Awareness and Use of Electronic Resources by Visually Impaired Students at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh: A Study

Abstract

The study was conducted in order to identify the awareness and use of e-resources by Visually Impaired students at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh by following survey technique in which structured interview was used as a research tool to gather precise data from 76 visually impaired students. The data so collected were analysed and tabulated using ‘SPSS version 23’. Findings of the study revealed that 100% visually impaired students are aware of e-resources, among the majority of students (96.1%) make use of e-books and e-newspaper (84.2%). In due course, it also came to light that these students are using e-resources for remaining updated (89.5%) and writing assignments (88.2%). Besides, it is also found that 85.5% of users find it difficult to use e-resources because of the compatibility issue with screen readers and it is also found that while performing various tasks electronically majority of them are having average experience. Furthermore, it is anticipated that the findings of the study will be helpful for library professionals and institutions serving visually impaired persons to develop effective electronic services in digital environment to access knowledge without any barriers as well as suitably designed survey can be applied to reveal similar trends in different institutions.