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1	Examining the incentives for knowledge production : the case of the University of Nairobi in Kenya Lutomiah, Agnes O. January 2014 (has links) Magister Educationis - MEd / Following the understanding that incentives influence behaviour both in terms of eliciting and sustaining it, this thesis seeks to explore the link between incentives and knowledge production at the University of Nairobi. Given the backdrop, higher education institutions have a key role to play in economic development through knowledge production; the study seeks to see how academics can be steered to produce knowledge. The principal-agent model primarily informs the study, whose primary argument is that for incentives to attract, motivate and retain employees, these incentives have to be sufficient, fair and consistent. Additionally, the model predicts that a higher sum of monetary incentives triggers higher effort, resulting in higher productivity. Using a single case study approach, the study focused on the University of Nairobi in Kenya. The data for the study was mainly provided by the structured interviews, institutional documents and archival. The findings of this study show that there are several incentives related to research at the University of Nairobi. These include: promotion opportunities, time resources, research funding, and financial allowances for publications and successful supervision of postgraduate students. Multiple principals including the government, national research council and the university itself provide these incentives. The general perception of academics is that, the incentives are weak and do not encourage the maximization of the University’s research goals. In addition, academics are also confronted with other principals who reinforce non-research behaviour. These principals offer significant rewards for consultancies, and incentives for teaching on the full-fee-paying stream by providing additional payments, over and above regular salaries, to academics that teach on these programmes. Given the weak nature of the incentives for research, academics at the University of Nairobi seem to respond more favourably to the nonresearch incentives. Overall, the study confirms the economic principle that individuals, in this case, academics, respond to incentives. However, in the context of competing incentives, the research incentives have to be adequate, systematically applied and continuous to reinforce a vibrant research culture. Higher education institutions Incentives University of Nairobi Knowledge production Kenya
2	Support services for remote users in selected public university libraries in Kenya Wachira, Mary Njeri 03 1900 (has links) M.A. (Information Science) / The study was undertaken to explore the remote users of services available public university libraries in Kenya. Scarce literature was available locally on the subject of the study. Provision of quality and relevant information services to support teaching, learning and research remains a central objective of libraries in higher education world over. Higher education institutions in Kenya continue to experience unprecedented growth in student population against limited human capital and physical infrastructure, among the library services. This reality has prompted Universities to adopt different education delivery models; distant learning, e-learning, and part time modules to accommodate the extra numbers seeking higher education. Depending on the preferred module, the students can be categorized into three main groups: on-campus, off-campus and remote user groups. Higher learning standards require that all users to have equitable and inclusive access to resources. This study explores the nature and availability of support services and resources available for remote library users in public university libraries in Kenya. The research methodology adopted was a descriptive research design; where qualitative data was collected using Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). The findings revealed that public university libraries in Kenya have various forms of resources and services that can support remote user needs. However they face certain challenges that hinder the use of the available remote user resources and services in providing equitable access to information services to all its types of users. Key among the challenges was that remote users were not identified as a special user group in the libraries studied contrary to what the study grounded. The results of the study are discussed under three main thematic areas: services for remote users, facilities available for remote users, and policies and regulations that govern remote use of library resources. Equally included in the study are discussions, conclusions and recommendations based on the findings besides identified informational gaps for further research. / Information Science Academic libraries Kenya Universities Library users Remote users 027.7096762 Academic libraries -- Kenya Higher education and state -- Kenya University of Nairobi Kenyatta University Egerton University
3	Support services for remote users in selected public university libraries in Kenya Wachira, Mary Njeri 03 1900 (has links) The study was undertaken to explore the remote users of services available public university libraries in Kenya. Scarce literature was available locally on the subject of the study. Provision of quality and relevant information services to support teaching, learning and research remains a central objective of libraries in higher education world over. Higher education institutions in Kenya continue to experience unprecedented growth in student population against limited human capital and physical infrastructure, among the library services. This reality has prompted Universities to adopt different education delivery models; distant learning, e-learning, and part time modules to accommodate the extra numbers seeking higher education. Depending on the preferred module, the students can be categorized into three main groups: on-campus, off-campus and remote user groups. Higher learning standards require that all users to have equitable and inclusive access to resources. This study explores the nature and availability of support services and resources available for remote library users in public university libraries in Kenya. The research methodology adopted was a descriptive research design; where qualitative data was collected using Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). The findings revealed that public university libraries in Kenya have various forms of resources and services that can support remote user needs. However they face certain challenges that hinder the use of the available remote user resources and services in providing equitable access to information services to all its types of users. Key among the challenges was that remote users were not identified as a special user group in the libraries studied contrary to what the study grounded. The results of the study are discussed under three main thematic areas: services for remote users, facilities available for remote users, and policies and regulations that govern remote use of library resources. Equally included in the study are discussions, conclusions and recommendations based on the findings besides identified informational gaps for further research. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science) Academic libraries Kenya Universities Library users Remote users 027.7096762 Academic libraries -- Kenya Higher education and state -- Kenya University of Nairobi Kenyatta University Egerton University
4	The changing roles of academic librarians at the University of Nairobi and its contituent college libraries in the information age Otiango, Mildred Khayoko 01 1900 (has links) Today, librarians are confronted with new roles during the execution of their work. The emerging roles require practical and technical skills, professional competencies and ability to perform and to constantly be in touch with those emerging technologies to stay afloat. The purpose of this research was to investigate the changing roles of academic librarians at the University of Nairobi (UoN) and its constituent college libraries in the current information age so that challenges can be established and measures put in place to overcome them. The current study employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The study was descriptive in nature and a survey research method was adopted. Purposive sampling was used to select respondents from each of the 13 libraries. Data was collected using a questionnaire and an interview schedule. A population of 70 respondents was to be surveyed but only 54 of them responded to the questionnaire. Quantitative data was descriptively analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) while qualitative data was analysed using content analysis. The study revealed that the role of librarians at the UoN has not necessarily changed in terms of duties, responsibilities, functions and processes, but what has changed is the intensity and manner of conducting the role. The main challenge remains that of re-training of staff in the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). Therefore the study recommended training of staff in the use of ICTs, acquiring powerful servers to increase bandwidth connectivity and allocating more funds towards various activities. The study recommends that a similar research be replicated using different groups of librarians, for example those who started working when the services were already automated to find out whether they are also as challenged as their counterparts. A further research should also be carried out to investigate current jobs that exist elsewhere in the profession, such as knowledge management, ICT management in libraries, research data management and data curation. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science) Changing roles Academic librarians University of Nairobi College libraries Academic libraries Information age 026.0002568 Academic librarians -- Kenya -- Nairobi University of East Africa Information services -- Kenya -- Nairobi
5	Internet use among university students in Kenya : a case study of the University of Nairobi Waithaka, Mercy Wangechi 09 1900 (has links) The researcher investigated internet usage among students at the University of Nairobi using a quantitative case study method. A questionnaire-based survey was done among 381 students and face-to-face interviews were conducted with the university‟s library staff. The research findings indicate that the students' level of awareness about the internet services offered at the university was high. The students had good basic computer and internet skills; however, they lacked more advanced skills and this negatively affected their use of internet resources. The students used the internet for various purposes, including to study, teach and do research; to communicate; and for social interaction. The major recommendations of the study include providing formal internet training and adequate facilities; implementing a better, inclusive policy on internet use; and better co-ordinated university efforts. Free internet access should be made available to all the university students, if not all members of the university community. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science) Internet use University students Information needs Online databases E-journals Social networking sites Computer-mediated communication User studies University of Nairobi 025.0425 Internet searching -- Kenya -- Nairobi Internet users -- Kenya -- Nairobi College students -- Kenya -- Nairobi Information behavior -- Kenya -- Nairobi Telematics -- Kenya -- Nairobi
6	Internet use among university students in Kenya : a case study of the University of Nairobi Waithaka, Mercy Wangechi 09 1900 (has links) The researcher investigated internet usage among students at the University of Nairobi using a quantitative case study method. A questionnaire-based survey was done among 381 students and face-to-face interviews were conducted with the university‟s library staff. The research findings indicate that the students' level of awareness about the internet services offered at the university was high. The students had good basic computer and internet skills; however, they lacked more advanced skills and this negatively affected their use of internet resources. The students used the internet for various purposes, including to study, teach and do research; to communicate; and for social interaction. The major recommendations of the study include providing formal internet training and adequate facilities; implementing a better, inclusive policy on internet use; and better co-ordinated university efforts. Free internet access should be made available to all the university students, if not all members of the university community. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science) Internet use University students Information needs Online databases E-journals Social networking sites Computer-mediated communication User studies University of Nairobi 025.0425 Internet searching -- Kenya -- Nairobi Internet users -- Kenya -- Nairobi College students -- Kenya -- Nairobi Information behavior -- Kenya -- Nairobi Telematics -- Kenya -- Nairobi
7	Development of a Cost-Effective, Reliable and Versatile Monitoring System for Solar Power Installations in Developing Countries : A Minor Field Study as a Master Thesis of the Master Programme in Engineering Physics, Electrical Engineering Trella, Fredrik, Paakkonen, Nils January 2016 (has links) This report is the result of a conducted Minor Field Study (MFS), to the greatestextent funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency(SIDA), in an attempt to design a system for evaluating smaller solar power systems indeveloping countries. The study was to the greater part conducted in Nairobi, Kenyain close collaboration with the University of Nairobi. The aim was to develop asystem that would use easily available components and keep the costs to a minimum,yet deliver adequate performance. The system would measure certain parameters of asolar power system and also relevant environmental data in order to evaluate theperformance of the system. Due to the specific competence of the collaboratinggroup at the University of Nairobi, a Kinetis Freescale K64-microcontroller with anARM-Cortex processor was selected as the core of the design. Components wereselected, schematics were drawn, a circuit board was designed and manufactured andsoftware was written. After 12 weeks a somewhat satisfying proof-of-concept wasreached at the end of the field study in Kenya. The project however proved howdifficult it is to go from first idea to a functional proof-of-concept during a limitedtimeframe, and also in an East-African country. The final proof-of-concept was testedat Mpala Research Centre in Kenya and despite containing some flaws proved that itwould indeed be possible to design a working system on the principles discussed inthis report. The system is open-source, so anyone may use and modify it. Solar Power PV Systems Embedded Systems Freescale Freedom Board Freescale Kinetis Kinetis K64 Measurement of Solar Power IV curves Electronics project management Open Source Designspark PCB ECAD CAD EMC PCB manufacturing Prototyping Minor Field Study MFS SIDA SystemC Kenya Nairobi University of Nairobi Justus Simiyu David Karibe Arnold Bett Mjomba Kale Boniface J M Muthoka International Science Programme ISP MIC79110YML LM2576 Island System Hybrid System Solar Charge Controller Solar Power Inverter State Space Model Model Based Development Platform Based Development Makers Just-Us Powers Just-Us ESP8266 Fona mini DHT22 ACS758 Model of Computation MOC Toner-Transfer Toner Transfer 3D-CAD Mpala Research Centre

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