Information Literacy and Digital Divide: The Case of the University of Botswana Students Studying Part-Time

Abstract

In Botswana, the costs and requirements to study full-time are very high. Not everyone can afford to study full-time without forfeiting their current roles, for example, in 1999 the Center for Continuing Education (CCE) in Botswana launched a Diploma in Primary Education distance education programme, to upgrade academic and professional qualifications of some 8000 primary certificate holders to diploma level. However, those teachers could not be released to attend courses in conventional institutions without compromising primary school work progress (Nage-Sibande, 2005: 250). Sometimes work and family life are core determinants to furthering education. Universities provide opportunities for students to choose their mode of learning as well as setting their pace of study. The University of Botswana (UB) like many other universities around the globe offers students the option to study and carry out other life commitments at the same time. This is in realization of the fact that learning part-time is a very important alternative and an opportunity for people to continue learning while they go on with their normal workloads and family or community responsibilities (Nage-Sibande, 2005). This paper will focus on students pursuing Part-time Diploma in Accounting and Business Studies programme (DABS) based at different geographical locations in the country. It is intended to discuss the plight of these students with regards to their lack of participation in the information literacy skills programme (ILS) offered to full-time undergraduate students as well as the inadequate access to both Information and Communication Technology and library resources. The paper will also discuss how their lack of access to ICT resources continues to widen the digital divide between those having access and those without access. Based on the authors' past participation in the teaching of ILS to DABS students it will discuss the pivotal role played by UB staff in the teaching of Information Literacy Skills (ILS) to DABS students as well as the collaborations and partnerships between librarians and other stakeholders such as the Extra Mural Unit of the Center for Continuing Education (CCE); Communication and Study Skills Unit (CSSU) and Computer Science which made it possible for Librarians to actively participate in the teaching of ILS. Further, the paper will discuss the problems experienced regarding issues of student support and access to and provision of resources, which are essential to the successful provision of courses taken by part-time students. Lastly, the paper will discuss efforts made by the CCE, North branch library, in Francistown, which is the outreach arm of the Department of Library Services at UB, in ensuring that library materials are provided to satellite centers outside Francistown through Technical Colleges, and the challenges experienced in the process.