Before the installation of the new seat reserving machines, students were able to reserve and return their seats by tagging the student ID cards on separate machines, but now, they have to use one machine to both reserve and return their seats. Students complain that the process takes too much time, since there are not enough machines compared to the number of users.
“I always have to wait in a long line to use the Ewha-Shinhan Reading Room,” Kim Yeon-ju (Food Science & Engineering, 2) said. “It was one of my favorite places to study, but now I would rather choose to find another place to study as it is too time consuming to reserve and return seats.”
The seat reserving machine is not the only change that troubles students. Students also dislike the new gate system. Students have complained about the sound it makes when people pass the gate. The noise the gate makes distracts students, as it is located inside the Reading Room.
“Whenever people enter or leave the Ewha-Shinhan Reading Room, the gate makes an irritating noise,” Kim Bo-min (Psychology, 2) said. “Since there are numerous users in the Reading Room every day, it is hard to endure the never-ending sound of the gate. It keeps me from concentrating.”
The school responded to students’ complaints toward the new system after the midterm period by replacing the gate with a different model that is equipped with a sound reducer. Another seat reserving machine has also been added to meet the high demands.
Moreover, the Office of Information and Communications is currently developing a new school mobile application that includes functions that will reduce student inconveniences regarding seats.
“The application will include functions to reserve and return seats of the Reading Room without using seat reserving machines,” said an official from the Ewha Womans University Library who wishes to remain anonymous. “The school will try its best to reflect student opinions in further changes.”
Chung Che-yoon
thfl353@ewhain.net