University Libraries in Bavaria: Allow "click and collect"!

16.01.2021, 14:39

Explanatory note added to show that this form of the petition is merely a translation.


Neuer Petitionstext:

The Association of Christian Democratic Students (RCDS) Passau standsdemands forBavarian theuniversity statewidelibraries expansionto ofoffer "click and collect" services to alltheir university libraries in all of Bavaria.students.

This can be offered in the following ways:

1. University lockers are each assigned an order for library requests, which are fulfilled by library staff. With their student card, the student placing the order can pick up the order material contact-free with their student ID.
2. Just like businesses, the student orders their materials in advance and agrees on a specific timeframe to pick them up, so that they can pick these up contact-free.

Returing the books can take place, noting the following circumstances:

• The SARS-CoV-2 virus can live on hardcover books for up to 24 hours. These books would have to be in quarantine for 48 hours, to ensure that there are no more viruses on them.
• This length of time would be extended to 72 hours for books bound with plastic, so as to ensure that no more pathogens are on them.

The expansion of university materials online has been inadequate for many students, who, due to the lockdown, have been unable to get much-needed materials for their classes. As a result, this has been largely detrimental to learning.

The freedom ofto education and research needs to be preserved and, with a hygiene plan corresponding to the current situation, books can spread knowledge - not the virus!

The scanning service for books offered by some universities has been poorly implemented and impratical at times, as an incorrect or insufficient quantity of pages are occassionally scanned.

The limited access to university materials leads to students not being able to adequately satisfy their degree requirements in a prompt manner. As a result, the length of time spent in a degree program is unnecessarily extended.

For these reasons, we advocate for university libraries in Bavaria to offer a "click and collect" system!

(Translation of the German petition. This translation was provided on the mere basis of making it more accessible to students in Passau and Bavaria who do not speak German. The translator is not a member of the RCDS or any political organization on German campuses, for that matter.)