ADEQUATE LIBRARY AND INFORMATION RESOURCES; A CATALYST FOR OPTIMAL UTILIZATION IN ACADEMIC LIBRARIES BY STUDENTS OF TERTIARY INSTITUTION IN BENUE STATE

The library is an important aspect of the education system which support education in general. It plays an important role in the teaching and learning process. This study examined adequate of library and information resources as a catalyst for optimal utilization of library resources among students in tertiary institutions Nigeria. The population of the study comprises all the undergraduate students in the Ten tertiary institutions in Benue state namely, Benue State University Makurdi, Benue State polytechnic Ugbokolo, Joseh Tarka University Makurdi, College of Education katsina\Ala, Akperen Orshi Polytechnic Yandev, Akawe Torkula Polytechnic Makurdi, Nigeria army Institute of Technology and environment studies. Purposive sampling technique was employed to select 30 undergraduate students each from the four departments, making a total of one hundred and twenty (120) undergraduates in all. Four research questions guided the study. The instrument titled “Utilization of Library Resources Questionnaire” (ULRQ) developed by the researchers was used for data collection. The validated instrument by experts for data collection had a reliability coefficient of 0.76. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The major findings of the study are that there are adequate library resources in the library for students’ use and that students use the library mainly for consultation of books and reference materials. It was concluded that the extent of the use of library resources and utilization is not a key determinant for students’ academic activeness. A number of recommendations were put forward for improvement of library use but the most prominent suggestion was that more up to date and relevant information sources should be acquired for the library