Reading Interests and Habits of the Federal Polytechnic, OFFA, Students

Abstract

This study investigates the reading interests and habits of Mass Communication and Library and Information Science students at the Federal Polytechnic, Offa, Kwara State. The survey research method was adopted. A pretest involving NDII and HND II Accountancy students at the same institution was conducted to establish the reliability co-efficient of the instrument Reading Interests and Habits Questionnaire (RIHQ) at r=0.88. Of 250 copies of the questionnaire administered, 246 were used for the analysis. Some of the significant findings are that utilitarian reading was more prevalent among the studied group; found to read mostly their personal textbooks and notebooks particularly during examination periods. Major source of their reading materials was their lecturers’ textbooks and notebooks. Factors militating against their developing reading interests and habits include unconducive home environment, low socio-economic status of parents, non-availability of relevant reading materials and unserious attitude. To combat these, proper home upbringing, re-orientation in parenting and effective school library system operation were recommended.