IMPACT OF INTERNET AND THE WAY IT INFLUENCE ON STUDENTS READING CULTURE

1.1 Introduction

Students are rarely interested in reading for pleasure and enjoyment instead they read only to pass examination. The declining interest in reading culture among our children (especially those in primary and secondary schools) is a cause for alarm and a challenge to all and something need to be done to alleviate this yawning problem. Unfortunately, reading is not taught or included in school curriculum. Reading is not a subject and cannot be taught separately as most other subjects in the curriculum rather it is subsumed in every other subject and is regarded as a tool facilitating many other types of learning.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.

1.2 Background of Study

Reading is an essential tool for lifelong learning. It is important for everyone to develop the rudiments of reading and the culture of reading always so as to survive in life. Reading according to Holte (1998) adds quality to life and provides access to culture and cultural heritage. He pointed out that reading empowers and emancipates citizens and bring people together. Okeke (2000) reaffirms that the art of reading is a priceless instrument for everyone. It is one of the most important activities of life through which we enter into the life and experiences of others and extend our knowledge, scope of experience and enjoyment. It has critical role to play in the overall development of an individual and the nation at large. Reading experience can be obtained in the library. The school library is a gateway to knowledge and will serve as a starting point or road map to reading and the promotion to reading culture. The library provides books and other resources which will help shape thoughts and influence the actions of students throughout life with active supervision by an experienced librarian.

Due to technological development, reading habits are changing. In our society today, while technology is slowly taking a steady control over individual lives, the reading habit is fast vanishing into thin air (The Hindu, 2004). Students now lack the skill of reading. Instead they spend more hours on the internet. Browsing the net, playing with funky handsets and passing non-stop SMSs and chatting with friends seem to be the order of the day, thereby making reading a book or any other piece of written material in a quiet or peaceful corner of a library or home become an archaic idea for most school children and adults (The Hindu, 2004). Obama (2008) in his speech pinpointed that children cannot achieve unless they raise their expectations and turn off television sets. Shabi and Udofia (2009) noted that active learning from books is better than passive learning such as watching televisions and playing games.

Nowadays, due to the rat race syndrome, parents pay little or no attention to their children’s reading ability, parents themselves lack the skill and the culture of reading such that some do not read to their kids. Students are rarely interested in reading for pleasure and enjoyment instead they read only to pass examination. The declining interest in reading culture among our children (especially those in primary and secondary schools) is a cause for alarm and a challenge to all and something need to be done to alleviate this yawning problem. Unfortunately, reading is not taught or included in school curriculum. Reading is not a subject and cannot be taught separately as most other subjects in the curriculum rather it is subsumed in every other subject and is regarded as a tool facilitating many other types of learning.

Mefor (2010) urged all Nigerians schools to launch a readership promotion campaign which will help to inculcate the culture of reading in children. It is also important to start early to inculcate the culture of reading early enough in a child. Also Olukemi (2010) advised Nigerian youths to imbibe the reading culture in all their endeavors. She lamented that lack of reading culture among youths nowadays has greatly affected quality of graduates being produced by the nation’s higher institutions. It is against this background that this study tries to investigate on the influence of internet on the reading culture of pupils in homes and schools. Improving access to relevant information and promoting a reading culture are prerequisites for strengthening literacy skills, widening education and learning opportunities, and helping people to address the causes of poverty (Makotsi, 2005).

Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Impact of Internet and the way it Influence on Students Reading Culture.

1.3 Statement Of The Problem

Investigation revealed that reading is the springboard of any literacy programme. It does not only give learners an active place, but also places them in the centre of pedagogy and the curriculum (Corcoran and Evans, 1987). Reading is very powerful and indispensable equipment for learning and acquisition of the varied skills and experiences needed by man to develop a satisfactory personal life. It is important that pupils/students should develop positive habits towards reading of books as a life-long learning experience. Gradually, the advent of internet has led to the development of various applications for games and chatting which has continue to take students time leaving reading books as old fashioned. However, the researcher is examining the impact of internet on the student’s reading culture.

1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to examine the Impact of Internet and the way it Influence on Students Reading Culture using Federal Polytechnic Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State as a case study. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To examine the impact of internet on the student’s reading culture.
2. To examine the impact of internet on student’s academic achievement.
3. To examine the advantages and disadvantages of internet on students academic performance.
4. To determine the students’ reasons for their use of the Internet.
5. To ascertain the frequency of use of the Internet by the students.
6. To investigate the influence of the use of the Internet by the students on their reading culture.

1.5 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

• Does the frequency of use of the Internet positively impact students?
• Does the use of internet influences students reading culture?
• What is the impact of internet on the student’s reading culture?
• What is the impact of internet on student’s academic achievement?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of internet on students’ academic performance?

1.6 Research Hypothesis

In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.

Hypothesis One

• H0: There is no significant relationship between internet and the student’s reading culture
• H1: There is a significant relationship between internet and the student’s reading culture

1.7 Significance of Study

The following are the relevance of the Impact of Internet and the way it Influence on Students Reading Culture research work:

1. The results from this study will educate the administrators in the education sector and the general public on the effect of internet and other related technologies on the students’ reading culture in Nigeria.
2. This research will be a contribution to the body of literature in the area of the effect of personality trait on student’s academic performance, thereby constituting the empirical literature for future research in the subject area.

1.8 Scope of Study

The scope of the research focuses on the Impact of Internet and the way it Influence on Students Reading Culture in Federal Polytechnic Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

1.9 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this research work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this establishment to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
3. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
4. Lack of Initial Cooperation from Respondents: A particular limitation of this work came as a result of the respondent refusal to offer their cooperation at the initial time they were contacted. This contributed in making the success of this research study difficult.

1.10 Definition of Terms

Reading Culture:

It is the use of reading as a regular activity and the cultivation of an attitude and the possession of skills that make reading a pleasurable, regular and constant activity.