Wednesday, September 8 update for the James A. Gibson Library:
For your safety:
Questions?
Visit the Ask Us desk or libhelp@brocku.ca
Brock University students, staff, and faculty can now use Omni to request shared physical resources quickly and easily from across all 16 Omni partner institutions, a collection of nearly 23.5 million resources.
Read more about this innovative collaboration in the Brock News and learn how to make your request in just a few clicks.
Questions? libhelp@brocku.ca
Brock University Library invites applications for a full-time contract position of Circulation Assistant.
Working in our Access Services department, a Circulation Assistant supports our busy Ask Us desk, and:
Please see the position posting for more details.
Apply online by Aug. 12, 2021 at 12:01am EST.
Questions? Email mrettig@brocku.ca, Head, Access Services.
Employment opportunity, Services
Categories: Main
With the University now in stage 3 of its reopening process, we are pleased to offer increased study options in the James A. Gibson Library. Fifty individual study spots are available for pre-booking.
Two or three-hour time slots are available during weekday mornings and afternoons. The Library closes between 12 and 1pm for cleaning.
Make your booking now!
Questions? Please email libhelp@brocku.ca
Instructors, as you prepare for the Fall 2021 term, the Library is ready to work with you for whatever mode of teaching you are considering – on campus, online, blended or hybrid.
Here’s some of the ways we can help.
For maximum flexibility, we are encouraging all instructors to continue using digital/online course readings for the fall term. This way, your students will be able to access any course readings no matter where they are physically located, or how often they may be on campus.
Several alternatives to print resources are available including the creation of course-specific online packs, leveraging articles, book chapter scans, and other digital material. The Reserves team is ready to work with you to develop these for your students.
An instructor self-serve option is also available, providing flexibility to instructors who wish to do this work themselves. All self-submissions will get a final check for copyright compliance, and will then be active for students.
With regard to e-textbooks, it is important to remember that most of the major publishers will not sell these to libraries. This limitation means that students who do not purchase the textbook have no alternative access to the textbook contents. You can read more about this limitation, and what non-print options are available. Liaison Librarians are also available to help you identify alternate resources.
For those instructors teaching primarily on-campus, the library is considering models for safely offering print reserves in September. We are interested in hearing from instructors that anticipate needing printed course reserves, so we can understand the level of demand and specific needs. Please reach out to Andrew Colgoni, Associate University Librarian, Student Success to start that conversation.
Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching and learning materials (including textbooks, courses, learning objects, tests, media, etc.) that you may freely use and reuse, without charge. Brock University Library, with our partners in CPI, can support faculty and instructors interested in using, adapting, or creating OERs in their courses or programs. Support for OER use is part of our broader commitment to helping faculty make course materials more affordable for students, in conjunction with course reserves.
If you’re considering incorporating an OER into your course, the Library and the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation are here to support you in finding the right resource for your course and how best to use it in your curriculum. Learn more about our OER Services.
Our librarians are available to work with you on building research skills, information literacy, and related literacies into your course curriculum. Contact the liaison librarian for your program.
You may also wish to include the library’s various online learning resources into Sakai or your syllabus. We have a comprehensive list of research guides for Brock’s programs, as well as tutorials, videos and guides for common research tasks, like searching Omni, the library’s academic search tool.
Instructors looking to include film or video in their curriculum are encouraged to search Omni, or look through our Streaming Video Resource guide, which includes all of our subscription platforms and a number of free resources. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, we can work with you on possible alternatives. Contact us directly at libhelp@brocku.ca to learn more.
The pandemic has highlighted how important access to electronic resources has been, and the library will continue to prioritize purchasing electronic resources where possible. The pandemic has also highlighted just how valued the print collection is. Through programs such as the HathiTrust Emergency Temporary Access Service (ETAS), we have been able to provide digitized access to about a third of our print collection while the physical library space is closed. Instructors should note that should we be able to open the library fully, including the floors housing our print collection, we would need to discontinue ETAS. We commit to continue working with our users and responding as best we can to facilitate access to print content.
We plan on continuing Interlibrary Loan services, though it continues to be subject to availability and access at our partner libraries.
OER, Open Educational Resources, Services, Streaming Video, Teaching & Learning
Categories: Main
Ask a Librarian is a collaborative virtual reference service that connects students, faculty members, and researchers from participating university libraries across Ontario with real-time library and research assistance through chat.
Since the pandemic began, Brock and partner libraries have seen a sharp increase in questions from our respective communities. In our post-chat exit survey, we recently heard from a Brock student who noted “I love the library chat. I use it all the time and it is always so helpful. It has been a lifesaver during the pandemic!”
With online support at the forefront right now, we’ve added a new Ask a Librarian tab across our website. Assistance is now just one click away.
Learn more about Ask a Librarian, or chat with us now.
Thank you to everyone who participated in our Omni Feedback Survey! Participants had the option to enter a draw for a $50 Amazon gift card. The contest closed Friday April 30th at noon and one lucky winner was randomly selected. Congratulations to Cedric Junor, a 2nd year film studies student!
Feedback from the survey will help us learn how Omni has been helpful in your research journey as well as identify areas that could be improved. As Omni is a consortia search tool with 15 other universities in Ontario, the anonymous feedback we received will contribute to the overall experience for all schools. Although the contest has closed, the survey still remains available to anyone else in the Brock community who would like to share their feedback. We always appreciate learning from our users.
Brock University Library welcomes you to the spring term. If you are new to Brock, take a look at the Discover Your Library page for a quick introduction to library people, services, & resources. Supporting you in your academic life is core to our mission.
We have developed a number of online and in-person services and supports in response to COVID-19. Our focus is on access to electronic resources and virtual help. You can learn more about these services on our COVID-19 page.
For new students, the shift to academic research can be a challenge, but getting assistance is easy. We offer email and chat services as well as online research consultations with our Liaison Librarians.
We look forward to working with you and wish you all the best for a successful term.
In response to the provincial stay-at-home order, the Library’s book pickup service will continue, but with shortened hours. The new hours for pickup are Wednesday from 10am-2pm. Upon arrival for pickup and after screening by campus security, please come to our Book Pickup table just outside the entrance of the library. Give us a call at 905-688-5550 x4583 to let us know you have arrived, and Library staff will bring your books out to you. Full instructions will be provided to you over email when your items are ready for pickup.
Online library services such as scanning requests and Hathi Trust are unaffected by the stay–at-home order. We will continue to support access to the information you need for your research and teaching.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at libhelp@brocku.ca
As we approach the end of term, the Library along with colleagues in A-Z Learning Services are keen to support Brock students who are completing final assignments and preparing for exams.
We’ve highlighted a number of resources and tips along with links to research guides, ways to contact us, and stress-relieving diversions in an online booklet this year. We hope you enjoy it and share it with friends.
A-Z Learning Services has excellent guides available to help you with:
Learning Skills Specialists are also running several online drop-in study sessions that you can visit to study with others, or get help on a specific assignment or question.
Student mental health and wellness are important to us. To that end, we’ve created a Wellness Guide for you to explore at any time of the year. And finally, if you could use a little motivation or reassurance, download our smartphone and desktop wallpapers. ⬇️
Smartphone wallpaper thumbnails (click for full size render and to download)
Desktop wallpaper thumbnails (click for full size render and to download)
