Use course reserves to give students free access
Putting your course materials on reserve at the Library helps students succeed. This is a great way to make sure every student has access to the required reading.
You can ask us to put books and ebooks, streaming media, and interactive learning materials on reserve. The sooner you submit a course reserves request, the more likely the materials are to be available within the first weeks of Fall 2024 classes.
If you own copies of any required course materials, we welcome temporary donations of these personal items to place on reserve. We will make them available for your students to check out and return them to you after the course ends.
You and your students can find the direct link to our Course Reserves page in the OneSearch box on our homepage. And even more online course materials are available free to students through our Ebook Textbooks list, which we update each semester.
Invite a librarian into your class
Students tell us that they find library instruction valuable, and faculty members tell us students' papers and projects are of higher quality when they have had library instruction. Consider incorporating it into your classes if you don’t already!
Request a librarian-led instruction session tailored to your course and research assignment. We teach lessons on a wide range of information literacy topics customized for in-person, hybrid, and fully online classes. Special Collections & Archives also offers primary source instruction on a topic of your choice.
Please make your requests as early as possible, ideally at least two weeks before your preferred dates.
If you don’t have a research assignment but want to ensure your students are familiar with the Library and its resources, consider requesting a 60-minute Library 101 tour or a 15-minute drop-in visit for your class.
Not sure what you need? Email libsse@sfsu.edu to set up a consultation or contact your department’s library liaison.
Find teaching and learning tools for the research process
The Library has created tools and activities to help your students understand each stage of the research process — and to make scaffolding the process in your course easier.
Canvas Modules
Look in the SFSU Canvas Commons for these activities covering fundamental information literacy skills and concepts, which you can import into your course with the click of a button:
- COMM 150 Research Tutorial
- Empirical Research
- Evaluating Sources with ACT UP
- Synthesizing Sources
- OneSearch Exercise
- Research Questions and Keywords
- Using Sources in Your Writing
The Labor Archives and Research Center (larc@sfsu.edu) also has modules available in the SFSU Canvas Commons that cover topics in labor history and primary-source research:
- Oral History Toolkit: To help you integrate oral history assignments into your courses.
- Watsonville Canneries Strike, Primary Sources: A short introduction focused on primary sources.
- Watsonville Canneries Strike,1985 – 1987: A more comprehensive history of the strike.
- What is a Union?: An overview of the purpose and practice of unions and labor organizing.
- Filipino American Community and Identity in the Pajaro Valley: An overview of Filipino American history in the Pajaro Valley focused on labor, business and social organizations, foodways, and music.
Preview these openly licensed (CC BY-NC 4.0) modules and then adapt them as you see fit: change the name, personalize examples, edit point values, etc.
Librarians are available to answer questions about modules or activities and help to make them work for your course.
These resources will continue to grow and evolve, and we welcome feedback and requests. Contact the Library Student Success & Engagement Team at libsse@sfsu.edu or schedule an appointment with us to discuss.
Library Resources in Canvas
In addition to modules, your students can find links to library resources in Canvas on the default Library Resources page. You can also add direct links to research guides or databases.
Much more information here: Accessing Library Resources & Content in Canvas
YouTube Channel
Short video tutorials made by librarians on how to search the Library, get better results, stay organized, and more! Like and subscribe!
youtube.com/@sfstatelibrary
Teaching Research Toolkit
The Teaching Research Toolkit is a faculty-facing collection of resources and activities to help you scaffold the research process throughout your course.
Not sure where to start? Make an appointment and we can discuss what resources might work well for you.