Browsing by Author "Majyambere, Moise."

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Information needs and information seeking behaviour of international students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg campus.
(2012) Majyambere, Moise.; Leach, Athol Brian.
The purpose of this study was to identify the information needs and information seeking behaviour of international students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg Campus (UKZNP). The study assisted in identifying different information services offered by the International Student Office (ISO). It also determined various information seeking situations involved in relation to academic needs and personal issues of international students. The approach that the researcher undertook was a triangulation approach where both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Instruments used for data collection were a self-administered questionnaire and semi-structured interview. A sample size of 150 international students was surveyed, with 137 students responding, giving a response rate of 91.3%. The Head of the International Student Office (HISO) was also interviewed. The validity and reliability of the instrument were established by pre-testing the questionnaire with four international students enrolled at UKZNP. The quantitative data was analysed using SPSS and the qualitative data was analysed using thematic content analysis. The international students’ information seeking behaviour was identified using Wilson’s (1999) model of information behaviour which suited the group under study. The outcome of the study revealed that more than half, 62.7%, of academic needs were characterized by two situations, namely, the registration process (32.2%) and issues around lectures (30.5%). Other main issues discussed were based on information literacy skills and English language problems experienced by international students enrolled at UKZNP. In terms of personal issues, a majority (60.2%) of respondents mentioned either accommodation (34.9%) or health issues (25.3%). A minority, just on 30%, of the respondents resided on campus and for the majority of the respondents who lived off campus, accessing the Library and computer LANs after hours was not possible as transport at night was not always available. Thus the accommodation need was regarded as a very significant problem. The study indicated that two main sources used in relation to academic needs were library resources and information from the Faculty offices, while the most used source by international students for their personal issues was the consultation of colleagues. Based on the results and conclusions of the study, recommendations for action and further research were made. Recommendations included the need to consider a temporary registration period during which the complex requirements of the registration process could be pursued and satisfied by the students and, in response to the accommodation crisis experienced by students, consideration be given to the Student Housing Office giving priority to first year international students in particular when allocating rooms.
Information seeking behaviour of humanities/arts international postgraduate students in public universities in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa.
(2014) Majyambere, Moise.; Hoskins, Ruth Geraldine Melonie.
The study investigated the information seeking behaviour of Humanities/Arts international postgraduate students in public universities in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Three public universities participated in the study, namely the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), University of Zululand (UNIZULU) and Durban University of Technology (DUT). The study applied a survey approach which included both quantitative and qualitative methods. The data collection tools were a self-administered questionnaire for the international postgraduate students, a focus group discussion with students who were not given questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the Heads of International Students Office (HISOs) at the surveyed universities. Research tools were triangulated with the aim of obtaining richer data. Pre-testing of research tools, evaluation of research methods, and consideration of ethical issues were discussed to ensure validity and reliability of research findings. The quantitative data were collected through questionnaires and were analysed using SPSS, while the qualitative data were drawn from the individual interviews and focus group discussion and were analysed using thematic content analysis. The overall response rate was 91.9% (218 out of 237 sample size). The study was informed by Wilson’s (1999) model of information behaviour. The findings of the study revealed that international postgraduate students had academic and personal information needs at the host universities. Students who participated in the study were all from African countries (excluding South Africa). The study discovered the main areas of information needs for the respondents were predominantly the information services related to the registration process; learning and research purposes based on university protocols; English language competency as a medium of instruction; and information literacy and computer skills. Students had to secure compulsory documents required for registration such as a passport with a valid study permit, medical aid insurance cover, proof of payment of tuition fees and payment of an international levy before they could be registered. In addition, new international postgraduate students had to secure a South African Qualification Authority (SAQA) accreditation to register. The study noted that accommodation was a major personal need and affected academic studies for many international students staying off-campus since they were not able to access the library facilities and had limited use of the Internet services from campus. The study revealed different sources of information used by surveyed students to satisfy their academic information needs. The library resources and services were mentioned by 100% of the participants as the main source for their academic needs. The Internet was the most used source for both academic resources and social motivation to communicate with colleagues and relatives back home and helped to overcome distance. The study noted that students were involved in both active and passive information seeking behaviour depending on the nature of the need. It was indicated that students had actively consulted supervisors for guidance regarding research projects and also obtained support from subject librarians to search for information. Students had however also passively received information from their colleagues while interacting with them and obtained information from the Internet. The study revealed problems related to limited English language proficiency of international students based on their academic backgrounds. The study identified other problems experienced by international postgraduate students such as their limited information literacy and computer skills, shortage of the Internation Students Office (ISO) staff and slow service, delays in renewing study permits, poor medical aid services, high tuitions fees, regular increase in the international levy, lack of awareness of available university services, and lack of a policy document regarding international students. The study revealed that support offered by the host universities should be improved in order to promote the information services delivered to the international postgraduate students. Participation in the orientation programme for all international students must be made compulsory. The study recommends that the ISOs should improve liaison with the Home Affairs Department, Momentum (Ingwe) and CompCare. The study also recommends that the universities should increase the number of residence rooms and assign a staff member to deal directly with accommodation problems of international students. The major outcome of the study was an information behaviour model of international postgraduate students. The study concludes that a policy document regarding services for international students should be formulated and communicated to all appropriate bodies especially key service providers and international students.