Should students be able to access the College Library at any time of day during exam term?
Wed, 29/04/2009 - 03:02 — Emil Hewage
Yes
62% (68 votes)
Yes, the late-night closure of the library disrupts my revision/ academic work
27% (29 votes)
No
11% (12 votes)
Total votes: 109
Comments
Recently, a number of students have raised complaints that, unlike last year, the College Library is no longer open 24hrs a day during Easter Term.
While the JCR Committee does not advocate adopting unhealthy patterns of work during exam term, there are those who find it easier to carry out their work either early in the mornings, or late at night. Some students find the library a much less stressful and more efficient environment to study in than their own rooms and others find it useful to be able to consult the library's reference texts while working.
It must be added that a major factor in moving away from 24 hour opening hours this year was the significant cost of heating and lighting the library at night, coupled with the low levels of usage at these times of day. Furthermore, a perceived lack of respect for the library facilities, from certain groups within college, seems to has reduced enthusiasm for leaving the library open overnight.
We are keen to gauge the extent of student opinion on this issue. In the meantime, if you are personally finding this disruptive, feel free get in touch with the JCR welfare team or, alternatively, contact your Tutor or DoS. The fellow librarian, Dr. Ian Patterson (ikp1000), can also be contacted by email.
Best wishes,
the JCR Committee
The problem isn't the hours of the library, its the size. Swap it for the chapel - "greatest benefit for the greatest number" [Mill, Bentham, Guevara, Trotsky]
The size of the library (old chapel) is more suited to the normal congregation size anyway.
Exam revision is a personal issue, and it should not be up to the JCR committee to dictate library opening times, with 'unhealthy patterns of work' as a reason. In any case, starting this poll at 3:02 a.m. seems a bit contradictory and hypocritical.
I believe the phrasing of the poll is to make both sides of the argument clear to everyone - in order for it to be taken seriously when the JCR presents its case to the college. I wouldn't try to read their actual opinion into it.
The library is always ridiculously overheated anyway; can't we save money by turning down the thermostat?
We have to work during opening hours all the rest of term - why not during exam term? this doesn't mean that hours shouldn't be extended, just that ppl can't complain when the library is shut - after all, even librarians have homes to go to and better things to do with the money.
If you've ever actually been in the library during the evening, you would know that the librarians leave by 6. I cant believe anyone would think that librarians stay all night, 24/7- that's ridiculous!
Absolutely agree here. Giving the reason of heating and lighting costs is completely hypocritical when for the first few weeks possibly month of new library closing times they LEFT THE LIGHTS ON FOR THE WHOLE NIGHT. I live in Old Court and I can see! Also, everyone always complains that it's too hot to work in esp the ground floor so if we put on half the heating but for double the hours we'd end with the same costs (I know it's not that simple but heating at night costs less than heating during the day anyway)!
I personally don't think it's great for anyone to be working in the middle of the night re health concerns but some people do function better like that short term. At the same time, it shouldn't make people feel pressured to stay in the library longer than they usually do!! There should certainly not be an ethic of trying to compete to stay the longest if it's a 24hr library (and this does happen apparently!)
Although it would be a much better idea to get a good night's sleep, all pepole have different working habits and at some point we all have a crisis and appreciate the library being open at the hours we prefer. However, for the few people that wish to use the library in the small hours of the morning, there is no reason why they can't put on an extra jumper to keep warm. the Library is far too warm to work in at any time and induces sleep and laziness!!
I voted yes, despite the fact that I never work in the college library - if I need to use a library, I go to my department, and I have a key so I can use that library at any time. I voted yes, because I think students should be able to use their college library at any time, it just happens that I prefer not to.
There seem to be two main arguments against keeping it closed:
One is the cost of lighting/heating. The sinmple solution to this is to turn off the heating during the hours that college would prefer the library to be closed, and if people wish to still use it, they can bring an extra jumper, a hot water bottle or whatever else floats their boat.
Maybe leave a collection box and ask for a 50p donation for the cost of lighting/laptop power supplies every time someone uses the library "out of hours". Hell, I'm sure it wouldn't even be too hard to check who is entering the library using their college ID card and charge directly to their college bill. If this system wasn't abused by college, it shouldn't make too much difference, because they would have been charged the electricity that they would have otherwise used in their room.
Apart from the fact that if the heating has been turned off in every other building in college during Easter term, why is the library any different?
The second (and I suspect more true) reason for closing the library at night is due to "perceived lack of respect for the library facilities, from certain groups within college". If this is the real reason, be honest, stop penalising the majority of people for the actions of a few, grow up and install a security camera.
It's not nice, but this seems to be a bit of a theme recently. We shouldn't allow the behaviour of immature, disrespectful members of *our* college to bring about blanket punishment for everyone else. It wouldn't be allowed in any other society and it shouldn't be tolerated in ours. Individuals should be held more accountable for their actions and being unable to identify a culprit does not mean it is permissible to remove priviledges from the rest of the student body indiscriminantly.
This is a tough one, because both the argument that a culture of disrupted sleep patterns in the name of firsts isn't one we should be fostering, and the argument that we're adults and should be given the individual right to establish our own work patterns, strike me as equally valid. I think the JCR have definitely done the right thing, in putting forward both sides of the argument, but basing their response on a widely publicised opportunity for us to tell them what we'd like them to do. In conjunction with Ali's efforts to look after our welfare, and possibly a need to raise awareness of the need to be sensible in our use of college facilities, there shouldn't be any risk in opening the library 24 hours although, if this is done this term, it should carry on into others, to limit any implicit association between exam term and studying for twenty four hours. It's just about the facilities being there if individuals need them, and fostering a culture of responsibility towards college facilities. Jumpers, hot water bottles, blankets etc amply address the desirability of leaving the heating off, and maybe lights and computers could be left off unless someone's actually using them, with Sam's donation box there as well?
It would be nice to know how the 'perceived lack of respect' manifested itself? - at the moment it seems far too vague a reason to justify closing the library.
Everyone has their own work times, so why do college feel they can dictate when the library should be shut? I personally work much better at night, and I know many of my friends revise well into early morning, it is personal preference for how people feel they are most constructively using their time. As such, having to go into the library (in many peoples opinions a good work environment, other than being a sauna) and then being turfed out to work back in one's room only disrupts work patterns. Thus, a solution would be to allow 24hour opening. The argument regarding 'health concerns' is of no strength at all, everyone here will try and do as much work as they deem necessary, be it in the library or in their rooms. I don't personally work in the library, but I really can't see the objection.
At the moment the main objections to 24hr opening appear to be:
1) cost - already many suggestions have been given to solve any problems here.
2) lower levels of usage - this can be quantitatively judged after the poll. If from this pole it is found that there are a very low minority that want 24hr opening, a different compromise may be the solution.
3) 'disrespect' - could we have some elaboration here?
On the same note, is there an objection to leaving the Armitage room open until 2am?
The college higher powers started taking away the bops in the interest of academic progress, but closing the library early seems to reverse this thinking. I know that a lot of people find the library a much better study environment than their rooms, and we should have the option of using it whenever we like.
The reason of 'significant cost of heating and lighting the library at night' is an issue, but there are easy ways to reduce these costs:
1. The library uses grossly inefficient halogen lightbulbs on the white desk lamps and the suspended ones on the mezzanine level. It's not hard to work out that savings made using energy efficient light bulbs greatly outweigh the initial cost of replacing them.
2. In terms of heating, a number of people complain it is too hot in there as it is, so the heating could be turned down, or even off if people are willing to wear more layers as the price to pay for having a 24 hour library.
The library can't just turn the heating off, the reason i was given was due to health and safety. The same reason applies for why some of the lights stay on - its "safety lighting".
BG
I don't believe the suggestion is to turn the heating off, but simply to significantly reduce it. Working in a sauna induces sleep, not productive work.
Safety lighting is understandable, but I do not believe that college's main reason is cost (i can't actually work out what the problem is, other than the 'disrespect'), as there really are solutions to all the problems there.
I reject the idea that the College should directly intervene in the conduct of our own lives, however I feel that it has a duty to protect us from the paranormal activity going on in the library. As mentioned above, it's a case of health and safety.
Some recent occurences (and why they're problematic):
For these reasons, I suggest that the library be closed from the start of the witching hour to 3:01am (as 3am is the satantical mockery of the Trinity).
Hey, here's an update following our meeting with the College Library and Archive Committee last Friday:
The opening hours of the War Memorial Library have been extended to 24 hours for this term.
Currently, this is being treated as a trial period only and normal hours will resume when the exam period has ended. There will be an evaluation after the end of this trial period and the hope is that this change will then be permanently adopted for subsequent Easter Terms.
As the limited number of reader spaces is so much in demand, success of 24 hour opening will depend a lot on students clearing their desks when leaving the library for more than a short break. There is a trolley in the lobby for student use only and books, etc. can be left there if readers don't want to cart them back and forth to their rooms. Any student unable to find a place can ask the librarian for assistance.
Additionally, a major concern, voiced in opposition to 24 hour opening of the library, was a perceived tendency for the misuse of library facilities at times when library staff are not present. As such, at 7am and midnight each day during this trial period, the porters will be monitoring both the levels of usage of the library and for any potential misuse. It is our hope that we can demonstrate an ability to use this extra resource sensibly and so it is important that those who are seen to not be respecting the library's facilities are discouraged.
Emil