July 26, 2024

Why use the college library

It is easy enough these days to access the Internet on a home or laptop computer from almost anywhere. Easier still is finding information from on-line websites. Often students wonder and question what value the academic library maintains in this age of the Information Super Highway aka The Internet.

This archived article was written by: Lori Brassaw

It is easy enough these days to access the Internet on a home or laptop computer from almost anywhere. Easier still is finding information from on-line websites. Often students wonder and question what value the academic library maintains in this age of the Information Super Highway aka The Internet.
The answer to that question is a resounding PLENTY! An academic library provides reliable, authoritative, scholarly and popular information in many subjects and formats for students to freely access for academic research, personal hobbies or other interests and needs. In other words, the information contained in an academic library may be trusted.
Not everything on the Internet can be trusted. Anyone with any background in web page design may post on the Internet or hire someone else to design and post a website. Students working on research must use the Internet with caution. Information retrieved from the Internet must be retrieved from reliable sites and/or evaluated with a cautious eye for authenticity, timeliness and reliability.
The CEU Library provides access to a great deal of reliable, authoritative and trustworthy information in hardcopy at the library as well as electronically from our virtual library accessed through the CEU Library homepage at library.ceu.edu. As mentioned in previous articles, the library subscribes to Academic Pioneer which provides access to hundreds of scholarly and popular journals and magazines in nearly all topics. The articles range from information about the latest celebrity gossip to in-depth research in medicine, literature and science.
In addition to reliable, authoritative, and easily accessible information, the CEU Library provides a quiet, clean, neat and peaceful environment in which to study and write. Students are able to concentrate on their assignments. Group study rooms are also available for students to use when working in groups.
The library also has a trained staff of librarians and student aides to assist students, faculty and staff, search and locate information. Once again, we invite all students, faculty and staff to drop by and visit the library for a taste of the “real thing.”