Do you think university libraries are essential?

[louderthan1]

Because the government seems to and so do university bosses.
I work in a uni library and at the moment we are open.

Students have to book a study space online, but once they're booked in they are free to browse shelves for books.
First day back yesterday and it was surprisingly busy.
There are strict social distancing regulations in place, they have to wear masks at all times etc etc but not all of them are complying.

I think students have had a really rough time this year and obviously aren't getting the full university experience, socially or academically. But that is the responsibility of university management and the government to address, not library staff on relatively low wages.

Most of the staff in my office use public transport so are putting themselves at additional risk in that way as well.

I just think it's so dangerous and irresponsible for us to be open, I don't see how it can be justified. During lockdown in March/April/May we were closed, it was hard but we managed. We provided extra online resources, purchased ebooks on request etc.

However I'm aware that I'm not a student or parent of a student who has been massively disadvantaged already, so I don't have a stake in it in that way.

What do you think?

As a university student myself, i think that if they are going to shut the libraries, then they should stop expecting us to finish our dissertations and degrees with no support, no reduced fees, all while paying two rents with increasing mental health issues.

Yes.
Not everything is online. In addition there is a lot online that is simply not fact checked or peer reviewed. Finally, many students with SEN need printed materials or actual books as the have difficulty with screens. For example, I have a DC with a learning disability and just scrolling up and down a page makes her physically ill/nauseous. She can handle it for short periods, but not for a full days work.

As a recent graduate, they are absolutely essential

I am in the same position as you op.
I think the library should be open but I don’t feel safe. Many students don’t or won’t social distance or won’t wear face coverings. When reminded they should many totally ignore you. It’s worrying. We want to provide a good service but please meet us halfway students.

As a final year health care student, who's expected to complete a dissertation by Spring I would say they are definitely essential. Most of my course books are £60+ and not available full online. We are already expected to teach ourselves our course online (whilst completing placement on the frontline), sometimes it's nice to have a proper book to go on. However, I see no reason why a click and collect service can't be implemented. I need library books, it makes no difference how I access them.

The students are paying a large amount of money to study, so yes the library should be open.

@CorianderBee

Yes. I did most of my work in them at uni. Writing a literature essay and being able to quickly find relevant books to use was essential as most aren't available online for free.

Same here, lots of Nursing students used the library.

As a current student, my listed books this year cost quite a few hundred. Only about half are available as ebooks. Exam season starts next week; my children need my computer for their school work, my money for their schoolwork (materials, printer, computer ideally, paper, ink) and my time. I cannot afford the books I will need, I cannot afford the time to try and find cheap enough, published recently enough, texts. I have spent £250 this last term avoiding the library. My money is gone, my time is gone; yes, I very definitely need the library!

@PolarExpressislate

The students are paying a large amount of money to study, so yes the library should be open.

Or the Unis should refund some of the tuition fees to compensate for lack of promised facilities/teaching, which would enable the students to buy their own books.

Or the Unis should refund some of the tuition fees to compensate for lack of promised facilities/teaching, which would enable the students to buy their own books.

How do you calculate this amount though? It would vary greatly from student to student and course to course. Plus, students might just need to consult one short extract from a perhaps very expensive book, so saying they should just buy them is very wasteful.

Libraries are an essential part of university study. They should stay open. Librarians arguing otherwise should be very careful what they wish for. Long term, they might just get it.

There is a difference between access to resources (which is obviously essential) and access to staffed library buildings.

Library work usually involves both of these aspects. I could work productively from home for now - not forever, I do accept that - just on expanding our online access and answering research enquiries.

The question here is not whether libraries are essential but whether the risk of spreading infection is worth the benefit of keeping library sites open, right now.

Many students don’t or won’t social distance or won’t wear face coverings. When reminded they should many totally ignore you.

Your management needs to implement some means of enforcement.

There needs to be mitigation.
Firstly all students who are using these facilities should have had 2 lateral flow tests 3 days apart. This is happening at the Russell group Uni I teach at.
Everyone should be masked.
Social distancing of desks/ Perspex screens.
Browsing the shelves shouldn’t be allowed- couldn’t it be click and collect instead?

I know what you mean OP, but imagine if we had restricted the guys at Oxford who made the vaccine.

It's hard to know where to draw the line, but as people are finding out nearly everything/everyone is essential.

We absolutely need to support the ongoing training of medicine, nursing, HCP, social workers and teachers. So yes, they should be open.

I know what you mean OP, but imagine if we had restricted the guys at Oxford who made the vaccine.

Most (if not all) science research journals are available digitally to academics, tbh.

@AvocadosBeforeMortgages

Students are allowed to return back to their uni accommodation.

It’s suggested they shouldn’t but it is not illegal to do so

Yes they are, as indeed are all libraries in my view.
The idea that nothing matters other than a - mostly very small - risk of Covid shows that not enough cost/benefit analysis has been done amid the screaming hysteria.

Mental health problems and suicide rate is pretty high among students in normal years, I can't imagine how much worse things are for them this year. The library is one of the only places left where they are allowed to be in the presence of their peers, I think they are pretty essential.

Yes, I think they should be open. Back when I was at uni, I was studying law (6 years ago so we did have ebooks too) and I had to follow references from book to book to find information. It's not like "here's a textbook with everything you need". Writing my dissertation would have been a nightmare without the library. Until you've looked at a book you don't know if it's going to be useful or not.

I had to follow references from book to book to find information.

Yes, I don't see how 'click and collect' would work with using a library for literature search.

OP - I see that CILIP are advocating for a shift to online provision for HE libraries.

My son is currently writing his history dissertation and he says he simply cannot do it without books from the library, so yes, the library is essential. This year has been so hard for university students.

Absolutely essential. At the moment the library may be the only tether to the university. In my uni library the vast majority are mask compliant and there are spaces between computers. Interaction between students and library staff is limited, even if someone comes to the desk it's not usual for it to be for any prolonged period, and there is obviously distance between.

And academically, so many books aren't online (often the meaty classics) and the library offers a quiet space to work

I think they’re essential, yeah. Students should have a place to study – not everyone has somewhere suitable at home to do so. With home workers the business they work for might bear some lost productivity if WFH provisions aren’t great, for students it might impact the degree they come out with.