Returning to school and checking out books is synonymous. It has been a tradition to borrow hundreds of dollars in books from the school, but is this the best option? With students liable for damage, and punishments for not repaying debts as severe as denial of prom tickets and graduation, a new system needs to emerge. We now have the technology available to provide students with the books they need, but an outdated state mandate requires every student to have a textbook, for every class.

This becomes a serious issue of waste when teachers do not need them. “We don’t use them” says Ms. Handschuh, when asked about her biology classes checking out books, but “It’s a good requirement.” We are at a point when the technology is available, we just have to make the transition. Monica Hernandez said she thought having the books “Online, like on a Kindle” would be a good alternative. A tablet sure does weigh a whole lot less than even one textbook. Mira  agrees, saying that “It’s really stupid because they’re heavy.

Checking out books can cause emotional trauma as well. I asked some people checking out books if they were afraid of the librarians. The otherwise calm and cool Mira Grebennick whispered to me “Yes, They’re scary!” “They scream at you.”  “I always have some garlic and a stake with me just in case” said Wyland Crews.

The stress that the Librarians are put through as a result of the towering responsibility of making sure all books are accounted for clearly is passed onto the students, which is unfair for everyone. This is understandable, because the books can cost upwards of a hundred dollars. Still, fear should not be used to ensure students return books.

Elizabeth Sandoval thinks having to replace expensive textbooks if you lose them is “Shitty, because I supposedly lost the book but I turned it in” Efrain Navarro summed up many people’s feelings about the library experience when he said “The checking of books before and after really needs to change.” I could not agree more, it is just a matter of time until we can check out books online.