An Assessment of The Access And Utilization of Internet Services in Technical Institutions in Nairobi County

Abstract

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are widely acknowledged as important resources for social economic development. Due to resource constraints, shared access forms the dominant mode of access to these technologies in most technical institutes in Nairobi County. This study aims at evaluating the access and utilization of internet services in two technical institutes in Nairobi County. The target group was only the students from the two (2) institutions: KTTI and NTTI. The students were selected from four (4) departments namely: Computer studies, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Business Studies and Mechanical Engineering.The study employed the use of descriptive design which involves collection of data in order to test hypothesis or answer question concerning the current status of subject under study. Quantitative and qualitative data collection methods were also used. The instruments used for data collection were questionnaires and observation. The questionnaires were administered to the students of the two technical training institutes. Observation was done by the researcher especially on matters pertaining the number of computers in the ICT laboratories of the two Technical institutes in Nairobi County. The findings indicated that the students have limited access to the internet services, the time slots allocated to the students is one hour only and the quality of internet services is poor. The study therefore recommends the need to improve the standard of the ICTs by increasing the number of computers, implementing better control measures and good maintenance of the ICTs.