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Three top tips for students

By Hazel M Ingrey, on 2 February 2017

You found your online reading list on Moodle by spotting the link in the ‘Library Resources’ block, or when searching for your course on the ReadingLists@UCL home page.  Perhaps you read some key texts for tutorials in the first flush of enthusiasm in the autumn, however now it is revision time and you need to look over some of those readings in a hurry!

If you are short on time and need to find things quickly, here are our top three for using ReadingLists@UCL:

  1. Long reading list?  Re-order the readings by importance (essential, recommended etc.) or type (journal, book…), using the ‘Grouped by section’ button.  Then scroll down, or use the ‘Table of contents’ to jump down, to the section on ‘Essential’ readings for example.
  2. Convert the list to pdf to print out (Export -> Export to PDF) to highlight and scribble on; or keep your notes virtual by using the ‘Add note’ button on each reading.  These notes are private to you.
  3. Log in!  Once logged in, click on your name at the top of the screen and ‘View Profile’ to see your private notes and reading intentions.
Group by type2

(Click to enlarge)

 

From speaking with students we know you find reading lists intuitive to use, however we also have a little more guidance on our webpages, just in case.  We are always very keen to hear of anything that can be improved, so please contact us with suggestions or questions!

 

 

 

 

The MAPS approach to reading lists

By Sandra Bamborough, on 14 May 2015

Earlier this year I met with the MAPS Faculty Library Committee to give them a quick introduction to ReadingLists@UCL.  The composition of this meeting was really good because as well as academics the attendees included the Subject Librarian, the StAR (Student Academic Representative), academic/student liaison and an administrator, so I could showcase the benefits of the online reading lists to all of these audiences.

Some departments in MAPS find that they have little need for books in their teaching so this was the perfect opportunity to illustrate that a reading list does not have to be stuffed full of references to books and journals, but instead can be as little as a few links to relevant professional organisations that students need to be aware of. The Q&A session was followed by a brief demo of what reading lists could contain, where I emphasised various online resources, not just books.

Following on from the meeting we were tasked with putting together a short ‘crib sheet’ for the department. We already have the online ‘Quick Guide’, but we tailored another guide for the MAPS faculty and included an example of how to link to a website, how to link reading lists to Moodle blocks and how to install the Bookmarking Button. The resulting MAPS Getting Started with online lists guide is now online.

We further customised the guide with a list of suggested resources which could be useful, particularly on courses where reading lists aren’t commonly used.  Being familiar with the subject areas, Robert Tomaszewski, the Subject Librarian, was very happy to contribute these suggested resources.

This list of suggested resources is also presented as an online list to illustrate how it works in practice.  MAPS lecturers can include the resources in their own reading lists, or link to the guide.  For example, there is a guide to avoiding plagiarism, or you might prefer to include the link to UCL’s current plagiarism guidelines for students, as some other academics have also done on their reading lists.

MAPS have chosen to recommend that their lecturers create their own lists. We set the lists up, send editing access to the tutor and offer a quick orientation, so they can start managing their list. Take a look at an interesting list.

This strategy has worked fantastically well for the Faculty, with resulting successes so far of 99 out of 103 courses for Mathematics (96%) having an online reading list, whilst Statistical Science have reached the magic 100%. A similar approach could be taken by other Departments with low or relatively low take-up of reading lists, with suggested resources tailored to each department.

There are of course many alternative approaches to increase the number of reading lists and improve the student experience.  Please email us for further information, or to request a ReadingLists@UCL poster, aimed at either students or staff, which you can customise for your department.

How ReadingLists@UCL can help you at exam time

By Sandra Bamborough, on 26 February 2015

Many UCL courses have an online reading list to guide you in your study. Reading lists are a tailored list of resources which may include links to full text readings, library books or TV clips, which you can access online anywhere, any time.

Your reading list is an essential tool to help you revise for your exams.  It might contain readings which you have read in preparation for class, and they are a quick and easy way for you to look back over them when doing your revision.  Many readings might be key texts which link out to full-text e-journal articles, or e-books.  Where books are in the library, you will see links to the library catalogue (Explore) so you can instantly check whether the book is on the shelf and place a reservation if it is on loan.

Where your tutors have written notes to guide you, or tags to show which resources are essential reading, these will also prove helpful as you go back over the resources you have used this year.   You can sort the list by importance and refer back to any of your own notes that you may have added (remember to sign in first!).  Perhaps most importantly, you can export the readings into a different citation format, invaluable when referencing your sources.

Access the reading lists for your courses directly through Moodle via a link in the ‘Library resources’ block (where you can also see any relevant Online Exam Papers).  Search the ReadingLists@UCL homepage by module code or title, or by your lecturer’s name if they have made this available. You can also browse by department or search Explore, the library catalogue.

You can find more information on the student information webpage for reading lists and if you need any help do please contact your Subject or Site Librarian!

Good luck!

Student engagement at UCLU Education Conference

By Sandra Bamborough, on 24 February 2015

This Saturday 21st February Hazel and I took the ReadingLists@UCL advocacy campaign

Photo Hazel & Sandra 2

into the student heartland of the UCLU Education Conference, held this year at the Institute of Child Health.

Our stall gave us the opportunity showcase the highlights and benefits of the online reading lists in a very visual manner that appealed to the attendees.

 

 

We showed students that online reading lists allowed them to view readings in different citation styles, or export the citations to Endnote, Reference Manager, Zotero etc. for use in their work; they could sort the resources on their list by ‘type’ or ‘importance’, for example to group all essential readings together.  In essence, they could make the list their own by adding private notes and a reading status for each item.

Photo Sandra & student

Many of the students were unaware of the online reading lists and when shown the benefits were very impressed and determined to ask their lecturers why their courses did not have one!   Some students actually discovered they did have a reading list – only they hadn’t been shown how to access it, and were delighted to find they could do so seamlessly from Moodle, as long as the course tutor or administrator had remembered to switch on the Library Resources block.

 

 

The Student Academic Representatives, or StARS as they are better known, were particularly impressed. They will be taking back the message that online reading lists are an essential part of the student learning experience at UCL and need to be more widely adopted by departments across UCL.

We reminded the students that ReadingLists@UCL are best for:

  • Revising from home
  • Clear guidance on essential / recommended readings
  • Distance learning courses
  • Many full text readings so no need to visit the library…
  • …but also, live links to the library catalogue to see if books are on the shelf right now! If not, just click through to reserve books
  • Making your own notes on each reading
  • Consistency across programmes

 

For information and FAQs for students, visit www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists/student

Students, get a head start on your reading with ReadingLists@UCL!

By Sandra Bamborough, on 15 December 2014

Many UCL courses have an online reading list to guide you in your study. Reading lists are a tailored list of resources which may include links to full text readings, library books or TV clips, which you can access online anywhere, any time.

ReadingLists@UCL are created by your teachers to suit your department’s teaching, so each will be different. Your reading list might contain week by week readings to read in preparation for class, for example with key texts which link out to full-text e-journal readings, or e-books. Where books are in the library, you will see links to the library catalogue (Explore) so you can instantly check whether the book is on the shelf and place a reservation if it is on loan. A resource list could also give guidance for your own research or self-guided learning.

Other resources include digitised book chapters, links to TV or radio programmes, and specialist databases, all of which you have access to because you are at UCL. There may also be notes to guide you, or tags to show which resources are essential reading. You can sort the list by importance, add your own notes, or export the readings into a different citation format.

Access the reading lists for your courses directly through Moodle via a link in the ‘Library resources’ block, or search the ReadingLists@UCL homepage by module code or title, or by your lecturer’s name if they have made this available. You can also browse by department or search Explore, the library catalogue. Not all courses will have a list, and it is your department or tutor who will decide whether to create one.

You can find more information on the student information webpage for reading lists!

All change! New library webpages arrived 4th September

By Sandra Bamborough, on 2 September 2014

UCL Library’s webpages have migrated and launched on Thursday 4th September.

Commuter

As a result the address for many of our web pages has changed, so please remember to check and update your bookmarks.

For searching for, and accessing, your reading lists, the address remains the same: http://readinglists.ucl.ac.uk

Similarly the web address for Explore does not change. Explore is the library catalogue and resources page from which you can bookmark journals, books and ebooks to add to your reading list.

Here are some key addresses which have changed – the new ones are on the right in blue:

DESCRIPTION CURRENT (until September 4th 2014) NEW – from September 4th 2014 onwards
Teaching & Learning Support Section home page http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teachsup.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support
ReadingLists@UCL home page http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists
ReadingLists@UCL for teaching staff (guides and FAQ’s) http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists-teaching.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists
Form to request a new reading list http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/reading-form.php http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists/request-form
Quick guide to adding resources to your reading list http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists-quick-guide.pdf http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/docs/tlss/quick-guide.pdf
FAQs for support staff http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists-support.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists/support
ReadingLists@UCL for students http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists-students.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists/student
ReadingLists@UCL news page http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/readinglists-news.shtml http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/teaching-support/reading-lists/news

How do students access their online reading lists?

By Sandra Bamborough, on 29 August 2014

Most often, students find a reading list via their Moodle course, where they simply click on the reading list they need from the Library Resources block.  This block contains a link called ‘Reading list for…’ which links to the reading list with the same course code.

How do you set this up for them?  First request a reading list to be set up using the online form.  In Moodle, turn on the Library Resources block and it will automatically link to the reading list with the same course code.

Students can also access their reading list by searching:

  • ReadingLists@UCL using course code or title, or even the academic’s name if this has been added
  • the library catalogue Explore

Once students have found their online reading lists they can view them in different ways.

  • Use the ‘View bibliography’ button to produce a list of all the readings in alphabetical order, which can be printed (click ‘Export’ then ‘Export to PDF’)…
  • … use one of the drop-down boxes to select different citation styles. If a key citation style is missing, use the green ‘Feedback’ button to request another.
  • The reading list can be printed out in its existing layout (sign in, select ‘Export’ and then ‘Export to PDF’)
  • either of the above options can also be emailed to oneself, to save a copy.
  • The ‘Export’ button enables exporting references in different formats: we will cover this in another post, and on our webpage guides.

If you have questions about any of this, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!

Using ReadingLists@UCL for pre-session readings

By Sandra Bamborough, on 29 August 2014

Once a student has registered and started at UCL they will be able to access the reading lists for their courses on Moodle, through the Library Resources block.

The good news is they don’t need to wait until then: if you have created an online reading list for your course, even if more resources will be added in readiness for the new term, your students will be able to access this online now. Students can search by module code or title, or drill down through the hierarchy till they find their course, then click on their list.

They can see which readings are essential, or suggested for student purchase, so they can read or buy these before they arrive at UCL. Some links may take them to subscribed resources hidden behind a log-in page (e.g. an electronic version of a book or journal article, or TV programme) which they won’t be able to access until they have registered at UCL.

One department is already making use of this for their students by including details in their welcome letter. This is a great taster for their courses and the keen and enterprising student can get ahead with their reading.

For those thinking of coming to UCL in the future, our reading lists offer a fantastic shop window of what we have to offer those students who choose to learn with us.

Students can find more information on the reading list student page.

Student Survey

By Sandra Bamborough, on 18 June 2014

Just what do students really think about those reading lists you prepare for their courses using ReadingLists@UCL?  These are some of the positive comments we captured in feedback in early June from a straw poll of undergraduate and postgraduate students:

“If you didn’t have these you wouldn’t know where to begin”
 
“Good because you can link through to a text directly”
 
“If someone in the year below asked what’d help in their course I’d direct them to reading lists”
 
“… easy to use when doing bibliography”
 
“Useful if just looking for a chapter that’s linked through”
 

Find out how to set up a reading list  or email us