessing HIV and AIDS information by healthcare professionals in Zimbabwe
Gandiwa, Tapiwa
This study sought to investigate the information needs of selected HIV and AIDS health organisations in Zimbabwe with a view to proposing a framework for developing an information access platform. ICTs can play a pivotal role in improving access to HIV and AIDS information and in coordinating HIV and AIDS activities in Zimbabwe. However, the development of ICTs in Zimbabwe’s health sector has been haphazard and idiosyncratic to a plethora of HIV and AIDS organisations operating in Zimbabwe. This study proposes a framework for the development of ICTs for accessing HIV and AIDS information in Zimbabwe. The needs-based framework was proposed after evaluating the information needs of healthcare workers and current health information technologies. An integrated theoretical framework incorporating the General System Theory, the Social Construction of Technology theory and the HOT-fit model was used to frame the study.
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
2021-01-01T00:00:00ZInvestigating the relevance of quality measurement indicators for South African higher education librariesNtshuntshe-Matshaya, Pateka Patriciahttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/83372021-08-17T00:01:40Z2021-01-01T00:00:00ZInvestigating the relevance of quality measurement indicators for South African higher education libraries
Ntshuntshe-Matshaya, Pateka Patricia
This study investigates the relevance of quality measurement indicators at higher education libraries for faculty academics, librarians, and students. The study followed a mixed-method design with a mixture of quantitative and qualitative data collection. Faculty academics, librarians and students ranked the existing quality measurement indicators for South African higher education libraries.
The findings revealed that for library quality measures to meet the needs of faculty academics, librarians, and students, the resources must be accessible both physically and virtually, and staff should be accountable and willing to offer services responsive to the users' needs and expectations of a safe, secure, and comfortable library space, be it physical or virtual. The qualitative data highlighted the importance of adequate resources and the adoption of new developments as measures for quality.
Quality measurement indicators must include elements such as adequate funding; relevant resources aligned with teaching and learning programmes; programmes that are integrated into teaching plans; effective supplier collaboration with respect to the process of acquiring relevant learning materials; effective student training; communication of the value of library services and alignment with the student learning outcomes; research support in a digital environment with e-tools and website navigability; research data management; and open access, which is a prominent role of the library. Based on the data, there was a quality measure (process) that was commendable even though it did not form part of the existing quality measures nor a service whose relevance was assessed. The separation of undergraduate and postgraduate learning spaces was amongst those services that ranked quite high from the students' responses (qualitative data). Even though there were differences emphasized on each indicator by either faculty academics or students, there were also discrepancies in the interpretation of what each quality indicator means to each study population group. As the study of this nature has recommendations and gaps identified in terms of research findings, it is quite important to record that there was a series of gaps that were identified in terms of library expectations and perceptions. These gaps were suggested as part of further research that must be conducted to fill the void in terms of library users’ voices in the development of higher education library measurement indicators.
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
2021-01-01T00:00:00ZA model to foster the use of records for evidence-based decision-making by senior managers in western cape governmental bodies, South Africa.Momoti, Nikiwe Gloriahttp://hdl.handle.net/11394/81182021-04-08T11:26:46Z2021-01-01T00:00:00ZA model to foster the use of records for evidence-based decision-making by senior managers in western cape governmental bodies, South Africa.
Momoti, Nikiwe Gloria
South Africa has placed emphasis on evidence-based decision-making for justifying service delivery improvement decisions. Evidence-based decision-making entails decisions made by referring to verifiable facts and figures available from a variety of sources of evidence such as organizational records. Records are created or received during the conduct of business and contain evidence of organizational activities. Their use as sources of evidence is continuous. Most records management scholars hypothesize that the use of records as sources of evidence for decision-making contributes to improved service delivery. In the same breath, some scholars lament their minimal use as sources of evidence for decision-making in the South African public sector due to poor records management. This descriptive, positivist quantitative study used a cross-sectional survey to determine the extent to which records as sources of evidence were used for evidence-based decision-making by senior managers in Western Cape governmental bodies,
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
2021-01-01T00:00:00Z