The key to library use

I'm taking time-off from my overwhelming writing tasks, read rakets, that has left me exhausted to discuss something that's long overdue.

Coming in the heels of my previous post and as an offshoot of a conversation I had with Zarah and Von over dinner a few weeks ago, I felt I have to write about the importance of establishing, maintaining, and strenghtening relationships with teachers/professors who are key to improving library use.

Back when I used to teach English in the university, every time I had a writing exercise that needed research I made it clear to my students that they had to cite their sources properly. While most of the students would openly express their disdain at having to go to the library, I stood my ground and they couldn't do anything about it. I found out from observation, from asking around, and from the questions fellow faculty members asked me that my former colleagues didn't give much research/writing assignments.

I remember the time when I borrowed a book from the library that was very useful for my writing class. When a friend and colleague who was teaching Filipino saw the book, she asked me how I was able to find it because she, too, found it useful for her subject. A fellow English teacher asked me how to find websites on bibilography-making and so I told her how to find things on the web using a search engine. I never felt prouder being a librarian. Even then I was willing to bet that I was the only frequent library visitor in the entire faculty of the college.

When I left teaching to go back to being a librarian, I remember my current boss telling me during my interview that library attendance was low. I suddenly realized the truism that for students to come to the library and use its resources and not just to lounge around and escape the heat outside, the teacher is key. Let's face it. Students nowadays, surrounded with all sorts of distractions, will not go to the library on their own volition. They have to have a reason to go there. And who better to provide that reason than their teachers/professors.

Of course we all know this. This is a basic concept taught in library schools. But the question that begs to be answered is, are we reaching out to our users, particularly teachers, for reasons other than asking them to make recommendations for purchase and showing them what's new? Do we even care to ask what topic, not course, they are currently discussing to see if we have particular resources they could use? When was the last time we asked for feedback regarding the use of a particular resource?

Having worked with teachers for the past years, I can classify them into those who do comply with library responsibilities because they're supposed to as in selection, etc. and do not care whether the materials they recommend are used after all; and those who value not only the library's resources but also the services. There was this teacher who belonged to the first category and has since retired, who explicitly told me not to send her any of our current awareness bulletins because it was just a waste of paper and that she doesn't read them anyway. Coming from an academic head, this was truly disappointing. And we wonder at the state of research in the country.

The challenge for us librarians then is to exploit our relationship with those who acknowledge and appreciate our services to the hilt, heck treat them like royalty if we have to and reach out to the skeptics until it hurts.

Category: The Profession at Large