Poverty and Phobia of Internet Connectivity and Usage among University Students in Southwestern Nigeria

Handbook of Research on Transformative Online Education and Liberation: Models for Social Equality

Gulsun KurubacakAnadolu University, Turkey

T. Volkan YuzerAnadolu University, Turkey

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Handbook of research on transformative online education and liberation : models for social equality / Gulsun Kurubacak and T. Volkan Yuzer, editors. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. Summary: "This book focuses on the societal, social, political, economic and philosophical perspectives of transformative models and how digital learning communities foster critical reflections and perspective change, building a better understanding on how online educators/designers/tutors/learners can talk about injustice and inequality to a virtual group"--Provided by publisher. ISBN 978-1-60960-046-4 (hardcover) -- ISBN 978-1-60960-047-1 (ebook) 1. Transformative learning--Computer-assisted instruction. 2. Transformative learning--Social aspects. 3. Critical pedagogy. 4. Equality. I. Kurubacak, Gulsun, 1964- II. Yuzer, T. Volkan, 1972- LC1100.H36 2011 370.11'50785--dc22 2010017211

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DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60960-046-4.ch026

Chapter 26

Poverty and Phobia of Internet Connectivity and Usage

among University Students in Southwestern Nigeria

Blessing F. AdeoyeUniversity of Lagos, Nigeria

Grace Modupe AdeboUniversity of Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

Felix Kayode OlakulehinNational Open University of Nigeria, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

The impact of the Internet on teaching and learning processes has taken previously unimaginable di-mensions, by curriculum specialists and educational technologists, from both developed and developing societies. Though the Internet has transformed the way knowledge is created, presented and acquired, it has also deepened the fundamental inequalities which have affected the quality of higher education provision in the 21st century, especially in developing societies like Nigeria, where poverty and under-development are still an integral part of the social realities. This chapter examines the phenomenon of poverty and phobia regarding Internet connectivity and usage among university students in south-western Nigeria. Using the descriptive survey research method, a five-point likert-type structured questionnaire was administered on 362 randomly selected students from 7 universities in south-western Nigeria. Findings indicated that respondents have a high confidence level of 78% for Internet usage, with the major challenge being the cost and low quality Internet connectivity, notwithstanding the urban locations of the institutions. Internet access by students is generally low due to high costs of Internet connectivity, access, sporadic and unstable electricity. There is general absence of financial aid mechanisms and this makes it difficult for students to procure reliable Internet access, even though they have high confidence level to utilize it.

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Poverty and Phobia of Internet Connectivity and Usage among University Students

INTRODUCTION

In thinking about agents of change and develop-ment, online education remains the most potent force imaginable. All that humans have achieved throughout history can be attributed to one form of education or the other, and what they have to what they do not have. Arising from its central role in social and infrastructural development, technological education quickly gained impor-tance in North America and Western Europe in the eighteenth century. For instance, many uni-versities can be found online with virtual classes (i.e. e-learning), learning management systems, use of social networking tools, e-portfolios, etc.

Following developments in the technological landscape leading to a shift from industrial to information and currently knowledge society, emphasis shifted to the use of computer-mediated telecommunications and their influence on soci-ety. This is a simplistic rather than an exhaustive description of the knowledge based society in which we are currently operating. However, it provides a viewpoint of the nature of learning in a technology driven age. At the heart of this digital age is transformative learning.

Transformative learning is the heart of signifi-cant adult learning and central to adult education (Mezirow, 2000). As a theory it was created to capture the unique adult experience that occurs as a result of a shift in perspective. Mezirow’s concept of transformative learning encompasses three themes: the centrality of experience, critical reflection, and rational discourse in the process of meaning structure transformation (Taylor, 1998). Given these functions, it is important to note that transformational process can be enhanced with the Information and Technologies (ICTs) tools espe-cially the Internet. Online learning has significant implications for transformative learning and can contribute to the expansion and understanding of the theory. Individuals who tap into the unlimited information available through the ever-growing numbers of websites have the potential to expand

their knowledge, synthesize information, deepen understanding about various issues and topics and able to transform learning. In order for learning to be well transformed, Internet must be used effectively.

BACKGROUND

The use of the Internet to transform online educa-tion has been handicapped in some parts of the world; there are many factors contributing to the ineffective use. Some factors specific to the samples study in this paper are difficulties with Internet connectivity, social economic factors and Internet phobia and all these can be attributed to the so called “digital divide”.

The digital divide is a phenomenon linked not only to the topic of use of ICT, access to the Inter-net, but also to usage and benefits of ICT (Fuchs & Horak, 2006). One of the biggest developments in expanding access to information and com-munication technologies (ICT) in most African countries involves communications infrastructure. According to International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators (2007), Africa has 280 million total telephone subscribers, of which some 260 mil-lion (over 85%) are mobile cellular subscribers, representing the continent with the highest ratio of mobile to total telephone subscribers of any region in the world. It is the region with the highest mobile cellular growth rate (over the past 5 years averages almost 65% year on year). The continent accounts for 14% of the world’s population, but for only around 7% of all fixed and mobile sub-scribers worldwide. It also has some 50 million Internet users, for an Internet penetration of just 5%; however, Europe’s Internet penetration is 8 times higher. This data suggests that Africa has immense potential to improve its infrastructure deployment and telecommunications usage.

The following paragraph presents literature reviews on some of the difficulties in the use of ICT.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

Difficulties with Internet Connectivity in Nigeria

The Internet is without doubt the fastest growing communication technology today (Dlodlo and Sithole, 2001). It took only four years for the Internet to achieve the same mark as the televi-sion revolution, which took 13 years to reach 50 million viewers (Molosi, 2001). With such rapid speed, the education field has not been spared of the onslaught of this revolution. Internet revolution has brought drastic changes to the field of educa-tion. It has revolutionized the way students learn and how teachers teach. Indeed, the permeation of the Internet technology into classrooms has created the opportunities for students to be active learners and allowed instructors to be facilita-tors of learning (Anderson & Reed, 1998). New knowledge and the use of new technologies have resulted in the creation of new products, services, and jobs, some of which were unimaginable only a few decades ago.

The Information and Communication Tech-nologies (ICT) revolution started in Nigeria after the return to democratic rule in 1999 (Ajayi, 2003). This notwithstanding several government agencies and other and other stakeholders in the private sector have initiated ICT driven projects and pro-grammes to impact all levels of the educational sector. The Federal Government of Nigeria also realized that the country was lagging behind in the race to become a digital society, and saw the potential of ICT to empower the people - particu-larly, people with disabilities, women, youth and rural communities. Therefore, it declared Informa-tion and Communication Technologies (ICTs) as a national priority in the year 2001 (Bello, 2003). Yet, Nigeria still lacks the infrastructure for the full-scale deployment of e-learning facilities. This is besides the high cost of using the technology and maintaining it. Telephone density in the rural areas is still low while Internet access is concentrated

only in urban centers and a few higher learning institutions. Furthermore, most of the telephones in the urban areas are within offices rather than households.

Also, the development of ICT infrastructure in Nigeria has been impeded by insufficient in-frastructure, poor provision of telecommunication networks, lack of locally created content, lack of personal computers, technophobia and poor policy regimes (Mutula, 2003). Contributing to the debate on ICT infrastructural development in Nigeria, Adeya and Oyelaran-Oyeyinka (2002) argued that the implementation of ICT in the service of education is generally hampered by low initial capital investment, inadequate budgets for development and recurrent expenditure, and a weak ICT infrastructure, especially in rural areas. Indeed, the main users of the Internet tend to be educational institutions, multinational corporations, international organizations and non-governmental organizations. Most of the situations addressed above can be attributed to the economic situation of the country.

Social Economic Status

The International Labor Organization (ILO) under the Jobs and Skills Program for Africa (JASPA) study in 1982 constructed poverty lines on the basis of 1978 income data which amounted to 65 Naira per month per family in urban areas and 35 Naira per month per family in rural areas. The poverty line assumed in the case of urban households 50 Naira per month per family for food and the rest for housing, clothing etc, and set the rural prices to be 40 percent below urban level. According to these guidelines, it was estimated that 34 percent were poor in urban areas (instead of 15 percent in 1974), while 40 percent were below the poverty line in rural area.

Also, the World Bank Food Security Study of 1989 which drew its results from unprocessed 1985/86 data confirmed this information. Accord-ing to the study, poverty lines were set at NI50

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for urban and N110 for rural areas using only food expenditures. This led to 22.2 percent urban households and 17.2 percent of rural households falling below the poverty line or were food inse-cure, and 18 percent of all households being poor (Canagarajah, et al, 1997). Due to the high cost of using and maintaining the technology, many people cannot afford to subscribe to monthly Internet services hence have to visit local cafes which are either not available in the rural areas, expensive where available and the servers are often slow while many cafes are overcrowded.

Out of the various measures of socio-economic status, education has the most significant impact on people. According to a recent ILO report, 85% of the world’s youth live in developing economies and the proportion is not likely to change much in the near future given the demographic trends in these economies (ILO, 2004 cited in Braimah & Kings, 2006). Unfortunately, the youth in these countries are relatively disadvantaged in terms of employment. They are 3.8 times more likely to be unemployed than adults, as compared to 2.3 times in industrialized economies. The report also revealed that labor force participation rates for young people decreased in the world as a whole by almost four percent points over the last decade partly as a result of young people staying in education but also because many young people become so frustrated with the lack of employ-ment opportunities that they simply drop out of the labor force. The report further claimed that there are 130 million young people (representing 24%) of the world’s 550 million working people who work but are unable to lift themselves and their families above the equivalent of one US dollar per day poverty line. These young people struggle to survive, often performing work under unsatisfactory conditions in the informal economy. As a result, many young people cannot afford to use the Internet and some see it as away to get rich quick. Apart from the cost of getting online, some are just fearful when it comes to the use of the Internet.

Internet Phobia

There are many different stages people go through in the process of becoming an Internet literate. Leon (2000) described these stages as novelty and frustration, trial and error, and the confidence and bragging stage. The stage that contributes to the Internet phobia is novelty and frustration. There are many reasons for Internet phobia, Leon (2000) presented the results of analyzing various aspects of an online generational community of students who enrolled in an Internet-integrated college course. The students reported on various aspects of their experiences as part of the class work. The experience of the students when they first began searching for articles on the Internet including being a bit nervous and erratic in looking for top-ics to research because of there were no specific structure to guide them; some getting lost online for not knowing where to look for information, and having too much information to look through.

Mastery of Internet use can be helpful in fa-cilitating a teacher-led, knowledge-based learning approach or it can help implementing a student-centered, constructivist and progressive approach in learning, but of course, there are reasons for people to be fearful when using the Internet. Perhaps the Internet anxiety people demonstrate is rooted in the horrible news reports they often hear about Internet predators. The horror stories so common to the public about scams and deadly encounters with strangers are other sources of In-ternet Phobia and these can make people anxious when using the Internet.

Despite all the potentials offered by ICT, on-line fraudulent activities have become a serious concern to many people. Although most Internet frauds stem from traditional scams, the number of schemes uniquely and ingeniously exploiting new technology is multiplying. The Washington Post reported that scam in communications, which have turned up worldwide and first, surfaced in the 1980s in letters and faxes and are now arriving with increasing frequency in e-mails and many

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are sent from Nigeria or neighboring West African nations (Washington Post, April 29, 2002).

Majority of Nigerian students come from poor backgrounds and cannot afford the cost of using Internet facilities. Because of their economic con-ditions, some of them are found to be involved in Internet fraud usually referred to as ‘Yahoo Yahoo’ business. Internet fraud and the attendant conse-quences when caught have created psychological problems such as fear in of some people in rela-tion to its usage and connectivity. Also, with the emergence of the Internet as a new communication medium, the pattern of social interaction has been altered profoundly. It is therefore inevitable that it would exert a considerable impact on education and social interaction. For example, young people find it easier to interact with one another across vast distances using Internet facilities, considering the fact that it is relatively cheaper than mobile telecommunications.

Mason (2007) argued that use of the Internet is only one small example of a bigger change in the kinds of learning that are necessary in a con-nected world. The change is evolutionary rather than revolutionary, but it is taking place ‘before our very eyes’ that makes identifying the really significant aspects of the change sometimes hard to distinguish from the transitory impacts of technology-based connectivity.

Nevertheless, according to Mason a few trends seem undeniable. For instance, the need to interact with people and information as part of the process of understanding and developing as a learner. Passive acceptance of ‘authentic knowledge’ is no longer appropriate. Learners need to be proactive in determining what and how they are to learn, through engaging with ideas and with other learn-ers. One of the keys to this transition is by sharing know-how, by using and adapting what someone else has already learned. The acceleration in the production of new knowledge and the consequent necessity of processing more information at greater speed than before.

The pressures of time are driving an emphasis on durable information and the ability of learners to distinguish this from the ephemeral. Learning and reflecting on learning can no longer be associated only with the classroom. Informal opportunities to learn at work, at home are gradually becoming as significant as formal courses. The globalization of information and access to that information, such that knowing how is more important than knowing what.

In a world where information is instantly accessible by all, what is valued is how to find, synthesize and apply information. The Internet is the current vehicle for this change and underscores the acceptance of Knowledge as that which can be digitized and transmitted electronically. The world of the Internet reflects and perhaps accelerates the increasing privatization of life and blurs the hard and fast line between the real and the virtual. At the same time, it has created communities of com-municators, learners and practitioners that rival face-to-face groups in their intimacy, support and learning outcomes.

PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY

This study seeks to investigate the phenomenon of poverty and the phobia regarding Internet con-nectivity and usage among university students in south-western Nigeria. It attempts to establish the trends and factors defining Internet access and us-age among students in south-western Nigeria. The pertinent questions in this study are stated below:

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. How do the socio-economic characteristics of Nigerian students affect access and usage of the Internet?

2. What is the relationship between poverty, fear and Internet usage?

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3. Is there any significant difference in usage between rural and urban areas?

4. What are the catalyzing factors that encour-age some Nigerian students to engage in Internet crimes?

Significance of the Study

Through findings in this study and activities in this chapter, students, educationists, policy mak-ers and the members of the society at large will develop a deeper understanding of the issues that could help in dealing with unequal structures that foster social injustice, as well as appreciate the phenomenon of poverty and the phobia regarding Internet connectivity and usage among university students in South-western Nigeria.

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

The Quantitative approach was used to for this study. This approach refers to the systematic em-pirical investigation of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships (Wikipedia, 2006). Specifically a descriptive design was ad-opted for this study. This enabled the researchers to determine students’ characteristics, attitudes, and perceptions about their use of the Internet. The researchers sought to provide answers to the questions raised in the research questions.

Population

The sample of this study consists of students from 7 universities in Nigeria (University of Lagos, University of Ado-Ekiti, National Open Univer-sity, Lagos State University, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Federal University of Technology Akure and Bowen University, Iwo,). These universities were selected based on their locations to represent the universities in South

Western Nigeria. Fifty-five students were ran-domly selected from each university. The total numbers of participants were 362.

Instrumentation

A structured questionnaire was used for this study. The questionnaire was used to determine respondents’ opinions about the issues raised in the research questions. The instrument, which was developed by the researchers, comprises of five sections. The first section intends to solicit information on the socio-economic characteristics of respondents. The remaining sections sought to elicit information concerning availability, ac-cessibility, control, impact, problems/obstacles to Internet usage and other variables considered important to the study. This questionnaire consists of 55 items. Content validity of the instrument was established by three lecturers in the Faculty of Education, University of Lagos, Nigeria while the reliability was determined through the use of pilot testing with twenty-five students from the University of Lagos, Nigeria. A reliability coef-ficient of 0.75 was used.

Data Collection

Primary data were collected from sample students in the seven universities using the structured questionnaire developed by the researchers. The samples used were structured such that a repre-sentative sample of Internet users from various locations in the south-western Nigeria participated in the study. The questionnaires were distributed to 385 students in the selected institutions, out of which 362 questionnaires distributed were fully completed and returned.

Data Analysis and Results

A number of analytical tools were employed in the study. For the descriptive statistics, tables (e.g. frequencies, percentages, pie charts, histo-

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grams, and bar charts) were used to summarize information on socio-economic characteristics of the respondents. Internet usage variables were subjected to a five-point likert type scale: Strongly Agree was rated 5 points, Agree = 4, Undecided = 3, Disagree = 2 and Strongly Disagree = 1. The sum of the response to each variable was calcu-lated while the mean was sought by dividing the sum total of each variable by the total number of the respondents. This was used in determining whether each of the variables was significant or not. Any variable less than three is regarded as not significant while any variable with a mean of three and above is significant.

Information presented in Table 1 shows that 53.8 percent of the respondents was male and 46.2 percent female, 45 percent was 20- 25 years old, 22.9, 15.4 and 8.8 percent were 26-30, below 20 30-35 years old respectively while 7.5 percent was 35- 40 years old and none was above 40 years old.

In terms of location of institutions, 81.8 percent is located in urban areas while 18.2 percent is located in rural areas. About 89 percent of the respondents indicated the presence of Internet facilities in their institutions of learning while 11 percent indicated lack of Internet facilities in their institutions. Out of the institutions with Internet facilities, 47.51 percent was provided by the in-stitutions, 45.58 percent was provided by private individuals while 6.91 percent was provided by some organizations.

Above 66 percent of the respondents is being sponsored by their parents, 4.97 by relatives, 2.76 were sponsored by siblings while only 0.83 percent of the respondents education is being sponsored through scholarship. The monthly maintenance allowance received consisted of <N1000 received by 4.14 percent while majority (91.4%) did not indicate the amount of money received as main-tenance allowances.

Efforts were made to find out if the respondents have any fear of Internet usage; 77.62 percent indicated that they have no fear of Internet usage, 21.55 percent indicated that they fear the use of

Internet while 0.83 percent indicated partial fear of Internet usage. Among those that fear the use of Internet, 22.08 percent pointed that the fear was created by lack of service, 10.25 indicated Internet fraud while 66.67 gave no reason.

Figure 1 shows the average number of hours each institution normally has electricity per day. Majority of the students from University of Lagos stated, enjoyed electricity for only a period of 1-5 hours per day while others enjoyed electric-ity supply for 6-10 hours per day. In the case of Onabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, a large percentage of the students enjoyed electricity sup-ply for only 1-5 hours per day while a few have electricity for 6-10 hours per day. In Lagos State University, only a respondent indicated the supply of electricity for 24 hours. Some have electricity for 11-15 hours while the rest have electricity for 1-5 hours per day. The students of the University of Ado-Ekiti Nigeria only enjoy electricity sup-ply for an average of 1-5 hours while BOWEN University has electricity supply for an average of 11-15 hours per day. At the Federal University of Technology Akure, there is electricity supply for 6-10 hours per day. The National Open University students have electricity supply of 16-20 hours, 6-10 hours as well as 1-5 hours per day.

Only BOWEN, a private University, enjoys electricity supply for more than half of the day. Poor electricity supply is one of the major problems facing the country- Nigeria and has almost para-lyzed the industrial sector of the economy. Inter-net usage depends largely on the availability of electricity. Lack of electricity will hinder the use of Internet facilities even where they are available while it increases the cost of service providers who have to depend on generators for electricity supply.

Frequency of Internet Usage among the Respondents

Equation: f1x1 +f2x2 +f3x3+f4x4+f5x5= ∑fixi-Where

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x1 represents Strongly Disagree (SD)X2 =Disagree (D); X3= Undecided (U); X4=

Agree, (A)X5= Strongly Agree (SA); Where Mean=

∑fixi/nN= Total number of respondentsTable 2 presents the responses to issues re-

lated to Internet usage. Based on the mean (x=3) values, the following variables are significant. Respondents used e-mail to communicate with

friends (x = 4.15), prefer e-mail to communicate with friends rather than mobile phone (x = 3.72), think Internet is a good social networking tool (x = 3.3), use Internet for business purposes (x = 3.99), easily find information online (x = 4.06), can only afford Internet access in the cybercafé (x = 3.52), sometimes spent a lot of money on Internet access (x = 3.81), use Internet frequently for academic purposes (x = 3.28), access Internet frequently for social networking (x = 3.74), can

Table 1. Demographic information of the participants

Variable f (362) %

Gender Male Female Age range <20 20-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 >40 Location of Institution Rural Urban Presence of Internet facilities in school Yes No Provider of Internet Facilities in Schools School management Private individual Organizations Education Sponsor Parents Siblings Relatives Scholarship Self Maintenance allowance per month (N) < N 1000 N 1001- N 5000 N 5001- N 10000 N 1001- N 15000 N 15001- N 20000 > N 20000 No response Any fear about using Internet? Yes No Partially Reason for fear of Internet usage Fraud No server No reason

195 167 56 164 83 32 27 00 66 296 321 41 172 165 25 240 10 18 03 91 1 15 15 00 00 00 331 78 281 03 08 18 52

53.8 46.2 15.4 45.3 22.9 8.8 7.5 00 18.2 81.8 88.67 11.33 47.51 45.58 6.91 66.30 2.76 4.97 0.83 25.14 0.27 4.14 4.14 00 00 00 91.4 21.55 77.62 0.83 10.25 23.08 66.67

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only afford few hours of Internet access per day (x = 3.06), had entered into a business relation-ship with someone met online before (x = 3.14), there is nothing wrong giving and taking gifts from friends online (x = 3.65), there is nothing wrong doing business with friends online (x=3.47), don’t mind sharing financial information online (x = 3.08), and there is no Internet café around my house (x = 3.06).

Figure 2 shows the frequency of Internet usage among the 362 student respondents.

Twenty-one and forty percent of the respon-dents use Internet facilities very frequently and 40 frequently while 33 percent uses rarely and 6

percent does not use Internet at all. Efforts were made to compare Internet usage between students in rural and urban areas. Figure 6 shows no sig-nificant differences in Internet usage among the respondents from both rural and urban areas. The similarity is expected, as the main institution located in a rural area is BOWEN University (a private university) which provides Internet fa-cilities and enjoys electricity supply for about 15 hours daily.

The number of respondents that has access to Internet facilities at home is low accounting for only 21 percent (Figure 3) while 79 percent indi-cated lack of access to Internet facilities at home.

Figure 1. Number of hours of electricity supply by institution

Figure 2. Frequency of Internet usage

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Table 2. Students response to issues raised on internet usage

S/N Variables SA A U D SD Total score

Mean Comment

1 I use my email to communicate with friends

715 708 09 68 03 1503 4.15 S

2 I often chat with strangers online

50 700 33 250 40 1073 2.96 NS

3 I prefer to communicate with friends using email rather than mobile SMS

520 632 42 140 14 1348 3.72 S

4 I think the internet is a good social networking tool

310 612 30 248 13 1213 3.3 S

5 Internet is useful for business purposes

680 624 21 114 05 1444 3.99 S

6 I sometimes order items online 115 484 39 324 41 1003 2.77 NS

7 I easily find information online 580 804 33 58 04 1479 4.06 S

8 I can only afford Internet access at the cybercafé

465 580 15 194 21 1275 3.52 S

9 I sometimes spend a lot of money on Internet access

535 560 69 202 12 1378 3.81 S

10 I use the internet frequently for academic purposes

185 712 63 202 24 1186 3.28 S

11 I access the internet frequently for social networking purposes

420 764 45 110 16 1355 3.74 S

12 I access the internet frequently for the purposes of making purchases online

135 348 81 388 26 978 2.70 NS

13 I can only afford a few hours of internet access per day

190 544 75 280 21 1110 3.06 S

14 My use of the internet is not restricted by costs

45 64 96 484 68 757 2.09 NS

15 I have won some money in online lotteries in the past

98 296 57 290 54 795 2.19 NS

16 I have participated in organising online lottery

30 340 42 394 61 867 2.39 NS

17 I have received prizes and gifts before from internet based organisations and agencies

30 328 60 360 74 852 2.35 NS

18 I have entered into social relationships with someone I met online

136 400 57 304 65 960 2.65 NS

19 I had entered into business relationships with someone I met online

190 628 45 244 30 1137 3.14 S

20 I find it easier to relate with people online than face-to-face

35 496 99 284 56 959 2.65 NS

21 I have given gifts to some one I met online before

130 72 60 516 40 818 2.26 NS

22 There is nothing wrong with giving and taking gifts from your friends online

490 584 66 170 11 1321 3.65 S

continued on following page

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S/N Variables SA A U D SD Total score

Mean Comment

23 There is nothing wrong doing business with friends online

440 540 111 144 22 1257 3.47 S

24 I don’t mind sharing financial information online

315 352 123 314 13 1117 3.08 S

25 I can easily share personal information online

165 512 60 260 51 10482 2.89 NS

26 I use an email extractor once a while

90 368 66 316 66 906 2.50 NS

27 There is no internet café around my house

370 344 87 284 31 1116 3.06 S

28 There is no electricity where I live

100 292 72 334 74 872 2.4 NS

29 Is ok to tell lies to strangers online

65 524 93 236 63 981 2.7 NS

30 Stealing online is not a big deal 85 248 69 408 56 866 2.39 NS

31 I have my own laptop 80 448 99 138 63 828 2.29 NS

32 I often solicits personal infor-mation from strangers online

60 420 72 60 91 703 1.94 NS

33 I have a friend who do “yahoo, yahoo” (cyber stealing)

50 348 45 284 108 835 2.3 NS

34 I also participate in ‘’yahoo yahoo’’ deals

300 400 51 270 49 1070 2.95 NS

Also, only 31 percent of the respondents have access to Internet facilities during the holiday (see Figure 4).

Figure 5 shows that the cost of Internet usage was the major barrier to 37 percent of the respon-dents while 24, 8, 6 and 5 percent indicated poor network, inadequate knowledge, lack of time and the absence of Internet facilities as the limiting factor.

A deduction from the above tables and figures is that majority of Nigerian students used Internet frequently while there is no significant difference between Internet usage among students in Institu-tions located in rural and urban areas (Figure 6) However, they do not have access to Internet

Table 2. continued

Figure 4. Accessibility to Internet facilities on holidays

Figure 3. Accessibility to Internet facilities at home

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facilities at home and while on holidays and that finance as well as poor network are the major barriers to Internet usage.

The insignificant variables in this study show that the statements below might be true to a certain level. Many of the students:

• Do not chat with strangers online,• Do not order items online

• Do not access Internet frequently for mak-ing purchases online

• Have access to Internet restricted by costs• Have not won any money in online lottery

in the past• Have not participated in organizing online

lottery before• Have not received any price or gifts be-

fore from online based organizations and agencies

Figure 6. Comparison of Internet usage between students in urban and rural areas

Figure 5. Barriers to Internet usage

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• Have not entered into social relations with someone met online

• Prefer face-to-face contact than online communication

• Have not given a gift to someone met on-line before

• Cannot easily share personal information online

• Do not use e-mail extractor because there is electricity where they live

• Feel it’s not okay to tell lies to strangers online

• Believe that online stealing is a big deal• Do not possess personal laptops• Do not solicit personal information from

strangers online• Have no friend doing yahoo stealing nei-

ther do they engage in yahoo, yahoo deals.

DISCUSSIONS

Nigerian university students who are predomi-nantly young adolescents within the traditional university age between 18 and 26 years are striv-ing to keep up with the demands of the knowl-edge society through the use of the Internet. The challenges confronting them bifurcate into two broad classifications. There are those described as ‘Internet shysters’ who suffer phobia in the use of the Internet as a result of lack of capabil-ity to manipulate the computer technology and its accompanying interfaces. And there are those who are quite capable of relating with the arcane aspects of the Internet technology and manipulat-ing the quaint technological paraphernalia as they emerge. However, many suffer from restricted access or complete lack of access to the Internet technology either due to limited financial capacity and/or weak and precarious Internet connectivity. Many times there are overlaps between members of the two groups identified here. Some who have access find that they lack adequate skills while those who have skills have no access.

The use of ICT in Nigeria is generally skewed to urban areas and this is indicative of the socio-economic pattern of the population (Adeya & Oyelere-Oyeyinka, 2002). Another factor respon-sible for the use of ICT is that most corporations are sited in urban locations where they could enjoy clientele within the upper socio-economic cadres of society. It has been argued that these socio-economic characteristics, directly and indirectly, affect the efforts towards national development, since huge sections of society are left out of the orbit of information and technological develop-ment (Jegede, 2009).

With Nigeria having a very high population growth rate placed at 3% and a doubling time of 35 years (Mabogunje, 1999), it is easy to under-stand why the country is currently grappling with a number of developmental challenges. It has been confirmed that about 51% of the Nigerian popula-tions are illiterate, with majority of them made up of youth and females (Jegede, 2000, 2009). Meanwhile, there is a pervasiveness of extreme poverty, caused by several factors including socio-economic, political and institutional which reached a dreadful average rate of 67.8% in the rural areas and 57.7% in urban areas, and unemployment put at about 4.9% (Obadan & Odusola, 2003; Jegede, 2009, Mabogunje, 1999).

CONCLUSION

The use of Internet by Nigerian students is re-stricted to social networking with friends only as well as academic pursuit hence it could be said that internet usage among Nigerian student is still at the low ebb. It is paramount to note that certain Nigerian students might engage in online stealing but the percentage is not significant. This might be as a result of the ongoing campaign against online fraudulent activities in Nigeria. No significant relationship could be established between poverty, fear and Internet usage as the Nigerian students do not fear the use of Internet and the variable required

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to establish the relationship was poorly responded to. However, result shows that inadequate fund or cost is a major barrier to Internet usage among the students; If the students have the financial resources to purchase their own laptops, maintain regular electricity supplies as well as being able to connect to a network in their various homes their use of the Internet will be enhanced; as a result, learning can be well transformed.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The importance of Internet as a communication tool worldwide cannot be overemphasized. For any nation to break through at this information age both the young and old should be Internet compliant. In fact, when individuals can tap into the unlimited information available through on-line resources, they will be able to expand their knowledge, synthesize information, deepen un-derstanding about various issues and topics and be able to transform learning. In the light of this, it is recommended that electricity supply at all the time is a must for all the Universities as well as in all towns and cities in Nigeria. Government should ensure that all schools are connected to the Internet and provide laptop for each student to buy laptop and to get online.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS

Without doubt information and communications technologies, especially those that are related to Internet usage, are transforming the way of life of people in developing societies with similar in-tensity as that of people from developed societies. Developing societies like Nigeria need to focus attention on how these developments are affecting the lives of her people. The ascendancy of global-ization as a concept implies that there is a blur-ring of development goals and social aspirations between the north and south and across national

and regional economic divides. The implication of this is that countries must align themselves with common social aims and aspirations and adopt common strategies for achieving them. However, the challenge for developing countries is to recog-nize the fact that there are unique challenges and circumstances and use them to their advantage. For instance, the growth in the popularity of mobile telecommunications provides a valuable learning tool for Africans and there is need to investigate in greater depth how this can be implemented in practice. Mobile phones are now very common-place in Africa and used extensively for business and other social interactions However, little has been done with regards to using it for educational purposes. There is need to investigate the role of mobile telephones in teaching and learning in developing countries like Nigeria. What are the most effective strategies for using mobile phones for learning? Can mobile phone be used for all manner of learning situations? Are some subjects more amenable than others to being successfully taught via this means? These and several others are questions that can occupy the attention of researchers involved in this field in future.

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ADDITIONAL READING

Assie-Lumumba, N. T. (2006). Higher Education in Africa: Crises, Reforms and Transformation. Dakar: CODESRIA.

Daniel, J. (1996). Mega-Universities and the Knowledge Media – Technology Strategies for Higher Education. London: Kogan Page.

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Poverty and Phobia of Internet Connectivity and Usage among University Students in Southwestern Nigeria

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