Over the break I drove to my local library because I needed to use a computer but didn’t need to return home. After the doors opened, I heard something unfamiliar compared to ULM’s library: silence. No gaggle of girls crowded around a computer gossiping about what they saw on Instagram. I didn’t overhear any loud conversations between friends about how things were going. Just pleasant silence only occasionally interrupted by a person asking a librarian for help.
That made me come to the conclusion that we, as a collective body, need to resolve to keep the library quieter this year.
Why can’t the school library be like this? Maybe I lived a unique experience, but up until college every school library I attended was a place that granted silence. When you see a character in a library on television, do you ever hear talking in the background? No. That’s because libraries, among other things, are supposed to provide a place to study. Studying is hard to do when multiple people are carrying on conversations and not whispering.
It wouldn’t hurt the school library to invest in some silence signs and relax from placing “no food or drink” signs everywhere. Of course in a likelihood students will disregard the “silence” signs just like some of us do the “no food or drink” sign.
Up till college, the librarians went around saying “shhh” to any students being noisy to maintain the quiet atmosphere. However, due to the large amount of student workers in the school library it’s unlikely this resolution will be achieved this way. I can’t see the students caring enough to quiet their peers.
One of the reasons libraries were quieter in grade school were because students could be kicked out or threatened with detention, if not both. Clearly, detention is not an option in college. I’m not sure if library workers have the power to boot out students for being loud but if they do than it’s a power they should use more often. Or at least threaten to use it to silence students.
To be fair, the library isn’t always loud. And most of the loudness occurs on the first floor or the stairwell. I’d say more often than not the library isn’t loud. Still, there are just certain times during the week where there is constant chatter going on like you’re in Schulz at noon. That’s just not acceptable.
I’m not suggesting the library be a no-talking zone. That would make group work hard. Or for aspiring journalist to get quotes from people to go in the Hawkeye. Just that everyone needs to actually whisper as a sign of respect to your peers if you see them doing school work.
