Selema, Asha S.
Description:
The study was about an investigation on strategies to promote access and use of e-resources among students with visual impairments in Tanzania higher learning institutions, a case of University of Dar es Salaam. The specific objectives of the findings were to identify types of e-resources used by university students with visual impairments, to determine how university students with visual impairment access and use of e-resources in learning, find out challenges facing university students with visual impairment when accessing and use e-resources, to determine the possible strategies that can be taken to address the challenges facing students with visual impairment in accessing and using e-resources in higher learning institution.
The study was conducted at university of Dar es salaam. The study involved the sample size of 30 respondents drawn from university of Dar es salaam, who were selected purposively sampling techniques in order to obtain factual data. The data were collected through combination of questionnaires, interview, and documentary review guide and focus group discussion. Then the collected data were analyzed through the use of SPSS, discussed and presented through the use of tables as well as text. The finding reveals that most of e-resources provided to students with visual impairment including emerald, biomedical and JSTOR databases were not provided to students with visual impairments. Though the library offered both free and open databases but the formats was not user friendly to students with visual impairments. The findings shows that most of e-resources were provided often to all students including students with visual impairment of both free and open databases but the formats were not satisfied to students with visual impairment because there were no assistive technologies to help the access and use e-resources. Though service were available but the library was still facing in challenges including lack of Braille, training on assistive technologies, screen readers software’s, train staffs and the finding concluded that library should ensure, presence of speech synthesized voice to read, talking books, Braille embossers, and special adopted computer packages.