This attractive library is part of a modern
campus for a private university catering to approximately 15,000 pre-university,
undergrad and postgrad students.
Upon entering the library, there was a definite
buzz in the air. Obviously the library is a popular place for students to meet
- and in one student’s case, sleep! Housed on four floors, there was a variety
of seating areas and there were plenty of meeting rooms for collaborative
learning. Good use was being made of the various seating areas; in fact, there
were students everywhere I looked. In the last annual survey the students
complained that there aren’t enough quiet seating areas, so extensions to the
library will take place in the near future to address this need. They are
trying to create their own style of a learning commons.
A couple of things really impressed me during
this visit. The first is a request from the head librarian to the company which
provides their Library Management System (LMS). She observed that most students
are using smartphones and have expressed a desire to have flexible able to
access the LMS, so the librarian requested that they develop a smartphone app. Very
forward thinking!
I was also
really impressed by the eRepository that they are developing to capture the
heritage of Taylor’s Education Group. The eRepository will include past exam papers, dissertations, lecturer profiles, etc.
The librarian admitted that they are struggling with copyright and have a lot
of work ahead of them in developing this eRepository.
This study visit opened my eyes to the range of services university students
require and how libraries are challenged to meet these needs.
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