[Web4lib] Friendly language

[Bob Duncan]

At 10:51 AM 2/1/2010, Walker, David wrote:
> > I don't hear students talk about "skipping course"
> > but they do say "skipping class"
>
>I think that's because an individual meeting of a course is always 
>called a class.  So, unless you're skipping the course entirely, 
>you'd always be "skipping class."
>
>I do like "Assigned Class Readings," though.


Yeah, it's nice, but as a substitute for "reserves" it would only 
make sense if everything on reserve is assigned and everything 
assigned for a class is on reserve.  In our library, use of materials 
on reserve might be suggested but optional and some assigned readings 
might be somewhere other than on reserve -- if a student can't deal 
with "reserves," I seriously doubt s/he could figure out the vagaries 
of "assigned class readings."  (Not to mention that some reserve 
materials have no connection to courses or classes.)

I could be wrong, but I believe most of us put materials on reserve 
because different use conditions apply to them -- "reserves" is a 
word that has a specific and pretty widely-accepted meaning that 
makes sense.  I'm all for friendly language, but the specific 
meanings of words in context help facilitate communication, even when 
the words might border on jargonish.  Our students know all about the 
very friendly "office where you sign up for and drop classes," but 
somehow they've managed to come to grips with the more efficient term 
"registrar's office" without undue anguish.  IMO, a  college student 
who can't deal with the occasional "unfriendly" correct term needs to 
get a grip, and I don't think we do them a service by trying to come 
up with alternatives that may or may not make sense just because 
they're more palatable.

Bob "still looking for the gas pedal on my electric car...I wonder 
what that accelerator thingie does?" Duncan


~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
Robert E. Duncan
Systems Librarian
Editor of IT Communications
Lafayette College
Easton, PA  18042
duncanr at lafayette.edu
http://library.lafayette.edu/