advantages of internet and intranet for knowledge creation
TRANSCRIPT
Advantages of Internet and Intranet for knowledge creation among
lecturers and students in university of Ilorin
Ogunlade , Oyeronke Olufunmilola (PhD)
[email protected] (+2348032455690)
and
Olafare Festus Oladimeji
[email protected](+2347066236402)
University of Ilorin,
Faculty of Education,
Department of Science Education
ABSTRACT
The study examined the advantages of internet and intranet for knowledge creation
among lecturers and students in university of Ilorin. A questionnaire on the advantages of
internet and intranet in knowledge creation and the difference between the roles of
internet and intranet in knowledge creation, was designed to elicit information from a
total of 81 lecturers and 568 undergraduates. Frequency count and percentage were used
to analyze the research questions asked in the study. Results revealed that the internet
connectivity was a very strong means of creating extensive knowledge. Moreover,
majority agreed that there was a difference between the roles played by internet and
intranet in knowledge creation. Based on the results, some recommendations were made
;that lecturers should be given more opportunity to use intranet for easy communication
in the university, Undergraduates should also be given easy access to surf the internet
anywhere on campus, the cost implications of which should have been added to their
school fees on resumption.
Keywords: knowledge creation, information and communication technology, internet and
intranet.
INTRODUCTION
Knowledge has become a way of developing life as the world is now a global
village. This happens as a result of development through Information and
Communication Technology. The key instruments to globalization are internet and
intranet which have increasingly become the facts of everyday life. Professional
knowledge, skills and capabilities have been enhanced by information and
communication. Knowledge Creation from one generation to another has enabled
planning and preparation. In today‟s highly dynamic educational environment,
knowledge is an added advantage. The ability to create knowledge is the main source of
development for today and the future. Nonaka and Takenali, (1995) reported that works
of scholars from different areas of specialization have suggested that access to a rich
variety of information stimulates creativity and knowledge creation. However, most
organizations desire to structure and control their information environment. Generation of
new knowledge can also be examined from learning and innovation points of views.
Learning is being extremely unevenly developed in the world while science and
technology are globally integrated to the world with full concentration on ICT.
Knowledge creation is essentially an activity that develops individual, socially
and academically. Knowledge can be created, enriched, shared among individuals and
organisations, in interaction among several people (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Brown &
Duguid, 1991; Nonaka and Takeuchi 1995; Nahapiet and Ghoshal 1998, Sharpton &
Jhaveri, 2006; Ridings Gefen and Arinze (2002); Wasko & Faraj, 2000) concluded that a
recent trend in the organizations like education, business and other communities are
becoming „virtual‟ to an increasing degree, and more knowledge-creation activities take
place online with the use of ICT. ICT is opening up new possibilities for knowledge
creation among organizations and individuals. It is also facilitating development through
interaction. Knowledge creation is considered as one of the most essential processes in
knowledge intensive environments like the education sector. One very distinctive aspect
of true creativity is that it tends to show up where it is least expected. Obviously one may
have creative meetings or brainstorming sessions where one sits down and produces
innovative decisions or new solutions to known problems. These are exploitations of
familiar concepts with the use of ICT. Unpredictable as it may be, creativity can still be
promoted (Stenmark, 2000). According to Ogunlade (2010) Lecturers can use ICT to
conduct researches even on collaborative bases. They can surf the internet and gather on-
line data that can also hasten their researches.This study therefore sought to find out the
advantages of intranet and internet in knowledge creation among lecturers and
undergraduates in university of Ilorin.
Evolution of ICT in University of Ilorin
The use of worldwide web started in University of Ilorin in 1990 with the
introduction of the internet which change the way information is been disseminated. In
2002, internet service distribution was made possible across the university through the
donation of a VSAT and bandwidth subscription for a year by Education Trust Fund for
the faculty of health sciences. The bandwidth and the network infrastructure have
allowed the following internet dependent services in university of Ilorin: e-mail services
(all staff have been registered on a staff domain server as [email protected]
while students are on [email protected] groups: lecturers have
developed e-learning web pages for courses like engineering mechanics (CVE253 &
CVE 254) Statistics(STA 201,STA 202) course materials and assignments are done on
the site, Distance learning, online schooling, examination for a class more than 500.
University of Ilorin website (www.unilorin.edu.ng) has been hosted at the ICTP,
Italy since it was launched in 2004 and it is maintained and updated by COMSIT
Directorate. A student portal was deployed in 2007/2008 academic session which enables
students and lecturers interaction for registration, examination score. Mejabi and
Babatunde (2010) identified students and lecturers reasons for visiting the website
respectively as follows: Announcement 80%, student portal 77% and general news 71%,
and university publications 74%, general news 70% and academic publications and
research work 66%. A major outcome from launching the website has been the
assessment by various international organizations such as Webometrics and 4ICU.
In 1990 ,Unilorin recorded the feat of being the first Nigerian public institution to
establish an e-mail link through partnership between Unilorin Faculty of Health Sciences
and McMaster University Ontario, Canada ( Mejabi, 1992a, 1992b, 1995) this link
opened the community to the internet and world-wide-web.
Internet
The internet is a global network of computers that connects independent networks
containing information of any kind that can be assessed and retrieved by all users all over
the world. Learning can be provided and teaching can be done through internet services
like the electronic mail (email), telnet, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Goptar, video
conferences and the World Wide Web. The internet is made up of millions of computers
around the world in such a way that information can be sent from any one computer to
the other in universities, offices and other institutions. The internet can also be referred to
as the network because all network stations are linked together. All the network stations
are equal except the speed of connection which is dependent on the internet service
provider and the modem in use. The internet has developed a strong community- base
where information, software and expert advice are freely shared. The average user in the
US spends 5.3 hours on-line a week. 43 percent of U.S. homes have Internet access in
2000 (compared to just 28 percent in 1998). Electronic mail, with an internet email
account, users can communicate with anyone else on-line, any place in the world, with no
long distance fees. Email can also be used to join mailing lists, bulletin boards, or
discussion groups that cover a huge variety of subjects. According to a 1999 study (the
1999 Consumer Technology Survey), email has replaced research as the leading reason
given by people in the US for using the Internet.
Table 1. POPULATION OF INTERNET USERS IN NIGERIA
YEAR USERS POPULATION % SOURCE
2000 200,000 142, 895, 6000 0.1 ITU
2006 5,000,000 159,404,137 3.1 ITU
2009 23,982,200 149,229,090 16.1 ITU
Retrieved 14th
December.2010 from http://www.internet worldstats.com/af/ng.htm
ITU: International Telecommunication Union
INTRANET
According to Damsgaard (2001), Intranets have been embraced in record time by
many organizations. It has moved from being a largely unknown technology only a few
years back, A vast number of knowledge-intensive organizations have now embarked on
large-scale intranet implementations. Organizations have implemented intranets for a
variety of reasons which include, sharing information, to enhance organizational
communication in general, and to support collaboration across departmental, functional
and regional boundaries (Bernard, 1996; Scacchi & Noll, 1997; McNaughton,
Quickenden, Matear and Gray 1999). A recent development is the organizational
application of intranet technology to support knowledge management (KM) processes
(Scott, 1998; Alavi & Leidner, 1999a; Newell, Swan, Galliers and Scarbrough 1999).
Intranet is private computer network that uses internet protocol technology to secure and
share any part of an organization information or network operating system within the
organization. It is in contrast to internet, a network between organizations, instead it
refers to a network within an organization ,mostly to the internet website at the
organization. It may host multiple private websites and constitute an important
component. Any of the well-known internet protocols may be found in an intranet such as
HTTP, SMTP, and FTP.
Access to the net is restricted exclusively to specified number of organization
(Oppliger 1997, Lauden and London2000). A number of knowledge intensive institutions
like University of Ilorin have embarked on large scale intranet implementation in the
institution to improve research, share information and academics works. Intranet can be
a private analog of the internet or a private extension of the internet.
Studies have shown that internet and intranet used in University of Ilorin have been
performing major roles which are really helping the institution in pursuing academic
excellence. In order to create more extensive knowledge among lecturers and students in
the university therefore , the major challenges facing ICT development which include
high cost of bandwidth, and ISP downtimes, disruption of internet reception by local
hiccups, death of personnel‟s, high staff turnover, quick obsolescence of computer,
epileptic power supply , internet network failure and high computer system replacement
must be tackled and improved upon.
Purpose and Research Questions
The purpose of this study is to find out the advantages of intranet and internet in
knowledge creation among lecturers and undergraduates in university of Ilorin.
The study also examined the following research questions:
1. What are the roles of internet and intranet technologies in knowledge creation in
University of Ilorin?
2. Is there any difference between the role of internet and intranet in University of
Ilorin as regards knowledge creation?
. METHODOLOGY
The design used for the study was a descriptive survey type. 10% of the academic
staff and students of the university were involved in the study. Simple random
sampling technique was used to select the faculties and departments involved in the
study. The lecturers found in their offices at the time of visit and the students of the
selected departments who were on campus then were purposively selected . A
sample of eighty one lecturers and five hundred and sixty eight undergraduates were
used for the study. This study was conducted during the 2010/2011 session. Ten- item
questionnaire was designed by the researchers (self developed) to answer the research
questions as proposed by the researchers for both the students and the lecturers. The
instrument was given to experts and other senior colleagues in the related areas for
content and face validity. Their responses were analyzed using the mean and
percentage.
RESULT
Table 2: usage of internet by lecturers and students
Ever used internet LECTURERS STUDENTS
Frequency % Frequency %
Yes 81 100 422 71.2
No - - 164 28.8
Total 81 100 568 100
100% of the lecturers have used Internet while 71.2% of the students have convincingly
used the internet. Since a vast majority of the students and lecturers have effectively
utilized Internet at least once, 28.8% of the students have not used the internet on their
own for once ,they normally employed the services of cafés. All they use the computer
for is examination.
Table 3: usage of intranet by lecturers and students
Ever used internet LECTURERS STUDENTS
Frequency % Frequency %
Yes 55 67.9 18 3.2
No 26 32.1 550 96.7
Total 81 100 568 100
As high as 67.9% of the lecturers have used Intranet while 3.2% of the students have
also used it. Majority of the students have not used the intranet while a low percentage of
lecturers have not used the internet effectively.
Research Question 1: What are the roles of internet and intranet technologies in
Knowledge creation in University of Ilorin?
Table 4: purpose of using internet by lecturers and students
Roles ( internet) Lecturers student
Frequency % frequency %
Educational information always 62 76.5 423 74.5
Sometimes 19 23.5 145 25.5
Gather information for study always 38 46.9 330 58.1
Sometimes 43 53.1 238 41.9
Send mails always 54 66.7 525 92.4
Sometimes 27 33.3 43 7.6
Registration always - - 568 100
Sometimes - - - -
Internet plays different roles in knowledge creation among the lecturers and
undergraduates in university of Ilorin. 76.5% of the lecturers used the internet for
educational information and 74.5% of the students used the internet for same purpose.
38% of the lecturers used it for gathering information for study always while 58.1% of
the students used it to gather information . The students used the internet for registration
always because it is the only means of registering as a student.
Table 5: purpose of using intranet by lecturers and students
Roles ( intranet) Lecturers Student
Frequency % frequency %
Educational information always 62 76.5 - -
Sometimes 19 23.5 - -
Gather information for study always 38 46.9 30 53
Sometimes 43 53.1 538 94.7
Send mails always 64 76.7 25 4.5
Sometimes 17 23.3 543 95.5
Registration always - - 568 100
Sometimes - - - -
76.7% of the sample in the university used Intranet to send mail always and
23.3% use Intranet sometimes to send mail. 46.9% used intranet for the purpose of
gathering information always to study, 53.1% used it always to seek information. All the
students used the intranet for the purpose of registration since that‟s the only way they
can access the university portal for registration for any academic session while non of the
lecturers made use of the intranet for such purpose.
Research Question 2: Is there any difference between the roles of internet and
intranet in university of Ilorin?
The roles performed by internet and intranet in knowledge creation among lecturers and
undergraduates in university of Ilorin were different because a higher percentage of
76.7% of the lecturers in the university used the internet in sending mails and receiving
information from the university authority, the internet was also used for the same
purpose. The main use of the intranet by the students was for their registration which
brings them in a close range to the university. The internet performed the major roles due
to the accessibility in and outside the university environment without signing into the
school domain.
DISCUSSION
Majority of the students and lecturers rated the roles of internet and intranet very
high due to its advantages in knowledge creation in university of Ilorin. This implies that
the roles of the internet and intranet in facilitating knowledge creation through the
teaching and learning process in University of Ilorin is not lost despite the deployment of
ICT in the university. This study has shown the prospect of the ICT policy documented
for the university in 2004 and reviewed in 2009 that guides the usage and practice of ICT
in the University. The following are the objectives among others for the use of ICT :
1. To provide adequate and reliable ICT facilities , effective teaching,
research and scholarship.
2. Capacity building for staff and students.
3. To encourage research and development in the areas of pedagogy,
academic management and governance.
Also the phrase “knowledge-driven world” as conceived by Hawkins, (2004) and
Inwent, (2004) shared the same prospect with meaning that Education reform practices
should focus on equal; access and quality in education which should highlight the
importance of change in education sector through the use of Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) and equipping new generation with enhanced skill to
operate in 21st century. Most of the lecturers and undergraduates do not have their sites
for individual courses except in few cases where they have a large class like
Collaborative works is encouraged but not many have embraced it. The study also
agreed with Bandele (2006), stating the interest of Nigerians in developing their ICT
skills and knowledge toward education. Their worries are lack of skills, initial knowledge
and pace of development in which they feel they cannot cope with and intricacies
associated with the use of computer. With training, great awareness of ICT will be
created and many will be encouraged to perceive it as a necessity in information delivery
system.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The finding of this study has shown the advantages of internet and intranet among
lecturers and undergraduates in University of Ilorin. The roles played by internet in
knowledge creation were seen to be high because the intranet solely depends on the
internet. Generally, the internet was used by both lecturers and students within and
outside the university community for academic purpose and information dissemination
like the e-mail. The major constraints facing the use of internet and intranet in knowledge
creation in university of Ilorin are low computer skills by lecturers and students,
inadequate power supply, access to the internet disruption of internet reception and
skilled personnel.
Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations were made:
1. Lecturers should be given more opportunity to use internet for easy
communication within the university
2. Undergraduates should also be given easy access to surf the internet anywhere
on campus, the cost implications of which should have been added to their school
fees on resumption.
3. Facilities like UPS, stand by generator should be provided while there should
be improvement in the university intranet usage.
REFERENCES
Abolade, A.O, and Yusuf M.O (2002). Information and Communication Technology and
the Nigerian. Teacher‟s Education Programme. African Journal of Education
Studies (V013, No 1)
Alavi, M. and Leidner, D.E. (1999a). Knowledge management systems: issues,
challenges, and benefits. Communications of the Association for Information
Systems, 1, Article 7.
Attewell, P. (1992). Technology diffusion and organizational learning: the case of
business computing. Organization Science, 3 (1), February, 1-19.
Brown J. and Duguid P. (1998) „Organizing knowledge‟, California Management
Review, vol. 40(3), pp. 90-111.
Damsgaard, J. and Scheepers, R. (1999). Power, influence and intranet implementation: a
safari of South African organizations. Information, Technology & People, 12 (4),
333-358.
Laudon, K.C. and Laudon, J.P. (2000). Management information systems: organization
and technology in the networked enterprise. Sixth Edition. Prentice-Hall, Inc.,
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
Majabi, O. V. (1992a). information dissemination using computer –communication
Technology; Acess to Science and Technology information in Nigeria. Proceeding
of the workshop for users and disseminators of Science Technology and Social
Sciences Information, February 9-13, Bauchi, pp143-152.
Mcnaughton, R.B., Quickenden, P., Matear, S. and Gray, B. (1999). Intranet adoption and
inter -functional co-ordination. Journal of Marketing Management, 15, 387-403.
Newell, S., Swan, J., Galliers, R. and Scarbrough, H. (1999). The intranet as a knowledge
management tool? Creating new electronic fences. In: Proceedings of the
Information Resources Management Association International Conference, \
Managing Information Technology Resources in Organizations in the Next
Millennium,
(Khosrowpour, M., Ed.).
Nahapiet, J. and Ghoshal, S. (1998), „Social Capital, Intellectual Capital, and the
Organizational Advantage‟, Academy of Management Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp.
242-266.
Nonaka I. and Takeuchi H. (1995) „The Knowledge-creating Company: How Japanese
Companies Create the Dynamics of Innovation‟, Oxford University Press, New
York
Ogunlade, O.O (2010) Information and Communication Technology in Research among
University lecturers in Nigeria. Paper presented at the 31st
Annual Conference and
Convention of Nigeria Association for Educational Media and Technology held at
College of Education ,Minna,Niger State.Date:20th
-26TH
September 2010
Oppliger, R. (1997). Internet security: firewalls and beyond. Communications of the
ACM, 40 (5), May, 92-102.
Ridings, C., Gefen, D. and Arinze, B. (2002), „Some antecedents and effects of trust in
virtual communities‟, Journal of Strategic Information Systems, Vol. 11, pp. 271
-295. Romm, C.T. and Wong, J. (1998). The dynamics of establishing organizational
web sites: some Puzzling findings. Australian Journal of Information Systems, 5
(2), 60-68.
Scacchi, W. and Noll, J. (1997). Process-driven intranets: life-cycle support for process
reengineering. IEEEInternet Computing, September-October 1997, 42-49.
Scott, J.E. (1998). Organizational knowledge and the intranet. Decision Support Systems,
23, 3 -17.
Sharpton, T.J. and Jhaveri, A.A. (2006), „Leveraging the Knowledge of Our Peers:
Online Communities Hold the Promise to Enhance Scientific Research‟, PLoS
Biology, June 2006, Vol. 4, No. 6, pp. 0904-0905.
Stenmark, D. (2000). The Role Of Intrinsic Motivation When Managing Creative Work,
Proceedings of ICMIT 2000, Singapore: IEEE Press.
Wasko, M. and Faraj, S. (2000), „'It is what one does': why people participate and help
others in electronic communities of practice‟, Journal of Strategic Information
Systems, Vol. 9, pp. 155 -173.
Yusuf, M.O.(2005), information and communication technology and education:
Analysing the Nigerian national policy for information, international Education
journal
Comments from External Reviewer
Evaluation Grade
Please fill a grade of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1(high to low)
Overall evaluation on the paper
Contribution to existing knowledge 2
Organization and Readability 2
Soundness of methodology 2
Evidence supports conclusion 2
Adequacy of literature review 3
Strength
The study was able to reveal that the internet connectivity was a very strong means of creating extensive knowledge.
Weakness
Problem is not stated, how the sample was selected –not properly written, the names of somr
authors were not cited, research question two was not properly answered
