INTRODUCTION:

Today e-resources on optical media have a vast impact of knowledge gaining and internet provides an efficient means of communication. E-resources in collaboration with internet have become a sign of modern world and play a predominant role in learning.

In Tamilnadu and Pondicherry, more than one hundred and fourteen institutions offer various courses in media studies as on 2016 - 2017 academic year. The under graduate courses are B.A. (Journalism and Mass Communication) ,B.Sc (Visual Communication), B.Sc (Electronic Media), B.Sc (Visual Art) and B.Sc (Animation).

The post graduate courses are M.Sc (Electronic Media), M.A (Communication), M.A. (Journalism and Mass Communication) and M.Sc.(Visual Communication). Some institutions and deemed universities offer these courses as five year integrated programmes. Regarding research degrees are offered as M.Phil (Mass Communication), M.Phil (Journalism and Mass Communication) and M.Phil (Communication).

In addition, Ph. D. programmes are also offered in the above given avenues. Hence, the term media students mean the students of the above mentioned courses. This study is an attempt to reports the findings of a study conducted among 1700 media studies students in Tamilnadu and Puducherry of India regarding how e-resources and educational portals are used for their learning.

OBJECTIVIES:

1. To understand how e-resources are used by students for their different subjects and the preference of use.

2. The intention of the study is to find out educational portals are useful to improve media studies student’s knowledge and skills.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

Review of literature is an early step of research to avoid duplication of research work and broadens the understanding of the research problem. Seema (2014) study conducted at the technical universities of North India among the research scholars and teachers. Finally found that their knowledge, perceptions and attitudes towards the e-resources preferences and importance.

Pradhan (2012) the study on SUSHI has helped in easy and systematic harvesting of usage statistics and subsequent analysis. Better usage of the e-resources to administrators of the consortium process make easy as informed decision making.

Bellary (2011) has “brought forward that books, periodicals and newspapers are the most used information resources for meeting information needs of faculty members seek information mainly for preparing lectures and to keep themselves up-to-date”.

Bhatti (2009) in his study showed reveals that majority of the faculty members use library resources for teaching. Davis (2004) in his study has showed that relevant literature, scientists depended on citation.

Fasae (2012) study showed that Internet use by students of find out the purpose, frequency, place of accessing Internet, mostly used Internet sources and the problems faced while using Internet.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:

The researcher has employed a well structured questionnaire for collecting the data from the media studies students of Tamilnadu and Puducherry. The questionnaire has been prepared in such a way that the respondents could easily understand the items. A total number of 1700 questionnaires were distributed among the media studies students (Under Graduates Post Graduates and Research Scholars) and they are personally requested to fill up the questionnaire at the earliest convenience in order to help the researcher to collect the same.

SAMPLING:

Instead of obtaining information from each and every unit of the universe, only a small representative part is studied and the conclusions are drawn on that basis for the entire universe or whole population. Hence, this research uses sampling method for collecting data. For this research proportionate Quota sampling is used for collecting the data.

The sampling units are the Media Students and Teachers in Tamilnadu and Puducherry. Each location is treated equally as Quota (Homogeneous sub groups or sub population). The sample size for the study is calculated with the margin of error of 2 % and 99 % confidence level. Here researchers use the 99% confidence level and the sample size is calculated with 95%, 2% sample size =1819. After editing the sample size reduces to 1700.

Z = Standard normal value = 2.58 for 99 % confidence and 1.96 for 95 % confidence.

P = Percentage picking a choice normally 0.5,

C = Level of significance = 2 % =0.02

Example

SS = = 0.9604/0.0004 = 2401

Hence the Required Sample size = = 1818

N = Population size = 7500

n = Required Sample size = 1818

After editing the sample size reduces to 1700.

DATA ANALYSIS:

The 1700 usable questionnaires were coded after data collection the data obtained and analyzed using statistical package SPSS. Hypotheses were tested and findings were drawn in the light of the objectives of the investigation through statistical tool Friedman Test.

Opinion about Awareness of E-Resources:

The opinion about Awareness of E-Resources observed over the resources of “Photography, Cinematography, Film Studies, Drawing, Advertising, Printing, Journalism,Communication,Media Laws and Ethics,Contribution towards meeting the family need, Television Production, Graphic Designing, Animation, New Media, Media Management, Research Methodology, Post Production Techniques (Video Editing), Public Relations, Web Designing, Audiography (Radio Production), Media Culture and Society, Visual Analysis Tools” are analyzed. It is clear from the Table 1 that 5% of the respondents are stated as Never, 7% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 21% of the respondents are stated as often and 67% of the respondents are stated as most often aware regarding the E-Resource ‘Photography’.

Regarding the E-Resource “Cinematography” 4% of the respondents are stated as Never, 5 % of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 35% of the respondents are stated as often and 55% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Film Studies” 9% of the respondents are stated as Never, 1% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 8% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 24% of the respondents are stated as often and 57% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Drawing”9% of the respondents are stated as Never, 6% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 13% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 22% of the respondents are stated as often and 49% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Advertising” 13% of the respondents are stated as Never, 10% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 21% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 24% of the respondents are stated as often and 32% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Printing” 8% of the respondents are stated as Never, 5% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 11% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 26% of the respondents are stated as often and 50% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Journalism” 4% of the respondents are stated as Never, 4% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 11% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 27% of the respondents are stated as often and 55% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Communication” 10% of the respondents are stated as Never, 6% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 17% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 35% of the respondents are stated as often and 33% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Media Laws and Ethics” 20% of the respondents are stated as Never, 7% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 23% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 27% of the respondents are stated as often and 22% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Writing for Media” 20% of the respondents are stated as Never, 9% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 19% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 28% of the respondents are stated as often and 25% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Television Production” 24% of the respondents are stated as Never, 5% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 21% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 28% of the respondents are stated as often and 21% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Table 1 - Awareness of E-Resources

	Never		Rarely		Sometimes		Often		Most Often		Total
	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%	Total
Photography	84	5	3	0	121	7	352	21	1140	67	1700
Cinematography	66	4	6	0	89	5	601	35	938	55	1700
Film Studies	161	9	15	1	133	8	416	24	975	57	1700
Drawing	160	9	102	6	227	13	372	22	839	49	1700
Advertising	228	13	162	10	362	21	406	24	542	32	1700
Printing	134	8	86	5	191	11	435	26	854	50	1700
Journalism	62	4	71	4	182	11	457	27	928	55	1700
Communication	162	10	102	6	282	17	599	35	555	33	1700
Media Laws and Ethics	345	20	127	7	394	23	454	27	380	22	1700
Writing for Media	334	20	153	9	317	19	470	28	426	25	1700
Television Production	412	24	84	5	364	21	480	28	360	21	1700
Graphic Designing	334	20	153	9	317	19	470	28	426	25	1700
Animation	84	5	3	0	121	7	352	21	1140	67	1700
New Media	84	5	3	0	121	7	352	21	1140	67	1700
Media Management	66	4	6	0	89	5	601	35	938	55	1700
Research Methodology	161	9	15	1	133	8	416	24	975	57	1700
Post Production Techniques (Video Editing)	160	9	102	6	227	13	372	22	839	49	1700
Public Relations	228	13	162	10	362	21	406	24	542	32	1700
Web Designing	134	8	86	5	191	11	435	26	854	50	1700
Audiography (Radio Production)	62	4	71	4	182	11	457	27	928	55	1700
Media Culture and Society	162	10	102	6	282	17	599	35	555	33	1700
Visual Analysis Tools	345	20	127	7	394	23	454	27	380	22	1700

Regarding the E-Resource “Graphic Designing” 20% of the respondents are stated as Never, 9% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 19% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 28% of the respondents are stated as often and 25% of the respondents are stated as most often aware. Regarding the E-Resource “Animation”5% of the respondents are stated as Never, 7% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 21% of the respondents are stated as often and 67% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “New Media” 5% of the respondents are stated as Never, 7% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 21% of the respondents are stated as often and 67% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Media Management” 4% of the respondents are stated as Never, 5% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 35% of the respondents are stated as often and 55% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Research Methodology” 9% of the respondents are stated as Never, 1% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 8% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 24% of the respondents are stated as often and 57% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Post Production Techniques (Video Editing)” 9% of the respondents are stated as Never, 6% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 13% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 22% of the respondents are stated as often and 49% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Public Relations” 13% of the respondents are stated as Never, 10% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 21% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 24% of the respondents are stated as often and 32 % of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Web Designing”8% of the respondents are stated as Never, 5% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 11% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 26% of the respondents are stated as often and 50% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Audiography (Radio Production)”4% of the respondents are stated as Never, 4% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 11% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 27% of the respondents are stated as often and 55% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Media Culture and Society”10% of the respondents are stated as Never, 6% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 17% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 35% of the respondents are stated as often and 33% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

Regarding the E-Resource “Visual Analysis Tools” 20% of the respondents are stated as Never, 7% of the respondents are stated as rarely, 23% of the respondents are stated as sometimes, 27% of the respondents are stated as often and 22% of the respondents are stated as most often aware.

It is clear from the table 4.3.1that majority of the respondents are stated as often with the factor of “Communication,Media Laws and Ethics,Contribution towards meeting the family need, Television Production, Graphic Designing”. Most Often with the factor of “Photography, Cinematography, Film Studies, Drawing, Advertising, Printing, Journalism,Animation, New Media, Media Management, Research Methodology, Post Production Techniques (Video Editing), Public Relations, Web Designing, Audiography (Radio Production), Media Culture and Society, Visual Analysis Tools”. In order to identify the factor which is more influencing the respondent towards Awareness of E-Resources the Friedman’s test analysis was used and the results were given in Table 2.

Table 2 - Friedman Test- Awareness of E-Resources

E-Resources	Mean	SD	Mean Rank	Reliability
Photography	4.45	1.00	14.5	0.713
Cinematography	4.38	0.91	13.6
Film Studies	4.19	1.23	13.2
Drawing	3.96	1.31	11.9
Advertising	3.51	1.37	9.3
Printing	4.05	1.23	12.4
Journalism	4.25	1.04	13.1
Communication	3.75	1.24	10.5
Media Laws and Ethics	3.23	1.41	8.3
Writing for Media	3.29	1.44	8.5
Television Production	3.17	1.46	8.1
Graphic Designing	3.29	1.44	8.5
Animation	4.45	1.00	14.5
New Media	4.45	1.00	14.5
Media Management	4.38	0.91	13.6
Research Methodology	4.19	1.23	13.2
Post Production Techniques (Video Editing)	3.96	1.31	11.9
Public Relations	3.51	1.37	9.3
Web Designing	4.05	1.23	12.4
Audiography (Radio Production)	4.25	1.04	13.1
Media Culture and Society	3.75	1.24	10.5
Visual Analysis Tools	3.23	1.41	8.3

It could be noted from the above table that among the 22 subjects of e-resources “Photography” was ranked first. It is followed by the “Animation” and “New Media” was ranked third.

Usage and acceptance of Educational Portals:

The Table 3 describes the distribution of the opinion about Opinion about Usage and acceptance of Educational Portalsregarding “I think educational portals help to improve my knowledge / skills, I think content available in educational Portals covers all topics in subject , I think online educational portals interface is user attractive, I am interested in subscription facility available in educational portals, The content of the Government online portals are updated, I pay amount for online educational portals”. It is clear from the table 3 that 3% of the respondents are strongly disagreed, 8% of the respondents are neutral, 32% of the respondents are agreed and 57% of the respondents are strongly agreedregarding ‘I think educational portals help to improve my knowledge / skills’.

Regarding “I think content available in educational Portals covers all topics in subject”3% of the respondents is strongly disagreed, 6% of the respondents are disagreed, 17% of the respondents are neutral, 41% of the respondents are agreed and 34% of the respondents are strongly agreed.

Regarding “I think online educational portals interface is user attractive” 4% of the respondents are strongly disagreed, 1% of the respondents are disagreed, 25% of the respondents are neutral, 47% of the respondents are agreed and 22% of the respondents are strongly agreed.

Regarding “I am interested in subscription facility available in educational portals” 6% of the respondents is strongly disagreed, 17% of the respondents are disagreed, 22% of the respondents are neutral, 35% of the respondents are agreed and 21% of the respondents are strongly agreed.

Regarding “The content of the Government online portals are updated” 9% of the respondents are strongly disagreed, 12% of the respondents are disagreed, 26% of the respondents are neutral, 35% of the respondents are agreed and 19% of the respondents are strongly agreed.

Table 3 - Opinion about Usage and acceptance of Educational Portals

Usage	Strongly Disagree		Disagree		Neutral		Agree		Strongly Agree		Total
Usage	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%	N	%
I think educational portals help to improve my knowledge / skills	55	3	7	0	129	8	546	32	963	57	1700
I think content available in educational Portals covers all topics in subject	44	3	99	6	282	17	697	41	578	34	1700
I think online educational portals interface is user attractive	69	4	24	1	433	25	800	47	374	22	1700
I am interested in subscription facility available in educational portals	104	6	282	17	371	22	593	35	350	21	1700
The content of the Government online portals are updated	149	9	202	12	440	26	594	35	315	19	1700
I pay amount for online educational portals	324	19	356	21	367	22	414	24	239	14	1700

It could be noted from the above table that among the 6 factors “I think educational portals help to improve my knowledge / skills” was ranked first. It is followed by the “I think content available in educational Portals covers all topics in subject” and “I think online educational portals interface is user attractive” was ranked third.

CONCLUSIONS:

Finally, it is found through this study that students are using educational portals for their different subjects. Out of the 22 subjects Photography, animation and new media contents are most often searched by students and teachers. It is clear that media studies students as well as teachers are not at all having any problem in accessing e-resources through Internet. In this study it is found that Educational portals play a vital role as e-resources among media studies students and teachers as the availability of books on media studies is less. It is found that educational portals are useful to improve their knowledge and skills. Content available in educational portals are free and covers all the topics in their subjects

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Received on 24.10.2017 Modified on 18.12.2017

Res. J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 2018; 9(1): 75-80.

DOI: 10.5958/2321-5828.2018.00013.X

Features	Mean	SD	Mean Rank	Reliability
I think educational portals help to improve my knowledge/ skills	4.39	0.90	4.74	0.823
I think content available in educational Portals covers all topics in subject	3.98	0.99	3.94
I think online educational portals interface is user attractive	3.82	0.93	3.61
I am interested in subscription facility available in educational portals	3.47	1.17	3.18
The content of the Government online portals are updated	3.43	1.17	3.11
I pay amount for online educational portals	2.93	1.33	2.42