Yesterday I was curious to find out why librarians ask patrons to "not reshelve the books".
The ACU Library has used the policy in my time there as a student and still do so.
I came across this blog entry by Covenant Library:
The entry itself gave a good answer. The Librarians want to keep a record of the "in house use". I have come across this in reading of the text as a means of monitoring use by the patrons to assess the usefulness and relevance of resources to the library.
It was one of several forms of evaluating the collection. I think it is a good means too. People for varying reasons may not want to borrow a book. They just need a page photocopied, or need it to seek clarification or just a reference book. Sometimes we cannot take the books home with us because our bag may be full or it is heavy.
A book that is heavily used within the library often means that is of relevance or interest.
But we cannot discount other forms of collection evaluation such as surveys and applying techniques applied by other libraries if we want the "big picture" to provide an effective evaluation.
Without that information, we cannot improve the library in terms of what the collection offers, how it can be enhanced and how the library can contribute towards the academic achievement of students.
It was great too that I came across a professional reading that also encouraged it. I have downloaded it but I don't know where it has gone too. Will have to post that later.
