Space Preference at James White Library: What Students Really Want

Although there is abundant information available remotely, higher education students and teachers still seek the campus library to meet many of their teaching, research, and learning needs. The usefulness of the spaces provided is directly dependent on the match between these spaces and the learning and teaching styles students and teachers engage in today. Thus, the purpose of this study was to identify what types of spaces students really want in order to accomplish better their academic requirements and learning needs. The data was collected through traditional and ethnographic techniques, such interviews, in loco observation, focus groups, and design charrettes. Information from students reading, studying, or using their laptops and computers in other places in the university was also gathered with the main objective of identifying the reasons they prefer or choose to be there instead of in the library. This methodology was followed by an actual field survey to identify participants' space priorities. The main results indicated that students at Andrews University, independent of gender and program level, prefer individual study spaces over group study and social areas.