Usage of Internet Search Engines Among Polytechnic Students

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VIII, Issue IX, September 2021 | ISSN 2321–2705

Usage of Internet Search Engines Among Polytechnic Students

Amosa Babalola¹, Olayemi Olalekan², Onyeka Ndidi³, Nwaekpe Christian^4
1Allbytes Consults, Gbagada Lagos, Nigeria
²Department of Computer Science, Federal Polytechnic Bida, Nigeria
^3,4Department of Computer Science, Federal Polytechnic Ede, Nigeria

Abstract: The internet has emerged as a versatile information repository tool that offers immense potential in optimizing the transactional dynamics of teaching and learning. In the context of a developing country such as Nigeria, the Internet is an ubiquitous fixture in the ever expanding electronic learning landscape of the educational system. Hardware infrastructures are in place in schools in Nigeria to enable them to be seamlessly connected to the Internet to tap the wide array of opportunities the Internet affords in providing a digital context of learning that extends cognitive apprenticeship from theoretical settings to applied, active instructional environments. However, having widespread access to Internet technologies doesn’t translate to automatic positive learning gains. The power of technology needs to be combined with the expertise of pedagogy to form a potent partnership that elevates the quality of instructional delivery. This concern becomes particularly problematic when critical information literacy skills underpinning the success of Internet-based learning initiatives are self or peer taught, as it often happens in Nigeria. Information literacy skills are too complex and diverse to be able to be readily learned through self-taught modes of knowledge acquisition by young learners. The baseline study elaborated in this presentation attempts to document the Internet information search proficiencies of a sample of polytechnic students in Nigeria to underscore the importance of systematic, intentional integration of information literacy skills within formal curriculum in schools.

Keywords;- Internet, Search engine, Polytechnic, Students, Nigeria

I. INTRODUCTION

Web Search Engine is a software program that searches the Internet (bunch of websites) based on the words that you designate as search terms (query words). Search engines look through their own databases of information in order to find what it is that you are looking for. Web Search Engines are a good example for massively sized Information Retrieval Systems [1], Also, search engines are programs that search documents for specified keywords and returns a list of the documents where the keywords were found. A search engine is really a general class of programs, however, the term is often used to specifically describe systems like Google, Bing and Yahoo! Search that enable users to search for documents on the World Wide Web. There are many search engines available on the web, the searching methods and the engines need to go a long way for efficient retrieval of information on relevant topics. None of the search engines out there today are perfect, but using the right one at the right time

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