http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/susl/1784 2026-04-19T19:54:44Z 2026-04-19T19:54:44Z Warnasooriya, WWST Fernando, IDKL Munasinghe, MAKS Fernando, WTLS Hettiarachchi, IC Pathiraja, PMAS http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/susl/5129 2026-01-07T14:33:31Z 2025-04-30T00:00:00Z

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH CHALLENGES: A CASE STUDY FROM “LIBRARY RESEARCH CUBE” OF SABARAGAMUWA UNIVERSITY OF SRI LANKA Warnasooriya, WWST; Fernando, IDKL; Munasinghe, MAKS; Fernando, WTLS; Hettiarachchi, IC; Pathiraja, PMAS Dissertation submission appears to be a challenging task for undergraduates in completion of their four-year degree program. It impacts their final grade as it contains the weight of 8 credits. Up to now these challenges have been neither well identified nor properly addressed. The aim of this study is to identify the key challenges encountered by undergraduates regarding the dissertation submission. For this purpose, this study focused on 11 undergraduates from 3 faculties of Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka who were directed by the supervisors to the “library research cube” which facilitates the undergraduates with their research studies. Data collected through the interview processes revealed that undergraduates face challenges such as limited access to the existing undergraduate dissertations, limited library resources, and limited access to the databases within the university's IP range. In addition, students’ incapability in applying taught research methodologies, low response rate from the samples, along with the insufficient timeframe for research completion leading undergraduates to face challenges with their research work. Above identified issues affect the undergraduates in identifying the research gaps in their studies, for the awareness of the latest development in relevant research, and repetition of similar research proposals. Other than these issues, undergraduates are also affected by inadequate sample sizes when populating their findings to larger groups and working on their research work in parallel to their internships. To overcome these issues, this study identified the following actions to implement at Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka. They are developing a database of all bibliographic data of undergraduate dissertations, exposing undergraduates to research-related activities such as research symposiums and project work, selecting the best data collection tools rather than striving for an online questionnaire, and encouraging undergraduates from their freshman year to be involved with research-related activities. In addition, this study also recommends that universities adopt a considerable time-frame to the research component through curriculum revisions.

2025-04-30T00:00:00Z Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T. Suraweera, S.A.D.H.N. http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/susl/4371 2024-08-12T05:01:28Z 2021-10-21T00:00:00Z

Implementing the human library concept in the university libraries in Sri Lanka Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T.; Suraweera, S.A.D.H.N. Background: Human Library (HL) is the same traditional library but the only difference is reading human books by listening to someone else's story. Listening and reading have become a primitive practice in the socio-cultural behaviour among university community due to the busy schedule, change of lifestyle, and especially global COVID pandemic. HL contributes to overcome this gap by creating an open platform for diversified social and ethnical groups to challenge prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination; and as a way to learn, educate, and change attitudes; to encourage reading; to express and share own ideas, stories, and experiences and knowledge; and to establish intellectual freedom among the university community. Thus, execution as an interactive learning platform, will be an added value to the university system in Sri Lanka. Therefore, this research is at the initial stage and expect valuable comments to carry out the future research successfully. Objectives: (1) Initiating physically available human library program, (2) Initiating virtually available human library program, (3) Creating a digital human library archive project, (4) Managing the HL through an online reservation system. Methods: This study will utilize Mix methods. Sample of 370 students and 278 academic staff selected through stratified sampling technique will answer the questionnaires. The unstructured interviews with the academic staff of the library will collect qualitative data. Conclusion: HL concept will be implemented focusing on the 1st dimension of Human Library University system of Sri Lanka. By selecting University of Kelaniya to implement this HL concept as a new service to the traditional library scenario, this study expects to enhance the interactive learning process, knowledge sharing and research culture using process management theory implication

2021-10-21T00:00:00Z Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T. Munasinghe, M.A.K.S. Fernando, I.D.K.L. Lakmali, H.A.N. http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/susl/4355 2024-11-05T03:46:19Z 2024-03-01T00:00:00Z

Technology Adaptation in Facilitating the Digital Evolution of University Libraries in Sri Lanka: Librarians' Perspectives Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T.; Munasinghe, M.A.K.S.; Fernando, I.D.K.L.; Lakmali, H.A.N. Background: In the evolving landscape of university libraries, technological adaptation plays a pivotal role. But the sustainability of the technology adaptation is more crucial than downloading the technology especially in the Sri Lankan context due to economic crisis, cost-effectiveness, local economic viability and resource constraints, demand for capacity building, societal preferences, attitudes, personal interests, and generation change, infrastructural changes, environmental impact, and evolving needs. Originality/Value: As key stakeholders, librarians provide context-specific insight in terms of strategies, unique challenges, and innovative solutions pertinent to the Sri Lankan university libraries. Objective: The study focuses on investigating the strategies, challenges, and solutions related to technological adaptation in Sri Lankan university libraries from the perspective of librarians. Methodology: For this qualitative research, structured interviews were conducted with randomly selected 10 academics representing university libraries. Thematic analysis was administered to analyze the best practices, inform decision-making processes, optimizing the role of technology in advancing the digital evolution, challenges, and solutions to overcome them. Findings: Assessment of current infrastructure, stakeholder engagement and collaboration, customized technology solutions, capacity building and training, and cloud-based solutions were suggested as strategies. Insufficient financial resources, infrastructure, technological literacy, and resistance to change were among the top challenges while enabling cost-sharing Initiatives with industry partners for shared investment, utilizing cloud services, public-private partnerships to build the necessary infrastructure, conducting training, workshops, and seminars, providing access to online courses or resources, implementing change management practices to address fears and resistance, communicating the benefits of technology adoption to the stakeholders, initiating pilot projects to foresee the advantages in small scale. Conclusions: The identified factors in this actual scenario can be used as dimensions for a framework to be included in policy formations which can be resulted through future research. This article is originally published at the conference proceeding of 2nd International Research Symposium on Multidisciplinary Approaches in Indigenous Knowledge Systems “Harnessing Indigenous Knowledge for the Sustainable Development of Sri Lanka”. Thus, citations shall made with refering to this conference details available at https://gwu.ac.lk/irsiks2024/

2024-03-01T00:00:00Z Fernando, I.D.K.L Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T http://repo.lib.sab.ac.lk:8080/xmlui/handle/susl/4319 2024-08-12T05:18:15Z 2024-02-22T00:00:00Z

USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA FOR COLLABORATIVE LEARNING: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW Fernando, I.D.K.L; Warnasooriya, W.W.S.T Collaborative learning behaviour in favour of social media is one of the modem pedagogical approaches m learning in the metaverse. Collaborative learning behaviour is directly associated with the learner’s metacognition and hence leads towards the development of metaliteracy skills. Empirical research in the field is still being conducted, yet there are visible gaps in the existing cognitive domain of the research area. The main objectives of the study include, (1) investigate the existing knowledge and (2) identify areas where empirical research is lacking in the research area. A systematic literature review method was followed according to a predefined inclusion criteria and review conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Scholarly journal articles published between 1980-2023 were queried through the Lens.org database where 63 articles were selected for the final review. Results revealed that there is a strong relationship between the social media involvement in collaborative learning and research area is highly associated with the phycological research with a cloud word count of 45 while collaborative learning scored 59 and social media scored 65. Yet it was evident that there are empirical research gaps in the related research and more research is needed to supplement the lacuna in association with learning environments, new pedagogical concepts such as pedagogies of play, blended learning, flipped learning, etc, and evaluation frameworks, students’ satisfaction, and academic performances. A suggestion can be made to conduct more research related with the meta literacy aspects such as meta cognition and application of psychological aspects of learning in social media use for collaborative learning.

2024-02-22T00:00:00Z