University Libraries Have Lost Their Major Function

   There are diverse kinds of facilities that people can use freely for their own purposes. The library is a place where individuals can get knowledge and information easily. However, university libraries are losing their initial functions and the problem is getting worse. There are some statistics that show how university libraries have become dreadful places. According to statistics conducted by the Ministry of Education and Korea Education and Research Information Service which analyzed university libraries in 2012, the number of books that were borrowed from 414 universities by students for personal and academic reasons was only twenty-four million three hundred thirty thousand (24,330,000). In other words, the annual average number of books that a university student borrowed from the library was only 9.6 books. It shows that university students read less than 10 books a year on average from university libraries. However, it is hard to say if these statistics apply to every university student because the percentage of students who borrowed books at least one time from university libraries was only 55%.


   What Are University Libraries?
   There is no need to mention that one of the primary facilities of a university is its library, all universities around the world have their own libraries and students use them frequently. Originally, university libraries were established for professors and students to provide them with diverse kinds of literature, information, and knowledge. Moreover, books are arranged in a row; so, students can easily access them and get knowledge about fields that they are looking for. University libraries are being developed in noticeable ways in the present. At the start, the main function of libraries was to provide a wide range of information and literature; thus, students and lecturers can use these resources of knowledge without any problems. University libraries become areas of complex-culture in which students can learn and experience cultural aspects of other countries at the same time. This is related to the project called the “Comprehensive plan for university libraries.” On March 20, 2014, the Ministry of Education announced that it plans to invest 80 billion won to improve the quality of university libraries until 2018. It includes the opening the university libraries for local residents. It provides chances to more people including local residents to use the libraries more easily; so the government is helping university libraries to perform their original functions as libraries. Moreover, other development plans for university students were announced. The government and the Ministry of Education are planning to increase the kinds of academic databases used overseas from 22 types to a maximum of 40 types. It is becoming easier for professors and students to find and get information wherever they are and whenever they want. However, the main problem of university libraries in South Korea is rising up to the surface. University libraries in South Korea are seriously losing their major functions at the present time. Generally, university students visit university libraries in order to read and get information about their major courses; students also read diverse kinds of books to widen their perspectives and understanding about the world. Do university students of the present day visit the library for these reasons? The answer is ambiguous; it is more likely to say that reasons and perspectives of university students using libraries are different from those of the past. According to the statistics of the current state of university libraries in 2012 researched by the Ministry of Education Science and Technology and Korea Education & Research Information Service, the average number of books that a university student borrowed from the library was 9.6 in 2012. The average number of books was 11.2 for the students who attended colleges and 2.6 for the students of technical colleges. These statistics show that average number of books read by university students in 2012 was lower than the number of books read in 2010 and 2011. In 2010, university student borrowed 9.9 books on average from university libraries and 10.3 books in 2011. The statistics show that students spend less energy and time reading books in order to broaden their knowledge. There are 3 mains reasons related to the loss of this major function of university libraries in South Korea.

 

 
   University Students Are Struggling to Survive in Competitive Society
   Nowadays, it is not difficult to find students who visit university library reading rooms for studying rather than reading books. Many students prefer to study for their major courses, TOEIC, TOEFL, and other subjects needed to get certificates because university libraries are calm, quiet, and spacious with more seats than public libraries. According to the Ministry of Education Science and Technology and Korea Education & Research Information Service, the number of university students per seat of reading rooms were 5.4 in 2012. This means that 5 students have to compete with each other to have a seat for their study at university libraries. There is no exception for students at Chungnam National University (CNU). Undergraduates mainly use the central library that is located in the middle of the campus. Students like to use reading rooms because they can easily concentrate on their study and there are facilities such as reference rooms and a cafeteria. During the exam period, there are many students in the reading rooms; consequently, intense competition among students to find vacant seats is inevitable.
   University libraries have lost its main role which is to let students widen knowledge on diverse topics. The most significant reason for this phenomenon is that our society is excessively competitive for young adults, especially for university students. It is obvious that most university students are worried about their future career after graduation. Ironically, the unemployment rate of South Korea was only 3.0% in 2013; the rate was among the lowest compared to that of other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. When we hear about that rate, we cannot understand why university students are struggling in South Korea to get a job. However, the unemployment rate does not show the whole picture of our country. It is necessary to consider the ratio of employment-to-population in South Korea. The ratio of employment-to-population means the percentage of employees who are over 15 years old; therefore, it gives an idea about the real number of workers in South Korea. For example, if the ratio is 40%, it means only 40 people out of 100 have jobs. The unemployment rate in South Korea is extremely low; however, the employment to population ratio is still not high. According to the statistics presented by the NSO, the ratio of 2013 on January 15, 2014, the employment to population ratio of aged between 15 and 29 years old decreased from 40.4% to 39.7% in 2013. It was the first time that the ratio dropped below 40% since the NSO announced statistics in 1980. It is possible to notice that more people have difficulties in getting occupations. As a result, it is hard to get a job that they want to get; thus, university students spend more time on getting certificates, learning foreign languages, and studying their majors to get better academic grades. In this context university libraries are simply considered as places where students can study for employment. Nevertheless, while students stay longer hours at libraries, they focus on studying their books of majors, even though the average number of reading books keeps falling. Regardless, university libraries are temporarily crowed with students only during the examination period.


   University Students Use Other Content and Media Providers Rather Than Books
   The development of new technology such as computers, cell phones, and tablets is quickly replacing the book. This is another reason that university libraries do not function as actual libraries. In the past, books were the only source of information and new subjects. When students have assignments and exams, there were no other ways to research but to read books from university libraries. Thus, they could be trained naturally how to read and find out what they wanted to know. Even though reading books takes time and energy, those people who are familiar with reading could read books for a long stretch of time. However, technology has developed in the modern society; hence, many kinds of content are delivered through films, music, television, radio and even by smartphone. Some movies cover the storylines of books, such as Romeo and Juliet, The Help, and The Great Gatsby. Each book and literary work consists of messages from authors; however, many students would like to watch films because they can save time and it is much simpler to understand. When people read books, they have to use their imagination to understand the characters, stories, and events of the books. On the other hand, students can understand the context more easily by watching film versions. Furthermore, the advance of technology such as the internet and smartphone influence the daily lives of university students significantly. The internet and mobile phones provide vast amount of data and information in the simplest and fastest manner. People can simply get information just by typing words and clicking on web sites from the internet. In modern society, mobile phones like smartphones became one of the essential tools in the daily lives of human beings. People can use smartphones whenever and wherever they feel the need to find information. When university students used to find some information related to statistics or research, they first looked up the internet and web sites. This is the biggest advantage for students in the global information era. However, it also discourages students from using university libraries and finding books to get information. As a result, they spend less time on reading books, many students do not even know about how to find appropriate books and information from university libraries. As they are used to finding information through the internet, they do not know how to deal with papers in the real world. This could be a negative effect of the development of new technology because many youngsters do not want to read books as they used to use smartphones and the internet. Moreover, some students visit library only to use the wireless internet service.


   University Students Do Not Use University Libraries Because They Are Afraid of Reading
   Currently, university libraries are unfamiliar to university students because some students are afraid of reading. They do not like to read books for cultivating their minds. The reason that we students do not like reading may have resulted from the side effect of book reports. In South Korea, students who entered universities after 2000 are used to writing book reports as it was part of a new way of reading and writing education. This system brought negative consequences to those students who spent time on forced reading. In 2005, the educational authorities distributed the manual of reading education. After that, students are required to write book reports and make reading portfolios after reading and understanding selected books. In 2007, the Ministry of Education introduced the system of reading portfolio programs starting with high schools and asked to enlist some reading experiences for the National Education Information System (NEIS). As the educational institutes have included reading and essays, students felt too challenged for reading books without worrying about their grade and the university entrance exam. Students had to read required reading materials and had to take exams about literature that they had read. Students soon recognized the reading programs as a part of the grading system. In addition, students spent less time pondering books because they had to read the books only to get good scores. As a result, students focused on required reading materials useful for getting high scores rather than books that they wanted to read for their own interests. They slowly lost their interest in reading since they were high school students. When they became university students, there are no duties to read books; thus, students are apt to exclude reading during university lives. The reading education plan was originally designed to help students to read more books and to broaden their perspective on the world. However, the negative effects of the reading program led students to less usage of university libraries.

 


   What Actions Need to Be Taken to Promote University Libraries
   University libraries are facilities where students can get more knowledge and have access to vast amounts of resources and books; so, it is necessary that the library keeps its major function as a library. University libraries need to be improved and upgraded to make many students visit them. However, the most significant actions to keep the major function of university libraries need to be taken by university students as they are the people who use them and are faced with negative phenomena at the moment. The small actions of individuals can bring about a huge change. There are a number of things students can do immediately, such as to make a small plan for reading books and to use facilities in appropriate ways. As university students have assignments, examinations, and activities, they have little time to read many books; however, it is possible to set up a small plan for reading at least 2 books per month. When they make a plan, they are more likely to follow through as they know what they should do. They may start with reading books such as science fiction and non-fiction. If they make their own catalog of books that they read or want to read, they can use that catalog when they have an interview or a presentation in the future. Moreover, students should use the facilities in a proper way. When they use reading rooms of libraries, they should recognize that there are many students who want to have a seat for their studying or reading. Individuals should not take others' right to read books at the libraries because everyone has the right to do what they want to do. Students should not consider university libraries as places where they can study only during examination periods. Those small changes can bring a new start of university libraries. Each students should realize the problem and try to solve it.


 

By Baek Jin / CP Reporter / jinny524@cnu.ac.kr

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