[LINK] Library naming (was Apple iPads for Victorian School Students)

[Ivan Trundle]

On 11/06/2010, at 9:34 AM, Tom Worthington wrote:

> TAFEs and universities are upgrading their libraries and calling them "Learning Commons" or "Flexible Learning Centres".

Thanks Tom - gave me a hearty chuckle for the morning.

It's amusing (and sad) that the term 'Library' has to be re-invented and re-named every ten years or so. It plays merry hell with librarians, of course.

I suspect that it was a bad choice in the first place, and too restrictive ('relating to books, bookshop' etc). Interestingly, 'librarian' was originally a scribe or copyist, back in the days when being such a person was to be of very high status.

'Flexible Learning Centre' is a perfect collection of waffle words to mean practically everything and nothing at the same time.

If Libraries are to be renamed 'Learning Commons', what of the lecture hall or classroom?

...but I digress. It's Friday.

iT