To Study or To Socialize

1 day ago

4 min read

Updated: 11 hours ago

By Sophia Shin Sep. 23, 2026

Walking into the school library, a student is greeted with a gentle waft of cold air and, alas, not-so-gentle chatter. They spot a friend sitting and shout excitedly over the steady noise. As they make their way over, they unknowingly bump into another student’s chair, who struggles to focus with a paper-strewn table and a digital textbook. One seeks out the library to have a quiet space to study before their assessment, while another seeks it out for an indoor space to converse with peers.

Libraries make up an essential part of a school ecosystem,. It is open to students and faculty from 7:30 am to 4:00 pm on weekdays. Administrators use it for staff and community meetings, while teachers and counselors utilize the space as an extra room during class periods for various needs.

“After picking up their English class novel, the teacher might want to have a small discussion before heading back. Other times, a neighboring class can be loud and the teacher wants a quiet space for their class to take an assessment. Counselors often use the library during tutorial, especially during college application preparation season to host workshops,” Paralibrarian Alex Ahn said.

As the library has evolved beyond its original purpose of creating a learning space that cultivates knowledge, students’ use of the library may have shifted to socializing over studying. However, Ahn hopes to see the library being utilized more to encourage connections, whether to catch up with friends about what is happening at school or discover new research topics topics to research on their own.

Sophomore Hannah Nasiri frequently uses the library to do homework before school starts, during tutorial, lunch and after school. While she appreciates the library’s spacious tables, comfortable seating and air conditioning, she observes that the atmosphere shifts becomes into a louder and rowdier environment during lunch or break.

“I went to the library first during textbook distribution week when it was really quiet. Once distribution was finished, it started getting noisier. I do wish the school had another space to socialize indoors that is not intended for quiet studying. It ends up frustrating both sides—people who want to socialize and people who want to study,” Nasiri said.

Senior Amanda West sees the opposite trend as finals approach. She notices that the atmosphere turns into a quieter workspace rather than a socializing space closer to finals season. West particularly values the library’s digital resources, including its computers and printers, for getting work done. Although she finds the space helpful, she expresses concerns about preserving the study environment.

“I like that it serves as a space to meet with other people for group projects, but the large circular tables encourage more social activities outside of group projects, which might contribute to the problem of students using the library less for work reasons and more to talk,” West said.

According to Ahn, because of the modern digitalization of information, students have been checking out fewer books from the library for the past couple of years. However, data provides encouraging evidence that the age of scrolling is fading as more students in recent years check out library books. While In the 2024-2025 school year , the library recorded 69 book checkouts, t. The following school year had 235—, more than three times the previous year. Additionally, Ahn mentioned that there have been at least 30 checkouts in the first month of this school year, a promising start to the use of the library’s abundant collection. Ahn believes that as people attempt to reclaim the many hours spent on screens, they find more time to explore other forms of media, including books.

While statistics display signs of exponential growth in book checkoutsthe trajectory of students checking out books, the experience of some students experience seems to exhibit the opposite. West expressed that she avoids borrowing does not check out library books because the collection seems limited too small, noting that checking out materials is not a common practice. However, she added that she would and she recognizes the lack of people checking out books from the library. West stated that she would be more interested in borrowing books if the process itself was more normalized across the student body and familiar to students.

Originally built as an establishment to enrich students with education and knowledge, it has grown into an environment that provides a community of support and encouragement. Whether students use the library to meet up with friends or review for a test, what truly matters is that it remains a space for all members of the school community to find something meaningful.

About the Contributor

Sophia Shin

Staff Writer

Sophia Shin is a sophomore at Leland High School and a writer for The Charger Account. When she isn’t catching up on the newest horror games and content, she’s reading practicing dances for Leland’s 4K Dance, reading classics, or writing a book of her own.