Posts Tagged quiet library
academic library space get ready – apple is getting into e-textbooks – rise of the new groupthink
Posted by acohen in Library Planning Research on January 16th, 2012
The academic textbook market has been resisting the change from print to digital for a long time. Apple has been moving toward a model for textbooks that may change the playing field. It confirmed a e-textbook publishing event that could start to get traction now that there is a digital publishing model for music and books.
From a librarians perspective, Apple’s textbooks business venture will further enhance the library as a collaborative and individual space. Students of the future will use their e-reader textbook along with a variety of traditional formats for learning. The e-textbook will free up space for storage, but it will also enable new kinds of sharing not seen today, but on the horizon for tomorrow.
In “the Rise of the New Groupthink,” Susan Kane explores the need for solitude in the creative process. From a librarians perspective, the library will not vanish once we have e-textbooks. No, “concentrating the mind on the tasks in hand, and preventing the dissipation of energy on unrelated tasks” is required regardless of the tools you use. The library has a strong role to play for anyone who needs to expand their knowledge and create a world that is honest, strong and supportive.
quiet space for learning
quiet space in the library
The Joy of Quiet in the Library
Posted by acohen in Library Planning Research on January 2nd, 2012
The library environment can be many things to many people. In 2012, it will be important to off-set the number of active and collaborative spaces with the number of individual spaces for contemplation and quiet.
The “library as place” has a special role to play in our social environment. The amount of communication available can be overwhelming; the average teenager sends or receives 75 text messages a day. The average office worker today enjoys less than three minutes at a time at his or her desk without interruption. The paradox is that we can communicate anywhere anytime.
The library of the future needs to provide spaces for reflection and quiet time something very important for “student success” and learning. The functionality of the library building should always include space to turn-off the communication tools and focus or concentrate. According to “the joy of quiet” – NYTimes Sunday, Jan 1, 2012 – the number of hours American adults spent online doubled between 2005 and 2009 (and the number of hours spent in front of a TV screen, often simultaneously, is also steady increasing). To off-set the constant barrage of information, libraries should be planned with quiet environments. This is not a new idea, but something to consider in the new year.