Browsing by Author "Gikunju, Milcah"

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Case Study: Kenyan University Libraries Status of Access to Library Spaces and Facilities for Persons with Disabilities
(Journal of Arts & Humanities, 2023-07-12) Kwanya, Tom; Gikunju, Milcah; Odero, Damaris
ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper was to find out the position of library spaces and facilities at the university libraries in Kenya particularly in serving users with disabilities. The study was conducted using a pragmatic research philosophy, a convergent mixed methods design and a multiple-case studies strategy. The study population was university library users and librarians drawn from six public and private universities in Kenya. The six universities were selected purposefully based on their age (time they have been in existence) with an assumption that old universities have more developed infrastructure. Data was collected from students and academic staff who participated in an online survey; librarians participated in online focus groups and follow up online surveys while university librarians and students with disabilities had telephone call interviews. There were follow up telephone calls with the university librarians. The online survey was conducted using online questionnaires that were distributed via emails and Whatsapp. Online focus group discussions were conducted in Google Meet platform and interviews were conducted via personal telephone calls. The qualitative data collected was analysed thematically while the quantitative data adopted a statistical approach that encompasses descriptive and inferential statistics. After exploring inclusivity of university library spaces and facilities in Kenya for users with disabilities, this paper noted though the university libraries offered some space and facilities for PWDs, these were far from sufficient. The findings revealed that library staff required training on how to handle and assist PWDs and sign language was largely emphasised. However, the study concluded that accommodating diverse needs of persons with disabilities is a long-term process that requires involvement of all the relevant stakeholders. In addition, the study noted that access to services and facilities for PWDs is another significant aspect of modernised university library.
A review of citizen librarianship in academic libraries in Kenya
(2019-07-17) Gikunju, Milcah; Nyamato-Kwenda, Roselyn; Kwanya, Tom
Citizen librarianship is the involvement of ordinary library users to create, review and share library services and content. Citizen librarianship emerged from the concept of citizen science in which non-experts are actively involved in and contribute to scientific research projects. The purpose of this chapter is to assess the understanding and extent of use of citizen librarianship in academic libraries in Kenya; identify the citizen media used in academic libraries in Kenya; analyse how the academic library users in Kenya interact with citizen media in their library spaces; examine the impact of citizen media on the effectiveness of academic libraries in Kenya; and propose a citizen librarianship model for academic libraries in Kenya. Primary data for the study on which this chapter is based was collected from the web sites of the libraries of all the chartered public and private universities in Kenya. Additional data was collected from key informant interviews with academic library directors and systems librarians in Kenya selected through information-oriented purposive sampling. The findings revealed that the majority of academic librarians in Kenya have never heard of the concepts of citizen science or citizen librarianship. Although citizen librarianship offers an important framework for users’ involvement in meeting their own information needs and those of their peers through citizen media, its application in Kenyan academic libraries is low. The findings of this study may be used by academic librarians to adopt citizen librarianship in their institutions.
Status of Library Spaces and Facilities in University Libraries in Kenya
(European Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2023-06-25) Kwanya, Tom; Gikunju, Milcah; Odero, Damaris
In the global sphere, university library users’ needs continue to change thus university libraries are repositioning themselves to address the changing users’ needs. An important aspect of the change revolves around the library space and many university libraries are making efforts to change their spaces to meet the need driven by information technology, improved higher education systems and shifting of users’ expectations. This paper discusses the status of library spaces in Kenyan university libraries and is based on research conducted using pragmatic research paradigm and a convergent mixed methods design and multiple case studies strategy. The study population was university library users in Kenya consisting of six (6) participating universities (three public and three private) purposefully selected based on their age (time they have been in existence). Students and academic staff participated in a survey; librarians participated in focus groups while university librarians had interviews. This study collected data through online questionnaires, online focus group discussions and telephone call interviews. The qualitative data was thematically analysed while the quantitative data adopted a statistical approach that encompasses descriptive statistics. The results show some common available library spaces among the university libraries, the most preferred available library spaces and most frequently used library spaces by the users on daily basis. The study recommends continuous assessment of library spaces in the universities in order to understand library users’ needs and make informed decisions.