| This dissertation seeks to answer two questions: What are the information needs of undergraduate Television University (TVU) distance education students in China and how are these needs currently being met?; It is a qualitative study that emphasizes letting the voices of the students, teachers, librarians, and administrators of China's TVUs tell their own story. Interviews (38 groups), surveys (624 individuals) and personal observations (21 sites) conducted in five provinces and three major cities in China were employed to collect data. To summarize the findings and to detect patterns in participant responses, simple statistical tables with frequency counts and percentages were developed. To determine whether differences in student major, urban/rural residence, high/low population density area residence, or rich/poor setting residence were significant in how participants responded to study questions, purposeful samples were drawn.; The study confirms the importance of lectures and learning package materials for distance education students. It also verifies, however, that TVU students employ and want a variety of informational resources. It provides new information about why TVU students go to and value libraries and bookstores; the importance of informal communication with other students, family members, and teachers as an information gathering technique; and the emerging value of the Internet as a source of information.; To better meet the information needs of TVU students, this study recommends the following library and information related actions: (1) Better information supports, in addition to better teachers and more interesting courses, are needed if TVUs are to compete with the traditional universities also offering distance education courses. (2) Increased library acquisitions and staff fund budgets are required to better meet student information needs. (3) Improved access to Internet-linked computers is needed. Otherwise, the proposed TVU virtual library delivered over a national network will be meaningless. (4) A national public relations effort is needed to convey the message that TVUs can and do have good teachers and students. Too many TVU students unduly question the value of their educational programs. |
